by Jason

Anaphylaxis is the brainchild of Jason Coffman. He takes samples, various sounds, fuzz, noise, and female vocals and pastes them together into an experimental seam that produces blissful and jolting ambiance. With Anaphylaxis think Hollydrift meets Stars of the Lid. The new album is entitled Noise for Lovers and indicated a theme of romantic bliss throughout the albums course.

Noise for Lovers begins with “A Love Set to Music.” This track opens up the album with swirling fuzz and a big wall of sound. A radio tunes in the background and brings up what sounds like music from the 30s or 40s amidst the wall of fuzz and chaos. The radio song really gives a romantic feel to the chaos and, perhaps, represents what all couples go through: storms in their relationships. The technological noises are a great foil for the peaceful music. “Hopeless” follows on the heels of “Music” and begins with a sorrowful female vocal that floats among strings and a pillow of noise. The song is melancholy and depressing. Perhaps the noise from the previous track has won out for a time and turmoil invades the lovers’ relationship. Eventually, the noises swell as the vocals fade to the background and the emotive energy surges. This turns into warbling sounds and odd keys that sound distressed. The sorrowful vox return and then there is spoken word speaking of hope.

“This is the Place Where the Dead Help the Living” begins with a soaring moan and a really hard beat. There definitely is a creepy feeling to this track. The beat of the dead seems to be marching through this song and it’s definitely awesome. Jason knows how to convey a feeling with his tracks and the titles for them are apropos. “Tomic” comes next and begins with what is more like the growling of a beast than anything. It’s kind of ominous as well and has a low rumbling. In the midst of the rumbling comes an almost creepy, distorted female vocal. Perhaps this moment in the album is like Odysseus or Aeneus returning from their journeys to the underworld. “A Valentine” begins with a deep rumble and blips with swirling samples. This is a sort of chaotic sounding piece, but it has the thumping feeling like a heart. Perhaps the emotions of love are coming to the surface in a rambling sea of chaos.

“All Yours” begins with a faded hip-hop style beat that is sort of fuzzed out. Eventually, a hum that is angelic comes into the mix. This continues throughout the course of the song. “Tomorrow Romance” begins with listful female vocals that are inviting. This continues throughout the entirety of the tracks with a soft hum floating among the voices. This track is endless in a good way. It’s ethereal and floating and takes the listener on a peaceful ride. “Wait Here” is a long, extended track that begins with a quiet hum and ring. The build in this track is slow and patient. There are a mixture of voices and odd samples and rings that vibrate throughout the track. This track is truly ambient as it floats through an endless landscape of sound. “VFD” has a water-like quality to its sound. The female vox are tied into fuzz and swirling keys. Eventually, a deep, bass beat comes into the mix with some backwards samples. This track leads into “Goodnight, Princess” which begins with a low, fuzzy hum and odd whirls. The tempo of this track changes up a bit and some dissonant sounds really come into play. The LP ends with “(and Sweet Dreams).” This begins with swirling keys and a low hum. Spacey movements flow in and out of the mix. This track is the longest on the disc and has a great Stars of the Lid feel to it. This is the kind of track that you lay back on your bed in the dark and just crank it up, close your eyes, and feel your way through the music. Eventually the music stops and a sort of hidden track begins just over 14 minutes into the song. This has swirls and fuzzy bleeps and starts. This hidden track feels really experimental and full of layered samples. It is an interesting end to a fantastic disc.

Overall, Jason has crafted a fantastic, experimental piece of work. For those of you into ambient and experimental/electronic, I highly recommend you check Anaphylaxis out.