Review: Radio For The Daydreamers – Praying For The Be(a)st

By way of an introduction, the first Radio For The Daydreamers was entitled ‘Mother Superior And Her Fields Of Migraine’; Part One of a triptych which dealt with accepting evil. The second documents the “struggle to find a cure to the plague that his mind has become after visiting Mother Superior in the first act”. Once again, admirers of the Handbag House movement are likely to be disappointed.

Indeed, once again, ‘Praying For The Be(a)st’ can be loosely defined as post-rock but – just like its predecessor – that only tells half the story. We are greeted by haunted female vocals, cute keyboards, menacing trip-hop and crisp rhythms and that’s just the first track. During the seventy-plus minutes, highpoints include a warm and doleful ‘Wasted Faces In Secret Places’, the combination of sighing strings and throbbing rhythms for ‘Neither Of Us Will Live On’, plus the brilliant if rather self-explanatory ‘Prog Jazz’. Indeed, jazz music seems a fine move for Radio For The Daydreamers as ‘Necrosis Stupor’ and ‘Curl Up, Time To Die’ benefit from a sense of space and diverting time signatures. Certainly, those tracks are an easier listen than some of the evil-sounding narratives towards the end of the album.

Even though the bleak mood is omnipresent, the good quality of music is equally consistent. ‘Praying For The Be(a)st’ will be hard going for many but for those who value dark, instrumental material, there is much to feast on.

Web Sites:
Radio For The Daydreamers Official Site
Radio For The Daydreamers Bandcamp

Further Listening:
Mogwai