Broadcast

Pendulum (Warp)

By Amber Drea
Published: May 12th, 2003 | 12:03pm

When a band hasn't put anything out in three years, a long-awaited release consisting of six songs seems to tease rather than satisfy the expectations created by the long absence. Broadcast's new EP opens with the title track, on which Trish Keenan's ethereally pure voice chants "I'm in orbit / Held by magnet / And the force feels / So much closer than love" over a crescendo of driving percussion, pulsating synthesizer riffs, and feedback-ridden guitar textures. "Small Song IV," a sparse layering of dry bass melodies, tambourine-like clanging, staticky guitars, and spooky, detached vocals, moves more towards the '60s psychedelic pop that was so prominent on Broadcast's The Noise Made by People.

At the center of Pendulum is a short instrumental called "One Hour Empire," which is the most striking of the compositions and the one reason, if for no other, to hear this EP. It's a fun, creepy romp of dissonant keyboards and swinging drum rhythms heavy with cymbals and snare punctuated by piercing guitar chords. The tension is resolved by the following track, a groovy return to more traditional auditory landscapes at times reminiscent of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony.

"Violent Playground" sounds as if it is one long drum solo, with its prominent breakbeat patterns and resonating production culminating in a cacophony of spacey noises and samples. The last track is a minimalist sequel to "Minus One" from the aforementioned album.

Broadcast is like Stereolab with a tighter musical focus and a twist of Portishead's haunting presence, though more experimental and less devoted to the structure of the song. The band is surprisingly organic for Warp Records, a label known for its monopoly on the godfathers of IDM (Intelligent Dance Music) Aphex Twin, Squarepusher, and Autechre, among others. For the time being, Pendulum may appease you, but will most likely only make you more eager for Broadcast's third full-length, which is scheduled for an August release.