The fourth release from the long-standing sonic research duo of Montreal sound artist Anne-F Jacques, who uses "rotating devices" based around small amplified motors, and Montreal ex-patriot living in Kobe, Japan Tim Olive (845 Audio), using magnetic pickups on objects and self-built instruments, here in six richly detailed and sometimes curiously menacing recordings.
"Sound artists Anne-F Jacques and Tim Olive have been recording together on and off for half a decade. Though both hail from Montréal, Olive has lived in Japan for some years, but makes it back to Canada frequently enough to revisit this ever-fascinating collaboration. For Bistre, their fourth release together, the pair sat down last year in their hometown to concoct six tracks of minimal, tense sonics. Jacques plays what she calls "rotating devices" (small electronic motors that are manipulated and amplified) while Olive uses magnetic pickups. This spartan set-up produces a wide range of sounds, all executed with healthy doses of restraint and distance. At times listeners might find themselves leaning in close to catch all the small whirrs, statics, and pin-prick sounds, but Bistre is perhaps best enjoyed more passively. Let all of Jacques and Olive's tiny aural events seep into your brain without trying too hard to process them, and they tend to stick there for a while."-Marc Masters, Bandcamp Weekly