Blues Control, Plankton Wat, Fang Moon

[WANDERING EXPLORERS] Less than 3,000 people live in Coopersburg, Penn., and two of them are Blues Control’s Russ Waterhouse and Lea Cho. To call the duo “experimental” would suggest it explores new territory, which it doesn’t. Instead, Cho peers so closely at just a few baroque chords with her hypnotic piano that she gets under pop’s skin, while Waterhouse applies an intravenous anesthetic of sloshing tape sounds, steely Zeppelin guitar riffs and synthesizer wanderings. Cho and Waterhouse hold a microscope to the textures around them. Their latest effort, Valley Tangents, examines a spring leaf, while previous albums inspected concrete and urban grit. It leans toward their impressionist and jazz-fusion influences, especially on the driving opener “Love’s a Rondo.” The incessant background buzz has mellowed, and piano and guitar sounds are cleaner. Maybe Blues Control is an explorer, because this tangent stays right on course. 

Where: Mississippi Studios
Phone: 288-3895
Address: 3939 N Mississippi Ave.
Website: www.mississippistudios.com