Lately itâs not difficult to find a record with Robert Beattyâs name on it. His artâs adorned the cover of scores of albums in the past few years, from the underground electronics of the Spectrum Spools label to bigger indie releases by Oneohtrix Point Never and Peaking Lights. His solo project Three Legged Race put out an excellent debut full-length called Persuasive Barrier earlier this year, followed by another strong effort from his long-term noise trio Hair Police. But until now nothing featuring Beattyâs own music has been released under his given name.
Itâs interesting, then, that he chose Soundtracks for Takeshi Murata to be the first official Robert Beatty album, since itâs essentially a collaboration. He made all the music himself, but crafted it to accompany the films of âdigital video glitch pioneerâ Takeshi Murata. Having to keep Murataâs images in mind would presumably force Beatty to react and stretch, depriving him of complete control. To some extent that is the case: the music here has a less defined and distinct personality than that of Three Legged Race.
But in a way, thatâs why it makes sense to label it as the work of Robert Beatty. Where Three Legged Race focuses on a narrower range, Soundtracks for Takeshi Murata gives a greater sense of what Beatty is capable of sonically and thematically. And where Persuasive Barrier was often about restraint, the music here is bigger and broader, painting aural images in bolder, thicker colors. There are solid drones, dense atmospheres, undulating synths, and sound effect-like events that grab attention. There is some restraint tooâone track, âEscape Spirit Videoslimeâ, plays like distant space transmissionsâbut most of Soundtracks is right up front, ready to fill your ears.
Itâs also ready to fill your eyes, or at least the ones in your mind. Beatty, who also makes films and installations along with his prolific cover artwork, has a visual sensibility thatâs as strong as his musical instincts. Here that comes across in the way images and motion seem to leap from his sounds. In opener âCone Eaterâ, whirring tones and low rumbles conjure a silvery, metallic skyline, while on âUntitled (Silver)â (whose Murata film can be seen here) voice-like echoes and jolts of noise evoke a surreal, burned-out war zone.
Whatâs particularly impressive about that vividness is the way Beatty achieves it without mimicking Murata. It mustâve been tempting to cut up sound busily in response to Murataâs glitches, but Beatty opts to dole it out in waves, responding more to the fluidity of Murataâs films than their activity. Thatâs clearest in the albumâs centerpiece, a 20-minute accompaniment to Murataâs âUntitled (Pink Dot)â. Starting with a simple, nursery-rhyme-like pattern of notes, Beatty slowly fills the track with
ripples and repetitions until it becomes epic, somewhere between the expanses of a deep-space sci-fi film and the sleepless minimalism of Terry Riley.
That kind of vast sound makes Soundtracks one of Beattyâs most widescreen works, but itâs alsoâparadoxically, perhapsârelatively limited in its potential appeal. Where Three Legged Race often offers hooks here and there to latch onto, Soundtracks is more suited for listeners inclined toward abstraction. But as an indication of how limitless Beattyâs palate isâand how much further he could take his musicâSoundtracks for Takeshi Murata is as valuable as anything heâs done.(via)
snowghoul
andulkaphoto
discoholicmusic
blakekathryn
pixelskylines
baratheonpilled
tangentwithtanner
titsay
gummygunk