Dextro Into The Crossing

Ewan Mackenzie aka Dextro returns with a third album, expanding the musical and auditory scope of a brooding and uplifting sound. Following the acclaimed Consequence Music (Gronland Records, 2007, alongside Neu!, Harmonia), Winded (16k records, 2009) and releases through James Holden’s Border Community, A Strangely Isolated Place and Ninjatune, In the crossing takes Dextro into new musical territory shaped by haunting minimalist melodies, drone, candid rhythms and psychedelic experimentation. As Dextro, Mackenzie has been committed to creating primarily instrumental soundscapes built from his own recordings, be it piano, percussion, guitar or found sounds from a range of urban or natural surroundings. In part, the album is reminiscent of Dextro’s live performances alongside Loscil, Bonobo and Jacaszek, where live percussion, guitar and synth drones interchange to create what commentators have described as feeling ‘akin to climbing and descending a mountain’. From the motorik beats and synth driven exploits of ‘Break off’, to the haunting piano of ‘Clearing’, In the crossing charts a journey that brings the indescribable into focus.