Review: Lusine — Sensorimotor
Consistency. We all demand it, right? How many of us continue to frequent the café that serves up inconsistent French toast? Your favorite musician didn’t earn such esteem by schlepping mediocrity in-between one great album. But is it possible for an artist to spend (nearly) two decades pairing quality and quantity? After a dozen albums and a box full of singles and compilations, Lusine (aka Jeff McIlwain) is making a strong case you can.
On his new album, Sensorimotor (out on March 3rd from Ghostly International), McIlwain’s reliable instincts lead to a collection of some of his strongest songs to date. “Canopy” gently sets the record in motion in front of grey architecture with swirls from a music box, which builds into a pulsing, trance-like instrumental chorus of digital sounds trapped in the ether. “Ticking Hands” follows with McIlwain and his wife Sarah singing about the difficulties of being separated during tours and sounding as good as any single The Postal Service ever doled out.
Other magical vocal contributions from Benoît Pioulard spill into a frantic loop of densely nonsensical utterances and frequent collaborator Vilja Larjosto’s voice weaves in between a smearing of electro pop McIlwain has nearly perfected in recent years. While these numbers are without a doubt engaging and give the record depth and color, the heart of this album is found in-between. The aptly titled “Chatter” enters mid-album with gentle woodwinds reminiscent of being a child playing echo games in a tunnel or a cave. “Flyaway” quick steps melody and visceral beats in a blur of machine and clinking hand percussion. By the album’s end, McIlwain is aggressive as ever, lifting breaking beats and pulsating synths into the atmosphere.
Sensorimotor expands on the glitchy blips and collaged sounds McIlwain has expertly spliced between Detroit techno and ambient synth on prior releases. He’s created a soundscape where his experimentation and instinct give more than they take. McIlwain’s consistency within the electronic music continuum points directly to his thirst for discovery and on Sensorimotor he avoids circling around to past successes; he soars like a bird with a direction all his own.
(You can listen to “Slow Motion” below or sample some of the other tracks from Sensorimotor HERE. You can also get more info about Lusine on Facebook HERE.)