I worship the three minute pop song yet I also like Wagner but I don’t suppose either of those facts would actually qualify me to review “Angel’s Ride” by Syko Friend. However, there are sounds now emanating from my speakers so pen must duly be put to paper.
There are but two songs – or perhaps sonic improvisations for voice and instrument would be a better description – here with each one passing the eleven minute mark on your pharmaceutically extended attention span and you can deduce from the mere length that these songs are not going to contain hooks and choruses nor, for that matter, are they likely to be mistaken for mislaid soundtrack cues.
Nor are “Cherry Eyes” and “Rachel” examples of virtuosity or even quirkiness. I even got to thinking of a comparison with, say, Grouper but discarded that idea as Syko Friend are less the exorcised ghost of the machines than the disembodied voices of the spirits with a sense of the ethereal or, more correctly, the twisted sister of the ethereal emanating from the monochrome mists of musical inspiration.
The odd thing about this album, however, is that it sounds different when you listen to it indirectly. I don’t mean using it as background music but, if you are otherwise distracted, those eleven minute songs seem to pass in a moment whilst leaving you with the curious sensation of having missed something. That very sensation made me listen to the songs again and again yet I still could not figure out what I had missed.
So, what is the deeper meaning of “Angel’s Ride”? I have no idea and I suspect that is the actual point – induce curiosity but never provide answers.
You can download the album from Bandcamp.