Monday 25th February 2013

rating: 3.5

Impromptu 'supergroup' Atoms For Peace was formed in Los Angeles towards the close of 2009, initially conceived as a vehicle to allow Radioheads Thom Yorke to play his debut solo album The Eraser in a live capacity. The group boasts a notable and eclectic collective of musical heavyweights; with Yorke (vocals, guitar and piano), Chilli Peppers bassist Flea, longtime Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich (keyboards and synths), Brazilian instrumentalist Mauro Refosco (percussion), and Joey Waronker of Beck & R.E.M (drums). The musicians convened for a 3 day studio session in L.A. during which the band sought to recreate the electronic sounds that Yorke had previously produced on his laptop, after which Yorke sliced, diced and rearranged the pieces before layering his vocals over the results.

represents the evolution of Yorke's ever-expanding fascination with electronica and all-pervasive desire to break the mould by creating an album on which its impossible to discern where the organic ends and the electronic begins. Its a rich tapestry of interlaced instruments and electronic snippets, intricately entangled beneath Yorkes anxious and yearning vocals, and mixed from a brighter and more colourful palette thanThe tracks are complex and nuanced: take excellent lead singlefor example, which showcases an evolving skittering drum arrangement matched with haunting synthesisers and Yorke's soaring but melancholic vocals. Other high points include the warped, sweeping, shimmering layers of, and the peaceful guitar melody accompanying the addictive vocal in

Whilst guitars do make an appearance they are never at the forefront;is more a marriage of glittering synths, shifting baselines and fragile sounding spidery guitar loops. Its not always easily listening but it is never less than fascinating: rhythms are sometimes deliberately awkward (as with excellent fourth track) and Yorke is fond of coupling slow fluid vocals with faster rhythmic patterns (For the most part this is a more danceable album than its predecessor, but the songs are often still unsettling:places its emphasis on beats that are out of sync with the rest of the song and title track, with its murky bass line and varied patters of percussion, comes across as equally portentous.prioritises mood over melody and its greatest success stems from its technological innovation and genre-melding. At times it's dry but a journey though its murky and bizarre musical landscape is an ultimately rewarding listening experience that yields more with each listen.02. Default 03. Ingenue 04. Dropped 06. Stuck Together Pieces http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4tW3mhp9io01. Before Your Very Eyes 02. Default 03. Ingenue 04. Dropped 05. Unless 06. Stuck Together Pieces 07. Judge, Jury and Executioner 08. Reverse Running 09. Amok