If you're gonna do your own thing, make it your own thing. And so it went with Brian Borcherdt of Canada's loopy and maniacal electronic act Holy Fuck, who did if not a complete 180˚ with his new project Dusted, then a 165˚. 

Whether it was the Nova Scotia cabin where the record was conceived of the decidedly lo-fi surroundings of the converted grarage in which it was created with partner Leon Taheny (Final Fantasy, Rituals), Dusted is pastoral, rough hewn and as restrained and spacious as Borcherdt's day band is packed and jagged.  There are certainly upbeat moments on Total Dust, like the buoyant "(Into the Atmosphere)", but the delicate and sparse outnumber them, including "Pale Light" and "Low Humming". If anything, Dusted inhabit that rustic psych space recently dominated by Woods--a comparison that's particularly apparent on "Long it Lasts" and the spirited "Cut Them Free" though this band is more direct, less winding, and Borcherdt's voice is not the acquired curiosity that Jeremy Earl's is. On the other hand, it's Neil Young that is recalled on the sinewy, insistent "Property Lines", Total Dust's most rocking moment.

A refreshing shift for Brian Borcherdt and a nice slice of, well, dusty and dirty folk rock for this long hot summer: Total Dust, the debut LP from Dusted.