Killer album from one of my favorites from the past few years. This is my favorite from them so far, and places them alongside Jasper TX and Emeralds in my opinion.



A bit of info that kind of sums it up.

VINYL FORMAT. The Conjurer is the latest offering by Bay Area duo Barn Owl. This new long player finds Evan Caminiti and Jon Porras finally (by way of an actual recording studio) documenting something that is a bit closer to their very heavy live sets, with expanded peaks of white light distortion and enormous valleys of bottom end. Each side opens with a brief funeral dirge to set the mood, a precession of bare bones drum beats and bell like guitar statements that bridge the gap to the wider open spaces of the almost side long "Across the Desert of Ash" and "Ancient Of Days." It may seem obvious, or even a little overwrought, but it has to be said that these guys really do evoke all kinds of cinematic drama with their music. Apocalyptic westerns, bleak melodramas, mother nature fever dreams, it all seems to come to mind amid the evening guitar passages, incantations, flute tones, and finally, the solo piano that emerges lost among the electric mayhem to close the album. Considering the amount of terrain, The Conjurer is far from being scattered or rushed sounding. The record as a whole moves at a crafted even rhythm, slowly merging from one scene of violence to the next of almost silent recovery, then back up the mountain again. An edition of 500 LPs, half colored deep red, half black. Cover etching by Evan Caminiti.

DLing, because it sounds cool

reminds me of Earth with a touch of 16 horsepower

Never really thought of 16 Horsepower as a reference point but now that you mention it I can definitely agree. I love this damn record. From about the 18 minute mark to the end of side one is just absolutely gorgeous.

The opening few minutes on each side really show a certain debt to Tom Carter (whom they've recorded with before) for sure, but they make it their own. I think that's what impresses me so much about them, is so many influences are easily referenced in this, but it doesn't sound recycled to me. Just the balls to put so much drum (comparitively) into what could be two nearly flawless drone pieces is fantastic. I think they (along with the other two I mentioned in my first post) really are showing right now that they are very few boundaries with this type of music.

Anyways, yeah hope you enjoyed it dude.

just that distilled-in-oak flavor that pokes out from time to time under all the droning