Unfolk - Unfolk (cd)
Shifting from acoustic intimacy to metallic rage and from raga to dark electronics, Alessandro Monti's debut release as Unfolk combines unorthodox music for mandolin, with ethnic percussion, violin and a variety of guitars/electronic processes.
Presented in a gatefold cover (with insert: The Lost Opus of Heracleum Ipotesis), these are the last copies of the limited edition first pressing of the album.
'Beautifully produced music that brings a refreshing new angle to the folk/world/electro discourse.' - Daniel Biro
Tracks
1. Il Sogno Di Devi (4:38)
2. Regioni Di Pietra (4:03)
3. Viaggiatori Perduti (6:53)
4. Aerofolk (11:40)
5. Almanacco Del Giorno Prima (2:34)
6. Raga Del Fiume Elettrico (8:44)
7. Da Una Stagione Lontana (5:05)
8. Stereostudio N.1 (5:33)
9. Fricke Out (1:37)
10. Fine Dell'infanzia / Oscura Profezia (5:14)
Notes
The Lost Opus Of Heracleum Ipotesis/The Birth of Unfolk (English version):
This cycle of important recordings represents an attempt at putting order for the first time to the enigmatic work of the great musician and theoretician from Venice.
The greatest challenge encountered firstly in the process of restoration has been the lack of care in which the original manuscripts had been kept, often damaged by varying temperature of the location in which they were stored in addition to meteorological and astronomical events. The latter are considered to be the biggest culprit: the infamous K meteorite fallen on earth suddenly in the XIII century had rendered unreadable certain fragments which appear to be essential in the decoding of the work.
The general atmosphere of many of the pieces has been recreated with the aid of an extremely sophisticated software program capable of scanning the memory of persons and objects portrayed in the paintings and miniature art of the period: such an emotive process has thus revealed a mysterious and fascinating world. In fact the great theoretician had appeared and vanished on a regular basis in various time periods leaving no trace with the exception of his rather hard to pin-point compositions, difficult to date and very rarely performed. The frequent use of pseudonyms on his part had furthermore complicated the task.
Regardless of these holes in the time sequence the density and breadth of his works has greatly influenced all of his contemporaries creating a point of reference and an aura of myth. Also, with the extraordinary discovery of a pre-edison type of audio recording done on a wooden medium still fairly well preserved it was possible to come even closer to the original concept. This medium, covered in wax heated at the appropriate temperature in order to be able to have sounds impressed on it and cooled immediately after the process, has been studied and decoded to the point of revealing its most intimate essence.
The philological research has finally reached an advanced stage thanks to all the attention given to the smallest of detail. This prototype of multi tracking device appear to have been invented by the artist in order to make sure both arrangement and exact sonorities of the pieces are correct, something which was impossible to do in early music.
Through a rather primitive amplifier assembled for the occasion, magical notes which were thought to be forever lost have now reappeared as through a form of incantation, cleaned from the dust of time. Other never seen before works have recently been recovered inside a forgotten drawer: it's the rare and extremely valuable collaboration with the Anonymous traveling musician.
This new digital medium allows us today to have an accurate interpretation of the lost work of Heracleum Ipotesis and brings us closer to the understanding of one of the most fascinating musical languages of all time: unfolk.
(translation by Alex Masi)
