The lapsed physicist in me – albeit one of only matriculation standard – questions the notion of ‘free energy’. It’s the transformation of energy that is significant – the law of conservation of energy suggests energy is always looking for some visual, aural, thermal or kinetic manifestation. If that’s the case, how can energy be genuinely ‘free’?
The lapsed physicist in me – albeit one of only matriculation standard – questions the notion of ‘free energy’. It’s the transformation of energy that is significant – the law of conservation of energy suggests energy is always looking for some visual, aural, thermal or kinetic manifestation. If that’s the case, how can energy be genuinely ‘free’?
Any physicist worth half their weight in salt could easily debunk any of that proposition in a matter of pithy sentences, but it’d still make no difference to Cam Butler and Mark Dawson, aka The Coralinas. Butler is a perpetually busy man – best known for his stewardship of instrumental trio Silver Ray, Butler has also found time to pursue a solo career, as well as becoming a lynchpin in former Died Pretty singer Ron Peno’s Return To Senders – while Dawson is most recognisable as drummer for various Ed Kuepper led-outfits, as well as a session and stage drummer of considerable repute.
Like most of Butler’s other projects, The Coralinas are an instrumental act. Throughout the album – which comprises four song tracks, spread over six song movements – there’s a consistent pattern: Butler noodles away on his guitar like a painter daubing oils on canvas, or a writer transposing the odd thought onto a page, while Dawson loiters in the background, waiting for the precise moment at which to join Butler’s fledgling conversation.
The tone and tempo ebbs and flows: at critical moments Butler and Dawson are locked in step, each player skirting around the borders of psychedelic exploration, dipping their toes into the acid-laden waters just long enough to whet the listener’s attitude for kaleidescopic indulgence. At certain moments – the title track being a good example – the sound tricks out to barely nothing, yet the potential energy remains.
The Coralinas are susceptible to allegations of indulgence – yet under the correct tutelage, indulgence is a critical element in good art. And with Cam Butler and Mark Dawson, you’re in very safe hands.
