Album review: Sexlected Ambivalent Durks

Like a dimly lit nightclub on a dystopian penal colony in space

KC Phillips, Staff Writer

The album Sexlected Ambivalent Durks Vol. 1 (11-14) is a collection of recordings accumulated by a mysterious masked Madisonian musician. Capitol Swizzle Credit is Lucas Bielejewskis heart and soul worn on the sleeve of a T-shirt bearing Ralph Wiggum’s face.

In the last few years, Capitol Swizzle Credit has released three indie progressive math rock albums, a mixture of stream-of-consciousness lyrics and virtuosic playing. His latest release is something else entirely. Paying homage to the great Aphex Twin, Capitol Swizzle Credit put out a selection (or sexlection) of electronic and ambient tracks.

The story behind the album is not complicated. According to Lucas, he had a number of electronic tracks ranging in variety and complexity lying dormant on his computer, and he wanted to release them together in a clean package. Listening to the Sexlected Ambivalent Durks album is a journey through electronic music itself. No two songs are quite the same, yet they all flow freely and smoothly into each other.

The eerie “President Busyness” has strong echoes of the very talented Boards of Canada; the spacious and groovy “Squiths” could be straight from a Massive Attack album; “Whizzle?” plays with electro-swing in a manner similar to Parov Stelar. On whole, there is nothing underwhelming about the musical expertise of Lucas and all whom he had help him assemble the album. It’s an absolute must-listen for anybody interested in the local electronic scene.

In the future, Lucas will focus on releasing a concept album/rock opera that tells the story of one mad scientist, one woman donating her organs to keep her son alive, and one alien invasion, infused with all of the same kind of absurdist humor and imagery that has helped give Capitol Swizzle Credit the kind of genuineness and personality that is often lacking in music today. The project has no expected release date currently, but is in production.

All Capitol Swizzle Credit music is available to listen to online, and “Sexlected Ambivalent Durks” is available for sale at his Bandcamp page. Keep Madison culture alive and thriving by supporting local artists and musicians.