Righteous heavy drone-action for one hour on Kalypso Hypnos Drone (THANATOSIS PRODUKTION THTXX1), a slow and solemn piece which is but the taster for a much larger project called The Death Of Kalypso. Given built-in delay with the editor’s working methods here, The Death Of Kalypso is already released (in April 2024) as a double-LP from this same label, same musicians, but this preparatory release not only eases the adventurous listener into the main release, it might also have been part of a crowd-funding campaign for a project whose costs are described here as “massive”.
It’s not just a double-LP, it will be a touring stage event hopefully along the lines of Einstein on the Beach, and even its creators aren’t quite sure whether to call it “a jazz opera for our times” as there might not be much jazz and there might not be much singing either. I’m looking in vain now for some clues as to whether this work is intended to echo the Greek myth of Calypso who imprisoned Odysseus on the island of Ogygia for seven years, until Zeus intervened on his behalf. Maybe the front cover to today’s release depicts a modern-day Kalypso, with her shiny shoes and stockinged legs.
It’s a Swedish music thing…Kalypso Hypnos Drone was composed by Martin Küchen, who some years ago gave us the impenetrable but beautiful Det Försvunnas Namn for this same label working mainly with his saxophone but also showcasing his compositional skills. Credited upfront to Angles, the ensemble led by Alex Zethson, and Elle-Kari Sander – the nominal “star” of the record with her singing voice, although that element does blend in with the drifty music to a large extent. Playing the strings, brass, percussion and woodwinds we have a roster of Swedish talents, including faves Anna Lindal and Eva Lindal who amazed us with Bäver in 2020; also My Hellgren, the cellist who played with Peter Söderberg on FRIM2, and Johan Berthling, the bass player who made BjornHorn for this label. As promised by the label blurb, this serene and stately long piece is both relaxing and disturbing at the same time, presumably due to some ingenious mixed chords buried in its seemingly translucent layers; and is also intended to depict ships of brass floating on the sea with its “woody and raw” sounds.
I could be wrong, but I do think this very “naturalistic” recording technique is one of the hallmarks of this label, indicating an approach to mic placement and engineering that is very sympathetic to the instruments, particularly the string section; every creak is there for the plucking, clear as a bell. Also incredibly minimal in a way which even devotees of Morton Feldman could not have predicted would come to pass in our lifetime. Also the vibraphone (played by Mattias Stahl) is used so sparingly that, when it appears, it’s like a drop of silver light falling into this virtual ocean. And each puff from the flute is like a passing seagull in slow motion. A maritime painting in sound, rendered down to its most fundamental constituent parts; Kalypso Hypnos Drone comes close to achieving the hoped-for “monumental” status. (24/10/2023)