The Age of Lovely Intimate Things

With five tracks clocking in at just over a half an hour, Sciflyer's approach is true to the shoegazer tact of yore on The Age of Lovely, Intimate Things, while maintaining a uniqueness that sets it apart from the Ride and Swervedriver worshipers that have scattered the alternative music landscape since the early '90s. Launched with the dreamy, muted crawl of "The Nation," frontman/guitarist/visionary Steve Kennedy and his bassist spouse, Kim Kennedy, thrive on atmospherics, as evidenced by the uplifting instrumental "Proxima Centauri" and the lilting, acoustic-steered "The Same Thing Goes for Christmas." While the highlight, "Like an Ion," glistens in homage to the aforementioned Ride, the disc's 13-minute closer is as epic as it is redundant, meandering on to the point where it loses effect. Outside of this misstep, Sciflyer's sonic affairs are not only in order, but hell-bent on reviving an otherwise dormant music style. ~ John D. Luerssen, Rovi