- Once in a while, a reissue or compilation will shine a light on artist who clearly deserves it. That RVNG Intl. are behind A Period Of Review ought to let you know K. Leimer is one such artist. Leimer deals with a wide range of styles and condenses them into short, digestible pieces, most running around the three-minute mark. Composed between 1975 and 1983, these pieces recall artists like Brian Eno and Steve Reich, bridging pop, avant-garde and modern classical music.
A Period of Review is characterized by its moods, and shows Leimer at his most personal and most escapist. Tracks like "From One To Ten," "All Sad Days" and the strange "Lonely Boy" are bedroom minimal synth in the vein of Ohama or Felix Kubin. All three are quirky, homemade and metallic compared to the rest of the collection. By contrast, pieces like "Entre'acte" and "Archie's Dub" contain the fourth world synthscapes and spacious arrangements that characterize Leimer's more well-known work, like the soundtrack to the dreamlike documentary of Jamaica, Land Of Look Behind.
It may be a stretch to call Leimer's work ahead of its time—really, most of the pieces here fit snugly next to those of his contemporaries—but it hasn't aged much either, and definitely still resonates today. Leimer's approach is shy, but not naive, and often seamlessly merges the organic and synthetic with playfulness rather than pretension. He's said he's influenced by elegies and "sad music," something that's clear on the pensive "Malaise," "Ceylon" and "Porcelain." All are full of lonely beauty, and seem composed with a heavy sigh. If Leimer's music isn't wholly optimistic, then at the very least it's serene, peaceful and orderly in a hazy, calming way.
Tracklist01. Ceylon
02. My Timid Desires
03. From A Common Center
04. Explanation Of Terms
05. From One To Ten
06. Entr'acte
07. Bump In The Night
08. (Aka Accident)
09. Facing East
10. At Daybreak
11. A Spiritual Life
12. Honey To Ashes
13. Stop It!
14. Two Voices
15. Lonely Boy
16. Practical Demonstration
17. Commercial
18. Gisella
19. Archie's Dub
20. Ikumi
21. Reassurances
22. Assemble And Diffuse
23. Eno's Aviary
24. Almost Chinese
25. Agfa / Lupa
26. The Phonic Chasm (Excerpt) feat. Dawn Seago
27. Acquiescence
28. Malaise
29. All Sad Days
30. Porcelain feat. Nancy Estle