Engaging though it has been, there isn't much in Robert Lowe's previous discography that directly anticipates Lichens, his new solo project. As singer and bassist for 90 Day Men, and as new member of TV on the Radio, Lowe has been involved in his share of nervy, tough-to-pigeonhole art-rock. On The Psychic Nature of Being, however, he leaves behind all graspable traces of rock, opting instead to detail a deeply contemplative sequence of fingerpicked guitars and enigmatic veiled drones. And though this ambient, experimental approach has long been heavily trafficked-- particularly by those on the Kranky roster-- Lowe's understated playing and deceptive melodic skills enable him to here succeed in claiming a relatively untouched acre.
The three lengthy pieces on The Psychic Nature of Being were recorded as real-time compositions without overdubs or edits. This curious, needlessly constrictive recording technique does make the album's deliberate, measured structure more impressive though not necessarily more entertaining. Throughout these tracks, Lowe uses wordless vocal loops as a mesmeric foundation over which he positions his tasteful acoustic fingerpicking and assorted effects, in a manner rather reminiscent of latter-period John Fahey albums like the Jim O'Rourke-produced Womblife. But Lowe's playing here is not as resolutely blues-based as Fahey's, and his meditative compositions ultimately dock somewhere between Six Organs of Admittance's most diffuse works and the slowed-gravity drones of Kranky labelmates like Stars of the Lid.
Both of the album's first two tracks open with long unaccompanied stretches of Lichens' unique vocal effects, whose hushed, recurrent loops can sound almost medieval in their outspread minimalism. On "Kirlian Auras" these time-stretched drones prove so captivating that it comes as something of a jolt when the guitar finally enters a few minutes into the piece. As a guitarist, Lowe plays with a graceful melodic economy, allowing his instrument to effortlessly join into the ongoing ambient currents without overwhelming them. In fact, his playing seems so patient and considered that you're unlikely to even detect the album's improvised origins.
The Psychic Nature of Being closes with it's longest piece, the 20-minute "You Are Excrement, You Can Turn Yourself Into Gold". Not coincidentally, it's this track that could have benefited most from some judicious editing. Building gradually from tiny, bell-like tones, the track eventually takes on a more electric hue as Lowe's flickering guitar accumulates layers of delay and refined distortion. Unfortunately the track's subtle momentum isn't always enough to keep the music from occasionally spilling off into quiet, dormant eddies. And it's during these brief, inactive lapses that the listener may find cause to hope that on the next Lichens release, Lowe will permit himself the luxury of a genuine revision or two.
