Tommaso Rolando & Domiziano Maselli — Enjoy Country Music

I realized almost immediately that the title, Enjoy Country Music, must be ironic.  The two-man line up is credited with double bass/mixing and Modular synths/amps / 15-meter tape loops respectively.  This Italian duo has released this new collaborative cassette on Torta Editions, both musicians have been individually active with various independent and official releases within the last fifteen years.

The first piece is a shimmering, undulating, processed drone that lasts 9 minutes.  There is no percussion or rhythm, no guitar playing, and no country, to be found here.  Rolando's double bass is bowed, and Maselli contributes high-octave synthetic digital contrails which are possibly sourced from Rolando's contributions, as they harmonize pleasantly.  There is an otherworldly, ultra-modern energy to this recording.

There are nine tracks, of which the first is one of the longest.  The full album is only thirty-five minutes.  The second piece "From The River" begins with an ominous, cinematic plucked double-bass.  Over the course of the three-minute track, it becomes saturated and overdriven with thick, rich harmonics.  The plucked bass becomes a feature of many of the shorter tracks.

The liner notes describe the process of recording this album in a large warehouse in the freezing winter, utilizing the natural verb and many microphones.  This process has paid off, as the atmosphere found here is cavernous; any selection of notes whimsically played here takes on an air of natural profundity after being blessed by the space.  It softens and smooths the percussive qualities of the notes played, flattening the performances into a resonant, glimmering blur.

Though much of the album objectively consists of resonant drones, to simply call this a drone album would not do service to the way it mutates and morphs, like free jazz in slow motion, shifting in search of the deepest harmonics.  With its grit and analogue distortions, It is something of a post-industrial music form, and recalls ambient post-rock as well with its e-bow-centric approach.

This is a greatly enjoyable, multi-faceted album that stands apart from established genres.  I very much look forward to hearing anything else from these individuals. For more info