Take a basketful of biscuits made of the grains of jazz and feed them to a flock of rabid printing presses. Grab a bunch of empty oil drums, a vintage synth and a high-hat, wait for it to rain and use them to summon a glacier-sized caterpillar, ensuring your tribe's salvation. Ok, we can't really do that, but those are some of the things Rocketnumbernine sound like they're doing. From start to finish, You Reflect Me is a most refreshing listen, generating gobs of momentum while permutating in tide pools of experimentalism.

Rocketnumbernine don't really sound like jazz, nor do they sound entirely electronic, but clearly these are the two worlds brothers Tom and Ben Page draw from here. They've stretched those influences out into something that is at once much more abstract and so very raw. Imagine Sun Ra swallowed a Tortoise, and within his belly the animal removed its own shell to drum kraut-beats on while electrified juices slowly digested its brain. Then the occasional breath.

The plethora of percussion contained throughout is very loose, giving the feeling that the players used whatever they could get their hands on. The term "drumkit" for these guys includes every garage in the neighborhood. The sound of the sizzling cymbals is delicious and immediate, a defining feature throughout the album. Even the analogue synthesizers are used to add percussive sounds to the fray, making You Reflect Me the perfect album to wash dishes to. If that growing pile of pots and pans just won't do themselves, put this album on and let the haphazard metal-on-metal strikes of a banal chore seamlessly integrate into Rocketnumbernine's sonic patina.

Something must be said about the compositions on this record, because they are quite good. Rocketnumbernine live sets are all improvised, but it's not all bang this, hit that, press this button. The Page brothers have been jamming in this vein for over eight years, having played in a few bands including Rothko. Their experience shows on a track like "Doodlebug" where they stretch things out into a slow-burning riser, the warm ambient grind and kraut-jam sounding something like Autechre being possessed by Can. There is patience and a level of maturity that translates into many engaging sonic environments, as You Reflect Me really runs the gamut on ideas. "Rene (Please Forgive Me)" is totally different as no beat is to be found, and instead we have a nocturnal peek at a secret pond where all of the animals are made out of metal. Iron bullfrogs do a mating call, occasional golden owls and nightingales chime in and slink back into the darkness, all while a mermaid whimsically plonks on her glockenspiel. You go places with this music.

Headphones give the impression that Rocketnumbernine are playing inside a room in the back of your skull. The music sounds very close, with the room noise keeping things intimate and raw. Even the tape hiss is played with at times, lifting veils in the process. Many of the songs feel very warm, even though there isn't a load of melody to speak of. The drummer is a supreme talent, giving all the science a strong foundation. If you like experimental music and you like good drumming, I don't think you're going to find too many records that satisfy like this one. It brings to mind the richness of last year's succulent debut from Comatone & Foley, albeit less android in feeling, and if these two records are any indication, the outlook for more greatness inside the electro-drummer duo scene is looking pretty plump with possibilities.

-Nayt Keane

Thanks Nayt!!