OBSIL - Distances

After roughly three years away, Giulio Aldinucci returns with his project Obsil. The splendid “Points” left the artist little room for improvement; in that case the result stood out for its rare stylistic synthesis and compositional taste. Still under the protective wing of the reliable Disasters By Choice, the Rome-based label run by Salvo Pinzone, “Distances” builds on its predecessor's ideas and evolves them into an even more sinuous form.

While keeping its strong pianistic and classical component intact, the Tuscan composer blends his imagination even further, managing to piece together electronic sketches scrawled with an archaic, mysterious pen. It's not easy to define a melting pot in which improv temptations, vintage synthetic sounds and modern digital sound-modelling techniques are so skilfully mixed together.

This is never merely a cold, self-satisfied display of such a well-crafted sound - quite the opposite, the final result comes across as deeply personal. The roots of this authenticity can be traced back to the nature of all the field recordings used to decorate each track: indeed, a strong attachment to his home region (Val di Merse, Siena) led Obsil to record every sound around his own house.

Placid pianistic embroidery stands out gracefully (the opening "Brucia; Reciso Luccicante", the enchantment of "V. Santo"), while a web of mechanical counterpoints gleams almost everywhere (the glacial "Gomitoli", the operatic presence cut through by glitch embroidery in "Sub Ficinulae").

Sweetness, when expressed with empathy, delivers powerful emotions; the closing stretch, made up of the last three pieces, lines up a commendably coherent, mystical, enchanted soundtrack.

Without overindulging in fussy contortions or long-winded running times, Giulio Aldinucci's work stands out for its incisiveness, grace and original development. A jewel in the crown of the Italian experimental scene, an example for every working musician who wants to make "cultured" art for every taste.

Ride the wave of great music

Add OndaRock to your favorite sources on Google Discover. Don't miss our reviews, milestones and latest news straight in your feed.

Follow on Google

28/10/2009