Brian Turner | the submersible dirigible

Brian Turner broadcast a short eight minute Ignatz live session last week, recorded in the WFMU studios. Tragically, I missed Ignatz playing live just last weekend in NYC. Celebrate Psi’s Ignatz release, I Will Soothe My Eye To Feast It With A Sight of Beauty, is a favorite of mine. Last year’s Quiet as Mice, though I haven’t been able to enjoy is as thoroughly, was certainly a highlight of 2007. Turner’s fellow WFMU dj Fabio (my favorite at the station) even selected the cassette release for his year-end best-of list.

Oddly enough, this FMU performance sounds unlike most of what I’ve heard from Ignatz. Last year’s album, II, released on Kraak, is the best example of the sound Bram Devens developed for Ignatz (stream II & Ignatz @ last.fm). Steven R. Smith and Stefan Neville/Pumice obsessives like myself likely found themselves instantly enamored with the dingy lo-fi Ignatz ditties. This latest recording, completely instrumental, sounds to be a bit of a departure. The long, speculative drone piece sounds more like a Peter Wright recording than what I expect from Ignatz. Devens’ rubbery lo-fi vocals were always a highlight of his work, but are completely absent on this FMU session.

Of course, there’s no better place to experiment and modify your sound than on the road and during radio live sessions. Svarte Greiner, Elegi and Peter Wright are the best comparisons to this live recording I can conjure at the moment. Ambient leanings, and creepy atmospherics could be an exciting addition to Devens formula. I look forward to seeing whether his experimentation here is featured on a future proper release.