One of Jefferies' most adventurous releases, Substatic consists of five instrumental tracks, apparently improvisatory in spirit but combined with a sense of collage and specific arrangements. In keeping with his polymath nature when it comes to music, he performs everything from his expected electric piano and drums to bass and "loops," assisted on all tracks but the second by Michael Hill and Anita Galatis-Anker on a variety of instruments. Samples ranging from a live performance by Mecca Normal (though her words are practically unintelligible, that's definitely Jean Smith heard in the middle of "Index") to crowd noise and didgeridoo are all fed into the mixes as well, resulting in a striking, varied album. It's clearly Jefferies' work in many ways -- the driving keyboards, the intentionally and beautifully murky production -- but the avoidance of singing, his first high-profile work in that line since At-Swim-Two-Birds, helps demonstrate just how excellent his music really is. "Signal" is one of the best songs on the album, an exploration of the Velvets/motorik groove that has inspired so many New Zealand acts, but charged with a definite air of building threat, like something's going to go very wrong very soon. "Kitty Loop" takes a similar approach with a more exultant air, an inspiring, uplifting number that sounds like it could fill up the whole sky. Moments like the solo piano conclusion of "Index" and the extended drone float that permeates "Damage" show that Jefferies certainly has not lost his sense of melancholy beauty, making Substatic an even more enjoyable, entrancing listen. The lengthy, majestic "Three Movements" is the wonderful icing on the cake to it all, Jefferies' flat-out lovely piano the core of the extended performance, a requiem to who knows what. ~ Ned Raggett