Marcus Fjellström - Epilogue M
by Adrian Janes
published: 13 / 6 / 2013
Label:
Aagoo Records
Format: CDS
intro
Evocative instrumental EP from Swedish composer and multimedia artist, Marcus Fjellstrom
Marcus Fjellstrom is a Swedish composer and multimedia artist, and fittingly the music on this EP is highly effective at conjuring atmospheres and visions, as if for the soundtrack of an unmade film. A vinyl-like hiss pervades each piece, as though the whole is an old record Fjellstrom has unearthed and set playing in a dark, abandoned mansion as he moves from one vast room to another, the music often seeming tantalisingly distant. Opener ‘Dance Music’ is dominated by an almost musical box melody that evokes a sort of Western gamelan, as eerie sounds spiral in the background. ‘Sinnesloeschen’ and ‘Puretos’ are more atmosphere than music, at different times employing simple piano phrases, waves of strings and trumpet, reverberating drums and touches of cymbal. The latter piece is especially effective: Bernard Hermann is an acknowledged influence, and this is like something for a present-day Hitchcock. Although there is a common feel to the pieces, there is also a subtle variety in the instrumentation and textures Fjellstrom deploys. Probably the majority are generated by electronic keyboards, but suggest more traditional instruments. Thus ‘Penrosum’ uses a gentle harpsichord-like tone set against bells and a slow descending keyboard, while the sound of the pianoharp on ‘Explicator’ resembles a vibraphone, its percussive notes contrasting with mournfully beautiful orchestration. Concluding the EP, ‘Pristine”’ very slowly pulsates as strings rise and fall, reaching probably the most intense point on the EP, before the music drifts away, to be almost submerged in the ever-present hiss by the end. This music has a strange power, at once self-effacing yet gripping. Fjellstrom and his collaborator, graphic artist Bas Mantel, apparently intend Epilogue M’ to evoke the immensity of outer space. This listener hears (and sees) it rather differently. But it seems beyond dispute that, if heard attentively, it will reverberate in inner space.
Track Listing:-
1 Dance Music 32 Puretos
3 Sinnesloschen
4 Penrosum
5 Explicator
6 Pristine
Label Links:-
http://www.aagoo.com/https://www.facebook.com/pages/Aagoo-records/147333939795
https://twitter.com/Aagoo
most viewed articles
current edition
The Church - Interview with Steve KilbeySimon Heavisides - Destiny Stopped Screaming: The Life and Times of Adrian Borland
In Dreams Begin Responsibilities - #15- On Being Dignified and Old aka Ten Tips From Jah Wobble On How To Be Happy.
Secret Shine - Interview
Vetchinsky Settings - Interview
Repomen - Ten Songs That Made Me Love...
Jack Roscoe - Interview
Near Jazz Experience - Interview
Sami Sumner - Interview
Flaming Stars - Interview
most viewed reviews
current edition
Lewis 'Burner' Pugh - Bullets for BreadIan Hunter - Defiance Part 2: Fiction
Inutili - A Love Supreme
Kula Shaker - Natural Magick
Smalltown Tigers - Crush On You
Hillbilly Moon Explosion - Back in Time
My Life Story - Loving You is Killing Me
David Cross Band - Ice Blue Silver Sky
Beyonce - Cowboy Carter
Ty Segall - Three Bells
Pennyblackmusic Regular Contributors
Adrian Janes
Amanda J. Window
Andrew Twambley
Anthony Dhanendran
Benjamin Howarth
Cila Warncke
Daniel Cressey
Darren Aston
Dastardly
Dave Goodwin
Denzil Watson
Dominic B. Simpson
Eoghan Lyng
Fiona Hutchings
Harry Sherriff
Helen Tipping
Jamie Rowland
John Clarkson
Julie Cruickshank
Kimberly Bright
Lisa Torem
Maarten Schiethart