(2021) Roy Montgomery - Rhymes of Chance


Review:
Roy Montgomery, a pioneer of the NZ underground, believes there is always new sonic terrain to investigate. His latest series of albums for Grapefruit marks forty years of rigorous exploration in which he’s managed to navigate disparate genres, scenes, and atmospheres, always at the forefront of experimental independent music. To commemorate, Grapefruit will be releasing four new Montgomery albums in 2021, which can be purchased individually or via subscription. The third release of the series, Rhymes Of Chance, is the darkest entry of the four. Songs sound particularly spacious and minimal, with two tracks centering forlorn melodies around trusty collaborator Emma Johnston’s singing and two others sung by Montgomery himself. While Side A presents the six-part “Rhymes Of Chance” suite, Side B’s “Aspiratory” holds a clue to Montgomery’s approach on this record; a floating dirge stretches time, much in the manner Mark Hollis (to whom the song is dedicated) approached music.





Track Listing:
1. Rhymes of Chance Pt 1
2. Rhymes of Chance Pt 2
3. Rhymes of Chance Pt 3
4. Rhymes of Chance Pt 4
5. Rhymes of Chance Pt 5 (feat. Emma Johnston)
6. Rhymes of Chance Pt 6 (feat. Emma Johnston)
7. Das Wartezimmer
8. Losers' March (feat. Emma Johnston)
9.Aspiratory (feat. Emma Johnston)


Media Report:
Genre: ambient, lo-fi, post-rock
Country: New Zealand
Format: FLAC
Format/Info: Free Lossless Audio Codec, 16-bit PCM
Bit rate mode: Variable
Channel(s): 2 channels
Sampling rate: 44.1 KHz
Bit depth: 16 bits