david kristian -
the mariana trench CD
Oral
David Kristian, who is rumored to be on
his way to launching a career focusing on soundtrack work, serves
himself well with this precursor on his latest The Mariana Trench.
Recorded during the snowstorms of ’03 in Montreal, Kristian reprises
much of his beloved ambient past through watery imagery and
technology...
-TJ Norris (Igloo
Magazine)
...a new work by David Kristian, the
Canadian musician who always takes me by surprise. Many of his works play
around with rhythm, but on this new CD, rhythm is entirely absent.
Kristian recorded two lengthy improvisations during a snow storm, using a
toy synthesizer and classic guitar effects, which were later on edited and
processed further until the seven parts of this CD came together. A deep
listening experience, but with a somewhat more raw touch than a standard
ambient work, and that's what I like about it. The rawness of the
material, the sheer minimalist approach, the subtle variations. It is work
to listen to in a darkened room, or at night with the curtains open, so
you can watch some stars. The seven parts form a unity and this is a
particularly strong album. Maybe it will not appeal to Kristian's rhythm
posse, but it surely appealed to me.
-FdW
(Vital
Weekly)
The Mariana Trench is located in the
Pacific Ocean, just east of the 14 Mariana Islands near Japan. It is
the deepest part of the Earth's oceans, and the deepest location of the
Earth itself.
It was created by ocean-to-ocean subduction, a phenomena in which a plate
topped by oceanic crust is forced below another plate topped by oceanic
crust.
The Mariana Trench CD was put together from two very long
loop
improvisations recorded during snow storms. The equipment used was
relatively simple;
a Casio VL-Tone toy
synthesizer and many classic guitar pedals operated with great care (the
calm of the snow storms made that possible).
As Cricklewood
was an homage to Forbidden planet composers Louis and Bebe Barron, The
Mariana Trench could be seen as a homage to
Robert Fripp's
Frippertronics and
Soundscapes performances and recordings.
Let there be no interruption in your descent, as you experience David
Kristian's deep and challenging Mariana Trench. Markers have been provided
for you to use as reference points in the event that you start getting the
bends during the album's 68 minute running time.
Headphones and other audio diving gear are highly recommended.
Oral launched
The Mariana Trench, David Kristian's
final soundscape album under his own name on Friday May 13th at
Laďka
(4040, St-Laurent, in Montreal). David Kristian and turntable experimentalist
Martin Tétreault
(who also has a new release on Oral) improvised a special duo set.
