Edouard Cheritel’s piano loops, electronic sequencing and orchestral ambience is beautifully immersive. Suite No1 is a rich debut, touched with both light and dark to kick off Denovali’s winter. A wonderful evocation of nebulous melancholy and experimental electronica.
Edouard Cheritel debuts on Denovali with a combination of classical styles and electronica. Cheritel is a French composer working in the field for almost 25 years. He studied classical composition for 15 years and experimented in different fields of modern composition for a further 6 years. Cheritel found commercial success with projects in France and he’s remixed tracks for UK singer SOHN and USA band Wildbelle. Currently his debut EP Suite No1 has been making waves, with Mixmag plugging his work just a matter of days ago, labeling a track as a “sublime, classically informed composition.”
Suite No1 is made up of four tracks with the piano being the instrument of focus. Often the tracks build up around the piano with percussion, orchestral strings and electronics in the background. “Movement 1” is led by the piano striking a rhythmical note with reversed piano loops heard underneath. Things evocatively escalate in “Movement 1,” with percussive loops and vocal samples emerging in different rhythms toward the final third of the track. “Movement 2” is the most melancholic track of the EP. It begins with an urgent piano melody and progresses with the pulse of a drum moving things along. In contrast, “Movement 3” is bright in its sound, looping all the way through with high pitched piano keys and a soft undercurrent of strings. Final track, “Movement 4” is the definite highlight of the EP, beginning with an urgent piano melody and percussive electronic synth pads to get things going. As the track progresses, synths layer on top of the piano melody played at the beginning and the track takes a new form. The final third of the track concludes with the beginning motif added with vocal sampling heard previously in the EP. “Movement 4” completely lets loose with its sonic exploration. It’s a wonderful evocation of nebulous melancholy and experimental electronica.
Similar to Cheritel are artists on the Denovali roster, Asfast and Ricardo Donoso and also from the Mercury KX label, Lambert. An important question to ask here: does Suite No1 work? And that’s most definitely yes. Edouard Cheritel’s piano loops, electronic sequencing and orchestral ambience is beautifully immersive. Suite No1 is a rich debut, touched with both light and dark to kick off Denovali’s winter.
Suite No1 is available on Denovali. [Bandcamp]
