Henry Kuntz | Whirling Sun Visions!

Subtitled “Multi-Track Works-In-Process Miniatures”, this is a collection of pieces for overlaid saxophones, vocals and exotic percussives, although the latter are not present in all the tracks. Kuntz appears very interested in the generation of ritualistic moods through the concurrence of different pulses, the presence of the Javanese gamelan adding evident metallic/melodic tints in episodes like the opening “Celestial Forest”. But if we pretend to be transported in a parallel dimension, this recipe leads to the magnification of an innocent-sounding density, a child playing with a series of reed instruments in a room full of clocks. The segments where only amassed saxes are featured are more comparable to the gathering of seagulls fighting for food on a beach, kind of a semi-chaotic superimposition of pattern-within-pattern designs which translates into a peculiar type of entrancement, a bunch of Poppy Nogoods who have had a few too many. Massimo Ricci, Touching Extremes Continue reading

Henry Kuntz | BOLIVIA 1986 | Native Ritual Music from Italaque: Panpipes, Flutes, Drums

All of this music was recorded outdoors on basic equipment in “real life” circumstances, under conditions far from optimal for recording. Yet the ambience, excitement, and electricity of the music shine through in ways that fully reflect its cultural authenticity. It is to provide a small cultural looking glass into a world or worlds barely known to most of us that these recordings are presented. I hope they will encourage you to want to know more, to open your world up more to the many fascinating and diverse worlds around us. — Henry Kuntz Continue reading

Henry Kuntz | Sacred Gamelan Sekati of Yogyakarta | Java 1997

This music was recorded in open-air pavilions on basic equipment under conditions far from optimal for recording. Yet the ambience, excitement, and electricity of the music shine through in ways that fully reflect its cultural authenticity. Earth Series is releasing this material because of its uniqueness and general unavailability on the commercial market. — Henry Kuntz Continue reading

Illàchime Quartet | I’m Normal, My Heart Still Works | fratto 9

Illàchime Quartet is an instrumental ensemble based in Naples (Italy) that joins electronics and acoustic instruments. It gathers sounds and noises from the surroundings as well as scattered fragments of acoustic memories, which form the texture for the interventions of the musicians along rough and terse lines, often improvised. Final target: to intrigue and to seduce the audience by means of an unconventional, highly kinematic sonic experience. This new album contains six tracks and a ghost track. Continue reading

I/O | Polytone | fratto 9

The band has played with different artist like Liars, Ovo, Anatrofobia, Damo Suzuki, Giuseppe Ielasi, Rosolina Mar and many others. I/O defined itself as “Minimalistic Rhythmic Improvisation” and “Poytone” is characterized by a focus on the rhythmic aspects of the songs (referring in particular to the idea of “pulse” meant in the minimalistic way), which are built and de-constructed in the 8 tracks of the cd. Continue reading