Erik Klinga
Elusive Shimmer
SWEDEN THANATOSIS PRODUKTION THT36 CD (2024)
Mostly played on the Buchla 200, but other synths and keyboards, software, field recordings and pipe organ layers may also appear in this limpid Shimmer. I like this album when it’s bleak and melancholic and weeps aloud in suitably under-nourished tones, not so much when things get sentimental and starry-eyed – “joyous elevation” and “first rays of dawn” are the effusions from Luka Aron’s liner notes. By my misanthropic account, ‘Point of Convergence’ is the most successful piece due to washed-out layers, minimal effort, and deadening sense of futility; and I quite like the mixed messages in ‘Ascension’, which if it depicts a Christian moment of being taken up to Heaven, is also plagued by doubts and a crisis of faith. Conversely, if Luka Aron is right, then the sweet harmonies of ‘Iridescence’ are the true high point, followed closely by the heart-warming vibes of ‘Parallax’, where we prepare to welcome benign alien visitors in their flying machine. This Swedish composer got his degree in electro-acoustic composition from KMH in Stockholm, but he’s also a drummer and has played in alt-rock and indiepop bands such as Simian Ghost, Light Vibes, and Horse Show. From 01/11/2024.
