The Glass Key – Memoria

London based The Glass Eye were initially an instrumental duo based in London comprised of Andrea Giommi (Sons of Viljems, Edible Woman, Leg Leg, The Emerald Leaves, Laura Loriga, Too Early/Too Late, Shama Rahman) and Nicola Lombardi (Uyuni – Mr. Brace). They later expanded to a trio to also include Brit Frank Byng (Snorkel, This Is Not This Heat) on drums and mixing desk duties.

Memoria marks the band’s first full length release following 2022’s debut EP Sleepwalking Home and features a multitude of guests including Jem Doutlon (Thurston Moore band) - marimba, Agate Max (Abstract Concrete) on violin and Colin Webster (Idles) on sax. The record will be released jointly in March 2026 by Weird Beard and Echodelick Records; the latter especially are significant as they’ve put out records by the likes of Green Milk From the Planet Orange, Julie’s Haircut, Lammping, Hibushibire, Angad Berar and Traum. Therefore their involvement was a major incentive for me to do a writeup of the record for Clean Sheets.

‘Memoria’s Funky Basslines recall the late Jaco Pastorius (Weather Report, Joni Mitchell, Herbie Hancock), in fact there is a Jazz Fusion feel ala the aforementioned Weather Report. Meanwhile there are also Psychedelic and Afrobeat influences such as might be found on records by the likes of Here Lies Man and Goat. A strong start. ‘You Can’t Be Any Poorer Than Dead’ incorporates Can style Krautrock and the use of Sax not overly dissimilar to what Nik Turner brought to Hawkwind during his tenure. Webster’s use of it also brings to mind his work with the brilliant Sex Swing, a band that should be checked out ASAP. A fantastic track. A Clockwork Sun’ reminds one of a band such as Smote, not just the nature themed title, but also the olde world Folk nature of the music combined with a contemporary Drone sound. This is the kind of alarm call I’d use first thing, rising you gradually out of your slumber ready to face a new day, as opposed to the sharp, obnoxious shrill cry we have slowly become accustomed to. A lovely piece.

‘A Map of the Darkest Clouds’ with its dense walls of Drone and feedback is the record’s shortest track and similar to Sunn O))) and Earth. My advice would be to crank this one LOUD! ‘Nightmare Detective’ catches your attention from the off with its Shoegaze laden reverb Guitarwork and use of ambient atmospheric textures. The clever use of electronica makes you feel as if you were listening to a remix of a Slowdive song and if you were going in blind you’d swear this was an undiscovered gem from Neil Halstead and co. A personal favourite on the album for sure.

‘The Age of Reason’ is brilliantly robotic and names such as Gary Numan and Kraftwerk should come to mind. Despite this the Vocals imbue the whole thing with a slighter warmer hue. Its also quite infectious and dare I say catchy, impressive. Finally we have ‘Bend Sinister’ which is seemingly named after The Fall’s 1986 album of the same name (I could be wrong) which itself was named after Vladimir Nabokov 1947 novel. It certainly has some of the Manchester band’s use of repetition mantra, motorik-influenced rhythms, angular guitar riffs, and, at times, prominent use of electronics which help draw the album to an unsettling yet intoxicating conclusion.

After four years hiatus The Glass Eye are well and truly back, building on the promise ofSleepwalking Home. There’s enough experimentation here to keep you engaged what with itsmultitude of genres. Definitely an intriguing listen.