Dirk Serries — Solo Acoustic Guitar Improvisation II/III

Solo Acoustic Guitar Improvisation II/III is a double vinyl release taking in twenty-six tracks of darting 'n' jagged improv from Belgian’s Dirk Serries. The material references genres like the blues, angular jazz, scarping ‘n’ raw folk, acoustic HC punk, and even demented no-wave funk- but it really creates its own rapidly shifting and jarring sonic universe.

The release appears on Belgian’s New Wave Of Jazz, which is also run/ curated by Serries. The two 140 gram slabs of black vinyl are present in a single card slip- this features on one side a write-up about the material by Guy Peters, and on the other the track listing/ basic production details- all the tracks were mono recordings captured with a mic 50CM from the guitar. With the texts in light grey against a plain white backdrop. The release is ltd to 200 copies, and can be purchased directly from here. 

The twenty-six tracks each have runtimes between one and near five minutes- and really the material remains fairly rapidly jagging and manic throughout. We open up with the seesawing slide, strum and brief pauses of “Chroma”. There’s tight pluck meets high-pitched scrub ‘n’ pick of “Modal”. We have the jagged neck fiddle ‘n’ violently muted slide of “Sematic”, or darting-to-tolling bass discord meets manic pick ‘n’ chime of “Elegiac”.

Moving onto the second disc we have wondering twang meets constricted pluck of “Sense”. There’s stop-start strum, pick, and neck scrub of “Dyad”. Or the angular bow meets jarring rub ‘n’ fiddle of “Graph”. With the second disc playing out with the fumbling neck buzz meets twang ‘n’ grate of “Molecule”.

Serries take on acoustic guitar-based improv is both manic and eventful- it’s a release that gives you little time to breathe or ponder. But if you are after raw yet inventive improv Solo Acoustic Guitar Improvisation II/III will certainly invigorate and reward.