Visitations, “Untitled,” Untitled (Time-Lag, 2009)
Everything Visitations puts out is “Untitled.” So if you are trying to track down a particular song or album, you’re in for some detective work. I’ve chosen this track, “Untitled,” to add to the mystery of this bedroom folk/psych band from New England. It is refreshing for a band to so deliberately remove itself from hype machines and publicity. But then again, I am always skeptical of things done too deliberately.
Somehow Visitations steers my skepticism back to belief though. Their use of ambient natural sounds, cavernous echo and three or four dashes of abstruseness draws a listener in to their world. In fact, this album drew me in faster and harder than almost anything else that has landed here in a long time. That is due in large part to the exquisite universe created so completely. One steps right on it, starts looking around, can see the woodland animals scurrying about, and may even be able to smell the smoke of the campfire.
Time-Lag Records says, correctly, that the disks are “exquisitely packaged with a tri-fold double thick duotone art paper cover. outside is white paper with edge to edge antique letterpress printed eyeball melting hyper detailed art by the band. inside is black paper with red/orange screen printing. woven japanese inner sleeves, and a special surprise in total darkness. two cover variations, limited to 400 each, for a total cd edition of 800 copies.” Beautifully done. Buy directly from the label, or Forced Exposure.
(Note that Visitations is not to be confused with The Visitations. And finding information on Visitations is far from easy.)
