A Whisper in the Noise

There are few musical tragedies greater than the continuing obscurity A Whisper in the Noise dwell within. About as dramatic and over-the-top as that opening sentence, the Hanska, MN duo have released four LPs that rely on the skeletal chill of West Thordson's synthesizer and the lingering hum of Sonja Larson's violin. On their latest, To Forget, A Whisper in the Noise use clever track sequencing to give the album its singular mood, from the vampiric snail's pace of the title track through to the slowcore vocals and cavernous door slam accents of "A Sea Estranging Us." Reaching a not-quite-fever-pitch with "Sad, Sad Song," To Forget features an actual back beat alongside strummed acoustic guitar by mid-LP. As icy piano ballad "Maya's Song" moves the album downward, it's the hopeless vocals of closer "Of This Sorrow" that brings To Forget back to its full, dramatic, bleak circle.