Drew McDowall's third solo album is themed around DNA, particularly in relation to hallucination. The album is filled with shredded voices, drifting chords, and occasional clanging percussion, though not as much as on his previous albums. The sound has a ghostly quality, not quite taking a solid form but certainly not dissipating, either. The pieces often seem sparse, but every sound seems carefully considered. The most memorable tracks on the album are the first two, which incorporate muddy strings and reverberating metallic thuds, as well as haunting echoes of voices. "Proximity" ambiguously floats between relaxation and fear, with more blurry voices stretched across shifting gray drones. "False Memory" is much more sour and disorienting, with uncomfortable moaning pit against caustic synth scrapes and overloaded vibrations. "Nothing Is Hidden" builds upon the distortion of the previous piece, sounding like a spaceship charging up and preparing to blast off.
The Third Helix doesn't quite hold together as much as
McDowall's previous full-length, the excellent
Unnatural Channel, but it's still a captivating exploration of the human genome, and doesn't quite sound like anything else.