User:Iwantmilk/sandbox1 - Wikipedia - Recent changes [en]

Norman Records gave the record 8/10, describing the three tracks as featuring "nice minimalist rhythms" built around repetition, amplification and resonance. The use of percussion mallets on horizontally mounted guitars was called "intriguing," and the overall effect "dreamy and hypnotic." The reviewer remarked that, once absorbed in the sound, it was tempting to imagine how it would have felt to experience the performance in the setting of the church where it was recorded.<ref name="Ant"></ref>

Norman Records gave the record 8/10, describing the three tracks as featuring "nice minimalist rhythms" built around repetition, amplification and resonance. The use of percussion mallets on horizontally mounted guitars was called "intriguing," and the overall effect "dreamy and hypnotic." The reviewer remarked that, once absorbed in the sound, it was tempting to imagine how it would have felt to experience the performance in the setting of the church where it was recorded.<ref name="Ant"></ref>

Hannis Brown of ''Tokafi'' praised Mallet Guitars One as a short but immersive work built around minimalist rhythmic patterns and shifting overtones. He highlighted the use of mallets on solid-body electric guitars, which produces a tone likened to a vibraphone paired with a percussive click. Across its three tracks, the album explores subtle changes in texture and harmony using only three chords, with variations in rhythm and dynamics giving each movement a distinct character. Recorded live in a church, the natural resonance plays a central role in shaping the sound, which evolves without the use of electronic effects or overdubs. Brown compared the music to percussion-based minimalism in the tradition of [[Steve Reich]], [[Sō Percussion]] and [[Tortoise (band)|Tortoise]], noting that despite its limited materials, the album achieves a surprisingly rich and varied sonic result.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Brown |first1=Hannis |title=Ex-Easter Island Head: Mallet Guitars One |url=http://www.tokafi.com/news/ex-easter-island-head-mallet-guitars-one/ |website=tokafi.com |access-date=16 July 2025 |date=April 2011}}</ref>

Hannis Brown of ''Tokafi'' described Mallet Guitars One as a short but immersive work built around minimalist rhythmic patterns and shifting overtones. He highlighted the use of mallets on solid-body electric guitars, which produces a tone likened to a vibraphone paired with a percussive click. Across its three tracks, the album explores subtle changes in texture and harmony using only three chords, with variations in rhythm and dynamics giving each movement a distinct character. Recorded live in a church, the natural resonance plays a central role in shaping the sound, which evolves without the use of electronic effects or overdubs. Brown compared the music to percussion-based minimalism in the tradition of [[Steve Reich]], [[Sō Percussion]] and [[Tortoise (band)|Tortoise]], noting that despite its limited materials, the album achieves a surprisingly rich and varied sonic result.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Brown |first1=Hannis |title=Ex-Easter Island Head: Mallet Guitars One |url=http://www.tokafi.com/news/ex-easter-island-head-mallet-guitars-one/ |website=tokafi.com |access-date=16 July 2025 |date=April 2011}}</ref>

In a review for ''ATTN:Magazine'', Jack Chuter praised Ex-Easter Island Head for going beyond the apparent simplicity of their concept, which involves striking horizontal electric guitars with mallets. He noted that the music sometimes feels as if it "could have been created by a different method entirely," and highlighted a "gorgeous moment" in the second movement where repetition creates a perceptual split between the percussive attack and the sustained drone. However, Chuter also felt that much of the rhythmic material was "too easy" and criticised parts of the album for sounding too much like "placing a guitar down heavy-handedly," arguing that the group missed an opportunity to explore more complex and disorienting territory.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Chuter |first1=Jack |title=Review: Ex-Easter Island Head - Mallet Guitars One |url=https://www.attnmagazine.co.uk/review-ex-easter-island-head-mallet-guitars-one/ |website=attnmagazine.co.uk |access-date=16 July 2025 |date=5 February 2011}}</ref>

In a review for ''ATTN:Magazine'', Jack Chuter praised Ex-Easter Island Head for going beyond the apparent simplicity of their concept, which involves striking horizontal electric guitars with mallets. He noted that the music sometimes feels as if it "could have been created by a different method entirely," and highlighted a "gorgeous moment" in the second movement where repetition creates a perceptual split between the percussive attack and the sustained drone. However, Chuter also felt that much of the rhythmic material was "too easy" and criticised parts of the album for sounding too much like "placing a guitar down heavy-handedly," arguing that the group missed an opportunity to explore more complex and disorienting territory.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Chuter |first1=Jack |title=Review: Ex-Easter Island Head - Mallet Guitars One |url=https://www.attnmagazine.co.uk/review-ex-easter-island-head-mallet-guitars-one/ |website=attnmagazine.co.uk |access-date=16 July 2025 |date=5 February 2011}}</ref>