The Thomas Family's 'Dub Variations' Reviews

Since it's release in mid-October, very few of the review copies I sent out out have resulted in words being thrown about the internet in response to what such critics would undoubtedly have called 'Album of the Year', 'The Greatest Record of All Ti..' ...or, words to similar effect, if they had picked it up. However, the... lets for ease of identification call them the, 'more insightful' critics... the More Insightful Critics have taken the time to sit and listen to The Thomas Family's 'Dub Variations' album and have deemed it worthy of a few lines appraisal. 

Having removed my snarky tongue from out of my cheek, I'd like to extend huge thanks to Rob/Radio Free Midwich, Mark/Idwal Fisher, Raffaelo/Music Won't Save You, and the mysterious reviewer at Swirls of Noise. Thank you! It's massively encouraging to see a record I have such a strong affinity for being so well received by others.

Here are excerpts of the aforementioned reviews and links to the entire articles:

Radio Free Midwich: Tension, Balance, Possibility: The Thomas Family's 'Dub Variations'

'What we have here is a foundation document, an ur text, for this year’s most talked about sub-genre ‘extraction music‘. The album was recorded way before the term became common parlance on every street corner and was released way after. Hearing it is as mysterious and exciting as finding a previously missing explanatory introduction to the Voynich Manuscript. 

A truly essential purchase.'



Idwal Fisher: The Thomas Family and Kevin Sanders

'The way that ‘III’ moves from from random key prod into an urban ritualistic analogue nod fest provides us with the key piece here. Think Pink Floyd’s One of These Days for the Extraction generation with added exotic wildlife. ‘I’ and ‘II’ are much quieter affairs. Here we have desert dust storms, the ubiquitous hum of distant traffic, station announcements, minimalist explorations into the corners of empty factories where the light rarely reaches, bleak affairs made for near silence.'



Music Won't Save You: The Thomas Family Dub Variations (Italian)

'The result is a universe from the substantial nature of dark-ambient, resulting from the interaction of crackling field recordings and minimal sketches produced by modular synth.'


Swirls of Noise: The Thomas Family - Dub Variations

'...but words fall a bit short in actually describing it. Music wants to be, needs to be experienced. Those vague references and glimpses demand some amount of effort and attention, because otherwise the music simply passes by and might be reduced to the drone textures... While there is ambience – i.e. fragments of sounds that can be found in a city – they are reduced to a role in the background and unable to reach out to the listener. It feels as if someone would be shut in a building, engulfed in a stream of sterile sounds, while the outer world is experienced – through vague noises and impression – through some sort of window...A lot can be read from those tracks. A lot can be gained from these compositions. Listen to them.'

Copies of The Thomas Family's 'Dub Variations' are still available via the Crow Versus Crow Bandcamp

The Thomas Family 'Dub Variations' Now Available

 

The Thomas Family

Dub Variations

2014

CVC001

 

Limited Edition of 100 CDs / Digital Download

 

I'm unbelievably proud to be able to announce the release of The Thomas Family's debut record, Dub Variations, through Crow Versus Crow. The record has been a long time coming, having been originally recorded in 2012, but still sounds as fresh to me as the day I first heard it - albeit more intricately composed, detailed and complex a record; it's good like that.

 

It's available to order in both formats via the Crow Versus Crow Bandcamp and also through Norman Records, who said of the record, '...Its as if you are lying in a hotel room in an industrial area of somewhere slightly scary feeling disorientated and lost and listening to sounds emanating from a nearby factory through a partially opened window. Strangely soothing'. and also at FUSE in Bradford, whilst stocks last.

 

Creative Calderdale 'Creative Profile' Q&A:

I recently had the pleasure of answering some questions posed by Creative Calderdale, regarding Crow Versus Crow, it's history, intentions, projects etc, ahead of the release of The Thomas Family's Dub Variations CD.

 I also made a photocollage specifically for the feature.

 It can all be seen here. 

Thanks to Katy and Creative Calderdale for the opportunity.

Stream an excerpt of 'III' from The Thomas Family's Dub Variations album here:

Pre-order the album from Bandcamp here

Pre-Order: The Thomas Family - 'Dub Variations' (CVC001)

It's with great pleasure that I can announce the first release on Crow Versus Crow 'The Label', The Thomas Family's Dub Variations, is now available for pre-order via the Crow Versus Crow Bandcamp.

Here's a little information on the release...

The Thomas Family - Dub Variations

Tracks:

1.  I
2. II
3. III

Duration: 49:55

Label: Crow Versus Crow

Catalogue Number: CVC001

Release Date: Monday 13^th October 2014, with pre-orders available Monday 22^nd September 2014

Format: Limited Edition of 100 CDs (individually hand-assembled in hand-stamped, recycled card ‘no glue’ sleeves, with full colour 24 x 12 cm insert featuring art work by Crow Versus Crow) & Digital Download

Dub Variations is the debut release from The Thomas Family, a duo of Daniel and David Thomas (no relation). Daniel and David record and perform together as Hagman, TST (with Kevin Sanders) and as solo artists; Daniel under his own name, David as Ap Martlet. Between them, they also run the labels Sheepscar Light Industrial, Cherry Row Recordings and Kirkstall Dark Matter.

A combination of David’s solo sketches, made using a modular synthesiser, and Daniel’s field recordings, taken in Hong Kong, formed the basis for the sessions that became these Variations.

Dub Variations is a product of Summer and Winter of 2012.

Pre-Order Now