From the Italian label Dissipatio we have Luca Giuoco with his fine sample-stitch occultist mentalism work, Colletivoinconscio Vol. 1. (DISSIPATIO DISS011 / TOTEN SCHWAN TSR132) On it, we may hear very brief samples from a large number of contributors, all of whom were invited to send in a short sample of sound. Really short; we’re talking just a few seconds in each case. A long list of names includes a few enlightened souls who we happen to recognise from previous releases – some of them even appearing on this same label – for instance the unpredictable Heimito Künst, the estimable Nicola Quiriconi of VipCancro who also runs this label, the king of Italian occultism Simon Balestrazzi, Alice Kundalini who records as She Spreads Sorrow (often appearing on the Cold Spring label).
The skill of Luca Giuoco in this case has been to spin nine substantial tracks of puzzling, chilling electronic music from these strands of straw, many of the episodes laced with spoken word, whispers, and murmurings of deathly pale spirits attempting to pass on an urgent message. Some of them don’t murmur, they sing – as on the deliciously horrifying ‘Calvary XXI’, which for a few precious moments manages to build a virtual “opera” segment out of tape loops and samples. There’s also the multiple lost children squealing their unearthly plaints on ‘Ananda Adanna’. Giuoco is upfront about his intensive processing methods – he alludes to “multiple and radical experiments” that were enacted upon the dozens of taped segments that were sent to his mailbox in Turin – and while I personally would like to hear more disembodied voices, I think the aim here has been to layer the samples together in interesting combinations and patterns, and take a line for a long walk just to see which part of the en-misted forest he takes us to. As such, his steps may sometimes be small and tentative, as he slowly explores the unknown territory which he’s endeavouring to map.
Along with all this, we can’t ignore the title Colletivoinconscio which simply means “collective unconscious”, confirming that this record is an impression of the current condition of the human mind, as drawn from a representative sample of these 40 or so creators. Through his strange litmus tests and psychological trials, Luca Giuoco aims to peel back the surfaces of normality and find some shared truths. Quite often, what he finds is disquieting and unsettling…the theme is taken up to some extent by the cover artworks, perhaps depicting a form of automatic drawing as used by the Surrealists to unlock their unconscious urges and impulses. We look forward to hearing Vol. 2 for further revelations. (09/01/2023)