Rangda
Formerly Extinct
Release Date: Sep 18, 2012
Genre(s): Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Experimental Rock, Instrumental Rock, Guitar Virtuoso
Record label: Drag City
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Album Review: Formerly Extinct by Rangda
Very Good, Based on 4 Critics
Based on rating 8/10
Rangda are an instrumental power trio comprised of guitarists Sir Richard Bishop (formerly of Sun City Girls) and Ben Chasny (Six Organs of Admittance, Comets on Fire, Current 93) and drummer Chris Corsano (Björk, Six Organs of Admittance, Sunburned Hand of the Man). Their 2010 debut album, False Flag, was improvised and recorded on the spot. It wove together rock & roll's pyrotechnics, free jazz's harmonic and rhythmic instincts, and various world music influences.
Based on rating 7.9/10
While a completely accurate count is near impossible, the three musicians who make up Rangda-- guitarists Sir Richard Bishop (Sun City Girls) and Ben Chasny (Six Organs of Admittance), and drummer Chris Corsano-- have between them appeared on somewhere in the neighborhood of 200 albums, recorded with dozens of different collaborators. With artists this prolific it is never certain how long any particular collaboration or project will last; and in 2010 when the three released False Flag, their debut as Rangda, it was not immediately clear if this was to be a one-off album or the work of an ongoing group. But musicians with this much experience are also able to recognize when they've struck upon a special combination, and their second album Formerly Extinct confirms Rangda to be an active, cohesive band of the highest caliber.
Based on rating C+
You’re excused for having never heard of Rangda, the secret weapon trio of renowned indie label Drag City. Formerly Extinct is just the instrumental sorta-supergroup’s second LP, but Rangda’s three immensely talented members actually have decades of experience between them. Their 2010 debut, False Flag, only left questions about how they should sound playing together, not how well they could sound.
Opinion: Very Good
Tift Merritt The touch of sweet sadness in Tift Merritt’s voice has rarely served her better than it does on “Traveling Alone,” due out on Yep Roc on Tuesday. Recorded in Brooklyn with Tucker Martine in the producer’s chair, it’s an album bound by restlessness. “I don’t know who I am, but I can’t stay here,” Ms. Merritt half-sighs in “Still Not Home,” against a steady beat and a rough peal of guitars (Marc Ribot on electric, Eric Heywood on pedal steel).
'Formerly Extinct'
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