THE CHARMER UNDER ME

A sprawling, overwrought studio project, Like The Standing Still showcases a kaleidoscope of influence, references, and oddball chaos from Detroit musician and producer Geoffrey Brown. A longtime engineer, studio dog, and hired gun, Brown employs super secret skills obtained from working with local artists Big Vic, Eight Carl, Lily Talmers & The Ypsilanti Goddam, and Sabbatical Bob to craft something in between and outside notions of shoegaze, krautrock, dub, noise rock, and ambient music. 

 

While most of the record sees Brown performing every instrument, it features some notable and essential guests: David Ward (drums), Jordan Anderson (organ), and Ben Green (trumpet) during the latter half. Heavy Motorik grooves are accentuated with nodding, hypnotic vocal patterns, dubbed-out guitars, freaky synths, and left-field song structures. The music jumps between disparate idioms at will and without warning. Angularity ebbs and flows. 

 

Like The Standing Still builds and erodes walls of sound, sometimes combusting into harsh noise, sometimes shattering into something beautiful - but never quite getting there. It’s dense, repetitive, and unpredictable. For as few aesthetic similarities as the two share, The Charmer Under Me’s Steely Dan-derived namesake is not coincidental.