Xabier Iriondo, taisho koto, mahai metak, lo-fi devices | Gianni Mimmo, soprano sax ,recording
Edition number ten by Amirani Records is Your Very Eyes.
Performance recorded early on a sunny dawn, June the 24th, 2007, in an ancient 10th century cave-church in a magic stone town named Matera, South of Italy. The church is named Santa Lucia alle Malve. Summer solstice is a holy moment in so many and various traditions. We chose there because of the sound of these alveolar stones. Not only we had beautiful reverbes and resonant echoes but the sound seemed to go into the stones themselves.
It’s naked music, as we had to solve our golems there. We like to think about it as a laical psalmody. Our equipment was light: a soprano saxophone, a couple of table strings (taisho koto and mahai metak) and a very discreet low-fi device to get some frequencies. The output has been a great sharing and a pure communication. Holy, sometimes.
Your Very Eyes is proudly co-produced by A m i r a n i r e c o r d s, L o n g S o n g r e c o r d s, P h o n o m e t a k l a b and W a l l a c e r e c o r d s.
Tracklist:
- Psalm of days
- Side Voice
- Your Very Eyes
- Several Calls And A Perfect Pair Of Opinione
- Nostos Algos
- Sub-Sequence
- Barn Swallow
- Cirmustance And Sacrifice / Eye Tray
- Completion
c r e d i t s: recorded – June the 24th, 2007, cave church, Santa Lucia alle Malve, Matera, Italy | sound engineer and mixing – Xabier Iriondo | mastering – Maurizio Giannotti, Bips studio, Milano, Italy | cover image – “Santa Lucia” (part.) by Francesco del Cossa (1435-1477) | inside photos – Shanu Vallaro, Silvia Eugerio | graphics – Mirko Spino
CD version (incl. shipment cost world-wide)
MP3 version (61.21MB zip download)
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ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC!
THANKS FOR THE EAR-OPENING CD RELEASE!
Laurence Donohue-Greene
Managing Editor
AllAboutJazz-New York
Recorded in the resonant space of Santa Lucia alle Malve, this is a wide open and sat times cavernous sounding duo encounter featuring the Trevor watts-inclined soprano of Mimmo exchanging ideas with multi-instrumentalist Iriondo.
The latter gets some paino and electric guitar effects going from his koto, occasionally adding some electronic grit to the mix as well (though it’s a bit perfunctory and unispiring on “Nostos Algos”), as Mimmo patiently extrapolates ideas and hews together lines or long tones.
The contrast between studied relative cool from the saxophonist and rambunctous noise –making( string scrapings, preparations, or even some unsetting heavy breathing on the title track) from Iriondo is a enjoyable one.
Sometimes you can hear stomps and thuds around the church interio, which makes for a nice effect, as does the bird-calls from both players on “Barn Swallows”.
Somehow, though, the quality that came through most clearly (on “Several Calls” in particular) was of an almost aquatic effect that recalls the Tony Oxley- Alan Davie partnership.
An interesting and idiosyncratic record.
— Jason Bivins, Cadence, oct. ‘08