There are records awaited so badly by the recipient that the initial euphoria gets reversed and turns into doubt. Admittedly, this had seemed to be the case with Glass Swords, as well. Luckily, Rustie’s long announced debut album did not follow the path of this self-fulfilling prophecy. Quite the opposite, really: in 13 tracks, the 27-year-old musician from Glasgow combines a crude number of seemingly uncombinable influences, which dialectically – and this is where the art lies within – are conflated with almost surgical precision. No matter if there are incredibly high-pitched R&B-samples meeting the 80’s glam-metal, sinful snyth-chords on delicate drum-patterns or constantly changing tempo-shifts between highspeed and halftime. All that is combined with the touch for harmonies and arrangements that Rustie is known for, with a permanent focus for the rhythm’s corset, which he never allows to escalate even the slightest bit. And, as much as it wobbles, glimmers and glitters – it always stays within the lines of its very own order. Some will call it »progressive«. Others will keep on passing the legend of a kind of »future vintage«. One thing’s for sure: it’s a definite winner.
Glass Swords
