Keith Freund and Linda Lejsovka have been recording under the Trouble Books name for the past four years, but their productivity has shone the brightest just recently. Their warm synth sequences were supported by the Six Parts Seven guitarist Mike Tolan on their first two albums. Last year, Emeralds guitarist Mark McGuire took Tolan's place on all but one track, offering his fervent leads and mid-paced layering in Trouble Book's song-centric context.
McGuire's performance could be deemed customary by frequenters of his material, but it left an impression far greater than it may read on paper. Freund's sole guitar on Constant Comments didn't quite reflect McGuire's rhythmic whim, but its use of field recordings and melody attained a nostalgic and youthful tone akin to that of Living With Yourself. Trouble Books' latest Concatenating Fields showcases the duo at their most Emeralds-inspired. Freud and Lejsovka call to mind much more than an influence from their peers, though.
A swarm of dripping frequencies gives way to an unwavering one-note thrum during the initial moments of "Monument for D. Flavin" as breathy chords and an uplifting refrain introduce a fleeting verse of inseparable vocal harmonies. It mounts the instrumental foundation of Concatenating Fields while the brief lyrical presence leaves curiosity for the ensuing album. Lejsovka duets with Freund on "Demagnetizer", calling and responding amongst sampled moans and an entwining drum machine-and-guitar pattern. Frippertronic leads and tremolo pads trek through the instrumental "Aloft / See-Through III", exercising a fluctuating development throughout its 6 minutes. A beautiful contrast is drawn on the closing "Posthumous Reflections on Lucky Shirt", a collaboration with fellow Ohio act Tusco Terror, in which coarse juts of feedback encircle Freund's blanket of melody and bubbling electronics.
What exactly Trouble Books' sing is difficult to discern when enveloped in such lush compositions. The subject matter is most accessible when observing the cover, titles, and music at its surface, which unveil a marriage of organic and synthetic features; the corporeal channeling ethereal limits. Freund and Lejsovka's austere voices feel inhabitant of a world remote from the synthesizers beneath them without prompting a thought of disconnect. The two instead render their arrangements less calculated, mingling with silvery guitar and unfeigned songwriting. Concatenating Fields is one of the most romantic records to come of the digital age.
[Trouble Books Webpage]
[Stream/Buy Concatenating Fields from Bark & Hiss]
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