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Chas Smith is one of the most unique musicians working today. He has created his own musical world—complete with its own instruments and "language." It is a world of expansive musical tapestries and carefully sculpted textures that never sit absolutely still, but evolve via a slow, constant change of aural perspective. Smith's soundworld, however, it is not an altogether alien one, and critics, in their praise of Smith’s work, have repeatedly compared his compositions—some resonantly beautiful, some darkly brooding, some sonically overpowering—to those of Ligeti.

With Descent, Smith continues to create the great, sometimes clangorous soundscapes that have fed the popularity of his earlier Cold Blue releases. The central pitch and structural ideas for the three pieces that comprise this CD were originally conceived for an evening of music that Smith presented at Los Angeles' historic Schindler House. Here, those initial ideas are expanded and developed.

On this recording, Smith utilizes his large sculptural instruments, which are all made of various metals (and go by such unusual names as Copper Box, Que Lastas, Pez Eater and Jr. Blue), steel guitar, the recorded sounds of jet engines, and Smith's self-designed-and-built three-neck steel guitar, "guitarzilla," which he prepares (a la John Cage’s prepared piano) with metal rods and plays with hammered dulcimer hammers.

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Do anyone have opportunty to listen Chas new music ? comments ?

personally I loved so much previous An hour on desert center and I highly suggest *ALL* Chas's music!

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Chas sent me an advance copy last month. It's great art or it's noise, depending on your point of of view. I love it, myself. I was amazed at how Chas could communicate a sensation of speed in sounds that were almost stationary.

Chas has created his own musical language. You have to open your ears quite a bit to hear it but once you do, it's quite beautiful.

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Chas has created his own musical language. You have to open your ears quite a bit to hear it but once you do, it's quite beautiful.

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Hi Bob, I fully agree with you, thinking that every musican, every artist could proceed in that way (I mean: the way to open his mind to new way of perceive music art).

What surprising in Chas is that he "restared" from scratch ... building instruments suitable for his language ... and so strange instruments

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I was amazed at how Chas could communicate a sensation of speed in sounds that were almost stationary.

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yes Bob ... my thought about that: that is general concept usual for "good" ambient music artists that base their music on drones ... many of artist I love compose "movements around staticity" for example Stars OF The lid (using guitars & some slide guitars) or Alio Die (www.aliodie.com using samplers mainly).

I have Susan's Uma Cd and it is very cool.
I agree not for the tastes of most forumites,
but a strong work none the less.

that's unbecoming ! ;-)

In first track, named Descent as the album title (18:05), harmonic metallic resonances get in and get out from consonances: the track start with overlapping textures (al la An Hour Out Of Desert Center) that initially are more consonant but with track progress, sounds become dissonants in some atonal driftings and frequecy shiftings; very psichedelich (beauty)!

the second track Endless Mardi Gras (20:50) is composed around jet planes sounds elaborations . This is more intovert and vey spacey-trippy (just in the sense of space traversal). Strange metallic sound that seem digeridoo ... very deep low frequencies ... incredibly touching ... let imagine a Dreamtime Return sounds but more deep and vast.

Last track False Clarity (9:41) come back in more "usual" organic "organ" beautiful sounds that we appreciated in his previous work. Here sounds of acoustic steel guitar and other crazy instruments Chas build, come up more clearly, with a distiction of sound sources that quickly drowne in magnificient drones ... [Smile]

Btw, Chas Smith compose his music treating with delays, loopers and electronic devices sound shapers some home-build steel "guitars" and perverse [Smile] instruments that seem come out from a dr. Frankenstein science fiction psichedelich-freak movie (the "treated" multiple neck slide guitar is just a "simple" example):

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but, It's strange: listening this music whitout "know" how have been made ... this music seem electronic space music synthetizers-made, reminding some Steve Roach space drones moments athnospheres! Rethinking about, indeed this music it's very very near to Steve Roach's feelings!

Beautiful "drone" music made without any synth [Smile]

Btw, this is an important topic, for my point of view, as musician: this music is composed playing phisically instruments that emit waves: stainless steel sheets (?!), copper box, steel guitars, zither, guitarzilla, flutes, voice, etc. and AFTER electronically processed! This is an important step: I think electronic music composed treating electro-acoustic music sound better than electronic music made with synth (digital [Frown] or even analogic) ... but this is only a detail and my personal consideration.

Btw, you can purchase Chas Smith music directly at www.coldbluemusic.com (suggested) or pheraps by www.steveroach.com store (not sure) ... hey guys ... so it's true: there is some assonance between Chas and Steve [Smile]

[This message was edited by Giorgio Robino on 18 February 2006 at 11:10 AM.]

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Do you feel differently about music when you know how it was made?

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YES.

As musician I like to know the "process" and artist follow to achieve result

but the focal point is another one: the big difference between making electronic music with synthetizers or making electronic music using (electro-)acoustic is HUGE. That's not an intellectualistic statement but instead a "phisiological" ?! sound analysis report; more explicitely: only a superficial listening could draw Chas's music close to some synth-made, but with a more deep listening will emerge the beauty.
Behind teh beauty there is the sorcerer (the artist) taht use steel and strings, bolts and mind

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only the sound itself is important. But it is almost impossible not to think of those "unimportant" things while I listen.

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here you are, behind any "sound" there is a person that reached this sound.

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BTW I really like the way "Descent" sounds.

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oh! ci voleva tanto a dirlo subito?

giorgio http://solyaris.altervista.org

[This message was edited by Giorgio Robino on 20 February 2006 at 09:12 AM.]