Top Bar
Musique Machine Logo Home ButtonReviews ButtonArticles ButtonBand Specials ButtonAbout Us Button
SearchGo Down
Search for  
With search mode in section(s)
And sort the results by
show articles written by  
 Review archive:  # a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z

Kiko C. Esseiva - Sous Les Etoiles [Hinterzimmer - 2008]

Kiko C. Esseiva is a composer with Swiss and Spanish roots who creates electro acoustic/Musique concrete  sound pieces, which are best described as a more  conventionally music based version of early Nurse with Wound’s work. With a more playful less sinister ‘n’ surreal vibe to them too, Sous Les Etoiles is his third album and first for relatively new experimental label Hinterzimmer.

The tracks use often a harmonic base of droning, sawed or picked string work, looped and effect peddle fed rhythmic elements, piano and slight synth textures. To which’s he lays moulds and twists on all manner of multi-lingual texts, monk chants and vocalising. Along with street noise, scissor snips, apple crunchers, creeks ‘n’ groans, water sounds and all manner of self made and environmental sound.  On the whole it’s an enjoyable, quirky and a surrealistic cinematic ride though on the downside many of the sounds and way there used have been used many times before  by others. I think this is at it’s best when Esseiva is concentrating more on the harmonic and drone elements of the tracks and less on the sound elements which just feel at times too clichéd for there own good


I’ll certainly be interested to hearing Esseiva future work as when he wants to he can conjure up some dramatic musical  & sound lined pieces which create memorable and strange sonic worlds.  He just needs to dump of lot of the clichéd over used sound source recordings found on Sous Les Etoiles and I’m sure he'll have the makings of something rather special.

Rating: 3 out of 5Rating: 3 out of 5Rating: 3 out of 5Rating: 3 out of 5Rating: 3 out of 5

Roger Batty
Latest Reviews

Kiko C. Esseiva - Sous Les Etoiles
Kiko C. Esseiva is a composer with Swiss and Spanish roots who creates electro acoustic/Musique concrete  sound pieces, which are best de...
110725   Alternative TV - Direct Actio...
110725   Theme - Meditations on Space,...
110725   Pitchshifter - Peel Sessions...
100725   John Scott - Symptoms OST
100725   Torsofuck - Feasting On Carve...
100725   Dachra - Dachra(VOD)
100725   Transmission - Transmission( ...
100725   Up! - Up!( Blu Ray)
100725   Jack The Ripper - Jack The Ri...
090725   A Day At The Beach - A Day A...
Latest Articles

Matthew Holmes - Of razor-sharp t...
It’s fair to say the Sharksploitation genre is often tried, tested, and to be honest, tired. Fear Below is a 2025 Australian film that tries to do some...
180625   Matthew Holmes - Of razor-sha...
280525   The Residents - Visits From T...
090525   Ennaytch - Of walls, abused ...
150425   Dead, Dead Swans interview - ...
110325   Sebastian Tomb - Walls of unb...
040225   Alien Sex Fiend - Possessed B...
231224   Best Of 2024 - Music, Sound &...
191224   Splintered - Somewhere Betwee...
031224   Shane Ryan-Reid - Coerced and...
221024   Whore’s Breath - life’s h...
Go Up
(c) Musique Machine 2001 -2025. Twenty four years of true independence!! Mail Us at questions=at=musiquemachine=dot=comBottom