Dustin Wong's forthcoming Mediation of Ecstatic Energy could not be more appropriately titled. “The Big She”, the first single from the record and also the opening track, does more to capture the feeling of unleashed, untempered kinetic energy than anything we've heard from the man yet. Using only his pedals, a guitar, and some processors, Wong has made a courageous track to open the album that we hope follows through for its remainder. The underlying balance of “The Big She” is the pulsating warp of a lower bass sound, that then gets built upon by guitar tones and accessory details that are sharp and clear, ringing out and through the track like a melodramatic bell. There is a note of the industrial in the track, but it still manages to feel like a melodic listen, a clearcut entry into what could be a record as meditative as yoga practice, albeit more nervous and spastic.
Mediation of Ecstatic Energy releases through Thrill Jockey on September 17. Preorder it here, then check out Dustin Wong on tour at the dates listed below.
September
20 – Chicago, IL – The Hideout ^
21 – Madison, WI – Dragonfly Lounge
22 – Minneapolis, MN – Icehouse #@
23 – Mimlwaukee, WI – Quarters #
24 – Detroit, MI – PJ's Lager House #
26 – Baltimore, MD – Floristree %
28 – Philadelphia, PA – Johnny Brenda's *
29 – Brooklyn, NY – Music Hall of Williamsburg *
October
01 – Washington, DC – Black Cat *
02 – Raleigh, NC – King's Barcade *
03 – West Columbia, SC – New Brookland Tavern *
04 – Atlanta, GA – Drunken Unicorn *
05 – Nashville, TN – The Stone Fox *
06 – Birmingham, AL – The Bottletree *
08 – New Orleans, LA – One Eye'd Jacks *
09 – Houston, TX – Fitzgerald's Upstairs *
10 – Dallas, TX – Three Links *
11 – Austin, TX – The Mohawk *
13 – Phoenix, AZ – The Crescent Ballroom *
14 – San Diego, CA – The Casbah *
15 – Los Angeles, CA – El Rey Theatre *
16 – San Francisco, CA – Great American Music Hall *
19 – Portland, OR – Mississippi Studios
20 – Seattle, WA – Comet Tavern
21 – Boise, ID – The Crux
22 – Salt Lake City, UT – Shred Shed
23 – Denver, CO – Rinoceropolis
25 – Iowa City, IA – Trumpet Blossom Cafe
* – w/ The Dodos
# – w/ Dope Body
^ – w/ Cave
@ – w/ Scout Nibblet
% – w/ CoLa