Pitching their latest record to us, Austin-based sonic alchemist The Double Headed Seagulls mentions the likes of Pat Metheny, Brian Eno, Four Tet, and Radiohead… Cultured listeners out there will probably have a mixed reaction to that, same as we did. How’s that possible? Metheny AND Thom Yorke? Which kind of musical concoction is The Double Headed Seagulls working on? It turns out that the project is one of a kind.
Led by American composer and producer Dave Wirth, The Double Headed Seagulls moves with intention and purpose, yet with a certain aleatory flair. His sonic choices don’t always make sense, at least not at first. ‘Play Artful’ is the perfect example of that; marking the project’s latest release, the record features leftover material from Wirth’s 2011 album ‘Slimline’. Cassette tape recordings packed with synthetisers, noisy guitars and otherworldly drones, now given a new lease of life on ‘Play Artful’.
It’s an album that admittedly seeks a certain amount of randomness. It’s an imaginative, cathartic record, one that requires a certain amount of effort and commitment from the listener. At times melancholic, at times calming, otherwise bittersweet: The Double Headed Seagulls has mastered the art of communicating through aural fragments and liminal soundscapes. Despite its instrumental nature, ‘Play Artful’ looks boldly ahead, expanding the narrative of the world as we know it. That’s the most precious gift the album could offer: a space to escape an ever-chaotic reality.