Infraction

Personnel: Wayne Rogers (guitar, organ, percussion).
Recording information: Twisted Village (12/1995-07/1996).
Although Wayne Rogers' fourth solo album, 1996's Infraction, is indexed into 11 different tracks, it's actually one 41-minute-and-40-second instrumental. Rogers builds overdubbed guitar tracks ranging from coruscating sheets of feedback to gentle waves of sound, even a slow-motion twangy bit that sounds like a neo-psychedelic homage to Santo and Johnny's "Sleepwalk." The overdubbed guitars are buttressed with long, slow-moving organ drones that recall Yo la Tengo's "Blue Line Swinger" and occasional hints of bass and percussion. Rather than stay on one idea for the entire 40 minutes, the piece glides effortlessly through a variety of moods and sounds, yet it remains a recognizable whole. Neither ambient enough to appeal to Eno fans nor noisy enough to satisfy fans of Kenji Haino-style guitar terrorism, Infraction nevertheless sustains interest throughout its length, which is more than can be said for many extended pieces in this style. This is strictly for fans of experimental neo-psychedelia, however. ~ Stewart Mason