Jun 21, 2020

Sundaze 2025

Hello, we have the longest day of the year today, the ancients tended to celebrate it, Glastonbury would have celebrated it, but then covid came along and totally ruined the party al that is left is a small ceremony at Stonehenge. Far away in the dark heart of the US Trump does have a party and he invited all his followers to join him, obviously this attracts lots of media interested to see who these worshipers are , turns out they are regular uninformed folk ready to believe anything their vain tv star says, yes as such rather dangerous where it not that Trump is a coward (as all bully's are) and easily spooked, alas people do stupid things when panicking thus this president can cause lots of damage as this rally today proves he desperately needed a bath in the adulation his followers give him, despite the fact thousands will be infected with covid is irrelevant, the man is a minor demon supported by another female demon pretending to be a priest, Paula White that's doublespeak for Jezebel Black and she is currently the power behind the throne crazy as bat shit and thus dangerous...there will be lot's of chaos in the coming months but i think a civil war will be avoided..


As for today to make the transition from Alio Die easier i start with a co-production he did with today's artist Robert Rich a man that appeared here earlier (7 years ago) but there is plenty left to ponder on. In the years that followed our man  developed a complex range of sounds founded upon the seamless integration of electronic, electric, and acoustic instrumentation, and the exploration of complex tunings. He's made dozens of albums these past 30 years even if this is my 3rd posting on him there's plenty left to come back to him in the future but for now ..... N'Joy

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A California native, Rich began experimenting with electronics in the late '70s before attending Stanford University, where he completed a degree in psychology. While at Stanford, Rich's involvement in the university's prestigious Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics expanded his interest in electronic composition, as well as bringing him in contact with a wide range of nontraditional, non-Western musical ideas. In 1987, he released an album titled Numena. This was the beginning of a new sound for Rich. It was his first album to explore complex rhythmic patterns, a wider range of acoustic instrumentation, and just intonation. It was also his first album to be released on CD originally. Rich's performance of several all-night "sleep concerts" during this period also helped solidify an aesthetic focus on psychoacoustics, perceptible in early recordings such as Geometry and Trances/Drones.

Rich's more mature works such as Rainforest and Propagation have sought to combine that interest with more recognizable electro-acoustical elements (Rich plays a wide range of instruments, from synths and effects racks to hand drums and flute), but the influence of digital sound manipulation has also moved increasingly to the fore. Inspired by the more textural works of artists like SPK and Throbbing Gristle, Rich's interest in the edgier side of electronic composition has also earned him a reputation among fans of gothic, industrial, and dark ambient, made most obvious by his collaboration in 1995 with Brian Williams of Lustmord. .

In 1992, he formed a new group called Amoeba. The group has released three albums featuring ex-Urdu members Rick Davies and Andrew McGowan at different times. In 2001, he released an album titled Somnium, a 7-hour album divided into three tracks on one DVD video. This album was a recreation of the sleep concert environment he created during the 1980s at Stanford. Although not officially recognized, many people believe it to be the longest artist album of all time.

In 2004, he released an album of piano solos titled Open Window. This album documents his improvised piano style that has been part of his live concerts for decades. It was recorded on a 1925 vintage A.B. Chase baby grand piano. On March 11, 2005, Robert suffered a hand injury. He was cleaning a glass jug and accidentally slipped and fell on top of it. During the recovery process, he continued to record new material and tour. He also constructed end-blown flutes from PVC pipe that are more easily played with limited right-hand dexterity.

During his 2006 tour, Rich performed in front of a film created by visual artist Daniel Colvin as a backdrop. After the tour he created a score for the film, which was released on CD and DVD in 2007 under the title Atlas Dei. In 2007 he also released the album Illumination, a companion soundtrack of a multimedia installation by Michael Somoroff, and a collaboration album with touch guitarist Markus Reuter.

One of Rich's other interests is food. He maintains a Web site of recipes and other food related topics called Flavor Notes. He also has a long list of recipes for wild mushrooms.

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Fissures brings together two influential innovators of dark ambient-leaning electro-acoustic composition. Specifically, the album combines Rich's knack for integrating a range of acoustic instruments (dulcimer, PVC flutes, steel guitar) into alien, otherworldly atmospheres with Alio Die's talent for depths-plumbing, remarkably spatial arrangements which are as uncannily musical as they are subtle and mesmerizing. While the album echoes moments of both artists' previous work (Rich's collaboration with Brian Williams, Stalker, as well as Alio Die's 1995 Amplexus release, Suspended Feathers), Fissures manages a singular, wholly organic fusion of the two.

Clearly, in this collaboration, Rich and Musso create a compelling piece of ambient/tribal EM that dares the listener to let go... Step off the canyon's edge into... Well, into wherever it takes you! Quoting Rich, "A 'fissure,' in the shamanic sense is the point where you dive between worlds. The connection for me in this metaphor is that the journey is undertaken for healing purposes. Stefano and I took a similar journey in our collaboration, and what we brought back is surprisingly gentle, although not without its shadows." A twilight experience, perhaps? A choice dream in the impending sunrise..



Robert Rich | Alio Die ‎– Fissures ( flac 283mb)

01 Turning To Stone 5:27
02 A Canopy Of Shivers 5:51
03 Sirena 9:10
04 Mycelia 8:13
05 The Divine Radiance Of Invertebrates 8:37
06 The Road To Wirikuta 18:49
07 Tree Of The Wind 5:40

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During the period 1979-1984, Robert Rich was busy with psychology studies, Sleep Concerts and developing his musical style via a series of different experiments, ranging from solo work to performances that buried the audience in layers of sound from all directions. The music on Trances/Drones is drawn from that period, including all of the Trances and Drones material, plus the title track from Sunyata, Rich's first release, and the previously unreleased "Resonance." The music here is wonderfully relaxing (more so with the Trances material than with Drones) and perpetually fascinating. There's a lot more going on in most of the material here than would be expected at first blush -- layer after layer of swirling textures and tones -- and you'll find that interrupting one of these pieces is generally a shock: Rich has a talent for finding the internal rhythms of the body, which means you should allow the music to let you go gently (which, in the end, it does).



Robert Rich - Trances Drones 1 ( flac 343mb)

Trances
01 Cave Paintings 23:54
02 Hayagriva 25:13
03 Sunyata (Emptiness) 22:50

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Robert Rich - Trances Drones 2 ( flac 261mb)

Drones
01 Seascape 29:59
02 Wheel of Earth 27:58
03 Resonance 12:17

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Numen: a spiritual force or influence often identified with a natural object, phenomenon, or place

A warm, artful, meditative fusion of acoustical elements, environmental recordings, and analog electronics. The album's 25-minute opener, "The Other Side of Twilight," is an epic suite of sweeping textures and shifting melodies among Rich's most excursional. Originally released in 1987, this 1993 reissue was remixed/remastered  by Rich himself.



 Robert Rich - Numena ( flac 261mb)

01 The Other Side of Twilight 25:04
02 Moss Dance 5:40
03 Numen 11:51
04 The Walled Garden 10:31

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Below zero is an album which consists of six selections that were previously issued on various compilation albums with the exception of track 2. Below zero is a departure from Robert's more recent projects. Below zero explores the dark and mysterious side of Robert's music it is easier (and more fun) to get lost in the music. One of Rich's better releases, the dark atmospheres are full of organic textures and experimental timbres. Deep listening is more of an event than just an experience. These are true ambient soundscapes that are intelligently and thoughtfully put together, not simply allowed to drone on until the full 74 minutes of the album elapse. This is highly recommended. These pieces are dark, somewhat uncomfortable, with an oppressive air about them. They are easy to get lost in. This sounds great being blasted from my car stereo. It is also lulling enough to put me into a deep sleep. Interesting to listen to actively. If you are getting into Rich, make this one of your first stops.



Robert Rich - Below Zero ( flac 318mb)

1 Star Maker 21:24
i. Interstellar Travel
ii. Worlds Innumerable
iii. The Beginning and the End
iv. The Myth of Creation
02 Dissolving the Seeds of a Moment 10:42
03 A Flock of Metal Creatures Fleeing the Onslaught of Rust 7:02
04 Termite Epiphany 8:16
05 Liquid Air 9:00
06 Requiem 7:35

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1 comment:

T. S. said...

Dear Rho:

Thank you very much for the weeks spent covering Alio Die. I didn't know of his existence and you have opened a gate to great music. If you have any more albums from him, hopefully you will continue sharing them at some point in the future, the same wau you have already done with Robert Rich, which by the way, I am excited to know more of.

I am listening to Alio Dies' Deconsecrated and Pure online and I just love it. Amazing album, Rho. It is full of positivity, emotions and sensibility.

Thank you for sharing your album reviews. I enjoy reading them.

Best wishes from
T.S.