Starting off with vocals that reach back to guitarist
Alex Dunham's previous band
Hoover, as well as original hardcore like
Black Flag,
Abilene embarks on a strange, jagged trip of an album that recasts shifting jazz as post-hardcore. What makes this record click where their debut fell short is the inclusion of
June of 44's Fred Erskine on trumpet. On tracks like "Twisting the Trinity." Erskine tugs the song in the direction of free jazz --
Dunham, Scott Adamson, and
William Ackerman first resist, but then the tune collapses into a fluid jazz sway. On "Blanc Fixe," Erskine assaults with his trumpet, calling in a smooth but piercing punk/jazz. "Fellini" sounds the most like
Hoover, with
Dunham shouting over spiraling riffs. It's hardly ambient, but you get the sense that is the direction
Abilene is heading -- one of broad experimentalism with traditional instrumentation. ~ Charles Spano