Genre: Electronic/Experimental
 
Track Listing:

01 Eating Bees In An Airport
02 For You, Two
03 Pounder
04 Sleeper For The Dead
05 BRB
06 Fragile X In The New Age
07 Dracula Needs Glasses
08 Bullfight At Swan Lake
09 Wings Found In My Things

400 Lonely Things have been making music since 1988.  Comprised of Jonathan McCall and Craig Varian, the twosome have created sound scapes using a variety of instruments, electronics, loops, effects, toys, pedals and tapes.  “The Late Show” was originally released in 2003, here we find it remixed.  With many releases to their name, each with differing sounds and themes, this release in their own words, is their most baffling.  While on some songs, you can whole heartedly agree, but for the most part it is an enjoyable journey taking us from jazzy improvisation, ambient peacefulness to industrial grittiness.

The quirky sounds of “Eating Bees In An Airport” starts off our trek.  An acoustic guitar swirls into an improvised jazz beat.  “For You, Two” has a soothing drone that in entwined with ambient and static noises.  A back beat kicks in giving it a moody, harder edge, which works very well.  There’s a bleak edginess that develops and it adds an industrial flourish to the song.  “Pounder” transitions from a barrage of white noise and taped vocals into an eerie and disturbing atmosphere.  The sounds are hypnotic, inviting us into a surreal underworld.  The vocals used present a mystic, North African/Middle Eastern vibe.  This disappears into a chiming pitch of ambient sound.  “Sleeper For The Dead” features layered guitars in differing phrases and rhythms.  It consists of a melodic rock, somewhat psychedelic sound, reminiscent of Can and Astra.  The transition then to pure ambient sound opens a gateway into a torrent of Syd Barrett like effects.  The original guitars return, and it all glides into a subtle fruition.  Next, “BRB” has guitars too, but this time a jangling, early 80’s goth, post rock guitar.  Unfortunately its short lived, only lasting a few minutes, but lucky us, it neatly slides into “Fragile X In The New Age”.  The influences of Mazzy Star and Jesus and Mary Chain guitars are clearly heard. 

The heavy reverbed guitars are turned inside out, dissipating into a new age ambient sound of rushing water and tranquil tones.  Our guitars return once again though, to break our calm.  “Dracula Needs Glasses” places us somewhere cold and desolate.  An industrial –like beat sets us in a diabolically sinister state of mind.  It’s cool atmosphere and eeriness is the embodiment of smart gothic.  Using Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake as a loop, “Bullfight At Swan Lake” is complimented by guitar.  The sounds meld together effortlessly and are stretched out until they become a drone.  A spoken word piece (yes, you are correct, it does sound like Gollum) is layered above it.  Percussion is added as an intermission, but the spoken word piece comes back and so does Swan Lake.  Bittersweet and emotive, in the end everything is neatly tied together in a riot of sound.  The beginning of “Wings Found In My Things” sounds almost exactly as Phil Collins’ “In The Air Tonight”; it’s probably not a coincidence either.  Scratchy effects are juxtaposed with field recordings of birds.  A drum machine rhythm adds a bouncy beat to the mix.  Once again it transitions into keyboards (somewhat Kraftwerk-like).  It’s all an exploration of sound, atmosphere and rhythm.  Although interesting; out of all the songs this seemed the least cohesive, maybe a case of too many ideas into one song. 

“The Late Show” is a luxurious experiment in the layering of sound.  Each song seems to be a vignette, setting for us a place, a mood, and a tale set to our own imagination.  The apparatus used and genres combined is nothing new, but here it is done with a skilled hand, and most importantly a sense of humor.  That in itself takes away any pretentiousness from it, making it a satisfying voyage both musically and intellectually.

[Editor's Note:  The Late Show was not originally released in 2003 and subsequently remixed (that was 400 Lonely Things' self-titled first album). The Late Show is their second album and was released on compact disc in the summer of 2008.