Alto! - LP3 - LP

ALTO! (LP3) by ALTO! Portland, OR trio Alto! was formed in 2011 by guitarist Derek Monypeny alongside drummers Kyle Emory & Steven Stone, who over the course of five years have evolved into a fierce and explorative ensemble on the Portland scene. Having self-released two eponymous full-length albums on Monypeny’s Raheem Records in 2012 and 2014, Trouble In Mind presents their third album, the appropriately titled “LP 3”“Controlled chaos” might be a good way to describe the sound of Alto! - the band is deft at the push & pull of sound & fury, with the ability to nimbly move from sublime & spellbinding reveries to concentrated blasts of ferocious six-string & percussive cacophony. “LP 3” starts of with the hypnotic percussion & prayer bell chimes of “Piece Fourteen”, before a whistle loudly sounds the alarm & the band lurches into a full-on motorik rhythmic pulse with stabbing synth lines, laser gun blasts and drum patterns inspired by West African polyrhythm