Greg Davis, who
graduated in jazz guitar and classical composition,
also a former DJ and hip-hop producer,
is a Chicago-based avantgarde composer who debuted with the single
Clouds As Edges (Grounded, 2001) in the role of a
laptop folk artist.
Arbor (Carpark, 2002) and
Curling Pond Woods (Carpark, 2003)
developed his highly original aesthetic of fragile ambient structures that
borrow elements from both dance and folk music.
Their "songs" mix field recordings,
acoustic guitar and folkish rhythms.
Somnia
(Kranky, 2004) compiles six droning compositions,
recorded over several years, for solo instrument
(bowed psaltery, acoustic guitar, harmonica, electronic keyboards and organ)
filtered through a computer, where
music and painting converge and become one. Starting
with Archer, a thick resonating mantra, and
peaking with Clouds As Edges, a humbler cosmic
exploration with the drone repeating the same pattern
but continuously shifting timbre (accordion, flute,
organ, etc), the album abandons Davis' original
folktronica and delves into pure ambient digital
music. The range of styles is broad, from the shrill
protracted dissonance of Diaphanous to the
warped hallucinated tones of Mirage. The
20-minute Campestral is the most static track
and almost mournful, thus the most similar to Brian
Eno's "discrete music".
Subsequent releases included:
Midway (2007),
Full Spectrum (2009),
Midpoint (2009),
Primes (2009),
as well as collaborations with Keith Fullerton Whitman, Steven Hess, Jeph Jerman and many others.
Mutually Arising (Kranky, 2009) offers two more pieces for synthesizer,
as minimalist as before, but a bit more poignant.
Greg Davis' Regarding Wave (2010) contains two lengthy pieces, Regarding Wave and Rainbow Body.
Davis also formed the duo Sun Circle with Zach Wallace, that concocted the
droning ambient music of Sun Circle (2007).
The double-LP Lessness (Arbor Infinity, 2010) contains four pieces
each scored for a single instrument (drum, tamboura, gong).
The double-disc Tapes (Autumn, 2011) collects cassettes from 2007-2009.
Zach Wallace had been in Flashpapr, that released Pain Taped Over (1998) and Flashpapr (2004).
He then formed the improvisational trio Memorize The Sky playing bass with
reedist Matt Bauder and percussionist Aaron Siegel, documented on
Memorize The Sky (2007) and In Former Times (2008).
He was also in Psalm Alarm with Ben Hall, and
also released the solo album Glass Armonica (Root Strata, 2009).
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(Translation by/ Tradotto da Andrea Marengo)
Greg Davis, laureato in chitarra jazz e composizione
classica, nonchè ex DJ e producer hip-hop, è un compositore d'avanguardia di Chicago che debuttò con il
singolo Clouds As Edges (Grounded, 2001) nel ruolo di un musicista folk del
laptop.
Arbor (Carpark, 2002) e Curling Pond Woods (Carpark, 2003)
svilupparono la sua originalissima estetica di strutture ambient delicate che
prendono in prestito elementi da dance e musica folk. Le loro
"canzoni" mescolano field recording, chitarra acustica e ritmi
folkloristici.
Somnia (Kranky, 2004) redige sei composizioni drone,
registrate dopo numerosi anni, per strumento solista (salterio ad arco,
chitarra acustica, tastiere elettroniche e organo) filtrati con un computer,
dove musica e pittura convergono e diventano una cosa sola cominciando da
Archer, un denso mantra risonante e raggiungendo lo zenith con Clouds As Edges,
un' umile esplorazione cosmica con un ronzio che ripete lo stesso pattern ma
che cambia continuamente timbro
(fisarmonica, flauto, organo, eccetera), l'album abbandona la folktronica delle
origini investigando nella pura musica ambient digitale. La quantità degli
stili è ampia, dalla lacerante dissonanza prolungata di Diaphanous ai toni
allucinati di Mirage. I venti minuti di Campestral, rappresentano il momento
più statico e lugubre del disco, pertanto il più simile alla "musica
discreta" di Brian Eno.
Le seguenti uscite includono: Midway (2007), Full Spectrum
(2009), Midpoint (2009), Primes (2009), così come collaborazioni con Keith
Fullerton Whitman, Steven Hess, Jeph Jerman e molti altri.
Mutually Arrising (Kranky, 2009) propone altri due brani per
pianoforte, sempre minimalisti, ma leggermente più penetranti.
Regarding Wave (2010) di Greg Davis contiene due lunghe
tracc: Regarding Wave e Rainbow Body.
Davis ha anche formato il duo Sun Circle con Zach Wallace,
che inventa l'ambient drone di Sun Circle (2007). Il doppio LP Lessness (Arbor
Infinity, 2010) contiene quattro brani ciascuno registrato per un solo
strumento (timpano, tambura, gong). Il doppio disco Tapes (Autumn, 2011)
colleziona cassette dal 2007- 2009.
Zach Wallace è stato nei Flashpapr, che pubblicarono Pain
Taped Over (1998) e Flashpapr. Poi egli formò il trio di improvvisazione
Memorize The Sky suonando il basso con il fiatista Matt Bauder e il
percussionista Aaron Siegel, come
documentato su Memorize The Sky (2007) e In Fomer Times (2008). Lui fu anche
nei Psalm Alarm con Ben Hall, e pubblicò il disco solista Glass Armonica (Root
Strata, 2009).
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