Description
Body/Head is the duo ofKim GordonandBill Nace.
Creative alchemy doesnt just happen in the studio or inthe practice space; so much of it is the product of solo time with ones instrument, learning how body and wood and electronics fuse, and of subconscious processes as one lives ones daily life picking up the ambient noise of the world outside, listening to others work, talking through ideas with friends. ForKimandBill,time together these days is limited to live performances and recording, so theyve got to bring all their magic to every encounter. Lucky for us, these are two experimental sorcerers of significant renown.
Their debut album together asBody/Head,Coming Apart, from 2013, was more of a rock recordheavy, emotional, cathartic, spellwork in shades of black and grey.The Switchis their second studio full-length, and it finds the duo working with a more subtle palette, refining their ideas and identity. Some of it was sketched out live (if youve not had the fortune of seeing them in that natural environment yet, see 2016s improvisational documentNo Waves), but much of it happened purely in the moment. Working in the same studio and with the same producer asComing Apart, hereBody/Headstretch out, making spacious pieces that build shivering drones, dissonant interplay,Gordonsmanipulated vocals, and scraping, haunting textures into something that feels both delicate and dangerous. Less discrete songs than one composition broken up into thematic movements, a slow-moving narrative that requires as much attention and care from the listener as it did from everyone involved in its creation, it is a record that sticks around after its done playing.
This isNacesfavorite ofGordonsguitar work; shes truly come into her own as a guitarist, having built up her confidence through solo shows. The way the duo work together, youd never know they spend so much time apart; onThe Switch, their vision and focus feel truly unified. IfComing Apartwas dark magic,The Switchworks with light, though it never forgets that these approaches are two sides of the same coin, and that binariesblack/white, near/far, emotion/analysis,Body/Headare made to be broken open, and that the truth of things is in the energy between.
The Switch by Body/Head
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