Just in time to close 2017 with a microtonal bang!, composer Taylor Brook released Virtutes occultae: an exploratory double album for piano. Somewhere between procedural, improvised, and strictly composed, the eighteen parts of this magnum opus take you into the world of overtonality. In a nutshell, this album is played by six virtual pianos, each tuned to a different 11-limit just intonation tuning. The details on how Brook’s approach extends Partch’s are scarce and blurry, but, in any case, the result is utterly mesmerizing. The fact that the music is played only by pianos, virtual ones at that, … Read more
Tag Archives: piano
Nhor – Wildflowers: Spring & Summer
Spring and Summer are the two first releases of the Wildflowers tetralogy, but, as I’ve just come across this project, I’ll write about both EPs at once. Nhor was a British atmospheric black metal band who released a transcendental album in 2013, Within the Darkness between the Starlight. Since then, however, the project seems to have remained focused on the softer side of things, with 2015’s Momenta quintae essentiae and following shorter releases. All of their catalogue displays the same high standards of quality despite the genre change. The newest comers are the first two parts of Wildflowers, … Read more
Blumen – Mångata
‘Mångata’ is one of those words that can’t be directly translated. Although one could argue that no word can be translated exactly, because the two words will carry different insinuations and complex networks with a plethora of emotions, meanings, and other words. However, Wiktionary describes this swedicism as ‘the roadlike reflection of moonlight on water’, which is better conveyed by the EP’s artwork than any description. From foreign languages to the musical one, the issue remains. It’s incredibly difficult to put music into words because each chord, each progression, each rhythm, timbre, pitch, length has an unfathomable amount of cultural … Read more
Wovette – Steeple
Wovette is the pseudonym of Californian musician Brady Miller, who has made a name for himself in many bands, including the infamous Upsilon Acrux on guitars. Steeple is the latest effort from this solo project, and it’s comprised of eighteen short compositions for acoustic piano. Made to be played by whom I do not know, but the superhuman that succeeds will probably have turned its tendons to goo in the process. So much so that I think they could only be played by a pianola (a self-playing piano often seen in the context of American Far West saloons) or, effortlessly, … Read more
Review: Blumen – Press 1 For Music
The first thing I did was to press 1, and I was utterly disappointed that the very title of this album is a big ugly lie. However, I didn’t press the keypad 1 so I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt. This one-man project originates from Athens (no, not Greece’s Athens), in Georgia (no, not the country), USA, and plays us some really cool progressive rock music, with an emphasis on pianos and keyboards, which is a rarity these days.The project is really reminiscent of David Maxim Micic’s material, it’s melodic, progressive, and heavy with arrangements of all … Read more