The Squid's Ear Magazine


Lepany, Justin: Agnes (In Redemption) (Creative Sources)

A half composed, half improvised album for solo electric guitar from composer and improviser Justin Lepany, known for his work with musicians like Sven-Ake Johansson and his composition "Ringing Peace" premiered during the 2014 Peace Nobel Prize ceremony: three diverse pieces using effects to create both density and spacious sonic fields.
 

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Justin Lepany-electric guitar


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UPC: 5609063403220

Label: Creative Sources
Catalog ID: cs322
Squidco Product Code: 21653

Format: CD
Condition: New
Released: 2015
Country: Portugal
Packaging: Cardboard Gatefold
Recorded in Berlin, Germany, in February-March, 2015, by the artist.

Descriptions, Reviews, &c.

"Every once in a while, Ernesto Rodrigues' imprint gifts us with something relatively distant from its typical coordinates. Agnes (In Redemption) is a half composed, half improvised album for solo guitar; its largest chunk is closely linked to the modified photograph of an elegantly dressed woman walking alone in a subway tunnel, presented in performance as the music flows. The constitution of the three tracks is attributable to the systematic use of "phrase pills" in infinite repeat mode. Nothing new of course, and the deus ex machina is honest in avoiding declarations of any kind in that regard. If one approaches the record in search of undeclared implications and profound revelations, perhaps bathed in celestial tunefulness, a bit of frustration might arise. But the French guitarist is not wandering cluelessly in that area. Rather, his layered cycles establish a sphere of resonant mechanical patterns that leave no room to daydreaming surpluses. Few notes, obsessive pulses: by concentrating hard enough you'll be nailed to the seat in no time with eyes closed, absorbing the refractions ricocheted by those small particles. The percussive soul of the guitar strings becomes evident in spite of the overall hypnosis. But Lepany is also good in altering the acoustic kinetics of each scenario. Loops can recede to legitimize the power of humming low frequencies; potent chords emerge unexpectedly to surprise the listener; mesmerizing reiterations accelerate all of a sudden, spinning off towards remote corners. The tentative melodic fragments in "And Raven Stole The Sun" are not exactly what my doctor would order, yet still make sense in the general context. The finale is like a post scriptum: a "normal" fingerpicked figuration, not foreseeable after such stringent minimalist methods. But it works fine as a closure, putting the ultimate seal on a release that requires a lucid immersion as opposed to the usual tendency to float related to similarly conceived pieces. I'm telling you, we're not talking Aidan Baker or Paul Bradley here: in a way, Lepany represents the proverbial realist in an ambit where sirenic stupefaction is more or less the norm."-Massimo Ricci, Touching Extremes


Artist Biographies

"Justin Lépany is a French guitarist and composer based in Berlin. He was born in Tokyo in 1980 from a French mother and an American father. He studied Jazz Guitar at the Music Academy in Paris and Musicology at Paris VIII University. After studying at the Music School of Cardiff University on a state fellowship he returned to Paris and gratuated in 2005 with a thesis on Spectralism. Shortly therafter, he relocated to Berlin, where he works as a composer, guitarist and teacher. His music was performed in Berlin, Paris, London, Zurich, Vienna, Milano as well as Rio de Janeiro, Mexico City, and Minsk. His composition for bells Ringing Peace was premiered during the opening of the 2014 Peace Nobel Prize ceremony in Oslo. As a guitarist, he plays solo recitals across Europe and has done a lot of studio work, most recently on Fritz Kalkbrenner's album Ways over Water. He is very active on the European free improvisation scene, performing with musicians like free jazz cult figure Sven-Åke Johansson. 2015 saw the release of Agnes (in Redemption), a solo album uniting his music with his photographic work."

-Justin Lepany Website (https://justinlepany.wordpress.com/the-man/)
3/25/2024

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.


Track Listing:



1. Agnes (In Redemption) 25:38

2. Tugududu (God Of Smokes) 7:54

3. And Raven Stole The Sun 14:38

Related Categories of Interest:

May 2017
Improvised Music
Electro-Acoustic
Guitarists, &c.
Solo Artist Recordings
European Improvisation, Composition and Experimental Forms
Creative Sources

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