Six Organs of Admittance – Asleep on the Floodplain

The gradual evolution of Ben Chasny's psych-folk outfit has produced increasingly focused and coherent work, a trend which continues on Asleep on the Floodplain. The success of Six Organs' records tends to rest upon the extent to which they successfully balance Chasny's dual tendencies: towards, on the one hand, transcendent and mesmeric electrified soundscapes, and on the other, a deeply-felt engagement with a virtuosic tradition of Eastern-influenced acoustic guitar visionaries stretching back to John Fahey, Robbie Basho and beyond.

On Floodplain, this balance is maintained masterfully. Chasny is confident enough in the power of his playing to present unembellished acoustic pieces like Saint of Fishermen and Poppies, but these represent stages of a restrained, carefully-paced drift towards the ether, finally realised on the climactic twelve minutes of S/word and Leviathan. Coherence is maintained by the dreamily warm, hazy production throughout. The result is an album with a clear sense of narrative progress and ultimate resolution, and probably the most accomplished Six Organs record yet. [Sam Wiseman]