On this second release, Christmas Decorations continue to shred and deconstruct the guitar. Their fragmentation and electronic manipulation of riffs and effects would be tiresome if the guitar action were not compelling to begin with. They are. While I don?t fully buy the whole ?anti-guitar? aesthetic, --there is here, nor in post-rock or no-fi that disrespects the instrument or takes away the guitar?s central place in the music--these compositions are strong and evocative, with or without the experiments.

Not that the experiments and manipulations detract or distract. ?Closer to Carpet? and ?Twig Harpoon? highlight the balance between what are very good solid riffs with hermetic parsing of the rhythms; the sonic variations on theme, whether noisy or quiet, illustrate the power inherent in isolating sounds within a tune and extending or obsessing over them.

Other powerful examples of this playing with changes are ?The Umbrella Fold? and ?Mice Over Feathers.? Layers of sound and the fragmenting of them create melancholy, meditative atmosphere. Christmas Decorations create a rich soundscape that one can, and should, get lost in. 8/10 -- Mike Wood (13 February, 2007)