This new version of niemandsland has ten titles, with alternate versions for a total of seventeen tracks. This is a twenty year old ambient recording revisited using modern tools, the original version was self-released in 2006.
Layered textures that are sustained and extended
This new version of niemandsland has ten titles, with alternate versions for a total of seventeen tracks. This is a twenty year old ambient recording revisited using modern tools, the original version was self-released in 2006 (see our review here). These are all odd sound compositions that combine field recordings with electronics and complex layered textures that are sustained and extended. The field recordings include birds as well as the sound of walking, waves crashing onto the shore, cars speeding along a dark and lonely highway, and more that I wont try to guess for you.
For the remaster, the original release was broken up into “scenes” every time the sound moves to a new place or presents a significant tonal shift. The new scene then requires a different approach for re-mastering. In the 60 minute runtime, on average, each section is about 30 to 90 seconds long.
“In the embedded video I show the mastering tools used for one such “scene,” says Matthew Florianz a.k.a. Liquid Morphine. “I am especially pleased with DSEQ3 for transparently managing harshness and resonant drones. Ozone’s tools also worked wonders in dynamically bringing out the detail and clarity.“
So let’s get started. “Stilte (Silence)” (0:30), is the first track and is silent for thirty seconds.
In the second track, “Snoei (Harvest)” (0:50), the monsters are loose, you can feel the power, then the feeling is getting more complicated, “Herfst (Autumn)” (7:29) brings things that are getting bigger and stronger, it gets scary and then calms down with some warm drones.
Like fog horns way out there calling into the darkness ::
“Spiegel (Mirror)” (7:19) suggests a slow distant fog of mingled sounds approaches, then takes over and all is a very dark din. This is my favorite. Now comes “Storm (Storm)” (6:29) and just below the surface the rage is flaring the beat is like a furious train at first reverberating metal playing the reverberations take over. All is elemental and seeks the calm which always comes. Taking a new trail, “Verdwaald (Strayed)” (7:37) causes me to stop and listen because things are strange and chaotic, sometimes echoing in the lingering atmosphere, in places the tension gets loud and then the whole thing increases with more pressure on and on until a change comes and there is a relaxing choral ending. I might have a new favorite, “Niemandsland (No Man’s Land)” (18:43). The title track gets going with a kind of a buzzing echo that changes and gets heavy and deep expanding into extended exploration. This might be the end, “Thuis (Home)” (13:16) opens with a slow expanse into which some kind of birds in the distance can be found. I hear lots of birds, then we visit them one by one, then someone is walking now a car has started and left, now the sound is just the birds again. I hear waves crashing on the beach, just for a moment or so a car speeds by, therefore we are near a road, with some strings or drones that barely start to fade in. They linger like fog horns way out there calling into the darkness.
There is another mix of the mirror song, “Spiegel (2006)” (7:19) with a slow fade into formless rumblings that strengthen into sustained humming reverberations.
Finally, “Thuis (pre release version)” (18:13) this version is extended by five minutes, and contains pretty much the same mix of field sounds including birds, the sound of someone walking, a car starting and driving away, the busy highway, lots of wind, various airplanes, then the electronics get dense, birds and monstrous machines walking to the car. It seems that the birds have the last word but there is an abrupt explosion which turns out to be thunder and lots of heavy rain cars on the highway zooming along.
(Florianz) “Niemandsland was a challenging album to remaster. It’s partially the reason why it took so long to appear on Bandcamp. I am no longer in possession of a master version as a hard drive crash removed most of the building blocks required for a rebuild. Moreover, it was produced on headphones, which coloured the process and the album really sounds best on those specific headphones.
“All synth recordings were made using a Korg X5D, which is by all means a simple synthesizer. The way I create my music is to record from sources (a synth, nature etc.) and then manipulate the result in a DAW until it’s hard to hear where music stops and sound design begins. On this album the line between field recording and synthesizer is blurred and so is the recording itself! Turns out that mixing on headphones is not a great idea, who knew?!”
niemandsland (Remastered) is available on Bandcamp.
