Atoms For Peace - Amok Review
rating: 3.5
Impromptu 'supergroup' Atoms For Peace was formed in Los Angeles towards the close of 2009, initially conceived as a vehicle to allow Radioheads Thom Yorke to play his debut solo album The Eraser in a live capacity. The group boasts a notable and eclectic collective of musical heavyweights; with Yorke (vocals, guitar and piano), Chilli Peppers bassist Flea, longtime Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich (keyboards and synths), Brazilian instrumentalist Mauro Refosco (percussion), and Joey Waronker of Beck & R.E.M (drums). The musicians convened for a 3 day studio session in L.A. during which the band sought to recreate the electronic sounds that Yorke had previously produced on his laptop, after which Yorke sliced, diced and rearranged the pieces before layering his vocals over the results.
Amok represents the evolution of Yorke's ever-expanding fascination with electronica and all-pervasive desire to break the mould by creating an album on which its impossible to discern where the organic ends and the electronic begins. Its a rich tapestry of interlaced instruments and electronic snippets, intricately entangled beneath Yorkes anxious and yearning vocals, and mixed from a brighter and more colourful palette than The Eraser. The tracks are complex and nuanced: take excellent lead single Default for example, which showcases an evolving skittering drum arrangement matched with haunting synthesisers and Yorke's soaring but melancholic vocals. Other high points include the warped, sweeping, shimmering layers of Ingénue, and the peaceful guitar melody accompanying the addictive vocal in Stuck Together Pieces.