Telekinesis – Ad Infinitum

Power pop vehicle takes an electronic turn...

To read Michael Lerner's thoughts on the writing and making of 'Ad Infinitum', the fourth album from his power pop vehicle Telekinesis, is to sympathetically step inside the mind of many an artist faced with the question of how to replicate or, preferably better, their previous output on a new project.

"I went down to the basement," Lerner recalls, "and started playing the same chords I always play… I just felt like I'd exhausted everything I knew. I was not excited at all. I just could not make another power-pop album." You may struggle to have sympathy for such a predicament. Making music isn't the most dangerous thing in the world to do, but at the same time, many is the band or artist who, when faced with the possibility to take a risk and push the metaphorical envelope, has felt constrained enough to need to resort to the former.

For Lerner, this wasn't an option, and it is to 'Ad Infinitum''s benefit that he took the course of action that he did. 'Falling (In Dreams)' and 'Sylvia', which open the album, are both exceptional slices of synth-infused pop music. By the time we reach the more straight-ahead 'Courtesy Phone' it comes as something of a surprise. Those who are new to the wonders of Telekinesis, are left to wonder, what kind of band is this? To be made to work for your gratification as a listener in the contemporary age is an underused and under-appreciated element in the relationship between artist and audience.

'Sleep In' edges along atop a ricocheting rhythm bed and layers of synths, while 'Farmers Road' is an altogether brighter and more energetic number which manages to convey something of the spirit of 'Pet Sounds'. In closing the album, the two-parted title track takes things in a direction more akin to the recent work of Public Service Broadcasting as, in 'Part I' swathes of epic synths serve to build a mood which is built on by its stark, piano-driven counterpart. In these two songs, the two sides of Telekinesis are most clearly on show. Musical intelligence abounds. This is thoughtful music for thoughtful listeners, and it is all the more rewarding for it.

7/10

Words: Haydon Spenceley

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