Album review: Willis Earl Beal, Acousmatic Sorcery

Possible the strangest album you'll hear this year could also be the most satisfying.

Willis Earl Beal takes lo-fi to a new high.

At first Acousmatic Sorcery seems impenetrable as Beal rants and raucous sounds intrude.

But moments of beauty, such as the delicate Evening's Kiss, shine through. And on repeat listens the album fuses together into an amalgam of sounds, ideas and emotions that works wonderfully.

Even what sounds like the banging of milk bottles on Swing on Low takes on a certain charm.

Describing himself as wanting to be a black Tom Waits, Beal also channels Jim Morrison the performance poet.

His explicit cover art drawings and mutterings, combined with a fascinating back story only add to the man's mystique, but the music - a crazy clutter of styles from backwoods America - speaks for itself.

Music: Lo-Fi / Folk

Artist: Willis Earl Beal

Album title: Acousmatic Sorcery

Distributer: XL Recordings

Rating: 4.5 / 5 stars