Graham Reid | | <1 min read
Gonium History
Recorded in November 2021, this eight-piece collection brings together key figures in improvised experimental sound: Phil Dadson (From Scratch, here on various percussion); electronic artist Rachel Shearer; percussion player Simon Allen and Hermione Johnson on prepared piano.
This is not as challenging and formidable as that might sound, certainly more accessible than much improvised free jazz which many find confrontational.
Rather these pieces create self-contained worlds which can be as ambient and atmospheric (Telescopium) as they are barely there (the water-drip atmosphere of Ciliophora) or emotionally intense (Microscopium, a slow day aboard the USCSS Nostromo, as is the eight minute-plus Serpens Caput).
Not for everyone of course, but certainly the open-minded will find much to engage with here as textures and otherworld sounds come together. Another entry in our Further Outwhere pages.
Amusingly perhaps, the four minute Cryptomonas is described in the publicity as the “single”.
Terrific though it is – twanging and eerie -- don't expect it to chart any time soon.
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You can hear and buy this album at bandcamp here
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