Records On Ribs

Another masterful weaving of the personal and the natural from EL Heath. But for perhaps the first time on record, the emphasis with Wind, Thee Wind – his third release for Records on Ribs – is heavily on the former. This mostly Martenot work is born of the depression of the end of a relationship whilst – as ever with Heath – reflecting the sublime melancholy of the countryside around the Wales/Shropshire border. The EP opens with two of his most ambient tracks yet in which sparse, yawning sweeps of Martenot bring to mind Aphex Twin’s ambient works. Then comes Thee Wind, Thee: a brief but devastatingly effective spoken word rumination on life’s inevitable movement. The unrelentingly sparse Monodrone and Wind, Thee Wind return to the earlier ambient beauty to close out this short, and brutally beautiful meditation on Heath’s consistent themes. Recommended.

Track List

• 1. Martenot Marat (4.00)
• 2. Sliding Door (4.00)
• 3. Thee Wind, Thee (1.50)
• 4. MonoDrone (4.50)
• 5. Wind, Thee Wind (3.50)

Reviews

The drone pieces “Sliding Door” and “MonoDrone” are like a beast asleep. Something dark lurks beneath. EL Heath’s calling card is his use of the ondes Martenot, an early electronic instrument that operates on similar principles to the theremin. “Martenot Marat” is a demonstration of just how lovely the instrument can sound. The distinctive melancholy wail is weaved into a gorgeous sad melody – both slightly other-worldy and yet deeply emotional. The closing track teams the instrument with a cello, and they seem united in grief. In the midst of the EP is a short poem by Heath, accompanied only by an ambient atmospheric sound. It’s a deeply personal ode to the power and constancy of the wind.

—Music Musings and Miscellany