Joshua Convey

press:
WIRE Magazine
October 2007
Issue 284 Joshua Convey, Vacant Integument
Utech CD
Reviewed by Edwin Poucey
Joshua Convey is a New York based musician whose first release features him playing guitar, electronics, and more interestingly, harmonica. The four tracks of Vacant Integument are carefully assembled with guitar loops spinning a cocoon of delicately fingered notes over a heaving, booming electronic beast huffing and puffing behind him. Midway through, his guitar suddenly springs apart like a broken clockwork toy, it's high pitched ringing now sounding like anguished screams as the electronics close in and the feedback takes over with a vengeance. When the electrical storm subsides, we are left with low clouds of resonating hum as the instruments converge in an exquisite harmony.
AQUARIUS RECORDS
We love the harmonica, especially when it's used in super creative ways, processed perhaps, or spread out over some Morricone-ish post rock, it is definitely evocative, and has an incredibly unique and distinctive sound, which definitely comes to the fore when the harmonica is rescued from the blues rock ghetto it usually finds itself trapped in. A couple past harmonica favorites: a tape by Usputuspud, a gorgeous dronescape of processed harmonica, and the sweeping deserty post rock of Souvenir's Young America, wherein the harmonica was used to add a layer of mournful mystery, and now we have this cd from NY soundmaker Joshua Convey, who utilizes harmonica, guitar and electronics, to create deep listening drones, and mesmerizing soundscapes of repetitive texture. The opener is a brief shimmer of high end, the harmonica smeared into soft billowy streaks, the electronics burbling percussively beneath, like a much more tranquil and washed out Sunroof! The second track finds Convey dipping his toes into Fennesz territory, a strange murky rhythm, supports a skittery stuttery high end guitar, that is looped and layered, the notes glimmering and overlapping, creating strange landscapes of pixilated upper register metallic shimmer, harmonics drift dreamily, punctuated by smears of grinding glitchy buzz. The third is a brief clattery soundscape that sounds like a contact mic dropped into a malfunctioning music box, all truncated twang, and strange metallic plunks, fractured melodies, and strange mechanical textures. Which brings us finally to the final track, a nearly 15 minute expanse of overdriven guitars, the notes transformed into buzzing shards, the tones chime like but wreathed in pulsing electronics and grinding distortion, until the distortion dissipates, leaving a slowly unfurling tangle of steel strings and soft focus harmonics, transforming into a low end rumble and drift, until the final couple minutes when the guitars become blown out once again, creating a gorgeous squall of overlapping and almost psychedelic buzz, before slowly sinking into the murk. Quite challenging, pretty far out, but definitely haunting and strangely lovely. Fans of fucked up dronemusick, harmonicas, and gnarled guitars will definitely dig. Gorgeous diecut packaging with super striking photos by Max Aguilera-Hellweg.
BRAINWASHED.COM
Written by Creaig Dunton
Monday, 17 September 2007
Another installment in the label's "Arc" series, the debut release from this NY based artist is a study in bedroom recording, a simple and lo-fi, yet captivating work of experimentation.
Joshua Convey, "Vacant Integument"
Utech
The four tracks that make up this disc all draw from the same sonic pallet: guitar, electronics, and a harmonica of all things. However, even with the same instrumentation from track to track, each piece feels like its own distinct entity, thematically similar, but standing alone. The moderate length opener, "Jejune," starts off with the harmonica, which is not something most of the listeners are used to hearing in this sort of context. Convey doesn't play the blues with his mouth harp though, but instead lays down a drifting wall of slow, shrill harmonica through a set of subtle effects and processing, while eventually a loop of synth tones begins to bubble up through the mix until it becomes the dominant element towards the end.
Instead of letting the harmonica continue to lead, "Oospore" opens with a looped set of percussive rumblings that continue throughout to form the "rhythm" of the track, as a plucked guitar motif enters and becomes more and more noticeable as it increases both in volume, presence, and delays. In an entirely different direction is the short piece "Shuck," which sounds as if a collection of found sounds were excised from breaking toys and stretched out to prolong the agony, a chaotic set of rattling and ringing that can't be clearly identified, but still manages to somehow be rhythmic given its loop-based nature.
The closer, "Idle," actually covers the span of about half of the disc, and yet again takes the entire instrumentation of the album and creates something that is different than the previous tracks. Heavier on the effects, the guitar is overdriven, distorted, and grows louder throughout the first half, hitting shrill tones that could easily induce migraines, but accompanied by lo end heavy bass feedback that somewhat makes for a rhythmic backing, but not quite. The guitar backs off and retreats back to a less painful, calmer chime, but the sub-bass feedback stays, ending the album on an interesting contrast.
For a debut, Convey does an excellent job of creating a work that feels like a set of someone's bedroom improvisations that are wonderfully composed and structured. There is the lo-fi analog warmth one would expect, and the always exceptional mastering by James Plotkin keeps this naïve warmth there, but never feeling amateurish or distracting, but instead contributes to the sound and the mood here. It is a great first work from an artist who will hopefully continue to release stuff as interesting as this.
NORMANRECORDS
Volume 5 in the Utech Arc series is the work of Joshua Convey. 'Vacant Integument' consists of 4 experimental tracks created with guitar, harmonica and electronics. This kind of passed me by on first listen as I wasn't really focused on what was happening but on second listen I can really appreciate the subtleties of this CD. The use of repetition lays underneath all kinds of little tones and intricate guitar plucking which wander around the pieces creating an un-nerving feeling. Strange and difficult to describe but worthy of your attention.