From Swedish trumpeter Emil Strandberg, 11 short compositions on Tonpoem 2021-2022 (HAPHAZARD MUSIC HAP2207), played by Emil with Kasper Agnas (guitar), Mauritz Agnas (cello), Par-Ola Landin (double bass) and Andreas Hiroui Larsson (drums). The music is somewhere in the jazz and improvisation mode, but Strandberg exhibits some peculiar ideas in his compositions: it’s something to do with “placing notes in time and in relation to the fellow players”, and working to rules, or ideas, which may change without warning. Very uneven, stilted results. It’s as if Strandberg is somehow attempting to deconstruct jazz and rebuild it on his own terms, but somehow contriving to leave out all the vital moving parts that make it work as music. It’s like seeing the Flatiron building in New York remade as a piece of Ikea furniture. Occasionally, recognisable elements may surface – a post-bop chord sequence here, a blues-based melody there, yet they feel sketched-in, leaving the whole piece feeling incomplete. The playing of the musicians is technically able, yet completely lacking in warmth; I sense the musicians are hampered by Strandberg’s odd compositional approach. An unsatisfying record. (12/12/2022)
Field recordings plus open-air music performances from the foursome of Adam Gottlieg, Victoria Stolz, Aviva Endean and Jim Denley on In Weather Volume 1: The Hidden Valley (SPLITREC 31). They did it in the Budawang Mountains, a range that’s enclosed in a national park in New South Wales, and Denley is evidently very familiar with the area having been “regularly hanging out” there for about 40 years. Denley and his team consider what they’re doing to be ecologically sound, in tune with the weather, and respectful to the Aboriginal culture (acknowledging the Yuins as “traditional custodians” of the land). And of course nature too. Stones and trees are as much a part of the instrumentation as the plastic tubes, flutes and clarinets they play – especially the stones. Three of the group are credited with performing on the stones, and I guess you can hear that most clearly on ‘Tones Of Stone’. Denley has come our way before on various unusual improvisation records, including collaborations with Jon Rose, but few of them have been as outspoken about “geo-music” imperatives as this one. (16/12/2022)
Equilibrium (GM049) is the third time we’ve heard from Alessandro Tedeschi who is also Netherworld and runs the Glacial Movements label in Italy. This time he’s teamed up with bvdub, a fellow from San Francisco called Brock van Wey who’s managed to release over 50 solo records of his personal type of ambient music since 2007. The two creators have been friends for over ten years, yet this is the first time they made a record. The “equilibrium” of the title refers not to their friendship, but to a specific type of behaviour of glaciers; it is possible for a glacier to reach this kind of half-melted half-frozen state, where no forward movement is possible. That’s if I understand things correctly. I would hope that Tedeschi, who’s put out about 68 records all featuring “frozen and snowy” cover artwork of some sort, is a world-class expert about glaciers, so who better than he to devise such a metaphor. Needless to say for me this record isn’t bleak enough; I enjoyed the remorseless, frowning minimalism of Algida Bellezza, whereas Equilibrium is just too “nice” for me, with its soaring tones, keening wispy voices, suggested melodies, grand themes, and fuzzy chords. Maybe bvdub is tempering the sternness of Netherworld with his more altruistic sensibilities. As it turns out, the release is intended to contrast the two styles of these creators, so perhaps the equilibrium metaphor does extend to their personalities after all. To aid us on our contemplative journey, there’s a Herman Hesse quote printed inside, as well as a photo of a stone Buddha wearing a red hood to keep him warm. (16/12/2022)