Nick Storring
Quatuor Bozzini. À Chacun Sa Miniature. Since 2005 Montreal's Quatuor Bozzini—leading interpreters of new string-quartet music—have hosted the Composer's Kitchen, a workshop for emerging composers, where they hone their craft. In 2011 the ensemble approached previous workshop participants, and harvested thirty-[...] Read more
Eric Chenaux. Guitar & Voice. Guitar & Voice, Eric Chenaux’s fourth album for Constellation, is arguably his most comprehensively representative recording to date, unselfconsciously connecting disparate parts of his musical personality. In addition to placing his delicate songs into a nakedly intimate and[...] Read more
Christian Bouchard. Automacité. Automacité is firmly rooted in two sound worlds: Bouchard’s gestural language speaks of Montreal’s vital acousmatic scene, and the album’s silvery abstract dynamism recalls the later work of so-called IDM (intelligent dance music) pioneers Autechre.[...] Read more
Six Heads. Cardboard Oracle. William Davison and his five sous-chefs have been cooking up—yes, this disc is thoroughly cooked—their signature stews for over a decade now. This vinyl release documents their improvisatory web-toed amblings through the mutant sonic kitchen: each member chopping and dicing[...] Read more
Nightjars. The Natural Playmate. The Natural Playmate, apparently the final release in the Rat-Drifting catalogue, is a series of extremely concise and focused improvisations performed by Eric Chenaux (guitar) and Jason Benoit (banjo). The familiar misshapen melancholy found on many Rat-Drifting albums runs through this[...] Read more
Erdem Helvacioğlu and Şirin Pancaroğlu. Resonating Universes. Resonating Universes is an apt title for this collaboration between electroacoustic composer Helvacioğlu and harpist Pancaroğlu. Each section of this disc-long composition teems with microscopic activity—flocks of muted plucking and granular shivers weave their way around resounding[...] Read more
Dolphins Into The Future. Two Romantic Landscapes. On Two Romantic Landscapes Belgium’s Dolphins Into The Future offers up a new pair of sumptuous, sprawling pieces. Sweet and languid, both sides of this lovingly packaged, limited-edition cassette conjure a delicious summer-evening beach image. It’s a delicate balance of sated[...] Read more
Freida Abtan. The Hands of the Dancer/The Temple of the Dreamer. With her second release, Montreal-based composer Freida Abtan expands her very personalized idiom of abstract electronica. While she has assimilated the clarity of sound processing and the bold gestures of the Montreal acousmatic scene, her music is haunted by a resonant gothic murkiness[...] Read more
Montreal’s Constellation Records Montreal’s Constellation Records rose to prominence around the turn of the millennium, following the explosion of Godspeed You! Black Emperor’s popularity. While it’s sometimes tempting to allow that band and similar acts on the label’s roster to sum up Constellation[...] Read more
Colin Stetson. New History of Warfare Vol. 2: Judges. Saxophonist Colin Stetson’s solo outing displays his interest in multiphonics, spiralling repetition, and circular breathing. Inviting comparison to veteran Toronto player David Mott, Stetson’s playing exhibits an even coarser and more carnal tone than that of his forerunner. His[...] Read more
Martin Arnold. Tam Lin. Slow but dense, with ripe, colourful gestures and murky tonality, the title composition of Martin Arnold’s Tam Lin inspires a sense of bated-breath wonder, yet utter confusion. But what other results could one achieve by setting the improvisatory and vocal quirks of the Draperies[...] Read more
Martin Arnold. Aberrare. While definitely more transparent and smoother around the edges than this composer’s other recent recording, Tam Lin , this reading by Quatuor Bozzini of Martin Arnold’s work is equally brilliant, articulating his amblingly weightless melodies with clean precision. The sober[...] Read more
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