When you look up the name Here We Go Magic you will learn little of the band other than this self-titled release. However, you may be more familiar with the name Luke Temple who has prior to this, released a further two albums. Hold a Match to a Gasoline World and Snowbeast. Now under a different pseudonym Temple unleashes a project that expands beyond the high pitched, banjo led Indie-Folk sounds that he is more familiar with. HWGM presents a more experimental and avant-garde fusion that expresses Temple’s talents as a composer and musician.
The start of this album reminds us of why his fans had been listening to him for the past few years. Opener ‘Only Pieces’ features a loop of xylophone and percussion to carry the acoustic guitar and the vocals. Proceeding this ‘Fangela’ continues his trademark nu-folk sound together with chopped up beats.
It’s not until we are three or four tracks deep into the album, to the point that it would feel slightly rude not to carry on until the record finishes, that we notice HWGM is actually beginning to go on some sort of musical journey. Like Bradford Cox produced so exquisitely with his debut Atlas Sound LP Let the Blind Lead Those Who Can See but Cannot Feel, the image of a dream springs to mind and here Temple draws you into his hypnotic 4-track sound scapes. ‘Tunnelvision’ is a wonderful piece of folk music that does just that.
The second half of HWGM is where Temple has woven together mini compositions of full frontal noise. Tracks such as ‘Ghost List’, the excellently titled ‘Babyohbaby - Ijustcantstanditanymore!’ and ‘Nats Alien’ are fine examples of ambient drone which really I feel really compliments the more gentle tracks on this release.
Here We Go Magic finishes off with a clean sounding waltz-y number, much like it started. The ironically titled ‘Everything’s Big’, goes back to basics with an ensemble of piano, acoustic guitar, drums and vocals, where musically and production wise it’s the most stripped down track on this release. Overall, Temple here provides a luscious blend of the rough and the smooth spread across nine tracks, yet neither song feels out of place. It’s not the most original album you’ll ever hear but this 38 minute noise journey is certainly a very pleasant experience.
Words by Freddy Rothman
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