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On Precipice of a Dream (45'12") sound seekers Howard Givens, Madhavi Devi and Craig Padilla traverse great distances of thought. Presenting the complete recording of their live set for SoundQuest Fest 2021 this release is an intriguing mix of harmonious designs and anomalous forms. Within the framework of seven sonic interludes this trio thinks as one, with the goal of building and exploring a range of sonic zones, then drifting into ever deeper hideaways. Their arrangements bring out feelings of vastness, possibility and potential in their listeners. Calming in an unexpected, otherworldly way Precipice of a Dream may indeed reveal inner realities. But its most obvious success is in the completeness in which its warming electrical current surrounds the listener - cycling steadily to the beat of the human heart. As electronic and technological as this music may seem, there is real humanity at its core. We can hear the musicians thinking through this album as patches of shadow and light ebb and flow about the sound space, and recurring notes tumble through the air in echoing precision. Doom drones provide an impression of infinite distance, while further in overlapping planes in parallel recession produce effects of power, freedom and open-ness. When tranquil sequencer notes trip from the gathering shadows, a rising and recurring energy ascends in echoing trails of tones - eventually to submerge in trembling turbid textures of sound. Freeing themselves in the cool clean waters of a live concert, raising a structure out of silence, in a style that is personal to each, yet creates something greater than each on their own, this outfit approaches the bold possibilities of Spacemusic. Their Precipice of a Dream exhibits the vitality of working together - in a soft cosmos of collaboration.
- Chuck van Zyl/STAR'S END 8 July 2021 |
