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Originally based on the south coast of England in Portsmouth, Cranes first album 'Self non Self' had a peculiar intensity which seemed all the more unusual at the time. John Peel picked up on the album right away, with the group recording a session for him in the album's first week of release. Some intense media interest followed and shortly afterwards the group signed to Dedicated-BMG (which also became home to Spiritualized and Beth Orton) and went on to record the albums 'Wings of Joy' (1991), 'Forever' (1993), 'Loved' (1994), 'La Tragedie d'Oreste et Electre' (1995), and 'Population Four' (1997). After a 4 year break, Cranes re-emerged on their own independent label Dadaphonic to release 'Future Songs' (2001) and 'Particles & Waves' (2004), which saw the band heading in a more electronic direction yet still retaining their trademark sound from their previous releases.
October 2008 saw the long-awaited release of a new album by Cranes, whose creative output has spanned over fifteen years and – with this latest self-titled addition – nine studio albums. 'Cranes' is a blend of celestial atmospheric rock and metaphysical minimalist electronics, made instantly recognisable by Alison Shaw’s childlike vocals and Jim Shaw’s uniquely inventive compositions. There are themes of fractals, the mysterious mathematical patterns and shapes that can be found throughout nature and the universe beyond. Lyrics speak of the passing of time, of how cyclical things can be and of wanting to move forward. This is all woven into compositions that take in everything from krautrock and folk, to intricate, almost extra-terrestrial soundscapes and David Lynch-esque melodies. Stand out tracks include Feathers – a filmic Espers-recalling underwater epic and High and Low’s guitar-led waltz. There’s Panorama’s dark Parisian vocal layering and Wires’ soaring melody textured with Four Tet-like blips. The new album’s otherworldly tonal beauty will continue to see them existing outside of the mainstream, slightly disconnected but able to offer a very beautiful, one-of-a-kind vision of life in the twenty first century.
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