While the new electroacoustica might best be typified as lacking many of the qualities ordinarily ascribed to music (if anything, it tends to be uncannily amelodic), it still functions like music. It can, or can fail to, evoke certain feelings in the listener. It can be intense, peaceful, exciting, engaging, light-hearted or heavy-handed. It can impress with technical ability or personal charisma. While it might be harder to pigeonhole such obscure sounds, it can, like anything, be masterful or boring.
Simply put, then, Gunther Müller is a master and his eight landscapes is a masterpiece. Müller's language is built from the heavy processing of small acoustic sounds, all captured and manipulated as he performs. Part of what sets him apart from many of this breed of sonicists is the diversity he's built within his own sound world. He can at times be loud or quiet, sparse or fluid, often depending on what a particular partnership dictates. On this long, solo recording, he goes for the lush and beautiful. Elements are introduced slowly and generally stay around for a long time, fading away unnoticed as new events are brought in.
The disc drifts along gracefully, carrying the listener past horizons, always moving, never disrupting with sudden halts or unexpected turns. The "landscape" scenarios are alien yet cogent, and shot through a wide-angle lens. Wherever these landscapes are, we're high above them, with some cloud cover but still a breathtaking view.
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