It has become almost impossible not to take note of Expo 70’s constant flow of releases. Having covered the cdr circuit extensively, Justin Wright (aka Expo 70) is now seeing his music get the well-deserved vinyl treatment all over the place. The “White Ohms” tape is advertised as a collection of outtakes of last year’s “Black Ohms” cd (on Beta-Lactam Ring) and it`s an appetizer for the “Psychosis” lp due out on Peasant Magik as well. But while “White Ohms” is much more than a mere appetizer and can hold its own ground, I do differ from other reviewers in maintaining that some of the six tracks on this tape do indeed sound a bit like outtakes. Outtakes, however, that would have been included in the releases of about 95 per cent of psych/drone outfits going.

Showing different levels of minimalism and depth, “White Ohms” is characterized by the opening tracks on each side. “Mantra In White Ohms” gloriously exploits a single guitar chord over what must be more than ten minutes. The following tracks, “Land of Light” and “Empyreal Totem”, add a wider variety of sounds, including proper riffs and atmospheric improvisation. I, for one, feel that these tracks are somewhat unfocused.

The opener to the b-side, “White Rift”, sees Wright in full distortion mode. It’s also the track that relies most heavily on conventional riffing, which I prefer over the throbbing ambience of “Tonal Elation”, which is up next but fails to engage me. Limited to 200, which is quite a lot for a tape but I guess if you want one you’ll have to be quick anyway. 7/10 -- Jan-Arne Sohns (1 May, 2009)