When it comes to operating his Spectrum Spools imprint, John Elliott (formerly of Emeralds) has previously expressed his desire to keep an open mind concerning the music that he promotes. PLVS VLTRA’s album Parthenon would possibly be the most ready example of this, with its firm residence inside synth-pop territory, but what about that pesky reversion to the mean theory? I’m not sure about its applicability to record labels, but I’ll be damned if a track off the new Quicksails album doesn’t sound slightly Emeralds-esque. I’m probably imagining things. Granola bars can be intoxicatingly delicious, and I just ate two of them.
In any case, Chicago-based artist Quicksails a.k.a. Ben Billington will be releasing Mayville Dream on Spectrum Spools on April 29. I referenced Emeralds, but Billington seems to bring a degree of style variability that I certainly never noticed on an Emeralds album, or across Emeralds albums. As the official album description points out, “[Billington] can morph his styles seamlessly and is fluent in many musical languages, whether he’s playing in Moonrises, Circuit [des] Yeux (as a touring drummer) or in the legendary underground free-jazz unit Tiger Hatchery.”
For a preview of that seamlessness, listen below:
• Quicksails: https://soundcloud.com/quicksails
• Spectrum Spools: http://editionsmego.com/releases/spectrum-spools
More about: Quicksails
