Brian Leber Till CD (A21)
Brian Leber is a composer based out of Chicago, USA. Alluvial is proud to present his first widely available work which is entitled “Till”. “Till” is mostly an amalgam of pieces that appeared in slightly different form in his own tiny private editions between 2001 and 2004. Leber comes from a musical background which is more traditional, from a compositional perspective. However, the style Leber demonstrates here is likely to be one that is familiar to fans of other Alluvial releases- delicate field recordings, found sounds, manipulated objects, and scrupulous attention to detail. The execution of his works is what catches the listener’s ear, and Leber uses no synthesizers while composing. This is not improvisational music, but rather graphically scored prior to execution. The pieces have room to breath, expand, and let the listener set the pace at which to take it all in. The first piece is “Isobar”, which begins way deep down in the distance until it slowly builds into a rather massive, dense sound sculpture of howling wind, stones, short wave radio, and sistrum. The second is “Tracing Stones”, which as its title implies, is a study of found sounds from stone, field recordings, and is accented by a dragging, droning cello which suggests some of David Jackman’s work from the Vacant Lights/Sphyx period. Last, is “Mountains and Rivers” which combines the sound of manipulated objects and double bass into organic blend which does not really sound at all as its technical description might imply. This piece is as delicately composed as some of bernhard gϋnter’s early work, but as lithic and rudimentary as Jeph Jerman. As the title “Till” suggests, Leber’s work focuses on the organic qualities of sound and the details that often go overlooked. A very powerful debut.
$8 post paid in North Amercia. Elsewhere see the Alluvial Shop page for additional postage.
NOTE: The e-mail address Brian provided in "Till" is no longer functional. To contact him, please use:
brianleber(at)hotmail.com
REVIEWS
Vital Weekly 507 (Frans de Waard)
'Till' is the debut release of one Brian Leber, from Chicago, USA. Or better his first widely available work. The three pieces here were all released in small editions here and there between 2001 and 2004. Although his background is inside more serious composing, his work includes the more common (at least in Vital Weekly grounds) field recordings, electro-acoustics and drones. Apparently Leber writes scores before he performs them, leaving out the improvised side of his music. This works in various directions, each represented on this CD. In 'Isobar', the opening piece, things start out at a relatively soft volume, working their way up scale in a mighty crescendo before everything goes into decrescendo, which takes about the same amount of time. Sounds sources seem to include short wave radio, field recordings of a heavy storm and debris flying around. In 'Tracing Stones', a stone plays a role, but also the gentle playing of a cello. Here there is also a strong sense of density, but it works on a totally different level. The music is more and spacious, yet still dense. A bit Olivia Block like, or certain periods of Organum. The last piece is 'Mountains And Rivers', which apparently has the 'sound of manipulated objects and double bass'. The opening sounds reminded me tablets dissolving in water. Vaguely in the background there is the humming of a bass, and light crackle of an unknown origin. This piece, like the previous, has also two parts in it, because it breaks down and seems to be moving on to something else. I am not too sure why this is, but in 'Mountains And Rivers' it doesn't work to well. Both parts are quite loosely organized, but fail to leave a lasting impression. That's a pity, since the other two are very nice, but maybe two-third isn't a bad score either.
W I R E Magazine #266 April 2006 (Jim Haynes)
Alluvial boldly liken the debut of Chicago composer Brian Leber to Organum's seminal albums Vacant Lights and Sphyx- both combine scraping of elements and longform bowing. The comparison sets a very high bar, but fortunately Leber often comes close to reaching it. He's at his best when accumulating sympathetic sounds from acoustic elements (small stones, leaves and rice being rubbed together) into linear compositions alongside shortwave and wind recordings. On "Isobar" these soft masses of white noise slowly evolve into an atmosphere that's vaguely ominous and sublimely contemplative. Leber occasionally stumbles when introducing cello and double bass, especially when he's percussively tapping at the string. But when he limits himself to a growling drone from either of his stringed instruments, he finds a good pairing for the restricted palette of a couple of rocks or a handful of twigs.
Touching Extremes May 2006 (Massimo Ricci, Italia)
The sound of stones is of primary importance for Leber, who uses them in all the three pieces comprised by "Till". Don't you think about some edulcoration of raw matter, though; this music unfolds with gradual, shivering authenticity in a discolored world of organic and instrumental layers that are totally alluring in their unassuming bareness. In "Isobar", wind and shortwave radio are channeled in a single current of isolation from the rest of the world; both "Tracing stones" and "Mountains and rivers" use the riveting breath of a double bass, whose frail spurious notes lose splinters of harmonic rust during intimate dialogues with wood, leaves, water sounds and bowl gong. Leber does not look for powerful appearances or tricky imagery; one figures him doubled over the ground, intent in the discovery of a primordial source of inspiration for his intriguing hoards of precious understatements.
GAZ-ETA 44, June 2006, Poland (Tom Sekowski)
Quoting Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe from "Wilhelm Meister's Travels": "Stones are mute teachers; they silence the observer, and the most valuable lesson we learn from them we cannot communicate." So, what exactly was US composer Brian Leber attempting to communicate when he was recording this CD? "Till", which is a compilation of three long-form pieces that have appeared previously on small private editions, introduces field recording with a heavy emphasis on stones and rocks of all kinds. His 2002 piece "Isobar" takes wind, small stones, sistrum, graps and shortwave radio; puts all of these in a blender and lets the sparks fly - in a very non-chalant way. Literally, there are no fireworks here, just pure unadulterated sounds of the elements. I especially think the concoction of a slow-blowing wind goes quite well with mutated, humming shortwave radio static. The second piece, "Tracing Stones", incorporates cello, which is heavily featured side by side wood, rain stick and small stones. Gentle scraping on the strings of the cello produce a good contrast to the barely audible stones. In the final piece, "Mountains and Rivers", Leber choose to add a bowl gong, rice, water, double bass, rain stick, leaves and mixed stones to produce a twenty minute study of the reality of a field recording. Gentle sifting of the rice together with occasional use of the bass and the constant crackling of stones and leaves make for a fascinating listen. Evenly paced and recorded with much care and afterthought, "Till" allows stones to speak in their own, unique language.
