The Kallikak Family
 http://tellallrecords.com/kallikak.shtml

styles: electronic, field recordings, ambient, lo-fi
others: Philip Glass, The Books, Joyce's Ulysses

May 23rd, 2007
Tell-All, 2005
rating: 4.5/5
reviewer: jnhasty


The idea of capturing life as a totality in a single day, to view the macroscopic through the microscope, is not new. It is a tantalizing idea, nonetheless, and often projects like these intentionally fall short to demonstrate just how immense quotidian experience can be.

May 23rd, 2007, the new album by the Kallikak Family (a.k.a. Andrew Peterson), sets out "to explore the meaning of specific days and locations in the life of one person, all leading up to May 23rd 2007, the date on which a fortune teller predicted the artist's death." And this is exactly what Peterson gives us; songs named after specific places and dates, encapsulated within this date in May, apparently only relevant to Peterson himself.

Consequently, the initial listen of the album is like peeking into someone's diary and finding all the entries, except for the dates, written in code. There are numerous reference points and styles that resonate within the album: the liquid glitches of Fennesz, the tape and collage work of The Books, minimalism's circular progressions, ambient soundscapes, and musique-concrete-style sound modeling. So, through summarizing Peterson's life, the album manages to aggrandize a selective history of electronic and experimental music.

But it would be a mistake to focus entirely on the electronic body of this album and overlook its undoubtedly human heart. Whether it's the sensation of the historic and holy brought upon by church bells ringing over a synthesizer drone ("Bells in Bergamo") or the recurrence of the humble and heartbroken classical guitar pieces "Guitar 1" and "Guitar 2" throughout the album, the intertwining of synthetic and organic sounds amidst ambient spaces and collages of human voices celebrates the contemplative and reflective capacities that make us human.

After deeper listening, Peterson's personal code becomes universal and liberating, and his diary becomes a palimpsest upon which you can write and examine your own history, however thrilling or mundane. Perhaps a life history or "History" could be understood through examining a single day, but only if we could return to the experience eternally, either to watch from a more objective viewpoint or to live it again and again like Bill Murray in Groundhog Day. Unfortunately, though, reality does not afford such possibilities, and our individual days are not always coherent. At least on initial listenings, Peterson's single day in May is not completely coherent either. Luckily, though, we can listen, replay, and ruminate on cryptic and beautiful albums like May 23rd, 2007 as often as we wish.

1. Organ Tuning/Surgery
2. May 23rd, 2007
3. Second Phase
4.Third Phase
5. Guitar 1
6. Bells in Bergamo
7. March 6th, 2003
8. Portland, Oregon part 1
9. Portland, Oregon Part 2
10. Portland, Oregaon Part 3
11. Portland, Oregon Part 4
12. November 22nd, 2003
13. Guitar 2
14. Miking a Drumkit
15. October 25th
16. Final Phase
17. May 23rd, 2007 (reprise)

The Vineland Social Maturity Scale
OnPurpose, 2004
rating: 4/5
reviewer: etan


I've been taken by surprise on countless occasions when it comes to listening to a new artist or band. In fact, more often than not, I get so caught off guard that I immediately give praise without a second thought. This approach often sets up our readers for possible disappointment. So recently, I've given more time for albums to soak through my thick-ass cranium, sometimes giving albums months prior to reviewing it. This is the case with The Kallikak Family's The Vineland Social Maturity Scale, a collection of pop-folk recordings filled with psychedelic melodies and haunting minimalism. And as most albums lose their initial enthusiasm, The Kallikak Family continues to impress and astonish after repeated listens.

The Kallikak Family is known as the study in the heredity of feeble-mindedness and was introduced in 1913 by Henry Herbert Goddard at a training school in Vineland, NJ. The Vineland Social Maturity Scale is a parallel to the methods used in the study, showcasing a devoutly corresponding and equivalent measuring in the musical sense. As humans progress in maturity and development, so does The Vineland Social Maturity Scale. The opening track "One Familiar Person" is a simplified, hushed folk ditty that is absolutely compelling. As the album progresses, so does the accompanied instrumentation, as many elements are intertwined with Andrew Peterson's luscious acoustic ballads. And the addition of off-kilter harmonica and drums as interludes keep the progression of the record fresh and invigorating.

Like the Kallikak Family scale of evaluation, The Vineland Social Maturity Scale advances astonishingly with its gorgeous musical creativity and imagination. It's an impressive project marked with all the signs of a positive future. But don't let me tell you that. Pick up a copy and analyze the record yourself. You'll find that The Kallikak Family succeeds at the proverbial journey to maturity.

1. One familiar person
2. Billionaires
3. I fight
4. (harmonica)
5. Hands Clenched
6. It's 4 o'clock
7. (girl)
8. Shopping Mall Sun
9. (drums)
10. Martin Kallikak Sr.
11. Royal