Rafter Roberts' songs bounce and bend with an oddball sort of charm, and each record finds him following his muse in a slightly different way. His latest LP as Rafter, Quiet Storm, finds him once again staking out new territory. Released abruptly in late January, the digital-only release is said to draw inspiration from "black metal demo tapes" Rafter and his touring companions listened to while out on the road supporting last year's attempt at poly-glam Of Montreal-pastiche, Animal Feelings.
Quiet Storm doesn't really sound like black metal at all, nor does it sound like, in Rafter's words, "Darkthrone meets the Kinks meets Lee Perry." But the record is reminiscent of Microphones/Mount Eerie godhead Phil Elverum's recent dalliances with the dark arts, namely, Mount Eerie's 2008 EP, Black Wooden Ceiling Opening. Both that record and Quiet Storm apply a similar amp-blown aesthetic to the songs. But while Elverum's affection for lo-fi and disquieting distortion is nothing new, Rafter's music has never sounded this harsh and abrasive-- almost every drum hit on this record crackles and blasts through everything else surrounding it. The technique adds a crunchy texture to the material, foregrounding Rafter's debt to the spikier end of 1990s indie rock. Elsewhere, the new dressings add an ominous, discordant feel to the record's more dirge-like moments (see album closer "Born Again" and the clattering din of "Coldness of Space").
Rafter has experimented with recording fidelity in the past (see: 2008's Sex Death Cassette), and Quiet Storm is arguably his most successful venture in this arena so far. Ironically, though, the sound of the record ultimately holds it back. There's simply too much noise here, and it's often poorly placed. The more melodic material falls flat in this setting, and tedium truly sets in during the album's mid-section, where melody is set aside almost entirely in favor of twitching electronics and toppled percussion. At its best, though, the scattered, ramshackle nature of Quiet Storm manages to transcend these difficult passages. And for those who'd rather hear Rafter in a different sonic guise, chances are you won't have to wait long for him to change it up again.
