The Marriage of True Minds

The Marriage of True Minds
Studio album by Matmos
Released	February 19, 2013 (2013-02-19)
Genre	Electronic
Length	49:50
Label	Thrill Jockey
Matmos chronology
Treasure State (2010) The Marriage of True Minds (2013) Ultimate Care II (2016)

The Marriage of True Minds is the ninth studio album by electronic music group Matmos.

Production

Drew Daniel and Martin Schmidt, the members of Matmos, spent four years conducting parapsychological experiments based on the Ganzfeld experiment. After subjects were put into a state of sensory deprivation, Daniel attempted to "transmit the concept of the new Matmos record” into their minds. ^{[1] [2]} Subjects were asked to describe aloud any images that entered their minds. The Marriage of True Minds was constructed using both the subjects' verbal descriptions and the band members' reenactments of these "psychic" visions. ^[2]

In advance of the full-length album, Matmos released the Ganzfeld EP on October 16, 2012, via Thrill Jockey. Baltimore producer Schwarz later released a club mix of "Very Large Green Triangles" with proceeds benefiting the Maryland Food Bank. ^[3]

The album was recorded and mixed at Daniel and Schmidt's Baltimore home and Snow Ghost Studio in Montana, and mastered in San Francisco by Thomas DiMuzio. ^[2] The album's final track is a "polyglot reconstruction" of Buzzcocks' song "E.S.P.", from their 1978 album Love Bites. ^[2]

Reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	79/100 [4]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[5]
Alternative Press	[6]
Blurt	[7]
Consequence of Sound	[8]
DIY	[9]
Exclaim!	8/10 [10]
Pitchfork	7.5/10 [1]
Q	[11]
Resident Advisor	4.0/5 [12]
Tiny Mix Tapes	[13]

Pitchfork's Jayson Greene noted that Matmos' music "has always had an antic, morbid cast to it, like a Grimm's fairy tale with all the ghoulish aspects slightly accentuated, and The Marriage of True Minds is maybe the most confident they've ever been at balancing the two sides of this equation." ^[1] Heather Phares, reviewing the album for AllMusic, wrote that it "effortlessly [balances] the duo's freewheeling, meticulous, ominous, and playful sides" and "delivers some of the most abstract, and most visceral, music" in Matmos' discography. ^[5]

Track listing

No.	Title	Length
1.	"You"	7:02
2.	"Very Large Green Triangles"	4:44
3.	"Mental Radio"	3:40
4.	"Ross Transcript"	2:36
5.	"Teen Paranormal Romance"	4:46
6.	"Tunnel"	5:40
7.	"In Search of a Lost Faculty"	6:10
8.	"Aetheric Vehicle"	7:14
9.	"ESP"	8:04

Personnel

Matmos ^[14]

• Drew Daniel – Arp 2600, autoharp, banjo, bells, editing, sampling, sequencing, sleigh bells, triangle, vocals, wood block
• M.C. (Martin) Schmidt – bells, bongos, cymbals, mixing, percussion, photography, piano, processing, shaker, timpani, treated piano, triangle, tuning forks, vocals

Additional musicians and production staff ^[14]

• Bret Allen – mixing
• John Berndt – sax (alto)
• Andrew Bernstein – cowbell, roto toms, tambourine
• Rose Hammer Burt – sax (baritone)
• Dan Deacon – vocals
• Tiffany DeFoe - sax (tenor)
• Angel Deradoorian – vocals
• Thomas Dimuzio – mastering
• Max Eisenberg – vocals
• Carl Ewing – drums, tuning forks
• Owen Gardner – cello, guitar, piri
• Sam Haberman – drums, percussion, triangle
• Ayman Harper – stones, tap dancing, wood
• Connor Kizer – trumpet
• Jon Leidecker – mixing, processing
• Dominique Leone – vocals
• Jay Lesser – guitar
• Gerry Mak – vocals
• Duncan Moore – bagpipes
• Edward Phillips – vocals
• Carly Ptak – vocals
• Ashot Sarkissjan – violin
• Ed Schrader – vocals
• Pete Shelley – composer, lyricist
• Clodagh Simonds – vocals
• Jenn Wasner – vocals
• John Wiese – noise
• Leslie Winer – composer, lyricist

References

1. Jayson Greene, Matmos: The Marriage of True Minds Pitchfork (February 22, 2013). Retrieved April 11, 2015.
2. The Marriage of True Minds ThrillJockey (2013). Retrieved April 11, 2015.
3. Friedlander, Emilie (September 6, 2012). "Stream: Matmos, 'Very Large Green Triangles (Schwarz Mix)'". Fader. Retrieved March 28, 2017.
4. "The Marriage of True Minds by Matmos Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved August 6, 2020.
5. Heather Phares, The Marriage of True Minds AllMusic (2013). Retrieved April 11, 2015.
6. Marriage is an album best served by deep listening on a good pair of headphones. [Mar 2013, p.92]
7. Hart, Ron (November 12, 2013). "MATMOS – The Marriage of True Minds". Blurt . Retrieved August 15, 2025.
8. Roffman, Michael (February 21, 2013). "Album Review: Matmos – The Marriage of True Minds". Consequence of Sound . Retrieved August 15, 2025.
9. McAuliffe, Colm (July 19, 2013). "Matmos - The Marriage Of True Minds". DIY . Retrieved August 15, 2025.
10. Pollard, Vincent (February 13, 2013). "Matmos - The Marriage of True Minds". Exclaim! . Retrieved August 15, 2025.
11. Mind games worth playing. [Mar 2013, p.107]
12. Finlayson, Angus (February 19, 2013). "Matmos - The Marriage of True Minds". Resident Advisor . Retrieved August 15, 2025.
13. Reid, Reed Scott. "Matmos - The Marriage of True Minds". Tiny Mix Tapes . Retrieved August 15, 2025.
14. The Marriage of True Minds: Credits Allmusic (2013). Retrieved April 11, 2015.