:zoviet*france:

the decriminalisation of country music

label tramway
catalogue no. TRAM1
format compact disc | digipack

track listing
01 something spooked the horses
02 electron gate
03 stainless
04 pyroclastic flow
05 dust and scratches
06 duct tape
07 purline
08 spiiltek
09 light abrasion

The Decriminalisation of Country Music is such a seductively introspective album that it would be easy to overlook the way it resonates far beyond the exquisite fusion of drones and slide guitar.

Commissioned by the Tramway arts centre, each track is built around a series of documentary recordings made during a major redevelopment programme. “Something Spooked The Horses” refers to the building’s status as a former tram yard. Its broader industrial geneology is hinted at with deft subtlety by :zoviet*france:’s trademark drones. These float beneath a melancholy guitar like the phantom sirens of industrial production resonating in a space still unaccustomed to such quietness. Instead of documenting the building process, the CD marks the interstitial moments of peace during the period of transition. Occasional bangs and clangs of workmen are so far away they chime with precision. while the smallest details skitter around in the foreground.

Ben Borthwick | The Wire | December 2000