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 Recirc
CDEP (TRR037)
Downloads:
Masking (mp3)
PURCHASE
AT THREE RING DIGITAL
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Music Store
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Stream from Rhapsody
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MP3
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The Form and Fate of Lakes
CDLP (TRR026)
Downloads:
Norwegian Black Metal Sword Fight to the Death (mp3)
PURCHASE
CD - $12 (shipping not included)
PURCHASE
AT THREE RING DIGITAL
Buy at iTunes
Music Store
Buy at eMusic
Buy at Rhapsody
Buy at Napster
Stream from Rhapsody
Buy at Puretracks
Buy at Amazon
MP3
Buy at GroupieTunes
Buy at mTraks
TRR026
Retail One-Sheet
Form
and Fate Homepage
Form
and Fate Myspace
Also: 500
Records
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Form and Fate paint musical portraits that can be
simultaneously beautiful and terrifying. Soaring melodies, dense
harmonies, and sonic assaults are the trademark of this San Francisco
quintet.
The name Form and Fate was derived from the process through which
a lake is born. As the definition would imply, the music is something
of a tribute to the turbulent ways in which new landscapes are
formed, sometimes through dramatic and violent upheaval, sometimes
through the simple, slow passing of time. Whatever the approach,
this post-apocalyptic wall of sound will leave you wanting more.
Bring earplugs!
Reviews for Recirc:
"Post-rock bands never let a lack of words hinder
a sonic journey of emotional catharsis. On the EP Recirc, San
Francisco’s Form and Fate, a primarily instrumental quintet,
guides listeners through its bleakest moments with five melancholy
songs that reach for the core.
Their epic compositions build from restrained to bursting and
make imminent comparisons to stars of the style like Explosions
in the Sky and Mogwai, with differences that are hard to pinpoint.
But the band does right by the genre. With three guitarists to
buoy the bass and drums, Form and Fate employs multiple melodic
layers to drive songs to climax.
“Nobody ever told me the airlock would unlock” a faraway
voice murmurs on opener 'Airlock,' one of two tracks with vocals.
The song settles into a dreamy groove before feedback sets the
stage for a thundering unravel. The meditative repetition of the
funereal “He Grows” is a controlled exercise in subtlety
that bleeds into the somber reflection of “Magnets in My
Bones.” “Masking,” the unmistakable standout
of the album, pairs comforting guitar riffs with distant vocals
seemingly recorded in an era gone by. With a heavy and soul-elevating
pinnacle coupled with the revelation “sunsets can only be
admired through a rusty, wired fence,” the band affirms
that sadness has its place and makes happiness feel even better.
Form and Fate ostensibly concludes the trip underwater on “No
Really, You Should Be Stopping” with a soothing tremolo
picking pattern that conjures a peaceful glide through a pure,
tropical sea.
Strong musicianship and well-crafted emotive outbursts makes Recirc
an enjoyable and qualified shepherd for these troubled times."
- Julia Cooper, West Coast Performer
Reviews
for The Form and Fate of Lakes:
"Okay, I want to take
a moment to talk about this CD’s illustrations. I know,
there’s music to be had—and pretty music, too; located
in a small valley between math-rock and soundscaped jam-band acrobatics,
Form and Fate’s trio arrangement, which is sometimes paired
on this recording with cello and trombone, is basic but artful,
wading through the twisty, graceful jams of “Emoticons Vs.
Decepticons” and the country feedback of “The Ballad
Of Austin Post” with a dreamlike single-minded-ness and
splendor.
The illustrations are something to be reckoned with, as well.
There are glossy black-and-white photographs of glaciers from
the U.S. Geological Survey that range in year of origin from the
1940s until just a few years ago. But, if not for the dates, you
wouldn’t be able to tell. The clouds in these pictures are
as sharp as mountaintops; the fields of snow and the snake-like
arc of rivers are the kind of beautiful that knocks you out. It’s
way beyond simple album art. The gatefold underneath the CD tray
of a river and its subsidiaries look like a massive prehistoric
skeleton: its spines reaching out to take over the world. And,
if that makes sense, that’s what the music sounds like too."
- Matthue Roth, Zero Magazine
"Just like the black and white photo from their album cover,
local band Form and Fate's lovely post-rock meanderings spread
out like epic landscapes in front of your ears on their debut
'The Form and Fate of Lakes' until you reach the jagged cliffs
ahead that crash back down on you with a wall of fuzzed-out distortion.
Epic and yet isolating, Form and Fate's melodies and interesting
instrumentation keep their music fresh in the always competitive
land of post-rock. While obvious comparisons to Explosions in
the Sky and Mogwai are not unjust, the band also brings to mind
what may have been my first taste of the noodly instrumental genre:
Sonic Youth." - The Deli Magazine SF
"Don't be fooled. Form and Fate of Lakes is not a lesson
in plate tectonics and isn't nearly as boring. Initially, the
listener is wrapped in a soft blanket of gorgeous cello and mellow,
muddy guitar lulling you into an imposing and unwanted rest. And
when you least expect it, a grungy smash snaps you back to the
land of the living and out of the rut of predictable instrumental
arrangement.
This album starts out like many other, artsy instrumental albums
out there yet adds the right amount of almost startling variation.
Pattern-wise, most of the songs are a slow burn, building momentum.
Despite the met level of mandatory complexity, Form and Fate could
use a little more color - even if it's black which could only
be expected of a song titled "Norwegian Black Metal Sword
Fight to the Death." Come on, guys. That was just cruel.
Overall, intriguing and stimulating. 4 out of 5 Owls!"
- Briana Hernandez, The Owl Mag
" At this point in time you could probably say that everything
that is gonna be done within the realm of “post-rock”
has been done (this may or may not be true, but it sure does feel
that way to me at least). So it becomes more important than ever
to look at quality over substance, and Form and Fate have quality
bursting out all over. I’ll drop the easy comparisons here:
Explosions in the Sky, From Monument to Masses, Mogwai, otherwise
known as the usual suspects. Now they don’t really sound
like any of those bands exactly – not quite as cinematic
as EITS, not full of political vitriol like FMTM, not as “depressingly
sounds like a rainy day in Gasgow” as Mogwai – but
fans of those heavyweights should certainly give these new kids
a listen. They may not have the name rec- ognition of these godfathers
of the sound but they aren’t lacking a thing musically –
a high-quality debut from start to finish." - 6.5 out of
10, Dog In A Sweater.com
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