090208

"090208" is a split EP release by German post rock act Long Distance Calling and Swiss ditto Leech. The EP was released through Viva Hate Records in September 2008. "090208" features five tracks. Two tracks by each artist and a short intermission which is credited to Long Distance Calling but it´s just a short atmospheric piece.

The two tracks by Long Distance Calling are re-recorded versions of "Metulsky Curse" (with the title "Metulsky Curse Revisited") and "Black Bird Vs. Red Bug" which were both featured on the "DMNSTRTN (2006)" EP by Long Distance Calling. "Metulsky Curse Revisited" improves on the original version, while the new version of "Black Bird Vs. Red Bug" can´t disguise the fact that "Black Bird Vs. Red Bug" was the weakest track on "DMNSTRTN (2006)". While I initially got this split EP because of the Long Distance Calling songs I´ve been pleasantly surprised by the two Leech tracks which are featured on the EP. Long Distance Calling´s post rock style is very guitar driven and rely heavily on the two guitarists complimenting each other and playing countermelodies. That´s not exactly the case with Leech who uses lots of atmospheric piano and keyboards in their sound. Both "Oktober" and "Inspiral" are excellent post rock compositions with a great atmosphere and interesting ideas. Especially the latter mentioned is very impressive to my ears.

The production is excellent both on the Long Distance Calling and the Leech tracks.

"090208" is a great split EP release and especially the Leech tracks appeal greatly to me. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is well deserved. Sometimes Split releases can be a real drag if you´re only interested in one of the artists that appear on the release but in this case I was introduced to a new band which I probably wouldn´t have found otherwise, so I guess the split idea worked like a charm this time around.