Depending on your predisposition, Arche (For Gongs) may serve either as a tranquility base conducive to self-obliterating meditation or a riveting sound experience that brings the mind into sharp focus.
Arche (For Gongs) is a deliciously deceptive dronescape, the first in a series planned by Chris Gowers (previously reviewed as Karina ESP), whose Lowered persona was created to explore the properties of acoustic drone music. In fact, a brief, exquisite coda introduces singing bowls, an apparent sneak preview of the next installment.
The waxing and waning tones of the lowering tam-tam (a traditional Chinese gong of bronze or brass), edited so the sounding strike is not heard, flare like quasars, in slo-mo pulses. In the background, hypersensitive recording equipment picks up the wind dancing through the leaves of the trees outside, though the constant susurration might just as well be sheets of rainfall or a cicada summer. While unadulterated by digital or any other kind of treatment, Gowers´ strand of ebbing tones tricks the ear into hearing an electroacoustic suite in which no two drones are alike.
Depending on your predisposition, Arche (For Gongs) may serve either as a tranquility base conducive to self-obliterating meditation or a riveting sound experience that brings the mind into sharp focus.
Arche (For Gongs) is available on Trome and on Lowered’s Bandcamp.
