There is a mechanism in the human eye which stops us from being able to focus on a single point for more than a handful of seconds. Try it. No matter how hard you concentrate, the eye continually shifts its point of focus to surrounding points, or the mind wanders to other matters and forgets to focus at all. Music For Lamping by Strategy is a fairly good aural analogy of this phenomenon. Trying to keep the mind focused on its sounds is near impossible. This is not necessarily a criticism, more advice on how to approach listening.
The modus operandi of creator Paul Dickow is that of drone. These drones tend to be based on synthesised sounds with garnishes of heavily processed electric guitars. Each track barely shifts in tone over its duration. There are hints at slow moving, simple chordal progressions. ‘Cathederal Spark’ features what sounds like distantly recorded fire bells and some subtle creaking to make it a little more thought provoking. On tracks such as ‘All Day…’ and ‘World Service’ there is an overall, well-polished sheen to the synths and, in the case of the latter, processed voices, which, while undoubtedly peaceful, defy active engagement on the part of the listener. 15 minute album closer, ‘Lower Macleay’, is the exception that really proves this rule. It overtly utilises the hiss, static and ambiguity of field recordings and so contains the minute grains of sound the ear can latch onto which is absent from much of the rest of the album. It travels and builds from almost nothing to an ecstatic avalanche of phasing white noise, water, footsteps and birdsong. It is also the track that most easily holds interest, in spite of its epic length.
Music For Lamping is an album worth allowing time to sink in. While much of it will act as true ambience – a layer of sound which is no more important than any other you can simultaneously hear – there is much beauty and a worthy climax to proceedings.
Adrian Elmer
