If Birchville Cat Motel ever made a masterpiece, then it would have to be Beautiful Speck Triumph, an epic double CD's worth of majestic drones and noises. White Ground Elder starts off the album on a dark note with it's bass-heavy sinewaves, screeching strings and bizarre crackling noises. The mood is now set for most of the album as furnace drones, toy-instrument abuse and assorted unidentifiable noises scratch at your eardrums. Only the lush drones of Speck Fears will give you a moment of peace. With all this gloomy tension mounting, you will need some form of release which comes in the form of the cathartic title track (with a short intro melody taken from The Residents' Eskimo). This track's crescendo is so incredibly powerful that I had to catch my breath the first time I listened to it. Those pounding drums, angelic voices and doom metal drones are practically orgasmic and a beauty to listen to.