Spartan, arid, twilight instrumental rock. This is a band that heard Ry Cooder's adaptation of "Dark was the Night, Cold was the Ground" for the _Paris, Texas_ soundtrack and really payed attention--lots of warm/mournful ambience and steel or slide guitar with *just* the right amount of distortion.

Best: 1, 5, 7, *8*

1. Fades in with warm ambient steel guitar which continues throughout, then high, slow, welcoming guitar soloing on top; then muted thumpy drums. Guitar speeds up part of the way through and the whole thing builds gloriously---in this case the "GY!BE of the southwestern desert" tag seems apropos.
2. Acoustic guitar, dark wavery steel.
3. Morricone-like synthesized vox and, well, a Morricone-like guitar sound, too. Spanish flavor in some of the melody. This is more loud and rocking than many of the tracks.
4. Pastoral, pleasant tones and more synth vox; takes a melancholy downturn (in places it sounds reminiscent of the end of Radiohead's "Exit Music (For a Film)"), then opens up with entry of a new guitar part. Martial drums underscore the slowness of the rest.
5. Slow shuffle for a lazy afternoon.
6. Acoustic is back, picking out a slow Six Organs-sounding melody; there's an echoed steel part and some thrummy bass underneath.
7. Backdrop for a lengthy, distorted, intense guitar solo. Fairly out of keeping with the rest of the album, but effective---the melody underneath the soloing links it up with the sound generally.
8. Re-recording of a song from Random Harvest. Compelling melody; fairly dark but hopeful.
9. Very laid-back and relaxed. Echo on the high guitar part.