Andrew Hulme is well known as one of the guiding forces behind the esoteric O Yuki Conjugate, purveyors of fine fourth-world ambience. His A Small, Good Thing project is a different kind of ambient animal: rather than plumb the depths of primordialism and antediluvian sound forests, Hulme and his various cohorts suggest a Southwestern desert ambience where the isolationist forces at work prey on the imagination.
To this end, Hulme employs gentle, undulating currents of sound, with pitter-patter rhythms caught in purring waves of electronics, Ry Cooder-ish guitar spikes, and arcane sound sources such as jew's harp and typewriter. On the enigmatic title track, the listener feels immersed, the whispery electronic hush a surrounding barren tableau, as weird synthetic animals coo in unison. COOL COOL WATER is unsettling and unearthly.