Dear friends
Covid-19 is dangerously impacting the social-economic category of musicians. No concerts, poor political and social consideration, uncertain earnings. As a consequence, an ever-growing number of musicians, especially those from the experimental area, are trying to promote their music on BandCamp in digital format only. It is increasingly difficult for me to follow and review this incredible flow of music. I therefore decided to open this section on my blog Neuguitars where I propose music in digital format that I consider particularly interesting and worthy of attention. I hope you like it. Let’s support musicians. They need it.
Andrea Aguzzi
Phantasmagoria, or A Different Kind of Journey by The Eivind Aarset 4-tet, Bandcamp, 2021
J”Phantasmagoria, or A Different Kind of Journey” is the latest album by the Eivind Aarset 4tet, to be released September 2021 at Punkt Festival, Kristiansand. Featuring Eivind Aarset, Wetle Holte, Erland Dahlen and Audun Erlien, the album is no departure in terms of the compositional quality contained therein, as it remains gold standard. But sonically and texturally? This album features more traditional guitar sounds and techniques than can be found on almost all of his previous albums taken together, while still incorporating his signature tonal manipulations that render the guitar sound into almost unrecognizable forms. The album traverses the full gamut of the instrument’s tonal possibilities, from Joe Pass tones to ambient textural soundbeds, from blistering shredding to controlled noise and signal. The line-up is augmented by Jan Bang and John Derek Bishop on several tracks, and Arve Henriksen on one.
The compositions by turns can be straightforward instrumentals with a heavy groove, rhapsodic tone poems, quasi-ambient jazz, expressionistic campaigns of sonic annihilation, delicate variations and improvisational explorations built upon melody and harmony, and, not infrequently, a combination of any or all of the above.
releases September 17, 2021
Wetle Holte —
Drums / Percussion / Metallophone.
Drum Programming / Mellotron on
Outbound (or) Stubb1 /
Organ on Manta Ray (or) Soft Spot.
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Erland Dahlen —
Drums / Percussion / Logdrum /
Vibraphone. Drum Programming on
Soft Grey Ghosts (or)
Twilight Chamber.
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Audun Erlien —
Bass. Casio Synth on Intoxication.
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Eivind Aarset —
Guitar / Electronics / Edits.
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Guests —
Arve Henriksen —
Trumpets on Manta Ray (or) Soft Spot.
Jan Bang —
Samples on Manta Ray (or) Soft Spot,
Didn’t See This One Coming & Soft
Grey Ghosts (or) Twilight Chamber.
John Derek Bishop —
Field Recordings & Treatments on
Manta Ray (or) Soft Spot & Light on Sanzu River (or) Dreaming of a Boat.
NeuGuitars 