Northwest | IITempel Arts (CD/DL) Softly intro-ing, Wind opens the sophomore album from Northwest. Simply titled II, Mariuca García-Lomas’ throaty incantations parallel a wispy pedal organ. ‘Here comes the wind from the northwest…’ and the resolute invitation to, ‘let the rain fall on your head…’ The eerie, nearly arduous beauty of the second track Winterland […]
Cut A Lonely Figure | In Sea, In Circles, In Concretepan y rosas discos (DL) The simplicity of chorus-effected guitar in the fading-in ripple that commences In Sea, In Circles, In Concrete by Cut A Lonely Figure after several measures is readily joined by a stereo-panning noise loop. The four note walk-down and pop of […]
mpala garoo | Vaya AdelanteShimmering Mood Records (CD/DL) Dark aural movements comprise Vaya Adelante by mpala garoo. Compliments a la Shimmering Moods Records, the trio delivers an album whose titular meaning is drawn from a letter of William S. Burroughs to Ginsberg. Apparently, the beats were facing the identity crashing effects of mortality and Ayahuasca. […]
Laurisilva by Laura Agnusdei and Mare di Dirac’s Ophite Diagram were both recently released. This pair of Italo acoustic-electronic releases offer strategic sound art which incorporates wind instruments, mixed with electronic processing. Agnusdei collaborates with several contributing artists who play traditional instruments. Mare di Dirac employs the use of handmade instruments. While the theme of […]
Gabriele Mitelli | The World Behind the SkinWeInsist! Records (CD/DL) The release contains two poetic prose premises (written by Nicola Di Croce and Rob Mazurek) however, the four track album The World Behind the Skin by Gabriele Mitelli remains shrouded in suspense, harsh-romanticism, even with hints of passive-aggression. The self-aware sonic abstractions take on a […]
Overlay | TraceTone List (DL) Having recently become privy to (and enthused about) the rugby world cup currently underway in Japan, I also learned of the Haka dances that occasionally precede a match. This has nothing to do with Overlay’s Trace/Venn release on Tone List (October 29th) aside from the fact that there is an […]
Dans les arbres | VolatilSOFA (CD/DL) Volatile may refer to this single track album’s recording situation – live, a first for Dans les arbres. The prolifically touring quartet offers a recording set of fifty three minutes and change. Though the structured improv is airy, spacious and largely sparse, there isn’t a dull moment. Right away […]
Arve Henriksen | The Height Of The Reeds Rune Grammofon (LP/CD) The northern English coastal town Hull was, in 2017, selected as UK City of Culture, resulting in a range of artistic events being bestowed upon the city. One was a commission involving Norwegian trumpeter Arve Henriksen creating the audio for a soundwalk across the […]
toneshift.wordpress.com 