Cloudkicker – ]]][[[

Posted on April 4, 2010 by Mike McGrath Bryan

Your reviewer is probably in no fit state to review this right now, given the rush he is still currently undergoing from this record.  But it just has to be done. You know the first time you heard that awesome record you love, champion to everyone you know and go to sleep clutching at night? Well, this is a brand new love affair in the waiting.

Ben Sharp, aka Cloudkicker, has been writing and recording solo albums in his home studio since 2005, and has insisted on releasing them gratis, exclusively in digital formats. Compared to a more melodic Meshuggah, the comparison is rightly smashed asunder in his latest effort, the quixotically-titled mini-album ]]][[[, which marks wandering into post-rock and shoegaze.

Three tracks in total make up the record, all named in grammatical symbols: #, % and $. Never mind all this.

# is a serene and meandering epic, snaking its way along at its very own pace, before suddenly jerking into a bracing yet captivating math phalanx, slowly building upwards upon itself as it reaches its climax. % is the centerpiece of the record, a dense beast, pregnant with dreamy melody,  infinitely inspiring, circling upon its dazed trail until snapping into a commanding crescendo. The stuff of visions. $ is a fine balance of galloping metal and intricate arrangement, making its way into a mathy shoegaze, driven with foreboding, crunchy bass, all before dashing gallantly for the finish line in one last, near-discordant coda.

One could argue that three tracks really isn’t enough to make that much of an impact as an artist. I disagree. There is more depth and exploration on display here than on the majority of albums this reviewer has ever heard, with more twists and diversions than even your genre-standard post-this album, even more impressive when you realise this was a home recording, away from the malignance of money and label politics.

A work of such magnificence and at times overawing beauty as to be made an instant classic. Exhilarating, jaw-dropping, life-affirming, wonderful, genuinely amazing stuff.

In keeping with Sharp’s DIY ethic, download this yesterday. Give it to all your friends. Spread the word. Help bring this opus to the status it deserves.

DROP-D RATING: 9.5/10

Download the Cloudkicker discography in its entirety here.

Cloudkicker MySpace

Check out % in the video below. You won’t be disappointed.

Filed under: featured, records

Tags: Ben Sharp, Cloudkicker, DIY, exhilarating, free downloads, grammatical symbols as titles, home recordings, math, post rock, shoegaze