Misound “Stanze di te” Reviewed by Tanner Menard

stanze di te – misound – slow flow rec
May 4th, 2009

Simply put, Misound’s ‘Stanze di Te’ released on Slow Flow Rec is one of the most gorgeous and well rounded albums that I have heard in the experimental/ambient genre. I never make a claim to do totally unbiased reviews. For me, a review is a way to say thank you to an artist and to a label for sharing their work with the world. That said, thank you Misound and Slow Flow for putting out this really remarkable album.

What I love most about ‘Stanze di Te’ is its complex arrangement of source material. Characterized by a lush assortment of environmental sounds, roughly recorded choral, piano, saxophone and percussion sounds with an assortment of granular textures the album takes me to a place where the basic beauty of music is never forgotten. My favorite track is ‘Sonno’ the opener. It is rare for most experimental electronica to start with such a powerful and blatantly romantic tour de force track. Though it is only about two and a half minutes long the opening track packs a sonic punch and opens the door for the proceeding tracks which soften in intensity.

Whereas I am one of the biggest fans of drone, monochromatic tone poems and extreme minimal soundscapes, its a real treat to listen to an album that embodies all of the best elements of experimental/minimal/ambient music while bringing the listener through a myriad sound worlds with ease and mobility. I am also really pumped that pieces were performed live using max/msp patches and recordings of live instrumental performances. There is something real about this music and something original.

Credit also belongs to Ryo Nakata for curating such an amazing series of releases, one after the next, Slow Flow Rec continues to find some of the most innovative voices in the ambient genre. Misound’s ‘Stanze di Te’ is maybe the best kept secret i’ve run into in ages.

http://tannermenard.archaichorizon.com/2009/05/04/stanze-di-te-misound-slow-flow-rec/