KRVX

S. Carey, the drummer and supporting vocalist of Bon Iver, is often not recognized as a solo act, but in his sophomore release, he offers up a solid showing as an independent artists. First of all, if you were looking for  something that sounds like Bon Iver's works, do not look towards this album. S. Carey bring a whole new “electric” feel in Hoyas combining the deep and funky basslines reminiscent of glitch artists like Hex with the smooth varied instrumentation of Saltillo, and buildups that only Blue Sky Black Death could pull off. Hoyas is ambient, but also not at the same time. What it lacks in ethreal popping noise, he makes up by blanketing the listener in a cocoon of sound. What you will hear at any given time varies from tinkling piano to long drawn out synths. My favorite song on this EP is  Two Angles which is closely followed up by Marfa (really cool unidentified woodwind instrument in this one). The only drawback I can find with this album is that I do not really enjoy S. Carey's voice on his 2nd and 3rd tracks. His voice seems heavily digitally altered, and didn't sound good to my ears.  Despite that this album is a solid work by a solid artist; I'm definitely looking forward to seeing S. Carey develop and find his own sound.