Category Archives: On record

Switched On – Loscil: ALTA (self-released)

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by Ben Hogwood

What’s the story?

On his Bandcamp page, Loscil describes this self-released single track as ‘a generative music piece originally part of an audiovisual installation at the Libby Leshgold Gallery on the Emily Carr University campus in Vancouver BC, in March 2023. The installation was designed as a 4-channel piece of endless music. Presented here in stereo, it can be thought of as a long exposure capture of the otherwise continuous music from the installation.’

Moving on, he says, ‘ALTA is an addition to the ADRIFT series of generative music pieces named after abandoned sea vessels. Originally released in 2015 as a mobile application, and redesigned as a Max patch for the installation, ALTA/ADRIFT uses structured random selection, mixing and panning to weave together the sonic phrases and layers.

The MV Alta was abandoned at sea and set adrift in 2018 near Bermuda, eventually reaching the shores of Ireland in 2020 where she remains shipwrecked.’

What’s the music like?

Few artists have the ability to capture a listener’s mind as Scott Morgan does. Only a second or two into ALTA and his music as Loscil has cast its own inimitable spell, setting out its considerable structure and declaring – in that instant – that it’s time to slow down.

ALTA certainly takes its time, the single track running for just over 42 minutes, but in that period it calms the mind, slows the thoughts, and pans out to take a broad overview of its watery panorama.

There is an otherworldly presence in the treble tones that cross the sound picture from one side to the other, and also in the held middle ground sounds that give such a detailed and focussed perspective. Once again the listener can zoom in to forensically examine the properties of each sound, or they can draw back to take in the vast panorama, which the music does frequently.

As the single movement progresses, so the music starts to follow the pattern of breathing – with long inhalations, full of consonant harmony, followed by silence – and then a similar, sonorous exhalation. This supports a meditative process for the listener, shutting out the noise outside. By the end the timbres are like the softest panpipes, given the longest possible sustain.

Does it all work?

Yes – as one track that ebbs and flows over a vast span, switching between detailed close-ups and big, spray-painted panoramas.

Is it recommended?

It certainly is – an addition to the Loscil discography showing once again his ability to hold the attention for longer spans. ALTA might be the length of a romantic symphony, but it has a similar impact in its subtle but intense means of expression, simultaneously inward and outward looking. An essential encounter for fans, and those new to Scott Morgan’s music.

If that hasn’t convinced you, head over to Bandcamp, where the music is available at whatever price you wish to pay!

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On Record – aus: Everis (Lo Recordings)

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by Ben Hogwood

What’s the story?

aus is the solo project of Tokyo-born composer and producer Yasuhiko Fukuzono. He works with a blend of analogue and digital, bringing a keen awareness of orchestration for strings to bear with recordings of everyday life and electronic motifs.

Often these are highly descriptive, capturing movie images or reflecting conversations, dreams, melodies and emotions. As his press material goes on to say, Fukuzono reflects his home city in the activity felt within his music, with dynamics that shift quickly from loud to quiet and back again.

What’s the music like?

Fukuzono writes warm, expressive music with beautiful colours and compelling attention to detail.

Halsar Weiter establishes the rich tableau of sounds, with bright harmonic movements and an initial stillness that gradually gives way to movement, when Landia arrives with distinctive thematic material and the use of a chorus.

Past From brings elements of minimalist composers into the mix, with a busy and slightly percussive piano part complemented by struck percussion and attractive strings that come to the fore towards the end, rather like the postlude on a Björk song.

Make Me Me has quite a plaintive two part harmonisation that grows in strength. The vocal for Flo feels like it’s played on an old record. Memories has a dreamy, sparkling piano against incisive strings.

All these pale into relative insignificance alongside the final track Neanic, which has the fluttering figurations of a violin against a still, wordless choir, then builds to a powerful and moving conclusion.

Does it all work?

Yes, it does – Fukuzono has a keen sense of structure to keep things moving, not to mention an abundance of melodic ideas.

Is it recommended?

It is – this is an album that gives more with each listen, which will appeal to modern classical listeners as well as those with an eye on the cinematic.

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https://flau.bandcamp.com/album/everis

Switched On – Stefan Węgłowski: Smooth Inertia (Glacial Movements)

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by Ben Hogwood

What’s the story?

With this new album from Polish composer Stefan Węgłowski, the Italian label Glacial Movements reach a half century of releases, in which time they have cemented a status as one of the go-to labels for deep musical ambience.

In Stefan’s own words, “Smooth inertia is an album that was created in solitude, after the end of a certain period in which I stagnated. I could call it a blank sheet that I had to fill in. For years I had been trying to create an ambient album that I would be happy with, which would transcend me somehow beyond my full understanding.”

To do this, he uses field recordings, manipulated spoken word (Anna Figurska) and an out of tune piano (Adam Kośmieja). Węgłowski also plays the guitar on two tracks, a return to the instrument after a nine-year break.

What’s the music like?

Haunting. Deep Light sets a dark, mysterious tone, effectively a scene setter before Ray Of Night stretches out before the listener. Here the out of tune piano provides an effective counter to the thick sonic clouds behind, while the field recordings – birdsong high in the mix – bring a softer, lighter complexion to the music.

Time Brings Relief is as long as these two pieces combined, with Figurska’s voice set against another musical cloud, this one with consonant harmony that gives it a bright edge. Yet it is Frozen Edge that leaves a lasting impression, its initial ambience compromised by the glint of metallic tones that come to the sonic foreground. These cast a powerful spell, the harmony alternating slowly between two roots in the background. Towards the end a piano chord tolls meaningfully.

As a bonus, Frozen Edge appears in a remix from Michał Wolski, who delves into its mystery and adds a chilling sonic wind blowing across the picture.

Does it all work?

Yes – and though the durations of the tracks suggest the album might be lopsided, it proves to be well structured.

Is it recommended?

It is. There are dark moments here for sure, suggesting strife and loss, but the deeper impression is that of an overriding calm.

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The Coronation album – buy the music from the service

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The Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla may only have been yesterday at Westminster Abbey, but you can already purchase the music thanks to Decca.

The official album includes all the pre-ceremonial music, featuring Sir Bryn Terfel and Roderick Williams, and also the 12 new, specially commissioned works from Andrew Lloyd Webber, Patrick Doyle, Iain Farrington, Sarah Class, Nigel Hess, Paul Mealor, Tarik O’Regan, Roxanna Panufnik, Shirley J Thompson, Judith Weir, Roderick Williams and Debbie Wiseman.

For more details, head to the Decca website

Switched On – Jordan Stanley: A Cry For The Moon (Bytes)

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by Ben Hogwood

What’s the story?

Jordan Russell-Hall, aka Jordan Stanley, is described in his publicity material as a musical magpie, a sampler pilfering material from Charli XCX, Mr Mitch, Ariana Grande and Jimmy Edgar. To these carefully chosen snippets he adds richly coloured synths and busy rhythms that have garnered stylistic comparisons with the likes of Hudson Mohawke and Rustie.

What’s the music like?

Often thrilling, especially when the synths are involved. Stanley gets big blocks of harmony on his side, using them in scattergun fashion to blaze a trail through the busy percussion.

Sometimes the music can move quickly, as though skating across a dancefloor, but he also knows when to pull it back and pan out for wider thoughts. This happens very effectively on Fog, which hovers on a held chord with vibrato before cutting loose, and Impossible, which starts thoughtfully before chopping up its source material.

Pure Morning has a glitchy outlook, while Fascination works well with the tension it creates through rapid piano fire and a relatively slow beat. Quicksand is a thrill that harks back to early rave in its massive parallel chords, Overt is harder hitting, but then the title track goes for broke, a massive production enveloping the listener in huge, floes of icy sound.

Does it all work?

It does – and Stanley works at speed, meaning his ideas never outstay their welcome. Indeed the whole album, with nine tracks, is wrapped up in less than half an hour.

Is it recommended?

It is – a dazzling and colourful set of synthesizer grooves, cutting their way through the noise.

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