Well-crafted but lacking a heart and soul.
Terrene hail from Seattle, USA and are fronted by singer-songwriter John Dylan, the only constant - and currently only - member of the band since its 2001 formation. 'The Indifferent Universe' is the project's first offical release and has been produced by the well-respected Phil Ek, a man who has worked with American indie legends such as Modest Mouse and The Shins. In fact, those two names give a generous clue to the type of music on offer here - it is slightly experimental, varied indie that makes use of modern techniques whilst retaining a folk edge.
'Fifty-One' is an energetic and rather crowded opener, dominated by guitars both fuzzy and jangly at different moments and John Dylan's sadly average but perfectly servicable vocals. This bouncy style is continued later in the record in tracks such as 'Unwelcome' and the slightly less happy 'Fixed Up'. Each of these pieces is pulled off with a good degree of flair and innovation and are never boring to listen to at the time; however none are catchy enough to get stuck in your head, inspire a singalong or compell you to share it with your friends.
'The Indifferent Universe's highlights largely appear in the form of atmospheric soundscapes such as 'Media Shift (Through Heart Rises)', 'Mermaid (Lost At Sea)' and 'Andromeda'. The latter transports one back five or so years to the claustrophobic sound of My Vitriol, and would serve as the perfect soundtrack to a late night spent surfing the web, feeling lovesick and drinking black coffee and/or cheap wine; alternatively perhaps to a long, sleepy train journey. Out of those places it may be a little too intense to provide listening with ease and is as likely to make it onto a 'Happy Mood' mix CD as The Smiths on a sad day; but for introspective moods Terrene's soundscapes are highly fitting.
Elsewhere quieter indie tracks can be found in melancholy moments such as 'What We'll Never Be', 'Stereo!' and 'The Spirits Up On The Shelf'. In these places there is a delicate quality to Terrene's music that is not obvious elsewhere; sadly the emotion that is attempted to be transmitted through them is rather hollow; one is left with the feeling that they were written by someone who decided to write a sad song that day, rather than someone who felt despondant and chose to write a song about it.
The album's highlight however has to be 'Enemy Landlord', which isn't even a song - instead an amusing spoken word recording about a garden that 'looks like cr*p'. Undertsandably it isn't the greatest compliment to name such a piece as the best point of a record, but when 'The Indifferent Universe' plays in the background its likely to be the only moment that drags Terrene into the foreground and the only time at which the CD raises a smile for the listener. Technically speaking it is difficult to fault Terrene - John Dylan operates in various styles and carries everything through flawlessly, but there is something rather dead and impassionate about it all, and when music lacks a heart you will most likely not feel inspired to give it your own.