Excepter

Former No-Neck Blues Band member John Fell Ryan and his colleagues in Excepter have been honing their feverish brand of synthesizer symphonies since early last decade. While most of the past Excepter releases have been reasonably singular statements, double-disc Presidence draws from many facets of the group's oeuvre. Taken from a series of marathon recording sessions captured over the course of six years, these tracks offer a unique glimpse into the weird world in which Ryan and company exist. Extended solo synthesizer workouts (the title track) sit alongside dreamy, pseudo-industrial epics (the six-part "Teleportation"). Swirling, wordless vocals accompany the equally amorphous melodies. True to form, the music tempts and torments, never truly offering a release from its sinister beckoning. Even after the two-plus hours of music are over, the strange sonics linger on the tip of the brain. Without a doubt, Presidence is a truly hypnotic record.