The KLF - "Waiting For The Rites of Mu"

This disc comprises the soundtracks to two short films created by Jimi Cauty and Bill Drummond, aka the KLF. First is "Waiting," a 42-minute "ambient video" where not much happens. Not much happens on the soundtrack, either. Snatches of KLF/Justified Ancients of Mu Mu material, Jimi Hendrix, church choirs, and much more all appear in the mix. But, divorced from the visuals of the film, there appears to be no coherence, no reason for the sounds that appear to appear when they do. When compared against the ambient house classic Chill Out, this is the red-headed step-child, unwanted and unloved. The second track is the soundtrack to The Rites of Mu, and appears to be narrated by Martin Sheen, doing his best to ape his narration from Apocalypse Now. Again, elements from previous KLF / JAMMS tracks appear in the mix, but in a more musical fashion than "Waiting." Ominous synths and a woman's choir underscore a tale spun by the narrator of a journalist traveling to the Isle of Jura to act as participant in the mysterious "Rites of Mu," which resemble something taken from The Wicker Man. Not for casual fans of the KLF, and probably not for fans who haven't seen the films these are the soundtracks for; this album remains a small disappointment when compared with the rest of the brilliant catalog that Cauty and Drummond have created, both together and apart.

2.5 stars