(03.21.09) During the first few listens, Persona by Mokira (Andreas Tilliander)
did not grab my attention. Excited to hear the release based on my
enjoyment of 2004’s glitch, ambient, shoegaze friendly FFT Pop, I
rushed to put the CD into the player. While the first moments washed
over me, exceeding my expectations, I was unable to sustain the listen
without easily becoming distracted and, to be blunt, losing interest.
Half a dozen listens and weeks later, I have grown quite fond of the album.
Persona starts beautifully with warm waves of sound. As it flows
along, breathy, whispery voices emerge, buried, as clanking, delayed,
sounds introduce themselves, reminding me of rope smacking against a
flagpole on a windy day. As the voices fade and the percussion
momentarily drifts away, a slightly distorted, whistling feedback
creeps in, only to be once again joined by the clanking in subtle
chaos. From here, the music slips to dubby, slowly progressing,
percussive jabs.
It is not until the fourth track, almost 25 minutes in, that I really
notice that the CD has changed songs. Here, looped, soft feedback is
eventually joined by non intrusive techno beats, bringing the listen
to a sobering state.
At track 5 the overall feel of Persona changes with “Oscillations
And Tremolo,” the first part of what seems to be a tribute — a long,
pulsing synth piece very much mirroring the intro to Spacemen 3’s “How
Does It Feel.” While I greatly appreciate the nod in the direction of
Spacemen 3, I suspect this portion of the CD is where my attention
dropped during my first few listens.
Continuing the tribute is an ode to Spacemen 3’s ode to Lou Reed’s
“Street Hassle,” titled appropriately enough, “Ode To The Ode To The
Street Hassle.” In feel, it reminds me of a slightly muted W. Carlos
song. Certainly “Ode To…” is one of the more intriguing and
unexpected few minutes on the CD. This is especially true as it
overflows into the next track, blending, with slight clash, into the
closing, “Invitation to Love,” a slowly fading piece of music bringing
the listen full circle by revisiting the sounds that started
Persona.
Persona deserves future listens and, at the very least, is a
personal reminder to look into the many projects of Andreas
Tilliander, something long overdue.
Persona is out now on Type. [Purchase / Listen
