The Squid's Ear
Writing about improvised, contemporary, experimental and unusual music,
following the activities of Squidco...
  •  •  •     Join Our Mailing List!



The Squid's Ear




Heard In

Reviews of artist releases:
cd's, books, magazines, &c.


  Quatuor Bozzini 
  Phill Niblock: Baobab
  (Collection QB) 


  
   review by Brian Olewnick
  2020-02-06
Quatuor Bozzini: Phill Niblock: Baobab (Collection QB)

When dealing with Phill Niblock's music, you pretty know what you're in for from the outset: A thick, massive wall of sound within which you'll encounter all manner of activities. Much of the intrigue involves the instrumentation utilized and how, if at all, it's augmented.

For the two works presented here, 'Disseminate as Five String Quartets' and 'Baobab', five "multiples" of the quartet are used, with twenty different instrumental lines. Each lengthy line, essentially a drone, has a designated degree of sharpness or flatness around a given pitch and the players create tones as seamlessly as possible, resulting in one continuous, fluctuating stream. Naturally, the small variations in pitch create pulses and throbs that become one of the basic attributes of the work. More to the point, they accentuate the richness and nuance of the overall sound, a huge, breathing, orchestral mass. The amount of information packed into this music is astonishing, allowing the listener to hear detail after detail, pattern after pattern, relationship after relationship.

Apart from a difference in basic pitch, there's not so much to distinguish the two pieces; both afford the same luxurious, cavernous, ultra-resonant immersion into Niblock's unique sound world, one of the deepest around. As always, beautifully interpreted by the outstanding Bozzini Quartet.







Comments and Feedback:



More Recent Reviews, Articles, and Interviews @ The Squid's Ear...


The Squid's Ear presents
reviews about releases
sold at Squidco.com
written by
independent writers.

Squidco

Recent Selections @ Squidco:


Eliane Radigue:
Asymptote Versatile (
1963-64)
(Amgen Records)



Ivo Perelman/
Nate Wooley:
Polarity 4
(Burning Ambulance Music)



Joe McPhee:
Defiant Jazz:
a Joe McPhee Taster
[VINYL]
(Corbett vs. Dempsey)



Armaroli/
Piccolo/
Sharp:
Imaginary Songbook
[2 CDs]
(Dodicilune)



Eva Novoa Trio (
w/ Daniel Carter/
Francisco Mela):
The Freedom Suite,
Vol. 2
(577 Records)



Eva Novoa Trio (
w/ Carter/
Mela):
The Freedom Suite,
Vol. 2
[VINYL]
(577 Records)



Fieldwork (
Iyer/
Lehman/
Sorey):
Thereupon
(Pi Recordings)



Fieldwork (
Iyer/
Lehman/
Sorey):
Thereupon
[VINYL]
(Pi Recordings)



Dan Weiss (
w/ Evans/
Okazaki/
Brennan):
Unclassified Affections
(Pi Recordings)



Dan Weiss (
w/ Evans/
Okazaki/
Brennan):
Unclassified Affections
[VINYL 2 LPs]
(Pi Recordings)



Fujii/
Tamura/
Yoshida/
Takeharu:
Burning Wick
(Libra)



Ken Vandermark:
October Flowers for Joe McPhee
(Corbett vs. Dempsey)



Pat Thomas:
Hikmah
(Tao Forms)



Pat Thomas:
Hikmah
[VINYL w/ DOWNLOAD]
(Tao Forms)



Russ Lossing:
Proximity Alert
(Blaser Music)



Natural Information Society (
Abrams/
Alvarado/
Avery/
Stein):
Perseverance Flow
(AGUIRRE RECORDS)



Ohad Talmor w/Chris Tordini/
Eric Mcpherson + Guests:
Back To The Land
[2 CDs]
(Intakt)



Nathan Clevenger Group:
Astrolabe
(Queen Bee Records)



Donny McCaslin:
Lullaby For
The Lost
[VINYL]
(Editions)



Don Cherry/
Krzysztof Penderecki:
Actions
[VINYL 180g]
(Intuition)







Squidco
Click here to
advertise with
The Squid's Ear






The Squid's Ear pays its writers.
Interested in becoming a reviewer?




The Squid's Ear is the companion magazine to the online music shop Squidco !


  Copyright © Squidco. All rights reserved. Trademarks. (35589)