Jumble Hole Clough: Bassoons and Women's Coats

English avant-garde musician Colin Robinson continues his exploration of ambient music on Bassoons and Women's Coats, the new album by his one-man project Jumble Hole Clough. It's not all mellow and introspective however - his guitar brings the noise every now and then, coming close to funk. His recently deceased musical collaborator Richard Knutson pops up with a few spoken word bits in Dirt Farm, named after the abode where he grew up in America.

Robinson set out to capture "the current feeling of stasis and anxiety", composing a track each day. And while the the compositions sound rather bleak he can't resist to throw in odd bits to lighten the mood. The Smell Of Dust Being Burnt for instance bristles and purrs, and Time Is No Longer Of The Essence is a soundscape inviting the listener to relax a bit and go with the flow. I Need Non-stop Instant Gratification is a throwback to "his music for imaginary puppet shows albums" This Salty Armada and Moth On A Staircase Window. The title track, Bassoons and Women's Coats, is a goth avant-dance tune - and the perfect excuse to delve into his array of sound effects he has collected over the years.

This album turned out not to be only about the current state of things. His sense of humour got the better of him in the end and his deep knowledge of English art and culture seeps through as well. Did John Ruskin ever play a granite marimba? In his universe it is perfectly plausible. In fact, he refers to the lithophone: "a musical instrument consisting of a rock or pieces of rock which are struck to produce musical notes". Bassoons and Women's Coats works on two different levels: as an adventurous collection of softly played avant-garde and as an invitation to fire up a search engine to find out more about the stories behind the titles of his instrumentals.

Bassoons and Women's Coats is a self-released album. Buy it (pay-what-you-want) from his website.

Tracks:

1. What Is Reality Like When We're Not Looking At It?
2. Cat Bells
3. The Smell Of Dust Being Burnt
4. A Passing Train
5. Dirt Farm
6. A Period Of Stasis
7. Bassoons and Women's Coats
8. Time Is No Longer Of The Essence
9. An Itch I Cannot Scratch
10. I Need Non-stop Instant Gratification
11. Lagoon Of Rooms
12. A Tear In The Veil
13. John Ruskin's Granite Marimba
14. The World Off Of Its Foundations

Robinson could not resist playing the unprepared piano he came across during one of his walks. And he used one of the photos for the cover art.

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HCTF review of Soil.