Adem Ilhan plies his trade as bassist with brittle post-rockers Fridge (also home to the acclaimed-but-bland Kieran Hebden, aka Four Tet), but is now set to release the second album of a promising solo career.
Away from his bandmates, he makes music of a more folky bent, without fully ditching his electronic/post-rock leanings. Think Nick Drake if he grew up in the folktronica age, or a savvy Londoner’s take on the works of Sufjan Stevens.
Throughout Love And Other Planets, Adem builds gentle electronic twists into his slight-but-pretty acoustic songs, frequently turning them into something far more involving.
‘Something’s Going To Come’ starts out as an unremarkable piece of woozy, finger-picked acoustica, before morphing abruptly into a flute-driven slice of oddball pop – like a more restrained take on freak-out-era Mercury Rev.
The title-track pours mournful, heartbroken violin over its rich, ambient textures to stunning effect. ‘You And The Moon’ is the most rhythmic track: a relaxed groove, with some deft harmonies providing the hook.
The best is saved until last: closing track ‘Human Beings Gather Round’ is a sister song to Radiohead’s ‘Motion Picture Soundtrack’, and possesses a wonderfully cracked atmosphere, underpinned by some gentle xylophone tinkle.
Adem falls down a little when he plays it straight, though.
Tracks like ‘These Lights Are Meaningful’ and ‘Spirals’ take us on unremarkable strolls through familiar folk landscapes – these territories have been well-trodden by the likes of James Yorkston and Jose Gonzales in recent times, and without any deft sonic touches, Adem does not bring anything interesting to the table.
Perhaps he was eager to stake out a new identity away from Fridge, but Ilhan would be well advised not to stray too far from left-field – his gift for sonic detail should not be neglected.