[releases] afe108lcd
subinterior: mesmerize

Track List:

1.  The White Space  8:13

2.  The Dominant Color  5:08

3.  Azuria  7:30

4.  Instant Forever  9:59

5.  Mesmerize  15:05

Description:

Subinterior is the dark-ambient oriented project of Andrea Freschi from Milan, Italy.

Andrea is part of the band Canaan as drummer and he's also a member of Konau, along with Gabriele Panci (New Risen Throne), whose debut CD was released by Eibon Records in early 2006.

He also played drums on Weltschmerz's "Capitale de la Doleur" and self-released "#10110", the dark-ambient / industrial debut of Coma Divine, one of his side-projects.

Subinterior is a project born from the urge to create tracks using only excerpts taken from the usual noises and sounds that normally surround us.

The equipment he uses to create his compositions consists of a mini-disc recorder that is mainly used to capture atmospheres created by millers, lapping wheel, lathes, industrial refrigeration plants, safety doors and other unusual "instruments".

These recordings are usually massively processed and assembled using computer technology and softwares.

With this simple but effective method, during 2002-2003 he created and self-released two good CD-R albums entitled "Outfall" and "Insomnie". Both of them were re-released by Silentes in late 2005.

His third attempt at creating obsessive and gloomy atmospheres was entitled "Obstacles". It was released in Japan by Deserted Factory in early 2005.

During the years Subinterior's music was featured on some compilations, including "No Abiding Places" on Afe.

A serie of collaborative MiniCD-R 3" with Selaxon Lutberg dedicated to the four seasons was released by Cold Current Prod. in 2006-2007.

"Mesmerize" is Andrea Freschi's fifth full-lenght work. Once again it was created with almost no samples and keyboards as most of the sounds included consists of field-recordings manipulated by computer technology and softwares.

The result falls into the dark ambient / experimental musical territory, althought the overall effect is aurally dynamic, as usually happens with Subinterior's releases.

"Mesmerize" basically follows on from the previous Subinterior release, "The Chrysalis Secret", showcasing his ability at creating deep and obscure atmospheres without falling into cheap clichés.

The album spreads over five tracks and has a dense start with "The White Space", which becomes more minimal and then is filled with mysterious noises resembling an haunted aviary.

"The Dominant Colour" is a short number built on layers of windy and metallic drones from which a disturbing voice suddendly emerges.

"Azuria"'s undercurrents follow on with their subliminal microevents and effected metallic chimes, before turning into a shifting simple melody which ends up in mild distortion.

"Instant Forever" continues the journey with a sort of percussive loop that fades into a sustained drone later filled with distorted sonic scoriae of undefined nature.

The title track, being the longest on the album, slowly evolves from an unsettling crowded inception into a basic drone number via backward effects. The last section of the track is enriched by an evocative reversed/bowed melody, which closes the disc as a real mesmerizing treatment.


Reviews:

"Subinterior è il progetto dark ambient di Andrea Freschi, batterista dei Canaan. "Mesmerize", avvolto nello splendido artwork di Mauro Berchi, si compone di field recordings e campionamenti di chitarra (chiaramente percepibili nella title-track), opportunamente manipolati, dilatati, estesi all'infinito. L'impianto è minimale e austero, l'atmosfera è cupa ma non oppressiva, spesso si ha la sensazione di trovarsi in immensi spazi vuoti. Il disco, dunque, pur mantenendo una sua impronta, si muove in territori non molto lontani da quelli di Caul e di Andrea Marutti (del resto questa è un'edizione Afe Records)..."
Audiodrome [more]

"Have you ever tasted this guy from Milan? No? If you're into dark ambient I highly recommend you to give him a try since as I've said a couple of weeks ago for Harvest Reed (a.k.a. Luasa Raelon), even if the world is so over-packed of dark ambient wishy-washy projects there's still a bunch of good artist able to put out interesting material... If compared to his previous work on Afe I find it more melodic and way more ethereal due to the fact you have less field recordings and more melodies coming in and out just to say bye... The five episodes in which this release can be divided can be easily listened as a continuum, infact this dropping in and out of sounds and short litanies during the whole length turns the work into a very discrete and catchy listening."
Chain D.L.K. [more]

"What's amazing with this release is that it gets better and better with each listen. The first time you listen to it, it sucks you in right away, but the more you listen to it, the more you notice how good and special it really is. I mean, there is a lot of dark-ambient projects out there, and a lot of good ones, but it sometimes takes its time to get to the really excellent and original ones. This project belongs to the latter category... It sticks into your brain and won't let go. Then the only thing left to do is listen to it over and over again! This is what great music does to you, highly recommended!"
Gothtronic [more]

"Torna a farsi sentire il giovane progetto di Andrea Freschi, ancora una volta prodotto dalla mano esperta di Andrea Marutti della Afe Records ed arricchito da un bell'artwork fuori formato curato da Mauro Berchi. Le affinità con le lande più oscure si sentono già dal titolo, che cita la curiosa pratica curativa di Mesmer, per esplodere poi nelle cinque lunghe tracce del disco. Partendo da field recordings e campioni di chitarra opportunamente lavorati tramite software, Andrea struttura un lavoro dark ambient legato da una parte ai classici del genere, dall'altra ad una ristretta cerchia italica nata in tempi recenti e capitanata da nomi come Selaxon Lutberg o lo stesso Marutti. Le atmosfere generate riescono a volte a colpire nel segno: un pezzo come "The Dominant Color" ti fa sentire intrappolato in un tubo da cui filtrano rumori e voci luciferine, il drone monocorde che taglia buona parte di "Instant Forever" trasmette il folle gelo dell'ossessione..."
Darkroom Magazine [more]

"Secondo metodologie già applicate nei quattro album precedenti e in più miti formati Subinterior anche in "Mesmerize" edifica ottima dark ambient esclusivamente con field recordings e mimetizzate chitarre. Abile Andrea Freschi a rimanere sempre al confine con l'oscurità senza scampo, evocando vasti spazi abbandonati più che angusti e tetri cunicoli, pur se ogni brano, ad eccezione della conciliante "Azuria" e soprattutto "The Dominant Color" e "Instant Forever", serba bei momenti di più congestionante tensione..."
Blow Up [more]

"Italian musician Andrea Freschi presents a set of manipulated field recordings that hum and drone their way through an innocuous fourtysix minutes. "Mesmerize" doesn't exactly live up to it's title and indeed played at, what I would think of as, a conscious volume it's easy to ignore. It does all the things and has all the elements that a dark(ish) drone album is meant to do and have and is diverting enough in it's way but it never truly hooks itself into your psyche. However, played quietly whilst otherwise occupied it integrates itself into that activity with surprising fluidity revealing it's presence only when the album ends and you notice that something is missing. More importantly, that something good is missing..."
Wonderful Wooden Reasons [more]

"Andrea Freschi, batterista di Canaan e Neronoia, nonché protagonista di una collaborazione con Selaxon Lutberg, realizza un trip affascinante, tra field recordings e campionamenti di chitarra... In cinque atti, dilatati ed austeri, l'album riesce nell'intento di fare riflettere l'ascoltatore sul ruolo dell'elettronica sperimentale e sugli incubi che, da qualche tempo, l'affliggono. Anche se "The White Space" e "Instant Forever" catturano l'attenzione più di altre tracce, non si evince mai un cifrario dogmatico da seguire in maniera maniacale. Al contrario, riverbero e delay, che accompagnano lo scorrere dei brani, danno un senso di profonda comunione e tingono di rosso fuoco le figure che si materializzano nella nostra mente, compiendo un miracolo di semplicità..."
Ritual [more]

"...The tracks go from echoed and deep black textural reverb nd gloomy ebb, onto sinister and slowed beatless industrial scrape that drift into subterranean drone expanses. Onto oscillating and twisting black/discordant guitar shapes that grimly blossom into deep, black 'n' bassy fields of dread filled rumbles. Yet for it the music's dark tone, Freschi ever so often circles out this rich glowing ebb of slight weary harmonic hope which gives a nice counterbalance to the tracks dark pitch and in some ways make the dread filled and darkness feel more potent and chilling. In a field such as black ambient where it's difficult to often sound fresh and inventive, Freschi mangers both in spades. Subinterior mangers to be creative, often surprising in its dark ebbs and folds yet it still mangers to nicely capture that feeling of ageless dread and timeless blackness very well."
Musique Machine [more]