- 1 This life
- 2 In Death Valley
- 3 Is a rose petal of the dying crimson light
- 4 Keyed out
- 5 In mother earth phase
- 6 A sodium codec haze
- 7 Across to Anoyo
About
Tim Hecker recorded most of Konoyo in Japan, working with members
of the gagaku ensemble Tokyo Gakuso, who play a variety of
traditional wind and percussion instruments. Hecker's previous
album, Love Streams, featured vocals by an Icelandic choir, who
sang in a nonsensical language and were twisted into bizarre, alien
forms. Hecker does similar business with the gagaku ensemble on
Konoyo, sometimes rendering the source material nearly
unrecognizable, letting it seep through the mix in subtle ways. The
album is informed by ideas of negative space, and there's certainly
more of a sense of restraint here compared to other Hecker
releases, and not as much charred feedback. That said, there's
still an enormous amount of detail to these highly immersive sonic
constructions. Opening with distressed siren-like tones which
slowly swoop down, "This Life" features woozy clusters of notes
which bring to mind Arca's melodies, with frayed distortion
bubbling up and swerving around, as well as a tangible sense of
things being physically pushed and pulled. The acoustic instruments
are much clearer on "In Death Valley," which has delicately plucked
strings and knocking drums joined by the sideways thud of Hecker's
scattered, crystalline synths. Tracks such as "Keyed Out" are
punctuated with high-frequency whistling from instruments such as
the ryuteki and the shō. These tones can seem disarming at first,
but they contribute to the urgency of the music, in addition to
feeling like glimpses into a distant past. Konoyo takes several
listens to fully appreciate, as do most Hecker releases, but it's
another excellent example of the distinct mixture of bleakness and
majesty which he excels at creating. ~ Paul Simpson
Distinctions :
Pitchfork: Best New Music (September 2018)
Hi-Res 24-bit – 44.10 kHz
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