[reviews] afe097lcd
mathieu ruhlmann: the earth grows in each of us

Here's a very nice record I had hoped to squeeze into issue 16 of the magazine, but my crowbar-wielding capabilities failed me. "The Earth Grows in Each of Us" (afe097lcd) is an optimistic and warm statement from Afe Records in Italy (they also sent two excellent Edward Ruchalski records) and arrives in a slimline card wallet, decorated with photos and collages very suggestive of Joseph Cornell's work.

Aurally, Ruhlmann seems to promise similar worlds of associative mystery and nostalgia, backed up with titles like "All Will Grow Young Again". He plays many acoustic instruments and applies his nimble fingers to lots of objects found in nature, such as pine cones and tree branches (shades of Jeph Jerman there). The overall sound surface however ends up quite heavily treated in the recording process, and emerges resembling an out-of-focus photograph. Lyrical and enchanting.

[Ed Pinsent]