Outer Edge does not sound like a different animal, at least on a surface level, than anything on Cosmic Shift—the opener still features an acoustic guitar, there is still the tug-and-pull effect that made the Ollocs’ best work emotionally resonate even in its alone-ness. Where the former album emphasized a heavy interaction with strings (“Three-Sixty”), Outer Edge relies more on modulations, circular rhythms, and, of course, the interplay between flute and acoustic guitar, which works especially well on “Microcosm”. Ollocs are at their most provocative, however, when their atmospherics are playing against a piano—“Reflection” breaks from the sparseness that dominates the majority of Outer Edge, but only long enough to return to the circular rhythms of “The Paradox”, which only sounds comforting until you realize the band’s long-overdue addition of vocals. “ “At The Edge (Part 1)” is the loudest by far, and it is the shrill, unresolved electric guitar work at the end that makes Outer Edge a provocative listen.
Rating: 4.5/5
