Noise? Drone? Ambient? Growing’s new album seems to house influence from each respective genre. But at its heart, Vision Swim is able to convey a furtive beauty that can best be described as atomic. This style is largely divergent from Joe Denardo and Kevin Doria's previous work, which is more experimental than the early recordings, Sky's Run into the Sea and Soul of the Rainbow and the Harmony of Light, yet more focused than the erratic Color Wheel.
As Vision Swim works through its two seminal tracks, “Onanon” (15 minutes) and “Morning Drive” (10 minutes), Growing’s progress becomes clear in an ability to focus its tracks in a powerful thrust of looping synthesizer that creates a sort of gravitational pull. This sound serves as a nucleus around which the various dissonant noises dance, much like electrons. The seemingly disjointed “Onanon” garners its character from a tension that seems so close to fracturing, but rather melts away peacefully. The listener is then propelled into the guitar of “Morning Drive” that spirals about a powerful equalizer, but amazingly holds strong as the equalizer fades and more elusive notes play about the emerging emptiness.
The album admittedly loses a little bit of the strength portrayed in these previously mentioned tracks from the opening and fourth track, “Limbo” and “Emceepee,” respectively, but these tracks serve better as bookends. They only contain 1/5th of the album’s length, and adapt the listener’s ear to Growing’s unique sound, whereas the bulk of the album provides the substance of the album. "Limbo" prepares the listener for the aforementioned radioactive tracks, and "Emceepee" resets the palette for the wash of white noise and feedback that accompanies "Lightfoot." Persisting through these tracks, we find, is well worth the effort.
Vision Swim is a big step for Growing’s Joe Denardo and Kevin Doria. For years the duo aspired towards a more cinematic experience that resembled a Stars of the Lid ambience. Yet, with this album the focus of a consistent tempo with a surprising purpose lends great strength to the band's various experimentations. With Tim Hecker and Stars of the Lid experiencing great success and surprising notoriety recently, the hope for the duo to gain some well due recognition should be high. While Vision Swim may not deserve excessive accolades, it’s ability to create cohesiveness in such an unpredictable landscape should leave the listener satisfied.
-John Parker