Labradford: fixed::context

After releasing a few albums of ringing guitars, whispered vocals, and menacing organ, the atmospheric ambient trio Labradford has gradually incorporated strings and drum machines into its music. Yet no matter what instruments the group adds, the music somehow ends up sounding more or less the same. Because no other act really sounds like Labradford, which matches its Ennio Morricone-style melodies and analog synths with a sense of menace missing from most ambient music, it's forgivable that only subtle distinctions differentiate one recording from the next. Obviously, it's strange to learn that fixed::context is being touted as a return to form following a few discs of restless experimentation: For all intents and purposes, Labradford's sixth release sounds just like what fans of the band have come to expect. The disc opens with the 18-minute epic "Twenty," a track that slows and stretches Labradford's most endearing features to such a degree that each minute change in detail—like the wash of keyboards that begins to rise and subside hypnotically around the 11-minute mark, followed by the cricket-like clicks and clacks of creaky synthesizers—sounds like a massive shift. The remaining three Eno-styled tracks can't match that song's duration-derived power and presence, but "Up To Pizmo," "David," and "Wien" act as pithy complements to Labradford's long statement of purpose. As per the band's past strategy, Mark Nelson's guitar generally carries the melody over Carter Brown's droning keys, while bassist Robert Donne patiently fills the gaps. Oddly sympathetic studio overseer Steve Albini keeps the music from turning to New Age mush, though his hand is all but hidden beneath the band's quiet hum. That hum could easily be lost amid the cacophony of the modern world, but to the band's credit, Labradford makes you want to turn the music up to drown out the din of the everyday.