[CD Review] Kiln - Dusker

Nostalgia
n. homesickness; sentimental yearning for (some period of) the past

Onomatopoeia is the term used for words that aurally sound like the object or thing being described. For example; ‘buzzing’, or ‘cracking’. I am not aware if there is a term coined to describe words that have a heavy emotional correlation, words like ‘melancholy’, or ‘nostalgia’. Considering the piercing omnipotence of such a concept, I am sure if I looked hard enough I would find one.

‘Dusker’, the new album from the Michigan-based project ‘Kiln’ (an electronic/ambient trio comprising Kevin Hayes, Kirk Marrison, and Clark Rehberg III) invokes an overwhelming sense of nostalgia. But here is the somewhat extraordinary twist to the usual connotations that encapsulate nostalgia: it invokes feelings of reminiscence that don’t actually exist in my memory. In other words, it is conjuring up emotional connections that do not exist in real terms. As an atheist, I believe that this is as spiritual as our reality can get, and as such, this album is a precious beacon to a world in which humanity is getting bound closer together, yet spiraling more out of touch every day.

‘Dusker’ is released on ‘Ghostly International’; a label founded in 1999 by Samuel Valenti IV from the humble beginnings of a college dormitory in his home state of Michigan, USA. Heavily influenced by the electronic dance music coming out of Detroit, Valenti acted on a vision to create a label which maintained a certain artistic aesthetic, and represented a wide range of quality sounds in the electronic genre. Breaking such key artists as Tadd Mullinix (aka Dabrye) and Matthew Dear (aka Audion), Ghostly International has steadily grown into a widely respected label with global receptivity. Indeed, with a grasp reaching as far flung as Germany, where the likes of Fedde Le Grande are putting their hands up in homage for the label’s first release – Matthew Dear’s ‘Hands Up For Detroit’.

Similar to all the great landmark albums in contemporary music (The Beatles ‘Abbey Road’, Nirvana’s ‘Nevermind’) Kiln have condensed their album to a palatable running time of just 52 minutes. Despite an availability of up to 80 minutes on an audio CD, it is widely accepted that such running times are inductive to enabling the listener to form an attachment to albums as a whole. It is for this fact, and also through utilizing similar key tones and pitch across various tracks - almost (but calculatingly not quite) to the point of questionable repetition – that Kiln have produced an album which holistically embodies its listener. ‘Dusker’ is the perfect ear-piece accompaniment for travel across metropolitan city landscapes; whereby the population is abundant, yet the isolation is rife.

Click here to hear a track off the album on YouTube

Dusker was released in 2007, and is available to download from Amazon - click here