"BEHOLD KILLERS" by Ilyas Ahmed

Since embarking on an enchantingly forlorn run of musical activity, Ilyas Ahmed has remained incredibly active both as a visual artist and an incredibly versatile musician. Ahmed has cultivated vibrantly esoteric collaborations with Liz Harris (Grouper) and Matt Carlson & Jonathan Sielaff (both of Golden Retriever), among others, is an active member of heady, genre-defying experimental instrumental band Grails, and steadfastly issued quiet epics of psych-minimalism. Now, the Pakistan-born, Portland, Or.-based musician returns with 'Behold Killers,' perhaps his most alluring and distantly seething work to date.

"Pass No Jazz" unfurls its tattered but tranquil tapestry over the entire A-side, tracing each step with unhurried care and curious composure. "Metal Freedom" leads the B-side in a synth-laden cloud of shimmering tragedy and seething hope. "Mad Love" dials things down for a modest symphony of gritted minimalism and soot-covered, negative space. Closing piece "Wild Violet" shimmers in a desolate dance of eerie weightlessness and wretched resolve.

Best consumed in the dead of night or frosted isolation, ‘Behold Killers’ is an aural yarn explicitly woven for the trodden.

solo artist & member of Grails

Grails
DANIAILYAS