Any Colour You Like
Sailors With Wax Wings is a supergroup. Not that you would really notice if you didn't carefully pay attention to the array of musicians who collaborated on this 2010 release. Taking influences from a wide spectrum of sonic goodness, the result, much like R. Loren's previous efforts with Pyramids and White Moth, is a schizophrenic mix of drone, ambient, metal, indie, electronic and noise. That sure sounds like a fun combo, and it certainly comes across in the warm, enveloping world of Sailors With Wax Wings.
It's not often you can say that an album takes the sickly-sweet drawn out melodies of latter-period Earth, with tremolo picked guitars, deep male/female vocal melodies and psychedelic pop edges. I'm sure this is what and acid-soaked tribute album to Jesu would sound like. Sure, it's not exactly dynamic, but the lushness of the sound is mesmerising without being completely insane; or ostracising like harsh noise artists or those with a penchant for dissonance and atonality.
My only gripe with this release is it tends to drift aimlessly. For an album that feels like a stream-of-conciousness filtered through various mind altering substances, this is to be somewhat expected. And it's largely enjoyable for the first few tracks. However, I can't help but feel that there's so much more potential for exploration and expansion. Although there's no doubt in my mind that this album will please a select few; the artistic edges of this release will be sure to attract cries of pretension and bloated self-worth. Nay, there's plenty of evidence that Sailors With Wax Wings deserves more than to be pigeon-holed and derided.