Listen to the album on Bandcamp
Demetrio Cecchitelli – Parallel Syntagm
Label: Florina Cassettes (Canada), 2023
Format: cassette, digital
Demetrio Cecchitelli’s latest offering has recently been released on Florina Cassettes. The album is titled Parallel Syntagm. I became aware of Demetrio’s work through Chitra records. He had a track on the Pacification compilation, and then later partnered with Blanket Swimming on the Sein album. I am a big fan of the Sein album, so I was naturally excited when this offering popped into my Bandcamp feed.
The album opens with the appropriately titled Beginning, I’m not sure what is happening on this track, drones, high-pitched sounds, and echoes are layered with subtle and not-so-subtle textures underneath. It is a great preview of what is to come. Next, we dive deeper into Motioning the album’s second track. These are perfectly distorted pads, with again some really interesting textures underneath. Think doors slamming, or warehouse ambiance, in addition to motors, feedback, and static. This works really well! This may not be the album to help you relax, or meditate, but the sound design and work here is phenomenal.
Tracks 3-7 don’t stray much from the environment Demetrio has created with Parallel Syntagm. Track 3 Miniature has some ambient pads, and rain as textures, while Blue Night features long sweeping pads that begin to let the listener drift a little bit, only to have some additional noises layered underneath that keep you from becoming too comfortable. Dear August the album’s longest track again starts with warm pads that sound more epic, than relaxing. There seems to be a slight distortion to the pads here and you know more layers are coming.
I like this album a lot. I would say the reverb-soaked pads work really well with the textures balanced underneath. Some of the textures are not what you would expect, but Demetrio isn’t afraid to experiment here, which shouldn’t surprise anyone who has listened to the Sein album he collaborated on with Blanket Swimming.
The use of sound design, effects, and technique is at times breathtaking. Slight distortion is placed perfectly within the songs, yet open enough to let things breathe.
Demetrio walks a fine line here on Parallel Syntagm between ambient and experimental. To say the lines are blurred is an understatement. I would say Demetrio created his own grey world full of pads, distortion, textures, field recordings, all of which perfectly weave together.
I only wish the album was longer, I don’t feel like I got to spend as much time in this world as I wanted.
Highly recommend please give this a proper listen through headphones.
Reviewed by Derek Carter (KapTep)
Comments