Having recently found a new home on Social Registry, the Brooklyn-based instrumental ambient guitar duo of Joe Denardo and Kevin Doria continues to distill the blues through loops and processed delay pedals (a la Spacemen 3) and a rhythmic Black Dice-ish approach, but there's also a minimalist composition aesthetic seemingly inspired by both Eno and Kompakt's Pop Ambient releases.

After a 7" and an exceptional mini-LP, Growing finally release a proper full length on the Social Registry. The duo have come a long way from do-it-yourself cassettes released from their former locale in the Pacific Northwest. They have released albums with Kranky and Animal Disguise along the way, and it seems that their partnership at the Social Registry since their move to Brooklyn is bringing Growing some much deserved recognition. Recently they opened for Boris, and their slightly more animated stage antics reflected their sound as it deepened rhythmically, with more touch pad and sequencing bringing their droning and ambient guitar effect work looping to varying heights. The songs undulate and roll with complex layers on All the Way, but their purposeful transitions make strides in the direction of highly refined walls of sound. From shimmering ambience to triumphantly uproarious poundings that push their sound to a nearly catchy melody, this album is not easy to categorize in the best way. The songs are unpredictable and organic, yet the end results of each track sounds meticulously crafted, as if each note were plotted out on a graph before turning the amps on. Currently there seems to be more and more musicians that could be categorized in a similar genre of drone, ambience, or noise, but Kevin Doria and Joe DeNardo of Growing do it extraordinarily well; each release is an excitedly anticipated affair. [BCa] (September 10, 2008)