August Selections Spotlight Singular Solo Artists

Release of the Month: August 2010

The Silent Ballet staff counts down its top picks of August 2010.

At first glance, this month’s staff selections seem to have little in common, but a closer look reveals a surprise. While three bear the names of bands, each is the work of a solo artist. Some are masters of a single instrument (piano, guitar) and involve collaborators; others play everything themselves. The tone of their recordings ranges from the tender to the tumultuous, the composition from the taut to the turgid. These singular men and women make music for singular listeners: they sequester themselves in basements and home studios, and we listen on iPods and home stereos. The only thing that binds them together is their talent. Can one man or woman make a difference? This month, these six did, by drawing our attention to the fruits of their labor. This is a small thing, to be sure. But through such humble beginnings – one person making an impact on another – are great things born.

1) Rafael Anton Irisarri – The North Bend

Room40
Although Rafael Anton Irisarri has been getting much press in the past few years with The Sight Below, it was the debut release under his own name that got the attention of The Silent Ballet back in 2007. Daydreaming was a diamond in the rough, a magnificent little ambient gem that seemed to understand the complexities of minimalism as well as the limitless possibilities of a world without temporal constraints. Subsequently, Irisarri has kept fans engaged with a duo of smaller works, but audiences haven’t received another potent dose of his magic until now, with Room40 delivering his greatly anticipated sophomore effort in a variety of formats. The new full length stretches Irisarri’s compositions to new lengths, but the commitment to detail remains intact. What transpires on The North Bend is forty minutes of extremely personal and moving music. The walls between the audience and artist are broken down to promote a music focus that intertwines internal and external subjects in order to more accurately reflect the real world. Irisarri’s newfound center allows him to operate in a more realistic and tangible world than the vast majority of his peers, and it’s this appeal that takes The North Bend from being “nice-sounding music” to being one of the year’s best albums. (Jordan Volz)

2) The Echelon Effect – Mosaic

The Echelon Effect
We may never know how many amazing talents languish in obscurity, but we suspect the number is great. All too many poets, painters and playwrights have remained penniless, celebrated only after their deaths. Here at The Silent Ballet, we are determined not to let this fate befall The Echelon Effect. No physical copies exist for distribution, but this music makes a physical impact on listeners: it’s precisely executed, effervescent, and above all, uplifting. Mosaic’s vibe simultaneously soothes and excites the senses, pushing away troubled thoughts and replacing them with ideas of engagement; it’s a welcome back to warmth and good will. (Richard Allen)

3) James Blackshaw – All Is Falling

Young God Records
James Blackshaw specializes in the twelve-string acoustic guitar and has often been compared to such lions of the American Primitivism style as Leo Kottke and John Fahey. Taking only this information in mind, one might be surprised upon listening to All Is Falling: this guitar is electric, and the music is almost orchestral. That being said, listeners familiar with Blackshaw’s previous work will feel right at home. Though it may be thick-composed, All Is Falling (which features one song in eight parts) is structured like a work of American Primitivism, focusing on slow yet noticeable change. The album manages to be dynamic without sacrificing subtlety. But none of that matters in comparison to this: if you close your eyes and listen, the result is magic. All Is Falling is one of the most encompassing and note-worthy albums of the year. (Tom Butcher)

4) Kemialliset Ystävät – Ullakkopalo

Fonal
Recall the original Star Wars film? In the bar at Mos Eisley’s Space Port, there’s a band whose members have bald complexions and large black eyes. They play some jazzy galacticisms while Chewbacca and Ben Kenobi discuss their terms. This can’t be the only band that plays at this joint; it’s packed to capacity. Kemialliset Ystävät might just be the perfect headliner during an afternoon of Dagobah hashish and Tatooinian blue milk, spearheading the freak forest folk movement from our own galaxy. This band is a collaborative effort involving many Finnish musicians, centered around one massive brain, and the results are nothing short of psychotropic and dizzying. Electronics play trees, prehistoric giants play trumpets, musicians conjure singing mushrooms, and violet fluids drip from the cosmos on this very boisterous and disarming album. Absolutely too dense to comprehend in even twenty sittings. (Nayt Keane)

5) 36 – Tape Series: Blue

3six.net
UK-based ambient artist Dennis Huddleston, aka 36, has somehow managed to release nothing but consistently good material, a true feat for an ambient artist on his own label. He first appeared with last year’s debut Hypersona, and his recently released follow-up Hollow received high praise on this site. Heavy on the heels of that record is the first volume of a three-part tape series, each installment limited to a mere 36 cassettes. Luckily the series is also available in digital download. Tape Series: Blue features reinterpretations from both LPs as well as unreleased material from both periods. What makes Blue so interesting is that like jazz, the variations subtlely transform the songs and make for a different listening experience. Effects vary; clicks are added or deleted. There’s no guarantee which version a listener will prefer; it’s all a matter of which tones and filters will resonate. 3six Recordings also deserves a nod for the lovely packaging (and sold out materiality) of the tape. (Joseph Sannicandro)

6) Sophie Hutchings ~ Becalmed

Preservation
A debut is a dangerous and peculiar thing, a foray into the volatile world of music magazines, internet radio, obsessed fans and unseen revenue, an unrepeatable event of first impressions and daring surprises. Yet Becalmed elegantly crashes the current crowd of classically inspired albums as ‘one of them’; Hutchings is a perfectly apt match to ‘veterans’ such as ‘Olafur Arnalds and Peter Broderick. Armed with a great sense of narrative as well as pure Romantic emotional dynamite, Becalmed has made its mark. Here’s to the next one! (David Murrieta)