As is declared by the album title, Jet Black Crayon focus on the lower end of the register. They have two bass players and no guitarists or singers. If this sounds prosaic, as a result of the blandness of Dianogah along with the ridiculous misconception that all bands with basses and no guitars are Tortoise sound-alikes, don't fret. Jet Black Crayon also employ turntables and "FX." And though a couple of numbers are evocative of earlier Tortoise, with whom these guys are touring on selected dates, the music of Low Frequency Speaker Test is less deliberate and more vivacious than the legions of pedestrian "post-rock" bands.

Jet Black Crayon's background in hip-hop and downtempo electronica is the most significant characteristic in setting them apart, aesthetically, from their would-be peers. The band's DJ, Gadget (also the owner of Function 8 Recordings), along with founder Tommy Guerrero, have released beat-oriented records with names like Weed in the Tree and Forty on the Floor. And on top of that, Guerrero is the owner of Real Skateboards. Startlingly, though, Low Frequency Speaker Test isn't as brash as all that insinuates.

The opening track, "Some Sort of Intro," is secured by a bittersweet, interlocking bass loop. Faintly tinkled piano melodies that sound half-improvised waft while uncharacteristically finger-tapped and palm-muted notes repeat themselves. The song itself is fairly melodramatic (it reminds me vaguely of U2 for some reason), but the loose feel and less-than-pretty adornments facilitate the listener's ability to appreciate the sentimentality without feeling like a sap.

In the middle of "Tonic Water," the second and equally low-key track, a sample of thunder is audible beneath the bass pattern. This is the perfect complement, as the down groove and subtle electro-rhythm sound like the quiet before the storm. Like when the air pressure drops and the wind becomes still, and all of the neighbors are outside looking at the sky-- not an anxious tension, but a barely unsettling tranquility. By the end, you can hear the light rain falling, and it comforts.

"And So It Goes" introduces the other dominant motif on Low Frequency Speaker Test. Groovy and upbeat, it's incredibly catchy. The second, non-anchoring bass weaves in and out with melodies played with a slide and fuzzed chords that are the spitting auditory image of a raunchy synth. This track, like the first, presents the album's one flaw: the presentation is novel, intelligent and above average, but the basic elements of some of the songs sound comparatively innocuous.

In "The Tree," an appealing but forgettable fusion-y bassline is saved by the addition of squirrelly wah sounds and incongruous samples. After the second loud, distorted chorus, a sample of an audience applauding crescendos into the mix while the song continues. Some might find this tacky and obvious, but I found the clash of serious rock sentiment and comedy pretty hilarious.

"Scammon's Lagoon" feels like "Night Air" from the self-titled Tortoise album, due in part to the implementation of the same, harmonica-sounding (forgive the flippancy) melodic instrument, and because it equally portrays the ambience of a thick, fresh night spent alone.

At times, Jet Black Crayon apply samples-- scratched and repeated found speech, for example-- that have little or nothing to do with the music outside of imparting an urban quality. Initially, they appear to be random novelties, but as thematically unrelated as they are, these samples surprisingly work within the context of the sound because they provide a valuable framework for the perception of the band. It helps to be reminded that Jet Black Crayon are more of a hip-hop rooted band than a post- or avant-rock one, so that it's possible to avoid all the stigma that goes along with those labels. It was in looking at it from this perspective that I was really able to begin to appreciate the album.

Low Frequency Speaker Test is certainly not going to change anyone's life or musical perspicacity, and it really isn't meant to. But Jet Black Crayon are a band that grasp how to make catchy, fascinating, groove-ridden songs and lilting, nocturnal, urban odes with maximum effect and a minimum of histrionic pretense. For that, the album is definitely worth a listen.

-Michael Wartenbe