Massimo Toniutt — Variation Séculaire Géomagnétique (Antidocument/Gr

Originally released back in 2016 as an edition of 100 copies- here’s a less ltd CD release of this ominous-yet-textural active sound work from Italian sound artists/ experimental musician Massimo Toniutt. I guess you’d describe what we here is a  blend of musique concrete, brooding sound craft, and manic textural studies- so if enjoy sonic fare that is both darkly atmospheric, yet texturally active I think you’ll like what we have here.

The release appears on Austrian label Klanggalerie, and is certainly at the more moody & abstract end of their output. The CD is presented in a dull laminated six panel gatefold that features over layered & misty landscapes, and pictures of old book pages- this nicely add a more mysterious edge to the fairly cryptic sonics with-in.

In all the CD takes in three tracks, and features a full runtime of forty-nine minutes. First up we have “Scapes Upon Tempered Fields”- this runs at the thirteen & a half minute mark, and brings together a dense & feasting sound picture that finds layers of scaping & scuttling textures, and long creeks &  woody bends- all underfed by subtle nudges of brooding bowing & sinister vibe like hovers. Next, we have “Turning Into Magnetic Charge”- this once again runs around the thirteen & half mark, and here we find a slightly more angular & eerier, yet no less manic & layered blend of tinkling & shifting textural detail, creepy music box vibe darts, low-key bowing & subtlety surreal sound play.

The album is finished off with the longest track here the just shy of twenty-three minutes of “As The Growing Lines Twist and Turn”- and once again we find a blend of cluttering, knocking & squelching textures- these are added to by sinister vibe abstractness, reeling brooding tape spin, and slightly more high pitched tonal swam.

Variation Séculaire Géomagnétique(Antidocument/Groundwork) feels focused on a fairly narrow range of tones & textures through-out. Sure they is some variation/ shift between the three tracks, but they are fairly subtle & minimal, which makes this fee like a three-part composition than three separate tracks. I certainly appreciate   & understand what Toniutt is trying to do here, and he certainly knows how to pull off manic-yet-unsettling, I just wish there had been a tad more variation on display, as by the last track I’ve started become somewhat jaded…but it’s great to see klanggalerie extending their release scope to more acousmatic meets dark ambient territory