Glam godfather, ambient inventor, oblique strategist, superstar producer, the very sound of Windows–it’s easier to laundry-list what Brian Eno isn’t. But after compartmentalizing his strengths in recent years, Eno also proves to be a peerless synthesist on Small Craft. Made with longtime collaborators Jon Hopkins and Leo Abrahams, the album is a bell curve of sound, bookended by placid yet alien miniatures reminiscent of On Land. Eno unleashes tempests of breakbeats (“Horse”), electro exotica (“Bone Jump”), even roiling post-rock (“2 Forms of Anger”), creating a perfect storm.
