Sad Rockets: Transition

One thing Andrew Pekler, the sole member of Sad Rockets, is particularly adamant about is making sure his true-to-form, played-with-real-instruments and analog-recorded music is known as such. Don’t make the mistake of thinking a computer had anything to do with the creation of Transition. I’m not even sure it’s ethical for me to be composing a review for this album on a computer.

It is in knowing Transition is void of digital production that reveals the true musicianship of Andrew Pekler. So many of Transition‘s beat-heavy instrumental tracks sounds as if they could have easily been spliced and diced together by a digital editor (especially the synthetic chirps of “Senio Junior”). But Pekler played all the instruments and is proud of it. Even if some of them do have that mall organ shop vibe to them. It’s that slightly sinister, mellow attitude that connects the many, what may seem to be incompatible, musical styles on Transition.

Funky electronic beats circle around while cheap, mellow jazz organs lay down their improvisational melodies. Elements of traditional rock, soft acoustic rock and even hip-hop crop up underneath the analog ceiling.

“Heavy Meta” has a thick overlay of hissing over the top of this double-agent movie theme. It sounds so much like a radio station that’s faltering in and out of range, in a moment of subconsciousness I almost reached over to my car stereo to try and tune it to back to a stronger frequency only to realize it wasn’t the radio at all.

The last track, “Twenty-seven”, is strikingly similar to Pink Floyd, and could easily be mistaken for a long-lost unreleased Floyd instrumental.

Pick this one up if you want something a little different than your typical techno. Oh and it might be a wise decision to go with the double LP instead of the CD. I think analog Andrew would want it that way.