This is a summary write up of the second Amplissima album, Zon Meditates.
Like most Amplissima albums, this one was recorded outside on a very windy day.
E picked the recording site.
He likes to record in this area a lot.
It's outside in the woods of the Fells in MA in the foundation of a long since vanished house.
Having already cut one album together, the Bells of Oddney, we felt more comfortable working together and I think it shows.
We set up a bunch of Zoom recorders all around us and then cut loose.
Amplissima is (at least this time around):
Tim Mungenast: voice, electric guitar, overtone singing. glissando guitar, bells, hand noises, overtone singing
E Dahlfree: voice, trumpet, loops, electronics, overtone singing, varmint call, bells
Dobra Jené Ashentree: voice, mandolin, woodrow, Tibetan bowl, melody harp, tongue drum, rocks, sticks, and other natures wonders
Drake Robey: voice, vibra slap, monotron, stylophone, kalimba, zither
Released May 5, 2023 Copyright 2023 by Amplissima
1. Zon Meditates 4:19 - I fell in love with the vibra slap years ago. I don't use it much but it is fun and I still love the sound. E's trumpet reaches some beautiful heights on this track. I believe Tim named this one and thus the album. This is a real slow building track.
2. Possibly Beyond Europa 6:01 -E takes the spoken word lead here then Dobra picks it up.
A rather tribal number. The wind through the trees makes some fun sounds on this track.
Lots of percussion. I was using the monotron on this one. The monotron is a hand held synth.
Some nice tree squeaking sounds towards the end.
3. Phil Brook’s Electric Dream 5:45 - Tim does some tasty guitar-tronics on this track which Dobra backs up on the Woodrow then switches to percussion. Tim named this one. One of the fun things about recording with this group is we tend not to talk a lot about what we're going to do in advance. We just go for it. Tim took the lead without saying he was going to, and we backed him up without any need for talking about it.
4. Thee Gentle People 5:28 -E starts off the spoken stuff here. Some deep overtone singing
by E and Tim. Dobra's Woodrow holds it together. Tim's guitar storms in towards the later half.
The stylophone almost sounds like voices towards the end of the track.
5. Sklorge! 2:33 -Tim named this one and the exclamation mark is important. You can't just say Sklorge. When saying Sklorge you have to say Sklorge! Some nifty guitar riffing by Tim on this one. This nutty instrumental track is a good break between the two longer pieces. Kalimba noises by me.
6. What Killed the Humans? 5:55 -Dobra starts off the spoken bits. What killed the humans? I still haven't figured that out. The wind is a big part of this track along with some long guitar dive bombs by Tim! We all latch onto Dobra's spoken bit. What killed the humans? I think Dobra is also beating on some rocks on this one. What killed the humans?
7. Varmint Call 2:27 -E played a varmint call on this track and I am pretty sure I heard
some animal rustling in the nearby bushes after he played it. Dobra is rocking out with some rocks on this track. Another short yet bizarre instrumental break.
8. Grove Street Grove 6:21 -E named this one. I tortured the zither on this one. E plays a mean bell on this one. Some of my spoken bits on this one were recorded at home and dropped in later.
I dig the woodrow played by Dobra on this one. The fade out on this one is pretty darn tasty to me. Nifty guitar by Tim! My spoken bit was partially inspired by an episode of the TV show Babylon Five.
When mixing and mastering albums like this I do not try to conceal the fact that we recorded outside. What would the point in that be? I actually try to enhance the outdoor sounds. Why record outside if you don't want to capture the sounds of nature?
The cover drawing is by Tim.
It is forever amazing to me that I get to play with such talented musicians.
This makes me very lucky.
It's always a little difficult for me to go backwards so much, but if an arty type can't look back, how can they really look forward?
Yours in sound meditation,
Count Robot
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