Dust Moth

On Rising // Sailing, Seattle’s Dust Moth presents a striking and authoritative portrait of a band bursting with creativity and invention, possessing the uncommon ability to swirl together broad impressionistic strokes, piercingly precise lines, and sagely minimalist restraint onto a single, lushly vibrant canvas. There is no easing into this for listeners – album opener “Annular Eclipse” offers nothing short of immediate immersion, launching forth from the speakers seemingly in mid-step, giving one the sense of joining a world already in development. In initiating listeners with an instant sensation of breathlessness, Rising // Sailing asserts itself as a dynamic, determined force, a living thing that demands continuous chasing as opposed to progressing in parallel with its audience. There is a raw and unshakable exhilaration in listening to this record, a sense that a truly inspired moment is perpetually around every corner, and that rare feeling of discovery when you cross paths with something that is both excitingly unique and deeply intoxicating.

Jumping off from that final word, intoxication is perhaps the sensation that most thoroughly permeates Rising // Sailing. There is an inviting warmth and tangibility even as the compositions unfold with hazy, enigmatic sensibilities. One may find themselves traversing unknown territories throughout the record, but it remains a comfortable space, like awakening in a cocoon with the intrinsic understanding that you are growing along with it. Finding some heretofore untold space between the psychedelics of Pink Floyd, the dense rhythmic power of later-stage These Arms Are Snakes, the immense alt-rock soundscapes of Hum, and the hypnotic, dreamlike vocal performance of Portishead, the album is distinguished by an uncanny ability to not only balance disparate stylistic approaches but fuse them in a fashion that feels entirely natural.

The clearest integration is found in the interplay between the rhythm section, Ryan Frederiksen’s enveloping guitar work, and Irene Barber’s beguiling vocal delivery. The direct, forceful drum patterns and densely weighty bass are like the anchor that tethers the listener to the ground. Frederiksen’s utilization of slide guitars, effects and atmospherics are almost anti-riff, demonstrating how a performer can establish deep impact without dominating the arrangement. Barber’s vocals, swirling and spellbinding, are like a siren’s song cascading from distant cliffs, at once unknowable and irresistible. With its willingness to allow the two typically authoritative elements to wander in and out from the edges of the compositions while the supposed support instruments act as the driving force, Dust Moth not only subverts expectations, but authors a strikingly unique, intuitive record defined by rich rhythmic textures and vividly colorful soundscapes.