Considering the musical endeavors the various members of Strumpets have on their musical CV (The Parallels, iH8 Camera and close connections to the heart of the Antwerp experimental cutting edge) Rubies and Ruffians is probably not what you expect it to be, unless of course you bought their 2010 debut in which case it is probably everything you expect it to be. If you are expecting free jazz art-noise or the sonic terrorism associated with the above acts then you will have to look elsewhere, Strumpets is a much dreamier affair. It wanders between psychedelic grooves and warped art school intelligence, surfs Wilson-esque dream pop waves and lyrics that move between honest thoughts, allegory and impenetrable backs of literature.
Like most of the music released by Jezus Factory it is challenging and demanding of your repeated attention, but the time invested pays dividends as the initial hazy washes and dynamic shifts that make up the soundscape slowly coalesce into ever more interesting shapes the closer and more familiar you become with the album.
