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Runtime: 28'20''
«It is somewhat common these times, to see young artists and bands going back to the past seeking inspiration and influence to make contemporary works, today. Nic - Nicolaas Zwart - is no exception. This 19 year old musician from Olympia (Washington, USA) presents us with his third EP, after
releasing at AudioTong and at Maetrix Solution. The recipe used by Nic here is pretty much the same used before: Old-school synths, pushed away in long-form dynamic waves, cold and edgy soundscapes with a warm and fuzzy feeling, and artificial and spatial bass lines, where everything else rests on.
'Arc of A Bird' starts with some very emotional synth lines, melodical and nostalgic, that start to open up to filtered percussion and rhythmic fx. There's a twist in it after a couple of minutes, introducing some new elements, like bass, staying in the background for some time. Nic's compositions need some time and room to breathe and gain some strenght to make it to the end. This song is a perfect example.
'Mumbai Slum (Version 2)' is a long piece, which actually feels longer than it really is. Very slow paced, like a slow motion digital symphony, it sucks us into its void of synths until you lose track of time. This is a really hipnotic track, although Nic doesn't use any drone elements in it. Nicely accomplished.
'Winter Forest' works as the EP's interlude, building up a church-like melody of organs and synth effects, with some interesting reverb and sharp sounds underneath.
'Arc of A Bird Part Two' could be the subtitle for 'Street Kid'. Nic uses the same synth lines that he used in the first track, but this is a much more intricate and complex track. Almost crosses IDM territory, when he throws those percussion bleeps and bloops in the first half. It then evolves in a slow and descending march towards the end.
Final chapter with 'Welcome To Nowhere'. Sounds like the goodbye it pretends to be, but it could also work like another interlude, if this EP were to grow any further. More warm synth lines, glitchy but discrete effects and fuzzy melodies wrap up a very interesting EP from Desolation Wilderness.
We're left with the feeling that Nicolaas still has much more to say, and we hope he continues to deliver. Nice one.»
- Pedro Leitão |
Downloads:
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• Arc of a Bird ........................................................................... |
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[6'10'' • 8,47Mb • VBR] |
| 02 |
• Mumbai Slum (Version 2) ....................................................... |
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[8'00'' • 11,1Mb • VBR] |
| 03 |
• Winter Forest ......................................................................... |
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[2'31'' • 3,47Mb • VBR] |
| 04 |
• Street Kid ................................................................................ |
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[6'19'' • 8,67Mb • VBR] |
| 05 |
• Welcome to Nowhere .............................................................. |
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[5'20'' • 7,32Mb • VBR] |
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• artwork ................................................................................... |
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[PDF-Zip • 2,39Mb] |
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• all tracks + artwork ................................................................ |
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[Zip • 30,2Mb] |
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Reviews:
«Cinque tracce di notevole bellezza, ispirate. Una delle cose che sicuramente colpiscono leggendo le note di Test Tube all’album è che questo talentuoso americano è veramente giovane; soprattutto perché le vibrazioni sono sottili, sofisticate, tese ad uno stato meditativo, private della sezione ritmica e di melodie cantabili: sembra esserci un’ispirazione metafisica (traccia 3 – Winter Forest). Se alcuni sinth ricordano da vicino i Pink Floyd di ‘Shine on you’ (traccia 2 – Mumbai Slum), le fonti d’ispirazione sembrano da rintracciarsi soprattutto nell’elettronica d’avanguardia degli anni ’70: Tangerine Dream, per dirne una. La ricerca sui suoni non è puramente estetica, ma mossa da una sincera necessità, da una profondità d’animo veramente rara.»
- Bottegasonora [EARLabs] / October 09, 2006
«Cinquantième sortie du netlabel Test Tube, ça se fête, non? L'Américain Nicolaas Zwart, aka Desolation Wilderness, s'y colle. Et de belle manière, je trouve. Vieux synthés, nappes alcoolisées à souhait, rythmiques discrètes, le tout soupoudré d'effets à la dandinette. Ça sonne comme une recherche musicale de la fin des années 70. Trop rèche pour être comparé à Brian Eno. Trop lent pour s'attacher l'image de LFO. Je ne sais pas bien pourquoi, mais j'ai pensé à Polmo Polpo quand j'ai écouté ce délicieux album... Cela doit venir des mélodies assez surprenantes, relativement anémiques. Beau projet que celui de ce jeune Américain de 19 ans en tout cas.»
- LaFresto / September 27, 2006 |
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Copyleft:
cover:
©2006 Nicolaas C. Zwart
©2006 aeriola::behaviour
music:
©2006 Nicolaas C. Zwart
©2006 test tube
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