Papa M
Walt’s
Drag City
David Pajo returns as Papa M with a minimalistic track from new LP A Broke Moon Rises featuring just acoustic guitars and a hi-hat. Pajo has a resume as impressive as it is long, being an integral member of post-rock legends Slint and Tortoise, then going on to be guest guitarist on many other studio and live projects with indie A-listers, followed by a solo career first as Aerial M then Papa M (or just Pajo) since 1999.
Walt’s is as skeletal a track as they come, with a simple repeating motif underneath on an acoustic guitar, with a second guitar that comes in but that strays in and out of the main melody. This motif shares Pajo’s aesthetic of playing notes to capture the negative space in a tune, and gently glides along for the length of the track. Other guitars frame these wandering lines with some bent notes for some hushed drama, but otherwise the meditative piece is comfortable in its unhurried plainness.
Overall, the track sounds as if its recorded in grey, calling to mind an empty road or bare branches of trees. A Broke Moon Rises may be just the thing for Perth’s wintry days.
PAUL DOUGHTY
