Central Hug/ Friendarmy/Fractaldunes/Land The Dreams That Resulted

Central Hug/Friendarmy/Fractaldunes, the latest Emperor X offering, makes liberal use of the same disarming lyrical technology that made Tectonic… a success- and expands on it. The strong yearning to drive (Matheny has impaired vision and cannot legally operate a vehicle), a secret crush during a stint as a high school chemistry teacher, an obsession with rapid transit, and sociopathic misadventures with friends who break into abandoned hotels and try to fly each other on a giant kite in the middle of a hurricane are only a few of the topics covered here. This mad delirium of subjects creates a captivating lyrical backdrop for an album steeped as much in inspired storytelling as it is in playful sound experimentation.