The Days Of Mars


The DFA label has been home to some of the coolest music being made these last few years - records by The Rapture, LCD Soundsystem, The Juan MacLean and Black Dice have fused punk-funk and electro with a hefty dose of experimentalism and "artiness". Back in October saw the label release The Days Of Mars, the debut album from Delia Gonzalez & Gavin Russom. The duo are New York based artists who work a lot with visual media as well as music. They also collaborate as Black Leotard Front - their 15 minute dance opus Casual Friday from earlier in the year (and also on last year's DFA Compilation #2) is still getting played at my house. Those of you looking for "DFA-beats-as-usual" will probably be sadly disappointed with the album. It is four tracks, each about 15 minutes long, all of it ambient electronics. Taking the spirit of Vangelis, Steve Reich, film maker John Carpenter's eerie synth scores, and the numerous '70s Italian electro-proggers like Goblin as the blueprint, the duo construct gently pulsing grooves that meander through the speakers. There is not a beat to be found. Some of you will find it very tedious, I'm sure. I have always enjoyed a bit of meandering aimlessness, and it abounds here. Rise has been previously heard in DFA remixed form on the afore mentioned Compilation#2, with beats added. It is a lovely bit of spacing out music. The rest of the record is more of the same - variations on this theme. Not for everyone, but a few of you might like it.