Droneroom – “Mojave Pastoral”
Petal Motel is pleased to premiere “Mojave Pastoral” from our friend on the other side of that same desert, Blake Edward Conley AKA Droneroom. The track is from his upcoming album Whatever Truthful Understanding, out 4/15 on the aptly-titled Desert Records. The track is Morricone on the moon, high dronesome at its finest, painting a vivid landscape with noise featuring a full orchestra of sound manipulators, coming together from afar and culminating in something scenic, resonant, the sound of being alone in the desert and how its quiet is actually constructed of a multitude of soft sounds and creators.
“Mojave Pastoral is the first Droneroom song to feature a ‘full ensemble’ of players on it. One of these musicians is Keith RN Chander of odd.circles, who I have shared a long musical history with, on stand up bass, both plucked and bowed. Keith is an electrician from North Carolina. The Other musician is Adrian ‘AV’ Voorhies, a long time friend who was the bridge to my signing to Desert Records, on drums. AV is a lawyer in Texas. I have dubbed this improvisational powerhouse, appropriately enough, the Texolina Electric Lawyers. The core of “Mojave Pastoral” was, like all of ‘Whatever Truthful Understanding’, improvised and this improvisation was sent to them to attempt to navigate. They succeeded beyond my wildest expectations, resulting in possibly my favorite track on the record. In addition, masterer and editor, Jason T Lameroux took a voicemail recorded by renowned man about Dayton Nick Kizirnis and was able to embed his story about a horrifying walk on the beach and being confronted by right wing America into the music, providing a dark undercurrent to what is a very ornate exploration. This mix of moving and yet anxious has always been a key tenant of what I have tried to achieve in droneroom and “Mojave Pastoral” is a perfect example.”
Droneroom is the nom de strum of Blake Edward Conley, a certified Kentucky Colonel and the self-professed ‘Cowboy of Drone’. Conley has demonstrated his ability to drift, twang, and sear over the course of numerous releases (including …The Other Doesn’t, Neon Depression, and Negative Libra), but on his new album, he does something he has never done before. While prior drone releases have predominantly featured the stinging bite of his telecaster and the occasional wash of lapsteel, Conley finally succumbs to the lure of having the acoustic be at the forefront. Recorded by Conley at Here There Are No Answers in Las Vegas and mastered by Jason Lamoreaux in Shepherdsville KY, this is hardly droneroom ‘Unplugged’. Conley allows the naturalistic chime of the instrument to be warped by beds of drones, his walls of effect pedals, and unexpected field recordings to create an atmosphere that feels both out of and deeply embedded in the world.
The title “Whatever Truthful Understanding” is derived from the dedication in a century old book about the history of Kentucky. The music was written in the wake of an emotionally taxing relocation from Louisville to the cosmopolitan blight of Las Vegas. Conley has often made music that reflects the wider expanses of the desert, but living in a city surrounded by it has opened up his sound even further. Here he displays finger picking that drones, that leads, that bounces, that grinds. Tempos flutter like ripples on ponds, notes cascading like rain on rooftops. Here Conley truly embraces guitar techniques he hasn’t before.
Pre-order the album on Bandcamp.
