Mi, 21.04.2010, 20:15 Uhr
ACHTUNG - JETZT IN DER HÖRBAR!!! audiounit 13 - microphonics
Most people will typically associate the set-up of one man and his guitar with folk music. For Microphonics, however, Dirk Serries, the creative force behind vidnaObmana and Fear Falls Burning, has his mind set to different horizons. Equipped with nothing but a gibson les paul and a few effect pedals, he turns clubs, artgalleries, unusual performance spaces and concert houses into intimate spaces of sonic echoes and shimmering overtones. Allowing for the music to grow from the moment, each performance is unique and makes full use of the ambiance and acoustic characteristics of a venue. You can see Serries 'capturing' his own reflections and sending back replies, twisting and turning his guitar to shape the air around it. Ranging from tender, minimal ambient pieces to disturbing cinematic soundscapes, his tracks are based on slowly evolving themes which gradually combine into melancholic melodies and gracefully flowing harmonic patterns. Microphonics is all about drawing the full potential from a reduced instrumentation - evoking associations with electronica, avant-garde and improvisation alike. Whereas Fear Falls Burning is an ongoing exploration of the apparent no-man's land between metal and drones, he is now returning to his roots under his own name, going back to the minimal concept of atmosphere, themes, and structure. The intrinsic sound of electric guitar plays the central role, and is accordingly, in the shape of a gibson 1976 les paul custom, a small arsenal of effects and a fender hot rod tube amp, the sole source of sound. The top layers have been scraped off, and his personal new series, called microphonics (named after the natural resonances of a tube amp), consists of the ultimate simplicity of subtle guitar patterns, harmony, and composition. Dirk Serries has been a prolific force of the experimental music community for over two decades. His earliest explorations into the realms of ambience, abstraction and harmony date back to 1984. Since then, he has released over 50 albums, both as a solo artist or in collaboration with highly respected collagues. Musical partners over the years have included minimal electronica masterminds Asmus Tietchens and Kenneth Kirschner, Steven Wilson of progressive rock band Porcupine Tree, ambient pioneer Steve Roach and drone master Alio Die as well as Steve Von Till of extreme metal band Neurosis. Serries' music has been issued by international labels from the most diverse corners of the music scene: while Projekt, Multimood, Soleilmoon and Hypnos have mainly focussed on his ambient work, Relapse and Conspiracy records have highlighted his more guitar-driven productions. For the highly personal Microphonics project, he has signed to dutch specialist label Tonefloat with its penchant for luxuriously designed vinyl editions.With his various projects, Serries has toured extensively across the globe and gained recognition for his uncompromising, clear and unique version of experimental music. http://www.myspace.com/mymicrophonics
