I’m not really sure who purchases compilation albums these days. The abundance of free streaming possibilities offered by Spotify, Bandcamp, Soundcloud among others means that anyone with a mind to can easily create their very own mixtapes.
Nevertheless, thematically linked tracks still offer a useful means of discovering new artists. This is especially valuable for niche experimental artists whose target audience lies outside the mainstream.
This eight track collection is part of a composers’ series which seeks to explore and connect some of the most interesting contemporary instrumental artists from around the globe. It was curated by composer and producer Marc Hollander who founded the Brussels-based Crammed Discs label in 1980.
The selected artists address the loose concept of ”wordless fiction” which I assume, means that their narratives are intended to derive from atmospheric ambience alone. This would certainly explain the absence of vocals and the fact that all contributors can broadly be grouped under the catch-all label of ‘sound artists’ or ‘sound sculptors’.
The album opens with Waterways, featuring the bubbling synths of Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith and introduces a running theme of how the natural world can best be represented when human intervention is kept to a minimum.
A psychogeographical sense of place appears to be a possible inspiration for Museum Critic by Christina Vantzou since it evokes the atmosphere and soundscapes of public spaces. This interpretation is supported by the fact that the Greek- American composer released an album in 2020 with John Also Bennett (JAB) under the title ‘Landscape Architecture’.
Of course, applying narrow meanings to instrumental pieces is a highly subjective and, ultimately, pointless endeavour. L.A. harpist Mary Lattimore led me to imagine that Blue might have been inspired by the serenity of oceans but, despite its title, Inne Eysermans’ two and half minute drone piece Bird does nothing suggest flight or freedom.
The significance of the field recordings of birdsong and distant thunder in Félicia Atkinson’s The Su, Perhaps Three Of Them is anybody’s guess. Still, the inclusion of this fine French musician is a logical choice as she has stated that her ideas come as much from novelists (including 80s sci-fi), poets and filmmakers rather than musicians. In other words, the creation of musical fictions is very much her modus operandi.
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Whatever holistic stamp one might care to impose on this record, there is no doubt that the global sweep of the contributors is impressive. Stubbleman’s Ne Pas Se Pencher Au Dehors (Do Not lean Out) pairs Belgian ambient composer Pascal Gabriel with Norwegian trumpet player Nils Petter Molvær.
Summamone (The Free Flyers) is a three-way collaboration which came together during an extended stay in the Mexican jungle. The artists in question are Mexican singer Camille Mandoki, Chilean/German composer DJ Matias Aguayo and Berlin-based Colombian musician Lucrecia Dalt.
A.D. Sur La Carte reunites Belgian ” analog synth poet” Benjamin Lew and Steven Brown, the co-frontman of San Franscisco’s Tuxedomoon.
One of the stated objectives of this compilation is to pull together links and connections between artists from diverse backgrounds and varied locations. It can be viewed as a success insofar as the tunes sound like they belong together and it works as an effective forty two minute organic mix tape.
Although there are no obvious stand out tracks, Lew and Brown’s closing contribution strikes me as being the most exotic and spontaneous piece, perhaps in part because it was recorded live in Brussels.
Textures are all when it comes to sound artistry and the eight original compositions on this album effectively convey the warmth and harmony we all strive for in our natural surroundings.
Crammed Disc’s website
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