Skallander 'the camels' 03-06-05 Dominion Post

There's a certain feeling of possibility that you only get from a dreamy winter's day as the sun dispatches the tell-tale signs of a midnight downpour leaving you with a feeling of wanting to dive into the unknown sky blue stretched out before you. The perfect accompaniment on such a journey is 'The Camels', with their traces of Brian Eno's electro washes and a nod to Kraftwerk, they have built these smooth soundscapes that rise and fall like the road beneath an excited traveller's feet. From the ambient atmospherics of the opening Jerusalem they work their way through the dubby State of the Nation and the funky guitar wah wah of Saint before the gentle almost Tortoise like Sing Evil Light and the downbeat electro of Phantom Phone Flash. What makes The Camels so exciting and different if both ex-Wellingtonian Matthew Mitchell and Bevan Smith still love to experiment playing their guitars and on tracks like 'The Camels' and 'The Change' things begin as a gentle acoustic strum before veering off on a different course. If you are looking to get beyond the barriers of downbeat albums then Skallander will take you there in style.

4.5/5 Lindsay Davis.

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