Without wanting to downplay it, there are elements of Brian Eno’s Small Craft on a Milk Sea that make it the perfect album for a. Relaxing after a rubbish day in work, b. Going to sleep to, c. Fumin’ about something, d. Reading a book, e. A to Wonderland; but just when you think you’ve pigeon holed it, you find something new and all bets are off again.
I started off thinking that this was an album to relax to with the super chilled Emerald And Lime and atmospherically haunting Complex Heaven, but when you get to the likes of Flint March and Horse you suddenly step into much harsher, darker territory. Small Craft of a Milk Sea is the bridge between the two combining calm waters with the prospect of a storm.
2 Forms of Anger continues in a boggy wilderness with twisting flashes and a surging, looped beat that seems to grow and dominate the song, pierced with harsh distorted guitar. Out of the darkness comes the eyrie Indiana Bone Jump followed by the drive of Dust Shuffle, with its own eyrie elements to complete the disturbed middle section of the album.
Paleosonic is the Ronseal of the album, with prehistoric beats overlaid with futuristic synth. It’s the Eels of the tyrannosaurus age and it ends brilliantly with increasing intensity.
Slow Ice,Old Moon has a pastoral feel with a good chunk of the disturbed vibe of earlier songs, but that’s replaced by the tranquil Lesser Heaven, which has got “to bed for we rise at 8:30, for 9” written all over it (watch The Trip BBC, it makes sense honestly).
While Calcium Needles is a little on the empty side, except for the bell and ice needle chimes, Emerald And Stone is a classical, piano led lullaby with moments of discordant beauty. Written, Forgotten continues in the same vain with acoustic guitar replacing the piano. Although, the weird noises in the background remind you that the darkness is not too far away.
Late Anthropocene is a bit of a letdown ending to Small Craft on a Milk Sea, but it doesn’t take anything away from the inherent current of genius that runs through the rest of the album. If you’ve ever wondered where the inspiration for MGMT Congratulations came from, this album should give you more than a few clues. While there’s an element of “DJ in a cooler than cool coffee shop” about the music on Small Craft on a Milk Sea (the dudes at Milgi know what I’m talking about), the quality of Brian Eno and collaborators Jon Hopkins and Leo Abrahams’ vision makes the album infinitely more listenable.
Small Craft on a Milk Sea, Brian Eno review: 4.1/5
