a r t i s t : Adrian Klumpes
t i t l e : Be Still
d a t e : 2006
l a b e l : Leaf
c a t : BAY56CD
s o u r c e : CDDA
g e n r e : Avantgarde / Post Classical
r l s. d a t e : Oct/2006
t r a c k s : 09
b i t r a t e : Lame 3.97 -v2 (APS)
s i z e : 75,8 MB
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Like a long exhalation of breath, Adrian KlumpesÆ debut solo
album arrives with an intuitive sense of calm. But this is no
chill out music; Be Still reflects a search for peace in a
fractured world. Like a Rothko canvas, Be Still is minimal and
introspective, yet rich and intense; a rush of colour from a
deliberately limited palette. As Klumpes explains: ôMinimalism
assumes much more involved actions before and after the
eventö. As a result, the album is vested with a range of
emotion: feelings of violence, relief, loneliness, pain and
finality are integral to the recordings.
Recorded in a single five-hour session in KlumpesÆ hometown of
Sydney, all the sounds were captured in the same room, with
the same mics, using the same piano. Simultaneously
premeditated and spontaneous, the recordings strive for an
edgy tranquility.
ôI wanted to capture three moments,ö Klumpes says, ôCreation,
performance and process. And each of these with a certain
stillness.ö However far from the original performances the
subsequent processing diverged, this continuity and focus
gives the album a coherence and integrity that belies the
subtle manipulation. ôItÆs about honesty; concentrated
awareness,ö says Klumpes, ôa commitment to follow the ideas
through without hesitation or pretence.ö
As the track titles suggest, a sense of unease pervades the
album, drawing the listener in and highlighting a narrative
rare in instrumental music, as Klumpes seeks to exorcise the
ghosts in the piano. The centerpiece of Be Still is
undoubtedly the 10-minute æUnrestÆ, a masterpiece of
dissonance and harmony that ebbs and flows like the sensation
of breathing.
This continual shifting and searching is typical of KlumpesÆ
work. He has released two albums as pianist/keyboard player in
Triosk (Moment Returns and, this summer, The Headlight
Serenade), as well as a collaboration with Jan Jelinek, 1+3+1.
KlumpesÆ first solo release, Be Still is an endlessly
fascinating glimpse of the vision and attention to detail of
this extremely talented individual.
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01-Cornered [04:08]
02-Weave In And Out [05:05]
03-Be Still [06:32]
04-Alone [05:19]
05-Unrest [09:54]
06-Why [02:01]
07-Exhale [07:00]
08-Give In [05:04]
09-Passing Pain [06:08]
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51:11 min