The bewildering first volume of
Kid Koala's
Music to Draw To series was a departure from his usual brand of whimsical, cut-and-paste turntablism, constructing wintry, ambient, pop soundscapes with the help of Icelandic singer
Emilíana Torrini.
Io is its sequel, and it seems to expand on the darker impulses of
Satellite. This is immediately apparent in the opening piece, "Circle of Clouds," seven stirring minutes of buzzing synths which forcefully cause the speakers to vibrate, along with softer, more chiming tones and drifting post-rock guitars. Second cut "All for You" introduces vocal collaborator
Trixie Whitley, and her deeply expressive vocals transform
Io into an astral soul album. Her message on this song is purely positive, thanking her subject of affection for enlightening and inspiring her. "Lost at Sea" offers a similarly empowering message over a detached, Krautrock-esque synth pattern and hesitant beats. "Hera's Song," however takes a much more harrowing turn, with vengeful lyrics ("Won't sleep until you're ruined, too") and a crashing, noisy end which sounds like howling wolves and evil sorcery. This is far from the lullaby-like mood of
Satellite, but still in the same country -- it's just deeper into the frozen tundra. Some of the album's "Transmission" interludes feature what sounds like the distorted voices from a police scanner, adding to the music's paranoid feel. The album can't stay dark and haunting the whole way through though, and tracks like "Resonance" flicker with a hopeful light.
Whitley's final vocal turn, "Look-Back Time," is a graceful resolution, simultaneously delivered as a confessional whisper as well as soft singing. A bit riskier than its predecessor,
Io is much more emotionally turbulent, and perhaps too heady to designate as simply background music for creating art. ~ Paul Simpson