Trip Key is the first release from Halifax’s looping, Math Rock duo Plural. The record is a collection of seven instrumental tracks, clearly inspired by (and aimed at) the vibrant yet chill audiences of Atlantic Canada’s camping music festival scene.
There are a number of interesting, refreshing factors about Plural and how Trip Key was developed. The group consists only of guitarist Matthew Schwartz and drummer Alex Wrathell. This of course means that all of the harmonic and melodic work goes to Schwartz, a limitation he overcomes with loopers, pitch modulators, and an 8-string electric.
A Plural track performance typically consists of Schwartz looping a simple guitar line, then layering it with overlapping elements in different registers, time signatures, and subdivisions. This “base” is then grooved on by Wrathell, and the duo creates variations on accents and intensity to alter the mood. Track foundations are minimalistic, ethereal, and playful, and they usually build up to heavy beats.
Plural takes pride in affirming that Trip Key was recorded as live performances. “It was a daunting task to put this all together independently, but we think it’s the best possible representation of what we strive to do musically,” says Schwartz.
Seeing Plural build up a track live definitely adds to the whole, especially if you like rhythm-work. Looping is a particularly unforgiving way to make music. The fact that the machine will continue to repeat anything you feed it makes it difficult to escape mistakes with grace. It’s impressive that Plural succeeds while juggling the number of layers contained in their songs. Especially considering that it’s unlikely that every effect in Schwartz’s massive pedalboard is time-synced or zero-latency.
The unforgiving nature of such a performance naturally extends to drumming over the loops; and it is to Wrathell’s credit that it works as well as it does in Trip Key. His work brings a sense of cohesion and a danceable quality to the songs. It all results in Plural offering a surprising amount of sound and energy in a fairly small footprint.
There are a handful of times in the record where things don’t sync exactly right and some of the sounds come out a bit flam-like, but it’s rarely enough to be distracting. Also, there are many ways to polish a record like this to perfection in post, and I have to give credit to the band for choosing to emphasize their craft as players instead. Tone “purists” might disagree with the heavily modulated, synth-like character of some of the guitar sounds used by Schwartz. However, I find they fit the band well and give the guitar a distinct character to stand out in a market flooded with derivation. His heavy tone is chunky and djent-friendly.
The production sound is pretty minimalistic; mostly an accurate representation of the Plural live sound. The drums appear recorded for clarity, but lack a bit of “room” and seem somewhat over-compressed. High-hats are mixed a bit loud for my taste and the kick could use more punch.
The songs themselves are largely experiments in motifs and rhythm. Plural comes out as a band that writes for the love of the riff and the vibe, building upon what works and discarding the rest. It definitely gives the duo plenty of room to explore their skill as players, and to connect with audiences looking for some “outside” beats and sounds on the dance floor.
Notable moments in Trip Key include the looping of what sounds like a hand brushing against strings at the beginning of “In Tents”, the heavy psychedelic circus vibe of “Boogie, Man”, and the driving beats of “Black to the Fuscia”, which features my favourite bit of drumming on the record.
If any of this resonates with you, then give Trip Key a spin. It’s good ear candy for music explorers and creative party-goers.