What: “Security” by Wolfgang Merx
Netlabel: weareallghosts
This is a really varied set of (mostly) electronic music; I find I get a little something different out of it every time I listen.
Some of the description from Wolfgang about this music, along with the cover art, let’s you know it’s at least partly inspired by the current surveillance environment we live in. The first track “Drone State” really captures this theme well. It starts off with jarring drone and alarm/siren sounds, then lulls into a more peaceful place with some quiet keyboard, before that calm is broken again at the end.
The rest of the album is not as strictly on point. Sure there are ominous drones at times along with some instrumental distortion, but there are also some more light and airy moments. Sometimes the tunes are more melodic, sometimes more abstract (and sometimes both in the same song). You can pick out hints of influences of early electronic musicians and, although this music is not jazz, at times the synth playing reminded me of Sun Ra when he first discovered the electronic keyboard and would noodle around in some of his pieces.
The (literal and figurative) centerpiece is a track called “Ten Thirty.” There could be some deeper inspiration for the title, but it also happens to be the exact length of the track. This track meanders along, following different trails over a fairly consistent beat. It sounds like it could be a lost Holger Czukay track. To summarize it in one word: Outstanding.
Final track “Volterra” ends things on a slightly lighter, almost ambient note. It sounds a bit hopeful to me, perhaps letting us know things will be OK as the track gently floats off into nothingness.
The weareallghosts netlabel was started by Thomas Mathie “as a means of giving back to the independent music community.” Based in Motherwell, Scotland, the site says the label specializes in “ambient electronic soundscapes but is open to other styles of music.” It looks like they have been releasing music since 2012 and have been very active; there are already over 60 releases to explore. In part of a comment on this particular release Thomas says “My intention for weareallghosts was to be a hub of ‘out there’ creativity…” I’d say mission accomplished with “Security.”