Paul has been releasing a steady stream of one-off pieces that have not made an album appearance. They’ve all been extremely strong, and this makes me wonder how large his pipeline of unreleased material is. Based on the super high quality of these works, I am going to play catch-up and put down some thoughts on the three most recent releases (that when taken together would make a nice album of unreleased gems). If you have even a passing interest in all things Dolden, I can wholeheartedly recommend visiting his Bandcamp page where you can find these, and many more of his incredibly epic and heroic multi-track sound extravaganzas. Additionally, I have published a couple of write-ups on earlier records on this very site.

The Dance of the Firing Synapse clocks in at 20 minutes and is prime Dolden, i.e. aggressive, relentlessly LOUD, and in. yo. FACE!!! It has all the hallmarks of his sound, things like Balinese sounding percussion, ridiculously hard to count rhythms, face-melting passages of countlessly layered, metal-tinged guitars (or maybe those are something else, hard to tell), very complex drum pyrotechnics, moments of sick note Saxophones and the odd choral accents. All these things come together in a tightly produced, microtonal package that is just a constant stream of detail after detail. In a word, astounding! After many listens, new things manifest themselves that I can swear I’ve never heard before. I’ve heard a few comments from people saying the piece provokes headaches, or it precipitates sensory overload resulting in fatigue, etc. While I’ll never challenge these views, instead I’ll just smile to myself and think Dolden may have reached a stage of “mission accomplished”. He achieved that coveted point on the bell curve where the synapses just say, “fuck it, I’m done”. Bravo!

The other two releases (Marsyas’ Melodies and Who Has the Strangest Melodies?) has Dolden continuing to move forward with a more “modern classical” approach with less noise blasts and less massed layers of sound assaults. This is not to say that those qualities (and they are indeed qualities) are not present, just utilized in a more subtle manner within the context of the piece, instead of THE piece itself.

Marsyas’ Melodies starts quietly and slowly builds into a series of climaxes. Each build and release have its own distinctive personality due to the varied instruments used and, per the liner notes, ancient Arab and Greek tuning systems are employed. About midway through the piece, there is a short but quite beautiful cello solo which opens the door for more build-ups (this time louder with more multi tracked acoustic instruments including what sounds like a full choir and oddly tuned percussion… a Dolden hallmark). Even though the structure of this work sounds simple, the combinations of sound sources paired with his typical attention to the “little details” like the separation between sounds and total mastery of dynamics make this piece one of my favorites.

Who Has the Strangest Melodies shares many of the same compositional qualities but this time, I hear a little bit of a Charles Ives vibe. Brass instruments seem to be the prevalent focus on this piece and the structure seems more complex than Marsyas’ Melodies. Once again, the melodies are micro-tonal which of course throws the listener off balance until the mind “accepts” it but, unlike the former, there is a heavy rhythmic presence played mostly on the trap kit. Adding to the disorientation, the rhythms are certainly not your standard 4/4 and… if I’m understanding things properly, the overlayed melodies are speed corrected to fit the off-kilter rhythms.

I should know by now that the unusual is the usual when it comes to Dolden music. These three pieces, if you were to take them as an album-length whole provide an excellent real-time sound portrait of where the composer seems to be presently. Not only are his works getting more detailed and refined musically as time goes by, but technologically speaking… the current state of the sound recording is stretched to the extremes which yields a stunning aural experience, especially through headphones. As I alluded to at the beginning of this write-up, every new release that drops is an event that is certainly not taken lightly by this listener and, if the firehose is active, I’ll be there.

Ha habido un accidente en la línea principal de la historia y como consecuencia se ha perdido toda la Antigüedad. El sueño de los Maestros del Universo se hizo realidad antes de tiempo: saltamos directamente del Neolítico al Medievo, fundando una civilización planetaria absolutista.

Una mezcla entre la implacabilidad de los romanos, la hipocresía griega, el totalitarismo de la civilización faraónica, la etérea crueldad de la China dinástica y, por supuesto, la insondable estupidez de la Edad Media occidental. Es esta Ucronía la que se describe en el disco que abrimos esta noche de Dominique Bassal titulado axet remperimos te. Ni siquiera estamos muy seguros del significado preciso de este lema del Imperio, algo así como “acepta gatear” o “acepta o te romperán”.

El compositor e ingeniero de sonido Dominique Bassal, estudió música electroacústica en un momento en el que esa disciplina estaba a la vanguardia de la tecnología de audio. Comenzó a trabajar en la producción de música comercial como arreglista y gerente de estudio, donde aplicó técnicas de vanguardia al mundo de la música pop, muy estricto y conservador en ese momento.

Estamos ya ante el tercer lanzamiento de Denis Smalley después de una “pausa” de 20 años. Portail presenta sus 2 trabajos multicanal más recientes: Fabrezan Preludes (2015-16) y Sommeil de Rameau (2014-15), convertidos en estéreo ambisonics, más uno de sus primeros trabajos: The Pulses of Time (1978).

Fabrezan Preludes compuesto en 2015-16 tiene una duración de 20:58. El preludio central, Debussy’s Cathedral, se basa en la transformación y desarrollo de un par de acordes resonantes extraídos del preludio para piano de Debussy La Cathédrale engloutie (La catedral sumergida), que evoca la historia de la mítica ciudad de Ys, sumergida frente a las costas de Bretaña. Cuenta la leyenda que las campanas de las iglesias de la ciudad se pueden escuchar en mares tranquilos.

En el preludio de apertura, Portal, que es el que escuchamos esta noche en Atmósfera, el oyente cruza el umbral hacia la nave de la catedral. The Voices of Circius (también conocido como Cercio) se refieren al relativamente desconocido dios romano del viento a quien el emperador Augusto dedicó un altar cerca de Narbona, en el sur de Francia. El viento Cers atraviesa el país desde el noroeste, ganando fuerza y movimiento circular a medida que viaja por las llanuras a través de los amplios corredores del valle, avanzando hacia el Mediterráneo. Puede ser impetuoso, emerger repentinamente, ahuyentar las nubes y la lluvia, iniciando cielos soleados y luminosos. Reconocido por tener propiedades saludables, trae una agradable brisa fresca en el calor del verano, pero puede ser terriblemente fría en invierno. Este preludio tiene como objetivo capturar aspectos de sus “voces”.

Fabrezan Preludes se creó en los estudios de Denis Smalley en Fabrezan (Francia) y Londres y se estrenó el 21 de mayo de 2016, en un concierto con motivo del 70 cumpleaños de Denis Smalley, en el Colyer-Fergusson Hall en Canterbury (Inglaterra, Reino Unido).

On Trilogie d’ondes, Gobeil collaborates with ondes Martenot virtuoso Suzanne Binet-Audet. Like an earlier empreintes DIGITALes release that marries the classical guitar with various Aousmatic composers (see my write-up here), Trilogie d’ondes achieves the same great synergies between Gobeil’s tape generated maneuvers and the most disparate instrument you can think of, the ondes Martenot. As you can probably guess by now, it works!

The following quote by Binet-Audet may give some clues as to why this partnership sounds so great (bolding mine):

“More electronic instruments have been invented since and are now omnipresent in our musical universe. Because of its sensory approach closely linked to the performer’s nervous system and its flexibility that allows it to respond to the performer’s slightest musical intention, the ondes Martenot remains unlike any other. It is often considered a forerunner of today’s electronic instruments, but it is actually somewhat of a slightly eccentric colleague: the rationale behind its creation keeps it closer to the great instrument-making tradition. That is probably why it made it through the 20th century and is still being included in new compositions. Thanks to its 80-year history and large and rich repertoire, the ondes Martenot has obviously secured itself a spot in music history.”

Like all the great acousmatic composers, Gobeil’s ability to organize sounds into a cohesive whole that allows the participant (you) to create their own visual / virtual / visceral narrative demands that these sounds interact with your limbic system. Being a disinterested outsider really doesn’t cut it when you listen to this music. Engagement, on a mental, and as stands to reason, a physical level is key. My bolded part above plays into what may have been the reason this pairing sounds so good. Doubting that both musicians were in the room at the same time, I’m going to hazard a guess that Gobeil supplied Binet-Audet his material, and she composed around that. I can very well imagine, as Binet-Audet was contributing her parts, the soundscapes that Gobeil created tapped into her Limbic system allowing her to “bring the music” to the ondes Martenot by way of the sensory approach that she mentions above. I can also imagine a live performance which would be a very interesting juxtaposition of her gestures on the ondes Martenot triggered off the synthetic material created by her partner. So, instead of machine triggering machine, the approach would be human triggering machine (Gobeil), triggering human, triggering instrument (Binet-Audet). In a live improvised (or not) setting, the permutations could be endlessly fascinating! Additionally, the dichotomy between what is traditionally thought of as a non-gesture form of music (Gobeil’s Acousmatic sections) is now organically attached to a human element that can change with each performance. In a case like this, the ondes Martenot sounds like the perfect tool to achieve this. (I wonder if they ever thought of taking this on the road?)

The music on Trilogie d’ondes is much more dynamically busier than Trois songes. Gobeil’s soundscapes have a rough and tumble attitude and the mood is quite a bit darker because of it. The ondes Martenot adds a celestial/cosmic element, usually when Gobeil is laying out. At times it sounds like a lonely pedal steel guitar that slowly builds in pitch and intensity. During periods like this, Gobeil brings in a slowly escalating, manic tension that succeeds in goosing the music into the stratosphere.

For the most part, Trilogie d’ondes is more of a Gobeil showcase for his acousmatic stylings with the ondes Martenot adding just the right amount of unique textures, so the pairing is not exactly equal. For me, the ondes Martenot uplifts this record from being a “great” Gobeil record to being a “special” Gobeil record, and that’s the primary reason I’ve included it in this write-up.

I recently revisited the six albums I have from Gilles Gobeil and for the life of me, couldn’t decide which one to single out for a write-up. I consider all of them excellent with a few of them reaching the “beyond excellence” level for me. So instead of agonizing about it, I decided to spout some words about the three in the “beyond” category.

Gobeil was influenced by (among others) Francis Dhomont and works primarily in the Acousmatic sphere. His music fits the cinéma pour l’oreille (cinema for the ear) genre, a phrase coined by Dhomont which encourages the attentive listener to visualize their own personal virtual environment or mood from the sounds they are hearing, irrespective of the tools and gestures used to create those sounds. Gobeil’s style is instantly recognizable because he frequently revisits sound objects and events that include (and this is not an exhaustive list)… jarringly loud, explosive passages lasting only moments and coming from seemingly out of nowhere, automated heavy machine-like sounds, huge dynamic build-ups providing at times unbearable tension (sometimes without release), sweeping sonic drone vistas that range from the beautiful to the downright sinister and… an occasional element of humor. (Although that last one is few and far between.) Gobeil’s skill at organizing the patchwork of sounds at his disposal is exemplary, making the final result a tactile listening experience that beckons many repeat visits.

Trois songes, the 2008 release is available in stereo and also 5.1 surround. As per empreintes DIGITALes standards, both sound sonically pristine and quite excellent. The surround version is mixed conservatively, i.e. there isn’t a constant swirl of sounds flowing through the room. This subtle use of 5.1 compliments the music perfectly… it’s there at the “right” time, and when it does become noticeable, it adds a very satisfying aural dimension to the music. To be clear, the stereo version sounds phenomenal as well, in fact the rest of these comments will be based on a stereo listening using my preferred earbud rig.

Trois songes stands apart from the rest of his catalog as its much more drone based. For the most part, the three pieces give us more of an introspective, nature based look at the big blue sphere we live on. A look that is untethered from the mechanical automations of everyday urban life.

On Trois songes, Gobeil paints a vast and sweeping portrait of barren, earthly landscapes, rocky vistas, white sands. Places untouched by the trappings of modern living… mostly devoid of life other than the occasional nomadic wanderer. We are witness to the sacred liturgical chanting of now shallow praises from a long forgotten religion. The devout believers confined to a walled garden, crying out to an unhearing demiurge. An earth that time has left behind. A dying earth perhaps?

This celebration of nature’s grandeur is soon disrupted… like a velvet curtain, night falls and Gaia departs, leaving us to grope our way through an alien desert. The crawling, unsightly sound of the Daxophone (a recurring appearance throughout many of Gobeil’s pieces thanks to his association with René Lussier) worms its way into our listening space. An ugly, dying, but at the same time beautiful sound… perhaps giving us a window into our eventual end. All the while, the greater gods churn and seethe above us… uncaring.

Trois songes is an evocatively gorgeous work. A work that beautifully demonstrates Gobeil’s singular style of cinéma pour l’oreille and one that I revisit often.

Le contrat is billed as a Gilles Gobeil / René Lussier record and was released in 2003. The sheer density of musical content on this record is insane. Both musicians are on top of their game and, while they both have lots of room to flaunt their talents while the other sits out (Lussier has several solo electric and acoustic guitar pieces on this album), it’s the collaborations that really shine for me. Lussier’s off-kilter, dangerously spikey guitar workouts combined with Gobeil’s incredibly dynamic, acousmatic agitations work extremely well together.

Imagine taking a personal, solitary tour of Le Théatre du Grand-Guignol after partaking in an Absinthe ritual and then dosing yourself with LSD… (While never actually doing any of those things… this was the closest I could imagine to an analog of surrendering yourself to complete and utter sensory overload.) that is the sonic/cerebral/psychic journey that Le contrat lays out for you.

Or, you can think of Le contrat as a massive, 70 minute panoramic mural that can be transversed in a myriad of ways depending on your general state of mind at the time. Always a beginning (start anywhere), always an ending (end anywhere)… it’s everything else that is in a constant state of flux. Like a frenetic ever morphing John Zorn composition, Gobeil and Lussier fabricate color after color, landscape after landscape, exploding mutation after exploding mutation. Finally, it’s all over with a human mimicking a cat’s meow, a cat that was incessantly meowing, whining, and caterwauling during various parts within this aural mural. Was this all a great and giant joke to begin with… I think the cat MUST know the answer!

Or, you can think of Le contrat as an opening. An opening of a door, a window, a mind or, of a self. A crusade or quest that, if you choose to take, can lead to the unexpected. A Dunsany-esque odyssey that is both universal, as well as completely personal. In this case, Le contrat is your vessel… a vessel that may, or may not protect you from what you find.

Have a small tincture, you know you want it!

Whether you think of him as a boffin dabbling in the dark arts, or a sound scientist searching for new ways to alter the mind, or maybe a little of both, I’m certain that Gilles Gobeil is one of the top acousmatic alchemists in the scene. Any one of these records would be an excellent departure point and they all come very highly recommended depending on where you want to start on his path. Take the first step, you won’t be sorry.