Major Napier - Major Soldier EP

I first introduced Australian artist Major Napier to you last November; a time when I was particularly enamoured with his cover of Sharon Van Etten’s Lovemore. Almost immediately after I wrote, he released a free download EP of bedroom-recorded songs entitled ‘Major Soldier’, which I was reminded of via an enthused post on Zen Tapes today. The slow, booming drum-sound prevalent throughout “Crowning Observation” (below) is idiosyncratic of the whole release, Johnny Ross careful to  keep the beat sufficiently organic-sounding and sunken in reverb to explicate the full aura of lo-fi ambience. There’s a new electronic dimension here; and a wide-ranging set of angular multi-layered harmonies which are decidedly direction-less. ’Amazing/ A Tribute to Jan Zajíc’ is a frivolous and swirling hip-hop influenced piece of folk-induced electronica, with a loose Kanye-style autotune (which works in the least obnoxious way possible) and Braids-esque psychedelic grandeur in the instrumentals. The limited-run CD will set you back just $10 Australian dollars, the download is totally free. Both options workable from Major Napier’s Bandcamp page.