Search - Rothko :: Forty Years to Find a Voice

Wonderful debut album

Matt Inwood | Bath, England | 12/11/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"There's a beautiful, dark thread that links song to song on 'Forty Years To Find A Voice'. Gone the mesmerising track-by-track autonomy of 'A Negative for Francis'; 'Forty Years...' is comparitively symphonic. Though the title is attributed to their painter namesake it is more than pertinent to the album too. They have found a voice - the first Rothko voice - in Simon Tilbury who laments over first track 'Open' and fuses his words beautifully with the lonely tonality of a single plucked bass. The voice found could also read as metaphor for a sound found, because across these twelve tracks is Rothko's most efficacious voice yet. They explore desolation, dislocation, turmoil and sadness on a grand scale, from the aching flute of 'Breatharian' to the shimmering melancholy of 'Herbivore'. There is such intensity to this album, glimpses of which appeared on 'A Negative...', but that is here so much more manifest. 'Us To Become Sound' epitomises this new weightiness and is by far their most perfect moment yet: one bass picked out over the top of another; one swirls, they coalesce, then pull apart, repeat and ebb into a muddy drone; then become softer and cleaner; then quiet. It's a wonderful movement. 'Herbivore' is dappled with a sweet and pensive light. Soft and loud dynamics rise and fall throughout the album. The jazzy inflections of the trumpet on 'Sky Blue Glow' and the haunting guest vocal on 'Open' hint that Rothko might be evolving the way of instrumental expansion and collaboration. It seems an organic progression for a band who have defined their territory and found a profound voice."

Beyond novelty, it becomes sublime

Matthew D. Mercer | Chicago, IL United States | 07/30/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Rothko's claim to "fame" would be their arrangements.... this trio operates strictly with basses, no guitars, no drums. How surprising is it then that they've completely dodged an American distribution deal with Kranky somehow, and this album is only available as a pricey import to Americans? Despite this minor hitch, the album is quite good. It meanders along at just the right pace, and there are enough extra bonuses here and there such as some production assistance from Jon Tye (Twisted Science), trumpet and flute on various other tracks. The first song may be misleading with its wistful vocals, as the rest of the album is more easygoing and instrumental. Fans of artists such as Labradford, Windy and Carl, and the whole Kranky Records roster would probably enjoy Rothko's "40 Years" album. If droney, beatless melancholy is your bag, this is for you."

Atmospheric ambient post rock

a1 | 10/16/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"That other reviewer did not make it clear that this is an instrumental band, and all electric bass at that. No vocals .. no beats, just tangled basslines and layers upon layers of ambienece and effects. Secondary sounds of trumpet, flute, or distant distorted voice are incorporated on some tracks. The muted tones of the wandering melodies are mostly freeform, unpinned from regular rhythm, like the casual hum of a tune that lingers on the sweet spots or pauses to spiral off into echos. This album more than their others is very symphonic, with each track implicitly leading into the next, for a finished work that is meant to be appreciated as a whole not in parts. This is not an especially dark album, though it has its moments of grim lament, but it is not an entirely bright album either; it wanders through scenes and touches on both ends of that spectrum. And scenic is the operative word to describe this music. Scenic, evocative, and mesmerizing.I'd wager fans of Gas or made even Tarentel would love this, but while Rothko draws elements from both their respective genres, it is quite its own thing, not comparable to any one other group."