David Holmes – This Films Crap Lets Slash The Seats

Wasn't expecting this album to have elements of GOA & IDM, but I'm totally here for it.

David Holmes has gone through a number of incarnations in his musical career, and his debut album, _This Films Crap Lets Slash the Seats_ shows off his post-progressive techno phase: crafter of cinematic soundtracks. “No Mans Land” conjures a dusty Western on the surface of Mars, even after the martial drums kick in. “Slash the Seats” is an outer space acid monster, while “Shake Ya Brain” gets a good groove going. “Got Fucked Up Along the Way” starts off with a twee melody and transposes it into an almost tribal workout. Sarah Cracknell lends her voice to the post-modern torch song of “Gone.” And “Minus 61 in Detroit” offers some tantalizing glimpses of glistening Detroit techno. The mysterious “Inspired by Leyburn” hints at alien invasions and monuments, while the dreamy “Coming Home to the Sun” drifts in the atmosphere like a high cloud. On the United States-only second disc of b-sides and remixes, Two Lone Swordsmen deliver two remixes of “Gone,” going from a long, jazz-inflected jam on “First Night Without Charge” to the house-ready “Second Night Without Charge.” Kruder & Dorfmeister, on the other hand, show an Indian influence on their version of “Gone.” But the quick breaks of “Mosh It” re-energize the surroundings. “The Connection Flight Syndrome” slowly shuffles its way towards a bleeping netherworld, whereas “Smoked Oak” sets the blipping to a finger-snapping tempo. Definitely stay for the double feature.