An atonal meeting of the minds with David Watson on highland bagpipes and small pipes, and Bill Nace on 5 and 2 string taishōgotos and harmonica. Simply listing the instrumentation should be enough to thin the herd on this blistering full-length platter. But far from being a collection of traditional tunes from their respective motherlands, or some sort of angular take on cultural appropriation, On Bats delivers a sound world situated firmly in the saddle of a shared singular vision. Watson and Nace approach their instruments and compositions with an endurance and intensity that make a false chord growl sound like one-dimensional cartoon fodder.
Similar to his taishōgoto work on the stream of LP’s Nace has released on his Open Mouth…