Matmos

In their 15 years as a group, Matmos have relied as much on the concept behind each album as on the music within. The group's latest release, The Ganzfeld EP, follows suit: it's named after a series of early 20th century experiments, where individuals were deprived of their senses and tested for extrasensory perception. For this EP, Matmos's Drew Daniel conducted his own series of Ganzfeld experiments, and the melodies and images that were "transmitted" formed the basis for the three songs. Concepts aside, the music contained within is undeniably Matmos. "Very Large Green Triangles (Edit)" takes a series of sampled voices, pianos and strings, and manipulates them into a dark sound collage underscored by an off-kilter electronic pulse. On his remix of "You," Rrose turns an as-of-yet unreleased song into a hazy seven-minute house track, continuing the sinister melodies hinted at on the first track. "Just Waves," the third and final song on the EP, could be considered a misstep to anyone that isn't already on board with the idea behind this release. A series of voices (Matmos, Dan Deacon and members of Dirty Projectors) dictate a list of things they see around them, presumably related to the aforementioned experiment. The vocals overlap in "pitched clusters" and turn into a dizzying choir, with very few non-vocal sounds introduced across the 12-minute track. While it is unlikely that many listeners will find this song worth revisiting, the rest of the EP is strong, and recommended especially to those already familiar with the group. The deluxe version includes a set of noise-cancelling headphones and "custom Ganzfeld goggles," so you can recreate the experiments in the comfort of your own home.