cliffordandcalix - Lost Foundling

 

Lost Foundling is not so much ten songs as ten glances into the late-night music-making sessions of Mark Clifford and Mira Calix between 1999-2004. From the first few glances, it's clear that their time was spent 'just, like, making some noise, maaan'. Yep, there's far too much of the self-indulgent art-school student about this. The repetitive beats, claustrophobic loops and woozy, distorted vocals are tolerable, but have no narrative, no cohesion, and no depth. While this can sometimes be a good thing, for it to work, the music needs to be exciting. This isn't. The only way this album will click is if the listener is artistically interested in either Clifford - the founding member of Seefeel - or Calix, who's released five (much better) electronica albums on Warp. Otherwise, it's the equivalent of staring at a £15m canvas splattered with paint; you want to find a hidden depth, but it's just not happening.