Circles

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On their third full-length, 2012's Circles, Moon Duo come down decidedly more on 2011's Mazes' end of the scale than they do on either Escape or Killing Time from 2010. The guitar pyrotechnics that were so prevalent on the earlier albums were firmly a part of Ripley Johnson's other identity -- as songwriter and lead guitarist for Wooden Shjips, where sprawling post-psych jams are the norm rather than the exception. On Mazes, his guitar playing became a more integrated part of the ensemble with Sanae Yamada's organ and the cheap drum machine they employ. There are still solo breaks, but they aren't nearly as labyrinthine; they serve to weave themselves back into the two- or three-chord structures of the tunes. Show more