Thriving Culture finds Ragenap, Chicago’s master of drone music, surfing through rumbling and howling waves of distorted guitar.

For his second album through American Dreams Records, Ragenap, AKA Joel Berk, is perhaps at his most dynamic. Across two side-length tracks and one mini reprise, Berk utilizes a bank of effect pedals to create soundscapes that range from soft hums to agitated roars.

Each piece is rich with a wide spectrum of different textures and tones, from smooth, almost flute-like tones to coarse and thorny rushes of bellowing guitar. In this way, the songs resemble the different kinds of drones that can be heard in nature. Raging rivers, wind storms ripping through unyielding forests and the groans of shifting tectonic plates all appear to be channeling through Berk’s amplifier.

If you meditate enough on the sounds captured here, you might feel yourself being physically pulled into the center of an electric guitar cyclone. Click here to get your copy on cassette or digital today.

-KH

If you like what you’re reading, please help keep RCU thriving. You can show your support by becoming a patron at our Patreon account or you can make a donation to our PayPal account below.

As always, please also consider donating to any of these sites to help fight racial injustice.