Bleep

Blackest Ever Black welcome Phil Todd to their roster: after more than 25 active years in the business, the English artist takes his Ashtray Navigations project to the London label for a full-length of his edgy psychedelia.

Not unlike 2015’s A Shimmering Replica for US experimental label VHF, To Make A Fool Ask, And You Are The First unfolds its powers through unconventional narratives and imaginative juxtapositions: after creating vortex after vortex with improvised piano phrases and shape-shifting strings, the epic ‘Spray Two’ breaks into repetitive Fender Rhodes arpeggios. Throbbing machine beats and gentle keyboard textures from longtime collaborator Mel O'Dubhshlaine form effective contrasts to the mind-bending sounds Todd teases out of his guitar. This brooding tension defines the album's atmosphere, making it a perfect fit for the Blackest Ever Black aesthetic.