Nova Materia — Xupjil- Made To Measure Vol 45

Xpujil is the 45th part in Crammed Discs on-going Made To Measure series, which sees electronic, cross-culture, and ambient artists creating psychoacoustic sound works.  Nova Materia is a duo consisting of Caroline Chaspoul from France, and Eduardo Henriquez from Chile. The pair have seemingly been active since 2015- with one other full-length album to their name, and a selection of five singles/ EP’s. And what we find here is a single forty-minute slice of eerier ritual and field record edged ambient, that’s fairly eventful and active in its unfold.
 

The CD release comes presented in a four-panel gatefold- this features a two shaded green colour scheme, and blurring forest pictures- one (on the front cover) of a series of ghostly figures, and one(inside) of the duo. So, a simple, but effective enough piece of packaging.

The idea of this release started off when Chaspoul and Henriquez were walking through a Mexican jungle on a hot and sticky day- they were heading towards the ruins of the ancient Maya city of Xpujil. As they went along on their trek they were recording the sounds around them with binaural microphones. They took these back to their studio in Paris, where they added in sparse instrumentation of gongs, ocarinas and electronics. With two New York-based musicians/ sound makers Ikue Mori & cellist Gaspar Claus also adding to the soundscapes flow.

The single piece on offer here roles in at the 40.32 mark. It opens with just these haunting warbling like tones- these are either modified female vocalizing and/ or some kind of altered field recording. By around the minute and a half point, we get the first subtle gong strike, these are added to waving pitch swells and ebbs. As we move onto towards the firth minute, more pronounced bird-like warbles appear again- before a keener and detailed percussive backbone appears of gong hits, metallic clashes, and lightly stabbing elector drum pluses.  Throughout its unfold the track builds, then thins back, before building once more again- the duo, with the help of their two guests keep the whole thing dreamy, slightly creepy, though eventful.  As we move on we get very subtle  and shifting touches of gong and percussive detail, haunted electro tone shift, all manner of billowing-to-warbling sounds, jitter insect and water like tones, 

In the more firm percussive/ gong moments I get a ritual Coil like/ low key Hybryds vibe, though in the more looser drifting moments it feels more like vague and mood heavy improv.  It’s certainly an eventful and largely fairly entrancing head listen, through at points, it does feel slightly like the structure/ flow of the whole thing rather disappears- leaving at points in seeming shapeless freefall, but these moments don’t last long, and we get something interesting appearing again.

Overall, as a headphone bound psychoacoustic sound experience Xpujil is a reward and mysterious trip, which will have you travelling towards lost Maya cities in your mind. I just wish there had been slightly more defined shape/ flow throughout, as at points my mind did start to wonder.