by Julian Espinoza
When it comes to the bizarre, Beak> is no stranger. With several album releases filled with dark psychedelic bass lines, distorted vintage guitars and gritty electronic grooves, the UK band holds no imaginative punches. Their latest endeavor, the Life Goes On EP, fits comfortably into the existing catalog. This little firecracker of a record packs quite the punch; considering it is only four tracks long, one of which being a guest remix.
The title track starts with a sample recording of a Mexican child’s voice calling out an advertisement for a vendor. The actual recording was heard by the band while on tour in Mexico, and thus, found its way onto the intro. “Life Goes On” slowly becomes the auditory equivalent of a desert landscape mirrored in aviator sunglasses, doing 90 with the top down. That dry vintage sound that can only be accomplished by a plethora of obscure 70’s guitars and amps, sets the tone for the rest of the album quite nicely.
“We Can Go” serves to slow the pace of things, but also keeps true to the underlining tension that is trademark to the band at this point. The dreamy distorted quality of Geoff Barrow’s vocals adds just a touch of complexity and melancholy to an otherwise ostinato assortment. Without skipping a beat, we find ourselves in the dystopian dance party that is “Minus Pillow”.
The final track is actually an accordion cover of one of my personal favorite Beak> tracks, “Allé Sauvage”. The haunting rendition is performed by label mate and accordion savant Mario Batkovic. The entire track was laid down in one take, creaking bellows and all. Batkovic does well to capture the deranged and primal desperation of the original track while transposing it into his own realm. All and all, recommendation for this EP comes quite high. Get into the red convertible of your mind, and drive through the arid land that is Life Goes On.