The opening track to Owl Splinters, "Divided", is a sprawling epic featuring a wide variety of orchestraic instruments and apocalyptic samples. It's haunting and brief; a perfect way to begin an ambient album. I had a hard time believing that this album would be able to match the tenacity of “Divided”, and while it may be occasionally inconsistent, Owl Splinters mostly triumphs.
Where Owl Splinters succeeds is it's atmosphere. Ambient albums come and go, but something we're always left with is the feeling of temporarily traveling to a different dimension altogether. Deaf Center confronts this challenge by drone-fucking the hell out of you with a tumbling force of cello and piano. Most notably, the album's centerpiece ,“The Day I Would Never Have”, is a 10 minute wall of sound that eventually filters to a soft, almost laughably contrasted piano. It's brilliant, a perfect segue into the squeaking attack of “Animal Sacrifice”.
Unfortunately, there are moments where Owl Splinters doesn't entirely stay up to par. "Time Spent", the album's second song, is two minutes of a boring, almost looped piano riff. With repeated listens, “Time Spent” begins to certify itself as another piece in the album's mysterious and possessed ambience; however, the sci-fi original movie-esque progression leaves little to offer.
But what we mostly have in Owl Splinters is an album that crescendos with no consequences. It's a collection of songs that, quite honestly, get exhausting to listen to. The overall power of these tracks breathes new life into the term drone. For example, the sudden drop in “Close Forever Watching” and the lethargic but emotionally draining build up in “The Day I Would Never Have” are memorizing and achievements in a genre that more people need to listen to. Although lacking for brief moments, Owl Splinters is both daunting and impressive, truly a feat for a band that's been out of the scene for six years.
Recommended Tracks: "The Day I Would Never Have", "Divided", "Close Forever Watching".
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