While the music is supposed to be ambient, it is also very rich in tone and, consequently, sonically very much present in one’s space.
An immersive listening experience
Not so long ago, I reviewed a new release by Brock van Wey, also known as bvdub, mentioning that I had only heard very few of his releases. So, it’s a surprise that a new release on the Russian label is already readily available through a Dutch distributor (Fonodroom.) The previous release had four pieces; this new release has only one track, but one that lasts 79 minutes. That is not to say this is one long, and the same piece, and at the same time—there are recurring elements used here that return pretty often. As with many of his works, reverb plays a significant role, if not an all-important one. Bvdub uses reverb to create massive atmospheric textures, and on the input side, there are a lot of textured synthesizer sounds, also known as pads. The third element is percussion—whatever loosely organized it is this time. Unlike his earliest work, in which bvdub used a lot of a 4/4 rhythm time signatures, now it’s a rattle of sounds that pop up and disappear again. A fourth element, also used sparsely, is the voice. Thanks to the use of reverb on all musical elements in this piece, words are rendered beyond meaning (or meaning I could comprehend).
While the music is supposed to be ambient, it is also very rich in tone and, consequently, sonically very much present in one’s space. Combined with the length and sometimes the duration of a section, the music becomes too much, especially if one is playing this consciously, thinking about the music. Maybe I should don my reviewer’s cap, sit back and let it pass as in an immersive listening experience, perhaps as intended by the musician. Maybe, then, something to wait on for a few days and, following the yearly round of Christmas, have this splash around on Christmas day and do nothing; sit back, close your eyes and dream away. There is not much new under the sun, but, as always, very well executed!
Review by: Frans de Waard / Vital Weekly #1417. Reprinted with permission.
Deep blue hues through hills,
Blurred is life or death to us,
We see ourselves now.
For we are nothing,
Nothing in everything,
Dreaming in deep blue.
I looked for you once,
Now I know you never tried,
I know you’re not there.
Only hills remain,
Standing without sound or love,
Knowing all my pain.
Someday you will know,
Your own world in your dreams,
Hills of your design.
I can hear you there,
But I will never see you,
This is only me.
These hills brought me here,
Their blue brought me peace and end,
I am only them.
Asleep In Ultramarine is available on Dronarivm. [Bandcamp]
