Name: Acoustic Dust
Brand: Primavera Sound
SKU: 58736073
Price: 12.15 USD
Availability: InStock

Performer Notes

Personnel: Alan Licht, Lee Ranaldo (vocals, guitar); Ra?l Fern?ndez Refree (ukulele, piano, organ, Mellotron); Steve Shelley (drums, maracas, percussion); Joao Paulo Feliciano (pandeiro, percussion).
Audio Mixer: Ra?l Fern?ndez Refree.
Liner Note Author: Lee Ranaldo.
Recording information: Echo Ca?on West, NJ (02/2014); Estudios Calamar (02/2014); The Room BCN (02/2014); Echo Ca?on West, NJ (04/2013); Estudios Calamar (04/2013); The Room BCN (04/2013).
Photographer: Celso Pinto.
The wide-open melodic drones of Lee Ranaldo's music with and without Sonic Youth have always begged for an unplugged treatment, something he delivers in earnest with Acoustic Dust. Recorded at a Spanish studio, this collection of covers and songs from Last Night on Earth add spontaneity and freshness to the intricate psychedelia of his post-Sonic Youth career. It's not surprising that these songs' arrangements are as layered as the original electric versions, but it's still a pleasure to hear how acoustic timbres give extra sparkle to Ranaldo and the Dust's interplay and solos ("Key/Hole" uses violins as a creative stand-in for feedback), and how the more intimate setting allows more conversational vocals as well. And even if Acoustic Dust's overall mood is mellow, it's far from sedate. If anything, "Last Night on Earth" is more joyful here than before, with galloping rhythms and a campfire twist on its seize-the-moment message, while "Angles"' beautifully swooping, building guitars are even more striking than on the original. The folk-rock underpinnings of Ranaldo's sound come to the fore gracefully and organically on his own songs -- "Shouts" sounds like a protest scene equally at home in the '60s, '70s, or 2010s -- as well as the album's well-chosen covers. The band's takes on Neil Young's "Revolution Blues" and Sandy Denny's "Bushes and Briars" are appealingly off-the-cuff and blend seamlessly with the rest of the songs here, but it's the rollicking, smile-inducing version of the Monkees' "You Just May Be the One" that delivers one of the album's brightest highlights. All told, Acoustic Dust is a lovely companion piece to Ranaldo's louder albums, and one that puts a deserved spotlight on his music's quieter charms. ~ Heather Phares

Professional Reviews

Mojo (Publisher) (p.98) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "[P]ared-back, mid-paced songs graced by a subtle art-rock angularity and Ranaldo's more than serviceable vocals."

Album: Acoustic Dust
#	Song Title		Time
1)	Hammer Blows	More Info...	0:05
2)	Last Night On Earth	More Info...	0:05
3)	Revolution Blues	More Info...	0:04
4)	Key-hole	More Info...	0:06
5)	Angles	More Info...	0:03
6)	Bushes and Briars	More Info...	0:03
7)	Late Descent #2	More Info...	0:03
8)	Shouts	More Info...	0:05
9)	You Just May Be the One	More Info...	0:02
10)	Stranded	More Info...	0:04
11)	Home Chds	More Info...	0:07

Album: Acoustic Dust
#	Song Title		Time
1)	Hammer Blows	More Info...	0:05
2)	Last Night On Earth	More Info...	0:05
3)	Revolution Blues	More Info...	0:04
4)	Key-hole	More Info...	0:06
5)	Angles	More Info...	0:03
6)	Bushes and Briars	More Info...	0:03
7)	Late Descent #2	More Info...	0:03
8)	Shouts	More Info...	0:05
9)	You Just May Be the One	More Info...	0:02
10)	Stranded	More Info...	0:04
11)	Home Chds	More Info...	0:07