Review Summary: The introspective ebbs and flows of an ambient electronic tide.
The thing I love about
itsudattakke is its simplicity. Not to sound entirely like an esoteric koan, but it is its subtleties that make it complex, and its quietest moments that sometimes make it most resonant. As with plenty of experimental ambiance and drone, there can be perceived lulls in the moments between its gently warbling wind and the slow crash of its melodic and sometimes dissonant leads. But the meeting of those two elements and the calm in between is the current and beauty on which
itsudattakke rides.
The meeting of these two elements - wind and water - establishes a rolling tide of electronic ambiance within the album. At times it flutters, at times it stutters, and at other times, it comes as an ominous wave ushered in by bleak bass clouds. But the flow of the electronic tide of Nathan Derr's follow-up to 2015 LP
abscessant is every bit as tenacious as the breeze and bob of our ocean.
As the dark clouds above the ominous wave of "kālacakra" break, a ray of sunshine enters on follow-up "aufheben." But the tide remains. "dissolution" seems to promise a respite from the breaking waves, but the roll of static merely ferries them at a gentler pace braced by a tense piano tenor and brings them to a swoon of dynamic ambiance as the track progresses. The tide persists, even when it appears calm. And the trend goes on...
Whether Nathan Derr intended for the digital tide I hear in
itsudattakke or not, the result is undeniably contemplative and meditative. Though there's a strong tension in a track like "kālacakra," the overwhelming feeling I get from
itsudattakke is one of thoughtfulness and peace. That said, some of the magic of the sort of music presented here is its openness to interpretation, and I've no doubt others will see landscapes and hear wind whispers that my inner eye does not see and my inner ear does not hear. Some find beauty and calm in the ocean. Others see danger and calamity. But I know that if I can hear the waves in
itsudattakke, you're bound to hear
something worthwhile as long as you listen with a clear mind and an open ear.
