Like Mirage

Given the background of Moholy-Nagy's members in various space/drone/gaze-inspired acts like Tarentel, there's little surprise that Like Mirage touches on familiar territory, thus the motorik slide and surge on "Brute Neighbors." The emphasis on the trio's debut full-length lies in keyboards above all else, tackling the continuing fascination with older electronic gear recontextualized for a later time with gusto. The watery reverberation on the piano of "Tears of the Prophet" makes the title come to life in an unexpected way, a bit of the post-gaze zoneout reaching back to something like the Harold Budd/Cocteau Twins collaboration more than anything else, but here given a different, keyboard-centered focus. In contrast, "Seagulls," more or less the album's centerpiece, feels like a summation that provides a new synthesis. It's something where moody piano straight out of Slowdive's "Erik's Song" gets swirled in with a soft synth loop and quiet circles of tones, something open-ended and contemplative. "Nightjar" acts as a bit of gentility to wind it down with a distant echo and odd noises, while the shimmering synths of "Migratory Birds" feel like they could soundtrack an early-'80s TV documentary. But in that vein, "Astronomy Is a Natural Science," far from being something from the original Cosmos, feels as if it came from a lost sequel, the beats and atmospherics harking more to late-'90s moodout than late-'70s meditation. ~ Ned Raggett