Lotus

Lotus' new self-titled album moves in a decidedly more electronic direction than their last two releases (2008's Hammerstrike, 2009's Oil on Glass/Feather on Wood). Analog synthesizers, manipulated sounds, dub effects and heavy bass are balanced by horns and string arrangements in addition to Lotus's standard guitar/bass/drums instrumentation. Grooves range from slinky funk and gritty hall-time on the first half of the album to the beautiful and expansive closing track Orchids. Although hits and pieces of vocals are used throughout, the only song to feature singing is The Surf. And while it may he the closest thing to a pop song the band has ever released, the melodic guitar hooks and ecstatic synth are pure Lotus.

Similar to their music, the recording process for the album looked in multiple directions at once. It began using traditional recording methods tracking live to analog tape, but shifted to modern techniques for editing and mixing to expand into a musical space filled with uniquely crafted sounds. The band road tested and tweaked these tracks for the better part of two years. The result is an album worthy of the self-titled status - the band's singular sound and spirit runs through every track.