L A N D (Land) - Night Within (2012) [FLAC|Lossless|tracks + .cue] <Dark Ambient, Dark Jazz, Post Rock>

L A N D are Daniel Lea and Matthew Waters, the co-directors of this stunning LP called 'Night Within' and starring David Sylvian, Daniel O'Sullivan, Alexander Tucker and Ben Frost, among many others. It's as striking a debut as any that's crossed our path all year, manifesting their stirring passion for film noir soundtracks with the highest attention to detail and aesthetic, from the unsettlingly visceral sound design to the wending, lowlit narrative and urbane collision of panicky discord, tight-but-free percussion and glossily rich harmony. The celluloid analogy is unavoidable and entirely at the core of the album; both the lyrics of David Sylvian's opening theme 'Nothing Is Happening Everywhere' and the accompanying, Morricone-esque guitar shimmers at once evoke sweeping panoramic cinematography and alley-strafing nuance, while the martial snares, squabbly distortion and mournful sax of 'Into The Blue' suggest prowling, shark-eyed figures on mean streets, and the smoky jazz verve of 'Stillman' infers intimacy, playfulness, who knows...? And as with any great flick, it's possibly the most subliminal, peripheral elements which can have the greatest impact, and here it's Ben Frost's filigree mix and post-production - the way he makes the strings and hi-hats shiver above heart-thumping bass on 'Cosmopolis', or his dread-filled dubbing on 'Hotel Room' through to breathtaking rendering of near-infrasonic subbass, plangent keys and thunderous drums on closing scene 'Cold Desire'. Highly recommended.