For Translucence

昨年、DRAG CITYからリリースされたアルバム『HAV』も素晴らしかったWHITNEY JOHNSONが、シカゴを拠点とするチェリスト / コンポーザー / サウンド・アーティストLIA KOHLとコラボレーション・アルバムをリリース。

ヴィオラとチェロによるインプロヴィゼーションから始まり、数年の時を経てシンセサイザー、フィールド・レコーディング、ラジオ、サイン・ウェーヴなどを取り入れたオーケストラルでクラシカルなエクスペリメンタル・ドローン作品となっています。

For Translucence is the first album-length collaboration between Whitney Johnson and Lia Kohl, two Chicago-based experimental musicians who play stringed instruments as well as electronics. For this record, the two artists created drones and improvised on top of them, titling the pieces after the fundamental frequencies in which they improvised. Johnson used sine waves and created binaural beats in addition to playing viola, while Kohl played cello and synthesizer, and also used sounds from a radio. The pieces slowly unfold, contrasting serene drones and gentle synth melodies with sporadic bursts of scraping strings and electronic interruptions, resulting in a sort of ambient chamber music sound clash. "65|66" starts out with helicopter-like whirring, and has plenty of abrasive string flashes, but otherwise its the albums calmest and most meditative piece. "48|50" displays a subtle sense of humor, as brief snatches of a broadcasted opera pop up at random intervals, and theres something absurd about the sudden juxtapositions of bombast and stillness. A series of sharp, percussive taps are similarly jarring, and bird calls float in the distance. "73|74" takes its time to build, but eventually showcases more interplay between the musicians string playing, as the bowed instruments seem to ripple off of each other. "54|56" has a noisier drone base than the other pieces, and after a period of bristling, scraping strings, theres a flurry of electronic beats which quickly melt away, and thick, bassy sound waves. For Translucence is a reflection that pays special attention to the surprise and spontaneity of everyday life. ~ Paul Simpson