Mako Sica's Distant Intimacy

By Veronica Murtagh in Arts & Entertainment on Feb 11, 2010 9:30PM

Mako Sica are just one of the many great acts on Permanent Records' house label. Sludgy psychedelia drones along, a thick fog of dark, ambient guitar, percussion, trumpet and an occasional vocal cue. Their formal debut, Dual Horizon, is only three tracks, but still over 40 minutes in length, giving you, even without a listen, a grasp of the band's preference for sprawling compositions that slowly uncoil to reveal layers of hidden intricacies.

Rooted in psychedelic rock, with jazz and experimental influences, Mako Sica combine the dark, the tribal and the mysterious, producing a distinctly cinematic feeling. It's hard not to close your eyes when the 21-minute Dunes overtakes your every sense. Riffs create water ripples on a calm pond forged by monastic chanting as an almost unnoticed percussive crescendo slowly gains steam, eventually opening up to a horn blast-filled night sky, full of contrast and drama.

Some bands are meant to be experienced live, and the dynamic of beauty and uncertainty present in Mako Sica's compositions is best appreciated lost in the company of others.

MP3: Mako Sica "I'Itoi"

Mako Sica play with Brent Gutzeit and Birth, tonight, February 11, at the Hideout, 1354 W Wabansia, 9 p.m., $8, 21+.