Various Artists: Live In Melbourne (12k CD)
This release from Taylor Deupree's esteemed minimal 12k imprint, limited to a scant 500 copies, finds the sounds within growing more organic. Deupree shares the billing here with two other artists, Solo Andata and Seaworthy. I haven't heard much of their respective repertoires, so this is largely a first impression of their music for me.
Compared to the often sterile sounds that characterized the earlier part of 12k's label history, this album feels, well, live. Live in a human sense, in some instances incorporating actual acoustic instruments rather than strictly the electronic manipulations, rhythms and gestures usually flaunted by the label. To that end, Solo Andata's opening segment is perhaps the most obvious of the three, incorporating a series of piano chords alongside what sounds like water percussion and bit-crushed, meandering melodies. Because of the pronounced piano presence, this starts to feel somewhat jazz-spirited, more improvised. It evolves further in its final stretch, becoming probably the most jazz-oriented work I've heard from 12k. Seaworthy contributes the center track of the three. The Australian three-piece's 19-minute journey here is based largely around guitar tones and melodies. It has a lazy patience about it that is calming but not uninteresting, with its beginning and ending segments primarily consisting of somewhat noodly guitar playing. The best part is its prolonged center where everything grows more elastic, prolonged and abstract, turning into a series of vibrating overtones and drones. Label boss Deupree turns in the final portion of the release, an extended ambient piece that feels closer to his work with Kenneth Kirschner than any of his more rhythmic, glitchy releases on his own or with Frank Bretschneider. This thirteen-minute meditation consists largely of a series of mid-range drones, irregular, textural glitches.
The album is pleasant, even in its most abstract moments, and is far from the icy veneer that defined the label's early days. It's worth a gander for anyone looking for some less predictable electro-acoustic crossover ambience.
mp3: Untitled (by Seaworthy)
more information: 12k Records | Taylor Deupree on Myspace | Seaworthy on Myspace | Solo Andata Official Site | Solo Andata on Myspace
buy it: Bent Crayon | Boomkat | Forced Exposure | Amazon