#morctapes

 “Legendary swordswoman, Gayle Brogan” (as introduced by Burd Ellen bandmate Debbie Armour) certainly deserves the title. She has played in a number of fabulous constellations (Burd Ellen, Electroscope (who I don’t know, but apparently that is a mistake), Barrett’s Dottled Beauty and others), but Pefkin is to all intents and purposes her solo project, even though she is joined by other musicians on occasion. 

Here I am, showing you by my smile that I like this record very much! 

On Celestial Navigations, Brogan plays a variety of heavily treated instruments and sings on five slowly undulating, vibrating drony pieces, that if they remind me of anything at all might be compared to a Movietone excursion into outer space. You might reasonably characterize the tone of the album as “dark,” but it is not an uncomfortable darkness. Celestial Navigations feels like an ode to going nowhere for the simple joy of going, or to staying in place while watching the firmament move around you. Instruments come and go and you may be immersed in them before you realize what they are. I appreciate a record that can make me feel at peace with myself, and Celestial Navigations does that. I love Pefkin.

Listen: https://morctapes.bandcamp.com/album/celestial-navigations

EDGAR WAPPENHALTER On The Beach (Morctapes Morc #56 LP)

Screen print on open sleeve, for Morctapes.