Sven Kacirek — Scarlet Pitch Dreams
The rhythms are generally in 4/4, since this is a case of restraint intentionally used to create a gently hypnotic predictability and transparency to the music. The intricate interplay between instruments is masterful, and the countless interlocking syncopations are effortless. At times the irregular accenting brings jazz to mind, and at other moments the droning consistency of the pulse gives the music a tranced out tribal feel.
The persistent circular mid-paced rhythm does not cease even as one movement ends and another begins. Each piece simply morphs into the next as instrumentation is added and subtracted, with a couple exceptions. This suite is minimal in a sense, but I think that few would find it boring. Played on repeat in my car, the album becomes a hazy backdrop of ever-evolving contemplative harmonies, which I never find to be unwelcome.
Though the album generally simmers at a subdued energy level, there are 2 particularly climactic movements ("It Is Not About Love", "Scarlet Pitch Dreams") in which the breathy, sultry voice of Jana Plewa intones a repeated phrase, and over time takes on ethereal / angelic harmonizations.
The production of this album is wonderful. Every sound is perfectly pure, clear and in its place. Though the sound is crisp, luminous and punchy, the nuanced dynamic contours of the performances are obvious as well. It couldn't have sounded better.
It's worth noting that when read in order from start to finish, the track titles of this album form a disclaimer of sorts: "This album is not / About Me and You / It is Not About Love / Cars & Nightingales / Or Other Stirring or Boring Tales / Scarlet Pitch Dreams / Embraces Eleven Ideas / Turned Into What You Listen To / Right Now / Possibly You Find Your Own / Narratives Inside the Pieces." The irony is that when read as a whole, the disclaimer states that "This album is not 'about me and you', 'love', or 'cars and nightingales', and yet each of these phrases is actually the name of one of the songs on the album, in a sense disproving the statement as a whole.
Indeed, for all these lofty aspirations and apparent reaching for gravitas beyond the romantic or the mundane, this album is often sentimental and romantic in feeling, with protracted heartwrenching crescendos (driven by strings) that I would describe as 'cinematic' if they didn't sound so complete on their own. Kacirek certainly captures of the feel of daily boredom induced reveries as well, of thoughts wandering from memory to memory and object to object. It would seem he acknowledges the irony. That said, the album fits the literal meaning of its disclaimer in the sense that Kacirek provides 11 lush movements of abstract, 'absolute' percussion music that of a mood that is far from obvious, and certainly interpretable in an infinite number of ways.
I cannot recommend this album enough. It's not often enough that we see such sophisticated and expressive demonstrations of the capabilities of the percussion ensemble. It's clear that Sven Kacirek is not only a virtuoso player but a composer who understands how to be concise and more importantly how to describe with music something elusive and meaningful.