Ummagma: Ummagma + Antigravity

Posted on the 09 October 2012 by Hctf @hctf

Ummagma is a Canadian-Ukrainian shoegaze post-rock duo. Shauna McLarnon (vocals, composition, lyrics) and Alexx Kretov (composition, instruments, arrangement, recording, vocals) met in Moscow in 2003 and fell in love. They have just released two full-length albums: Ummagma and Antigravity. With a mix of ambient, jazz and dream pop, the duo digs deep exploring textures, heavy on echo and reverb.

Ummagma
The first album of the set brings back Mike Oldfield and the Cocteau Twins. The duo's shared love for folk shines through in the vocals in NIMBY, with a bit of The Cure guitar as a spanner in the works. Orion finds them in full sci-fi mood, while River Town flows like a gentle brook.

Tracks:
  1. BFD
  2. Upsurd
  3. The Road to Lees
  4. Human Factor
  5. Orion
  6. Outside
  7. Rotation
  8. Risky
  9. NIMBY
  10. River Town
  11. Talk to Her
  12. J.S. Bach

Antigravity
Ummagma basks in the sun mostly, while Antigravity lurks in the shadows. ,The second album is a bit more avant-garde, diving in head first with a floating keyboard part on top of a nervous back beat, until the voice of Shauna McLarnon soothes the building tension. Kiev, with robot bleeps and plenty of gain on the guitar and the acoustic Photographer are sad songs that sneak up on the listener. And what better way to end a dark album long with a drone in math rocker 1+1=3.

Tracks:
  1. Lama
  2. Micro Macro
  3. Back to You
  4. Kiev
  5. Live and Let Die
  6. Colors
  7. Photographer
  8. Beautiful Moment
  9. Autumnmania
  10. Balkanofellini
  11. Titry
  12. 1+1=3

Ummagma and Antigravity are self-released albums Buy it from their website.

» Ummagma on Facebook.

Awesome - this is one of my favorite bands and its great to see them doing so well. After getting strong feedback in our former USSR and then Scotland, it's good to see that you Americans also enjoy Ummagma!@Sounds of Sputnik
FYI: HCTF is an awesome Dutch weblog.You sure have a gift for writing such great articles! Thank you!