National Music Reviews
Roger Eno/Plumbline
Endless City/Concrete Garden
Hydrogen Dukebox
Street: 07.02
Roger Eno= Brian Eno + Grouper
I’ll answer your question right now: Yes, Roger Eno is the brother of ambient giant Brian Eno, and yes, this album could very well fit as the soundtrack to a dark, dramatic, experimental film. This is the second pairing Eno has done with Will Thomas of Plumbline, and the album was created entirely through file sharing—a testament to the power of technology to connect ideas across the globe. Ironic, since the album comes across as a confession of detachment and loneliness from what technology creates, most audibly felt in “The Weather Inside.” With melodies played on the piano and mixed with sparse electronics, the minimal drones blend with the language of a cityscape (if cities could speak). Personally, I adored how morbid the album came across, but this gloom might not sit well with everyone. –Brinley Froelich