Aidan Baker - Lost in the Rat Maze

I have a special place for Mr. Baker in my heart, and I am not often inclined to go there. He's got more releases than I have days in a year, so I can say that this album is a decent place to link up with Aidan's dreamdirge style. I wrote a large review of it, too.

Despite the rather uninviting image that graces this album’s cover (taken by the artist in question), the music has quite a wealth of variety. Piano and flute sounds appear, which give Aidan Baker’s typically guitar-centric robo-drifts some expanded topography. Overall, the compositions are different enough from each other as to designate ‘songs’ as opposed to one long drift (as on albums like Green And Cold or Pendulum), and the album as a whole benefits greatly. The dismal yet gentle palette is peppered with variable drum lines, boyish exhales and indistinguishable lyrics, as well as an overall playfulness. Baker once again sounds like he is in total command of his world, and it’s nice to hear so many sides of his work in one place. The album’s cohesiveness throughout its experimentation is testament to Baker’s ability to maintain a narrative focus on every project.