kind words for sound collision alliance’s 53:38

the kindness comes from acts of silence.

It’s nice to see that Sarah Ritch has so totally embraced the idea behind netlabels and Creative Commons music with her third release in less than a year. This time Ritch, along with Darren Bartolo and Sam Krahn, got together as Sound Collision Alliance and released several tracks based on a 6-hour session, 53:38 (Pan y Rosas). With Bartolo on gu zheng, Sam Krahn on electric guitar, and Ritch on electric guitar, cello and laptop, 53:38 is heavily string centric though odd sounds and percussion are always prevalent. Most of the tracks are upwards to 15 minutes each and, being improvisation, the tracks vacillate between quiet and loud, noise and unnoise, rhythm and irregularity. Always a wandering journey, 53:38 remains cohesive in its design and manner.

get the album here.

kind words for 53:38 by sound collision alliance!

…53″38 dei Sound Collision Alliance, 4 lunghi brani in cui sono le chitarre elettriche e quella gu-zheng (uno strumento tradizionale cinese sistemato a piano, che ha usato anche Fred Frith) a farla da padroni, con un sound molto aderente a certe filosofie post-rock con evidente vicinanza all’avanguardia “da ripetizione” del minimalismo americano, alla “sgangherata” microtonalità di Partch, ai passaggi silenziosi che riflettono concretismo e noise edulcorato. L’album che sembra evocare graficamente la scoperta del bosone di Higgs e che quindi ne potrebbe fornire una sua colonna sonora ideale, è suonato da Sam Krahn e Darren Bartolo (per la parte chitarra) a cui si unisce la stessa Sarah J Ritch al cello e al laptop.

the kindness comes from the blog: percorsi musicali. the full review is here. get 53:38 here.

pan y rosas release 53:38 by sound collision alliance!

sound collision alliance is a group of three composers who were brought together by their shared interest in exploring the world outside the western classical conservatory style of sound creation. the three composers – darren bartolo, sam krahn, and sarah ritch – rarely discuss melodic or harmonic structure before playing. instead, they use improvisation as a means to investigate the interplay of sound. they experiment with the spatial, harmonic, and chronological elements of sound in order to create a forum to experience vibrations and resonance in an uninhibited environment.

53:38 is the first album from sound collision alliance and was recorded in one session over the course of 6 hours. the sounds created range from pure spontaneous noise to repetitive rhythmic grooves. in addition to guitars, cello and laptop you will also hear gu zheng, guitars, cello, and slinky. get it here.