Recorded in 1988 and 1989, released as a limited-edition LP by the tiny indie Father Yod in 1993, and finally making it to CD in 1995, Scriptures of the Golden Eternity is a huge improvement over Ranaldo's fragmentary solo debut, 1987's From Here to Infinity. These three lengthy (from ten and a half up to 23 minutes) tracks are all improvisations from Ranaldo's periodic solo performances, recorded directly to tape sans overdubs and mixing. The first track (all three are untitled) is the longest one, and it opens with a charmingly nervous spoken bit by Ranaldo concerning an episode of the old Superman TV show he'd seen as a kid where two pieces of recording tape were used as a clue to a mystery. That moves into a spacy, echoing miasma that's surprisingly well-shaped for this sort of extended improvisation. Tracks two and three are a bit noisier, but they never quite cross the line into the sort of aggressiveness that Ranaldo's early mentors Rhys Chatham and Glenn Branca specialized in. Instead, this is an almost placid form of instrumental improvisation that Krautrock fans in particular might find inviting and familiar.
Lee Ranaldo
Scriptures of the Golden Eternity
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