Darren Harper and Ümlaut create one long dreamy track and eleven short fragmented listening experiences.
A sonic tapestry of evolving beauty and internal perceptions
The first track (two versions, full and excerpted), is from Darren Harper—”Generational Drift – A seasonal reflection in four movements” (22:06)—wanders through a tactile and circular movement of explorations and minimalistic patterns of generative structures, each arrangement allows itself to occupy its own space within the theme, and variations evolve with harmonious and unrestricted woven textures, subtly offering an openness and tranquility. “Generational Drift” is a long-form piece that is a sonic tapestry of evolving beauty and internal perceptions.
The sound is flowing and dreamy, fragments of sustained piano, synthetic winds, some rare interesting hissing sounds, this listener was just floating on a lazy moment with everything done, so there is nothing but time to dream some more. This could be the new summer. This could be a new summer night. As the track progresses, things are getting more dense, soaring sky reflections and tinkering bits of other instruments that follow one after the other, leading nowhere complicated. Something new comes and goes, the notes are repeating slow patterns, up in the sky things call with long notes. The fragments of sustained piano have almost kept constant while so many other things have emerged and faded. Now the notes are holding, sustained into a wall of ambient sound, is this a bigger change? The fragments of sustained piano return. The things in the sky are fewer, less continuous. This is blissful relaxing empty minded dreaming stuff. Release the butterflies! Now watch them drift slowly away. Towards the end things get dense and if you were sleeping now you are not. The ending has a surprise.
There is an excerpted version that covers pretty much the same territory in less than two minutes. I did not catch the four movements in distinct segments, they are not clearly defined, but that is not a problem. Overall this is a perfect expression of the ideas that flow when there is time.
Darren Harper is an American experimental/ambient sound artist residing high within the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. Drawing from both electronic and acoustic sources, his compositional output is based entirely on experimentation and improvisation, with a strong emphasis on minimalism, and often reflects a desire for a greater understanding of nature and self, and the relationship therein. Darren has released solo and collaborative works on several international labels, including Dewtone, Rusted Tone Recordings, Rottenman Editions, Shimmering Moods, Dronarivm, Flaming Pines, Analogpath, Rural Colours, Soft Recordings, Disq AN, Audio Gourmet, and Twice Removed, as well as several compilations, netlabel and self-released projects. In addition to his ambient works, Darren is also a guitarist in the improvisational psychedelic rock band, Root Atlas.
Eleven two minute fractured short-formed pieces ::
The next part, which is the second half of the split album, is titled Ümlaut, and consists of eleven two minute fractured short-formed pieces of audio activity collected around themes suggested by the track title, each track is designed to flow steadily, without any major bumps or shocks, while adjoining each other with a disjointed tension, sometimes off-kilter but always focused with a thought-provoking structure. Ümlaut navigates his way through contrasting and conflicting elements and carries the listener through a maze of articulations and random jazz-infused electronic segments, choosing to avoid traditional form and creating something uniquely dynamic and engaging, all wrapped-up inside a sonic cosmos. But what does that sound like?
The first track is “alidade” (2:00) which blends fragments of a beat like a heartbeat with noodling orchestra and some darkness the piano has moments; “ellipsoid” (2:00) begins with testing the keyboard something passes by and makes a melody with a tempo soon lost mystery follows with distractions; “monoscopic” (2:00) features ringing suspense and nervous rattling motion in the distance and playful moments; “bathymetry” (2:00) goes deep I hear a tap on metal reverberations and distant odd creatures calling sparse and dark something friendly comes closer; “subsidence” (2:00) thrives with a violin string done with electronics sparse keys odd random textures until the violin revisits then it gets shorter with things changing quickly; “clinometric” (2:00) brings suspense from the start but things change and there is a wandering feeling some tapping comes and goes new textures pass by change is constant; “choropleth” (2:00) goes up and low, in and out, now a beat, nothing lasts, now a musical cave, now a dropped object, the textures have clusters then change comes again; “stereoscopic” (2:00) reveals little things on the floor in the dark some ringing and flittering sounds musical sometimes or sustained momentarily at other times something might have landed something else is still flying; “trilateration” (2:00) has what sounds to me like vocal fragments and wandering keyboard moments odd clicking or rolling sandbox triggers; “cadastral” (2:00) has fragments of buzzing with decorative keyboard chording these fragments are bigger than the previous ones a cowbell at the end; “planimetric” (2:00) resumes some looping swirling growing disappearing changing clashing blending then it just stops. I think this is interesting without being soporific or annoying.
Ümlaut is Jeff Düngfelder, a U.S. experimental composer/sound artist now based in the northern Connecticut countryside. The thematic concepts distinguishing his work are absence and silence; the ineffable exchange between viewer and image; random moments of stillness within a landscape in flux. Using a minimalistic, electro-acoustic approach, his elusive patchwork of field recordings and electronics merge the world of shadows and colors. His memory recordings expose the complex relationship between music and silence. In addition to his solo recordings as Ümlaut, Jeff Düngfelder mixes his own electronica with downtempo and jazz elements as a member of Intelligent Life, the trio that equally features Mike Brown on contrabass, and Joshua Trinidad on trumpet.
You put these two artists together and you get one long dreamy track and eleven short fragmented listening experiences.
Darren Harper & Ümlaut’s Generational Drift / The Celestial Sphere is issued by Handstitched* on dual-format, limited edition tape and mini double CD featuring individually hand-bound and hand-cut collage CD wallets made from vintage materials and papers, a special print edition of five x ten designs for the [tape] O-cards to house the c45 cassettes. Each CD copy is hand-numbered and packed inside glassine bags, tape copies are packed inside a clear eco bag.
Generational Drift / The Celestial Sphere is available on Handstitched*. [Bandcamp]
