The Goslings – Grandeur of Hair

The Goslings – Grandeur of Hair (2006)

Grandeur of Hair is known to be their most definitive record to date and lead the Goslings onto the influential label Not Not Fun. But it should be noted that Grandeur of Hair was recorded cassette and has been mastered atrociously. It’s rare that I’d ever say this in a positive context, (I’ve only ever used it to describe Ariel Pink’s early material and the Coachwhips) but in this instance, I can. Grandeur of Hair is not a headphone record, oh no, listening to this through headphones would be a close equivalent to having your eardrums powerdrilled. The lack of mastering results in shrieks and wails of explosive noise that drones and reverberates uncontrollably, overwhelming the listener in a flood of guitar-driven textures, howling noise and Leslie Soren’s static cries.

Grandeur of Hair opens with a track that could be described as a fusion of my Bloody Valentine’s Loveless and Merzbow’s Dharma. Sheer intensity is provoked from the layers of feedback and extra-trebled cymbals as Soren’s resounded vocals creep in, which are barely audiable due to the masses of shoegaze blare. ‘Croaton’ is overflowing with racuous guitar sludge and stiffening drum rhythms yet reinforced by characteristic and melodic vocals.  ‘Haruspex’ is a 13-minute piece of gradual building pulses of drones and psychedelic moans until a percussional beat is formed by technical anomalies that jeer and crackle upon the blankets of strident resonance. The album comes to close with ‘Dinah’, a tired yet excessively amplified guitar and drum track that appropriately concludes what is by now an all time favourite record from this Florida duo.

The most challenging aspect of Grandeur of Hair is how beautiful it actually is. Many hear brutal post-apocalyptic pointlessly-noisy clamour who are dependant on loud volume to mask their original arrangements but I hear, behind the strectched riffs and sinister drumbeats, solemn and humble vocals and sweeping atmospheres of blissful ambience, which is a difficult yet equally impressive thing to say about a fundamentally metal album.

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Erik Satie – Gnossiennes & Gymnopédies (Reinbert de Leeuw)

Erik Satie – Gnossiennes & Gymnopédies (Reinbert de Leeuw) (1995)

For my first post on Enter the Mirror, I’ve chose to feature this masterpiece. Hope you enjoy. 

Erik Satie is a revolutionary composer. His work built the foundations on such artistic avant-garde movements as minimalism and applied repetition at least 75 years before these movements emerged. Unlike most artists, not every composer understands Satie and their interpretations of his work reflect that. An apt paradigm of this would be the most renowned versions of his gymnopédies as performed by Pascal Rogé where Satie’s delicate piano arrangements are perceived as heartwarming and consistent melodies. Reinbert de Leeuw, conversely, construes Satie differently.

Reinbert de Leeuw presents us to a fresh, honest and previously unseen side of Satie where he dissects every note to reveal what is essentially the beauty of Satie’s work. The music here is much more serious too as every subtle chord has been reduced and hindered where every tone resonates and leaves me in solace and anticipation to absorb the relieving subsequent note. Interestingly, it is not what is there that makes these compositions so rewarding, but what’s not there; wherever there is silence, ethereal atmospheres follow which divulges why many consider Satie to be a true percusor of modern ambient music.

But fundamentally, how do de Leeuw’s covers differ from other performers?  I admit to believing that Aldo Ciccolini plays the piano works from the perspective of Satie’s humour which, in contrast to de Leeuw’s variations, I’m not in favour of. Rogé’s have been abused by the media as these pieces tend to follow the conventional procedure of simple and traditional piano works, absolutely conforming to the banalities of accessible advertising and thus lacking the experimentation which I recognise as being one of the music’s finest qualities. De Leeuw’s slow pace evokes significance in the music and creates a spiritual connection between the music and the listener, and never fails in providing for an enjoyably comforting and satisfying experience.

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