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Although I was previously unfamiliar with Kiln, the brainchild Michigan-based Kevin Hayes, Kirk Marrison, and Clark Rehberg III, immediately after listening to Dusker I found myself frantically digging through the trio's back catalogue, somewhat disappointed in myself for never noticing them prior. Several weeks later, I've concluded that Dusker is the band's finest accomplishment, which is certainly what every band/label would like us to think upon the release of a new CD, but sometimes they've actually got a point.

As it turns out, information on Kiln is pretty scarce. Partially because the trio themselves are somewhat reclusive, and partially because Fleetwood Mac has an album entitled "Kiln House" which has received much more coverage than these experimentalists are likely to ever seen. Suffice to say that Kiln is part of the ever expanding group of artists who are labeled as "experimental/electronic/idm/ambient/other," which really tells us nothing at all about what they sound like or what they seek to accomplish with their musical project, other than the very obvious fact that computers will be employed in the crafting of Dusker. In terms of points of reference, Kiln will likely appeal to fans of ambient music that is more beat driven; and I am talking not about those which are either poorly constructed or awfully overbearing, but rather the very tasteful and thoughtful inclusion which Kiln much prefers. In this respect, I see them as contemporaries to Vladislav Delay, Loscil, Polmo Polpo, and the eventual use of acoustics might trigger some comparisons to Four Tet, those let's use that one cautiously.

Dusker rests at just over fifty minutes with eleven tracks, combining a little bit of every genre they've been accused of being a part of en route to molding their magic sound. Common themes pervade throughout, giving the release a familiar sound, yet still resisting the temptation to sink into lazy production which plagues most of the releases of this ilk. Heterogeneity shines on Dusker-- not in a track by track basis, but within the tracks themselves. Each is a remarkable testament to the band's skills of arranging layers and textures to maximize musical effect while minimizing temporal investment from the listener and resources from Kiln itself. In this sense, Dusker is very listener friendly and accessible; it doesn't require a whole lot of attention and contemplation to really get into, yet at the same time it's not your average walk in the park release with predictable twists and turns. Nay, Kiln does lead our hand through the entire process, but it's done with brevity and intent, rather than blind experimentalism that 'eventually hits the mark'. A decade into their careers, Hayes, Marrison, and Rehberg have no doubts about where their music is going, and Dusker surely shows this aspects of the trio's confidence.

Many will certainly find much appeal in the cinematic quality of Dusker, though I use the word with some reservation. Many propose the term 'cinematic' in lieu of music that is simply emotionally evoking, but it's really meant to demarcate a work of art which accompanies a film. Again, this is often extrapolated to the idea of a film being a narrative, or journey piece, which is then intended to summon different metaphysical responses from the audience, but, on the purest level, it's really just as simple as a body that provides another medium to pass through. Background music, if you will, to another larger conceptual framework, and this is the niche that Dusker settles into. I'm not condemning the album to the outer reaches of boredom, rather the humble presentation of the album and absolutely sublime sounds combine to ease the audience into prime relaxing mode. This is the kind of stress relief that people pay top dollar to receive, and I can't think of a more successful album towards this end released this year aside from the outstanding Casually Smashed to Pieces from Six Parts Seven.

It's hard to imagine Dusker being performed much better than it is. The only thing that really holds it back is the overlooked quality of ambition; Kiln works so hard to deliver a tranquil listen that more experimental routes were likely deemed risky and compromising of the overall work's potential subtlety. While I am in no position to suggest it would have been better to explore the more dangerous side of the album, I can't help but wonder if both could have been accomplished simultaneously. Admittedly, this is nit-picking an otherwise solid and coherent release, and Kiln deserves the utmost respect for what they've accomplished here, an album that is endlessly pleasing.