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Fennesz + Sakamoto, "Flumina"
In their third collaboration, Christian Fennesz and Ryuichi Sakamoto go for a more conceptual approach: Sakamoto recorded 24 piano improvisations to open concerts during a Japanese tour, each within a different key. These 24 pieces were then handed over to Fennesz, who added his touch to them. The result is a compelling, if sprawling, work of gentle improvisation.
The 24 pieces, and roughly 2 hours of music, follow similar blueprints:Sakamoto’s piano playing usually appears unmasked, or only slightly processed, up front, while Fennesz adds additional layers of guitar, electronics, or further abstractions of the piano.Like 2007's Cendre, the piano is the focus, although here that seems even more so.
This does vary somewhat throughout the individual tracks, however."0318" is clear piano notes creating ripples in a shimmering pool of sound initially, but as the piece evolves, the more abstract electronic instrumentation takes hold.Dissonant sounds, including the unmistakable buzz of a guitar cable, vie for attention on "0328," even if the piano often wins out.
While the piano tracks tend to be untreated, there are moments where digital processing commands even more attention.On "0319" and "0409," Fennesz transforms the piano sounds drastically, reshaping it into a thin, digital voice on the former and an almost xylophone like resonance on the latter.The result is more memorable and distinct tracks, and I personally wish there would have been a bit more of this strategy employed.
Fennesz's penchant for tangible atmospheres shows on "0320," which has all of the trappings of a late-summer lakeside sunset, a mood he is unparalleled at creating.He also reiterates a bit of his glitch-tinged past on "0325" and "0401," where the piano is enshrouded by noticeable, but tasteful layers of sonic grime.
I found myself actually drawn more towards the primarily acoustic pieces that are here, such as "0411," in which the synthetic parts are almost imperceptible, replaced by untreated guitar and strings that have a lot of breathing room around them, allowing a greater amount of subtlety to come through.
This album's greatest weakness is its length, however.The previous collaborations were an EP and a tidy album, respectively, so being spread across two discs, the pieces tend to blend together.Taken as individual albums, or a few tracks at a time, the rewards are much more significant.Fennesz's recent Seven Stars EP was an evolution to a more "song" oriented place, while here his work is more fragmented and oblique. It works but it doesn’t grab me as strongly.
Flumina fits nicely in with the prior two collaborations of the duo, blending Sakamoto's subtle piano improvisations with Fennesz's careful additions.While I personally prefer the more song-oriented direction Fennesz has been toying with, his abstractions work well here, balancing the organic piano notes well.Taken in small doses, this is a great disc, but in a marathon listening session, the impact is lessened.
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