20130315

Blechmann/Knapp - VIII review

via vitalweekly:
TIM BLECHMANN & MANUEL KNAPP - VIII (CDR by Nada)
A work of laptops and electronics that started in the world of improvised music, more or less that is. Tim Blechmann studied informatics and is 'predominately' an improviser with laptop and a composer of computer music, while Knapp studied painting in Vienna and computer music and electronic music at the University of the same city. I assume this forty minute piece is the result of playing together and taping that, rather then the product of endless shaping and editing of recordings. A very linear work here with atmospheric drone at the core and slow building of the final composition. Buzzing static, humming, but with some interesting variety of sounds here. What I like about this is the fact that is doesn't stay in the perfectly nice drone scapes world, but rather adds a whole bunch of nasty sounds and makes it almost aggressively loud. It's like they found a bunch of recordings made inside airplanes and added those the music. When it gets loud, say around the twelve minute mark it stays loud almost until the very end, but it end is again delicate. It's the louder mechanical machine humm that made this for me into a very nice work. It borders to the edges of noise music but has so much more to offer. (FdW)