On Record – MINING: Chimet (The Leaf Label)

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by Ben Hogwood

What’s the story?

The story behind this remarkable album is best read through quotes from the MINING Bandcamp site and press release, as it bears repeating.

“Chichester West Pole Beacon, also known as Chimet, is a comprehensive weather information system recording conditions in Hayling Bay, West Sussex, both in real-time and historically. Located at 50° 45′.45 N, 00° 56′.59 W, approximately one mile from the entrance to Chichester Harbour, the instrumentation on Chimet records data including air and water temperature; barometric pressure; wind speed and direction; water depth; wave height, period and frequency; and time of day.

Over a period of seven days in October 2017, the devastating Atlantic Hurricane Ophelia fed straight into another weather event, known as Storm Brian in the UK. MINING mapped the data from this storm onto various musical values and parameters, including harmonic range, pitch, density and volume – resulting in a continuous piece of electronic sound design that directly traces the contours of the two storm systems. After several iterations, improvised instrumental performances were added on piano, cello and synthesiser.

The album was created using 2,016 sampled data streams, collected every five minutes between 0030 on October 16th 2017 and 0025 on the 23rd, translating seven days of information into 67 minutes and 12 seconds of detailed and evolving music. With mother nature orchestrating the piece, she is joined by intuitive and powerful improvisations on piano, cello and synthesiser. The recording captures the sense of building expectation and tension, the dropping air pressure, the rising winds, the interlocking storm systems and the serene aftermath. The shifts are seamless, monumental and open to the elements.”

MINING was conceived by Craig Kirkpatrick-Whitby, with sound design and programming from PJ Davy. The improvised contributions on piano, cello and Lintronics are all made by Matthew Bourne.

What’s the music like?

Intense, yet ambient at the same time. The circumstances of composition mean that Chimet is certainly best heard as an uninterrupted stream (pun intended), describing the weather activity in remarkable detail.

Yet the crowning achievement of this project is that in their work together, Craig, PJ and Matthew have made something that has deep emotional content. The sound ‘beds’ are effectively drones, slowly shifting in deep colours, over which Bourne is able to work some carefully thought improvisation.

Ophelia develops very slowly, over a quarter of an hour, but there is something immediately ominous about its approach. The synthesizers pile up, with the occasional intervention from the piano – with layers of notes in swirling harmony, before they gradually retreat. Petrichor poses more of an initial threat, the foreboding low synth sounds presenting a dark outlook, before the relative calm of Latent – a slow piano meditation – dispels the worry.

The central section starts with a piece depicting Chimet itself, the remoteness of the open water apparent in Bourne’s distant musings on the piano. Then, with Arise, a series of long cello notes provide a swell in the texture, moving seamlessly into the elongated Force 10 Pts. 1 & 2. Here the held notes feel bleaker, until the inexorable build that piles them up towards the sky, a regular ticking holding everything in place. There is a strong sense of the ravaged seas, of craft blown this way and that, but also Chimet standing tall throughout.

The epilogue, Debris, has a synthesizer motif depicting the aftermath, with matter falling back to earth and settling, the long note underneath held until it passes from audible range.

Does it all work?

It does. For such incredibly slow music to maintain this level of intensity is remarkable indeed, something few artists can achieve. The melodies may be minimal, but getting caught up in the sweep of the extended piece is inevitable.

Is it recommended?

It is – a proper musical experience that should be played from start to finish, so the listener can get the whole awe-inspiring weather events recreated in their own environment.

For fans of… Loscil, Stars of the Lid, Biosphere

Listen and Buy

Published post no.2,118 – Friday 15 March 2024

On paper – Refiner’s Fire: The Academy of Ancient Music and the Historical Performance Revolution by Richard Bratby (Elliott & Thompson)

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reviewed by Ben Hogwood

What’s the story?

This handsomely packaged volume, published late last year, comes billed as ‘the first full-length history of a British period instrument orchestra’. That orchestra, the Academy of Ancient Music, was born just over half a century ago in a London pub not at all far from the Crown and Anchor on the Strand, where the original Academy of Ancient Music was formed in the 1720s.

What’s the book like?

Enlightening and thoroughly engaging – as are the musical performances and recordings that are discussed in its pages. Richard Bratby, one of the Academy’s ‘Hogwood Fellows’, is a compelling storyteller, fully qualified to put the events of the group’s formation in perspective with those around them.

First we have the ensemble’s formation, a helpful base illustrating the radical steps Christopher Hogwood, Decca record producer Peter Wadland and their associates were taking – all borne of enthusiasm for the music and a wish for scholarly respect and exploration.

As venues, record companies and sponsors switched on to the benefits of the ensemble’s existence a whole new movement was formed in front of their eyes. This, the ‘period instrument’ movement, gathered pace at a striking rate in the 1970s and 1980s, where concertgoers and record / CD buyers were compelled to consider accounts of Handel, Mozart, Bach, Vivaldi and their contemporaries as they would have been experienced by audiences of the day.

Bratby tells of the Academy’s trailblazing cause, soon followed and challenged by rival ensembles, almost all to the good of Western musical life – and occasionally Eastern, thanks to the orchestra’s ambitious touring schedule – and the classical recording industry. Not everyone shared the enthusiasm of Hogwood and his charges, and there is a convincing inspection of the critical fallout and opposition, from Richard Taruskin in particular.

At every turn, Christopher Hogwood emerges as the character whose genial but passionate demeanour is the fulcrum on which the Academy turns, the spur behind the scholarly work with a public face. Even a BRIT award heads the Academy’s way! Wadland, too, is suitably credited for his part in the ensemble’s success, with a string of now legendary recordings detailed from the first – Overtures by Thomas Arne in 1974, to the more recent, imaginative offerings of Handel’s Brockes Passion and Dussek’s Messe Solemnelle on the ensemble’s own label. How the industry has changed in that time!

Does it all work?

At every turn. The wealth of authoritative sources gives the book real substance, and their input is judiciously managed. The ‘back office’ staff get the platform and credit they deserve, too, their valuable insight a reminder of the difficulties orchestras face from day to day. The impact of the Coronavirus pandemic is keenly felt, in what must be the first book of its kind to detail the impact of lockdown on every aspect of musical life.

The players, too, get their due credits – and there are frank and often amusing tales of life on tour and in the studio. What comes through more than anything is the love of the great music the group are performing and recording, and the desire to make these new interpretations available.

The only slight pang is the lack of a full discography, which would have helped illustrate just how hard these musicians and their colleagues worked to bring us symphonic cycles by Mozart, Beethoven and – almost – Haydn. To get that idea, however, the ensemble’s Discogs page has the vast majority of their recordings listed.

Is it recommended?

Heartily. Refiner’s Fire does what the best books on music should do – and has you scuttling for the stereo to bring the music off the page. When you do, you will realise just what an important part the Academy of Ancient Music have played – and continue to play – in how we now hear the music of the past.

Listen and Buy

To stress the points above, here is a playlist of just some of the recordings mentioned in the book:

You can explore purchase options for Refiner’s Fire at the Academy of Ancient Music website

A footnote…

Finally, a disclaimer – as the author of this review I can confirm I am (unfortunately!) not related to Christopher Hogwood. It is a question I am often asked, being also from the East of England!

Published post no.2,117 – Thursday 14 March 2024

On Record – Whitelands: Night-bound Eyes Are Blind To The Day (Sonic Cathedral)

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by Ben Hogwood

What’s the story?

Whitelands are a breath of fresh air. With shoegaze an area of music populated mostly by white males, it is refreshing to report the ascendancy of a black quartet who have been supporting Slowdive on a recent UK tour.

Although they have been a going concern since 2018 this is the debut album for the current line-up, with singer and guitarist Etienne joined by Michael (guitar), Vanessa (bass) and Jagun (drums and backing vocals).

It was Slowdive themselves that inspired the band’s current musical direction, though their diverse backgrounds from rock, techno and R&B inform their music too.

What’s the music like?

As refreshing as the band themselves – and the cover art, too. The blast of sound that welcomes Setting Sun is like a jet of fresh water full in the voice, all the levels going to up red with an invigorating wall of guitar sound, one that is soon revealed to contain plenty of melodies.

The band’s diverse influences reveal themselves subtly as the album progresses. While ‘shoegaze’ is the main style – a wall of guitars and softly spoken vocals to complement – there is a funky undercarriage to the beat of The Prophet & I, which typifies the excellent drumming throughout, and the excellent Tell Me About, where Etienne is joined by the softly-sung Dottie for some gorgeous harmonizing.

Sometimes the guitars form the same effect of a wordless choir, on the evocative Setting Sun, other times there are subtly curved melodies, as on Cheer. The slow burning Born In Understanding is a stately mover. Overall though there is an impressive momentum coursing through the album, with one of the best examples being Chosen Light – a combination of guitar sounds you can dive in to, a propulsive rhythm and subtle, warm-hearted vocals.

Does it all work?

It does – and the more you listen the more the melodies stick.

Is it recommended?

Yes. This is a record to bathe in, a sonic spectacular that has at its core some heartfelt songs. More please!

For fans of… Cocteau Twins, The Cure, Slowdive

Listen and Buy

Published post no.2,116 – Wednesday 13 March 2024

A quick note: Unknown Prokofiev

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by Ben Hogwood

Yesterday lunchtime I listened on BBC Radio 3 to a very fine recital from London’s Wigmore Hall by pianist Elisabeth Brauss. It was a typically inventive hour including music by Beethoven, Albéniz and Prokofiev (above) that you can listen to by clicking on BBC Sounds

The Prokofiev chosen was an early work, a selection of eight pieces from the ten the composer published as Op.12 in 1913. It put me in mind of a huge amount of piano music by the composer that goes under the radar, left in the shadow of the nine piano sonatas and the famous transcriptions from ballets Romeo & Juliet and Cinderella.

Here, then, is a celebration of those pieces – performed by Frederic Chiu. They show the composer getting into his stride, with plenty of wit, but a soft centre too:

Inspired by this discovery, I have gone on to purchase some of the composer’s other collections of pieces, including the Music for Children. I will report back at a later date on those, I expect!

On Record – Alev & Jas : Bring Your Friends (Bring Your Friends)

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by Ben Hogwood

What’s the story?

One of the great things about music is its community spirit; the possibilities it offers for making art with friends. Such is the case with Alev Lenz and Jas Shaw, who have been friends for a decade or thereabouts, and have put that friendship on record with a quintet of songs.

Alev Lenz is a talented singer-songwriter whose credits include songs for the screen (Black Mirror and Dark) and also production work with Anoushka Shankar and Roomful of Teeth. Jas Shaw has a good deal of previous with the band Simian, who then morphed into Simian Mobile Disco. He may not have undertaken as much production work as his bandmate James Ford, but his work with Gold Panda as Selling yielded the fine album On Reflection.

This five-track mini-album is described as ‘dreamy lullabies that confirm the pair’s perfect match’, with Lenz saying the album ‘is about friends talking about the state of the world and their souls.’

What’s the music like?

This is light music – but not necessarily in a pop sense, more in its economical use of texture in music and the endearing vocal that floats up top.

The five tracks are very subtly dressed with starry textures, lighting A World Beyond with pinpricks of melody in response to Lenz’s dreamy vocal. Between Two Breaths is even more effective, the voice mulitracked in very close harmony, with comfortable dissonances that pan out beautifully against a spacious backdrop.

Overstrung but Underdamped is a beauty, a meditative track that becomes a calming mantra, Lenz’s voice used to its maximum effect by Shaw who allows only the minimum counterpoint.

Does it all work?

Yes – if only there was more of it! This is definitely a case of quality rather than quantity, with the five songs over in 25 minutes – but they do leave a very positive impression.

Is it recommended?

It is – a brief encounter this may be, but there is a special musical chemistry between these two friends.

For fans of… Beth Hirsch, Cocteau Twins,

Listen and Buy

Published post no.2,114 – Monday 11 March 2024