12/03/08
Text: Nik Mercer
When we get a 12" in at the Anthem office, a strange sort of excitement sweeps the mail room. Vinyl of any size, especially the sort that has a diameter of one foot, garners a thorough examination and silent reverence―wax is rare!
We had one such experience when Mi Ami's forthcoming 12", "Echononecho," arrived at our doorstep... except this time it was followed by an energetic slew of hollers are cries of joy. Since getting wind of the San Francisco trio a while back, we haven't stopped keeping up-to-date with the recent Quarterstick Records signees. The guys even put together the second installment of our "One's & Two's" podcast series!
Anyway, needless to say, "Echononecho" and the disc's b-side, "Version," are stunning songs. Mi Ami―which features two members of the disbanded Black Eyes and the drummer for kraut rock-cum-space disco quartet Jonas Reinhardt―specializes in merging the contemplatively ambient with the in-your-face punky; the tribally rhythmic with the deeply funky. Human wails float across washes of synths and hypnotic drum beats in one tune while in another, the layers are all reversed, with the rhythm section coming front-and-center to churn out a mind-bending funk jam. Mi Ami is the seemingly impossible paring of the dubbed-out sounds of Liquid Liquid and the angsty, nonsensical noise ramblings of Arto Lindsay's DNA.
"Echononecho" 12" is out on Quarterstick Records on January 17.
