Causa Sui

Rock's relationship with improv could be described as cold or, perhaps, strained. Outside of Germany, most avant-gardists prefer to work within the realms of jazz, electronic or (as of late) metal. That's why almost anything melding loud guitars and free-form structures ends up being compared to Krautrock. Pewt'r Sessions 1-2 supports this claim immensely. Originally released as a pair of limited-edition vinyl recordings in 2011, these nine sprawling, churning, bursting instrumentals pair Danish rockers Causa Sui, featuring Jonas Munk (aka Manual), with Sunburned Hand of the Man psychic Ron Schneiderman. Although most of the 90-minute compilation circles around the same droning bottom end, cascading guitar rhythms and wild-man drum patterns, much of Pewt'r Sessions 1-2 comes off surprisingly contained and serialized, as moments from "Mating Call" or "Gelassenheit" almost sound jam band-ish in their structure/un-structure. Pewt'r Sessions 1-2 shows Causa Sui and Schneiderman working like a tight, experienced unit, crafting terrific 21st century… um… Krautrock.