Low Roar - House In The Woods

One of Low Roar’s notable strengths has been the ability to oscillate between different tangents within its immersive trademark sound with each release, never seeming to repeat the same formula while remaining true to its essential vision. To these ears, house in the woods feels a little too close in style to its predecessor LP, leaning upon the same slow-moving glacial ambient pop sound which maybe tomorrow… trafficked in. Where it differs is in its more scattershot nature, incorporating as it does several interlude-ish tracks and periodically engaging in more abrasive textures, like the ending moments of “Field of Dreams” or the nightmarish repetitions in the midst of “Gone Fishing”. The results come out rather uneven.

Said critiques shouldn’t be taken to reject the simple truth that house in the woods is often, even usually, a pretty wonderful record. True to form, the music here tends to be absolutely gorgeous. There are hordes of poignant moments, too, made only more powerful from the heartbreaking context of this release. In the final analysis, while I’m skeptical this will be too many fans’ favorite Low Roar effort, it’s also likely to satisfy nearly everyone, and to bring a tear to many an eye. Indeed, an exceptionally worthy artistic career signs off here with the title track, an absolutely pristine stunner which could not have been better chosen for the purpose. Over a gentle and sublime backdrop, Karazija murmurs lyrics both pastoral and cosmic, near the end crooning “and I will write what I’ve seen, will you read what I write?”. It’s a simply perfect moment, and goes to show that the mournful contemplation I pulled from “Field of Dreams” for fitting use as the review summary will happily be proven wrong, as this kind of transcendent art will surely stand the test of time. Rest easy.

(Sputnik Music)