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Reviews

Rob Harrison — Explode My Head
(Bandcamp no#, 2024, CD / LP / DL)

by Jon Davis, Published 2025-12-13

Explode My Head Cover art

Trying to come up with coherent words to describe Rob Harrison’s Explode My Head is the kind of task that threatens to explode my head. There is certainly no established genre label that applies very accurately, and not much in the way of established artists that can be used for reference. One thing I can say for sure is that I like it a lot. Some things I can say for sure: there are six tracks of moderate length (five to nine minutes); Harrison’s vocals are quite good and often arranged into multiple harmonies; there are lots of saxophone parts, all quite well done, never schmaltzy; Harrison handles most of the instruments except the drums and strings, barring guest flute and bass clarinet from Gong member Ian East; and all of the titles are of the form “[indefinite article] [adjective] [noun] of [noun]” — “A Severe Lack of Gravitas,” “An Absurd Case of Iguanas,” “A Fragile Harmony of Desires,” and so on. All of the tracks go through varying sections that change style, though not drastic enough to seem jarring. Any comparisons to other artists are fleeting, applying only to brief sections or aspects of the arrangements. If you’ve heard Cardiacs’ LSD or Gong’s Unending Ascending or the last few albums by Ashley Reaks, you might think of them at times. The vocal arrangement at the beginning of “A Profound Throb of Dread” even breaks up into polyphony reminiscent of Gentle Giant. Rob Harrison has come up with an album that is exceptionally creative and unpredictable, and it deserves to be heard by anyone looking for something that’s off the beaten path but not difficult to enjoy at all.

Filed under: New releases, 2024 releases

Related artist(s): Rob Harrison

More info
http://robharrisonmusic.bandcamp.com/album/explode-my-head

 

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