In their first outing pared down to a trio,
Eleventh Dream Day continue to focus their post-punk avant-rock leanings. Although songs like "Two Smart Cookies" and "View From the Rim" rock out, most cuts are the kind of slow to mid-tempo dirgelike-tunes-with-guitar-atmospherics that
Sonic Youth does so well.
Rick Rizzo steps to the front being the sole guitar player, as well as handling all lead vocal duties, while drummer
Janet Beveridge Bean contributes only backing vocals this time out.
Rizzo has a feedback laden, howling guitar tone much like
Karl Precoda from
Dream Syndicate, and he puts it to good use on nearly every track. The instrumental "Motion Sickness" really showcases
Rizzo's controlled mayhem guitar style, sounding at times like
Sonny Sharrock, but even the slowest cuts have moments where he's letting loose. Good pacing and nice production touches help make
Eighth a great listen.