MACHINEFABRIEK "Stillness Soundtracks"

Het Italiaanse Glacial Movements label heeft een glasheldere en ijzige filosofie en daardoor identiteit, want het richt zich zonder uitzondering op de ijzige en isolationistische ambient, die altijd op experimentele wijze aan de man gebracht wordt. Ze omarmen uiteenlopende artiesten als Rapoon, Aidan Baker, Oophoi, Lull, Francisco López, Bvdub, Loscil, Pjusk, Retina.it en Celer, maar ze weten allemaal het ijzige verschil te maken met de releases op dit label. De oprichter achter deze succesformule is de muzikant Alessandro Tedeschi, zelf actief in Netherworld en Liquid Ghosts. Nu duikt ook het legendarische Machinefabriek hier op, wat op voorhand al voor enthousiasme zorgt hier.Machinefabriek is al jarenlang de succesformatie van de uit Apeldoorn afkomstige en inmiddels in Rotterdam gevestigde artiest Rutger Zuydervelt, die een discografie heeft die je vanaf de maan kunt zien. Hij laat ook van zich horen in de groepen CMMK, Piiptsjilling en Cloud Ensemble en werkt met een waslijst aan artiesten samen. Normaal gesproken zeg ik altijd dat een Machinefabriek release nooit alleen komt en dat klopt ook nu, maar ten dele, want een album met hem van de groep Shivers is aanstaande. Nu dus "enkel" Stillness Soundracks van zijn hand, die geheel terecht op dit label is uitgebracht. De muziek vormt namelijk de soundtracks voor een serie van cineastische landschappen die door Esther Kokmeijer gemaakt zijn in het Arctisch gebied (vooral Groenland) en Antarctica. Een aantal van deze beelden heb ik gezien en alleen die weten je al zonder de muziek (zet maar eens uit) compleet te overrompelen. Kijk om jezelf te overtuigen onder zelf ook maar eens. Prachtig kristalhelder geschoten en met heel fraai ijzige kleuren. Zonder de beelden mag de muziek er ook wezen. Sterker nog, Machinefabriek brengt een ijzige maar wonderschone en intrigerende mix van isolationistische ambient, drones en neoklassiek. De klassieke instrumenten komen van samples en midi instrumenten. De rest wordt op de gebruikelijke wijze gefabriceerd. Nog niet eerder is er een release geweest die zo goed voldoet aan de doelstellingen van het label. Normaal gesproken zou ik zeggen: ogen dicht en genieten. Maar als beeld en geluid samenkomen, dan ontneemt eerst Kokmeijer je de adem en vervolgens slaat Machinefabriek nog de grond onder je voeten vandaan. Ervoor vallen zal je! Qua muziek moet je het ergens zoeken in een ijzige versmelting van Jacaszek, Stefan Wesolowski, Simon Scott, Olan Mill, Richard Skelton, Svarte Greiner, Netherworld en Thomas Köner. Het is (alweer) een onmiskenbaar meesterwerk geworden!SUBJECTIVISTEN

Machinefabriek je nizozemský hudebník Rutger Zuydervelt (1978), sídlící v Rotterdamu. Pod tímto pojmenováním zacal vystupovat v roce 2004 vcetne nekolika kompaktu, vydaných vlastním nákladem, jeho vehlas zahájilo o dva roky pozdeji CD Marijn a pak už mužeme až podnes sledovat lavinu projektu nejruznejšího ražení, ovšem její hranicní pásma se pohybují mezi noiseovým ambientem, minimalistním drónováním, nahrávkami okolního sveta a elektroakustickým experimentováním. Jednou ze slojí jeho tvorby je hudba k filmum Makina Tadashiho, Mika Hoolbooma, Johna Pricea, Paula Clipsona, Chrise Teerinka nebo Edwarda Burtynského. K této plejáde se prirazují i Stillness Soundtracks, kinezáznamy Esther Kokmeijer, natocené v Arktide a Antarktide v roce 2013. Tedy námetový okruh a jeho realizace jako stvorený pro chladivé hudební podzemí Glacial Movements. Zuydervelt se zpovídá, že pri zhlédnutí fotografií a pri sledování filmu pocítil okamžitou inspiraci, jak se má hudebne vyrovnat se ztvárnením dojmu z gigantických ledovcu a široširé snežné krajiny. Víc: pochopil, že práve hudba musí prevzít vypravecskou roli, která dotvorí obraz, že muže napomoci doprožít vizuální vjemy. Což se mu darí jak v peti cástech páterních Stillness, vážících se k oznaceným oblastem, tak ve dvou doprovodných rozbuzovánkách, nazvaných Chinstrap.Od pocátku se ocitáme v polární zári hudby, která se rozprostírá, vše prozvucuje, zahutnuje, zproudnuje, obepíná, protýká, brunátní, zvelebnuje, detonuje, zacinkává, postrechýlnuje i zaríkává. Vnímáme ledovostní pomrazkování, potichlostne nemenlivou setrvalost i výhružnost nezvratnosti promeny, prevalivé zaríkávání, neklid v poklidnosti, vzrušivé monotónování, výdešné tichotání, odtikávání v protýkání s šumností, horoucnející zaficování, sondážové pruzkumnicení i dozvucování do dálavnosti. Kry tónu zvirují odtajemnované vyzvucování s prasklinami steží slyšitelnými, zaskocivá, byt nepospešná zátocnost je prostrídávána zašvitorováním, šplounáním, prusakováním, odkapáváním, to vše bílá v bílé a k záveru se stupnujícím se melodickým zavroucnením, až objímavostním, a s casosbernou usínavostí, nebot ledový kruh se uzavírá.Rutger Zuydervelt mel pravdu, když tvrdil, že filmu uzme pro sebe (nebo pridá pro nás) vypravecskou úlohu. To vypravecství pretrvává a dotvrzuje se i na albu, kde obrazy nevidíme, ale tušíme je pred sebou, kdy se hudba osamostatnila a vytvárí pred vnitrním zrakem posluchace útesovost ledovcu, odtávání ker, prevalování vln, zvesmírnení dálav. Je to prírustek ledovostního programu Glacial Movements, který urcite vzbudí pozornost nejenom ve slunné Itálii.HIS VOICE

'Stillness Soundtracks' is music for films shot in Greenland and Antarctica by director Esther Kokmeijer, and it finds Machinefabriek – aka Rotterdam's Rutger Zuydervelt – working with both acoustic and digital means, as though he were using analogue and digital cameras. The music has the required glacial chill that keenly evokes the remote locations, and by using suspended chords that move ever so slowly Zuydervelt creates an unusual kind of tension. The live instrumentation used in the introduction (the curiously titled ('Chinstrap')) has some gorgeous colours, while the first of five 'Stillness' tracks, depicting The FRAM in Greenland, is quite stern, suggesting darker elements – which 'The Protector (Antarctica)' picks up with more than a hint of menace. This is another of those Glacial Movements releases that seems suspended in time and space, and if you give it the right amount of room and listen closely it really does take you to a different state of mind through its sheer musical beauty.5 out of 5DMC WORLD

Vorsichtig tasten sich ein Marimbafon, ein gezupftes Cello und leise pfeifende digitale Sounds in den Hörraum. Getragene Bläser-Akkorde und Keyboard-Akkorde setzen ein, das Cello wird jetzt gestrichen, klingt sehnsuchtsvoll. Der zweite Titel geht dann in eine ganz andere Richtung: Metallische Synthesizer-Flächen drohen dunkel, stampfende Schläge treiben das Stück nach vorn, kalte Klaviertöne schrammen vorüber; die Fahrt geht nach Norden. Rutger Zuydervelt alias Machinefabriek vertont mit »Stillness Soundtrack« Kurzfilme von Esther Kokmeijer, die sich mit Grönland und der Antarktis beschäftigen. Gigantische Eisberge schieben sich in Zeitlupentempo vorbei, die Zeit scheint still zu stehen. Nur das Schaben und Knarren der Eismassen ist tief unter Wasser zu hören. Riesige Weiten tun sich auf, die Musik wird kalt, beunruhigend und nahezu sakral, bricht plötzlich ab und hinterlässt ein minutenlanges Ausschwingen. Dann, ein Moment zum Durchatmen, eine Brise, Wellenschlagen und Seevögel. Dazu wieder entspannende Cello- und Bläserklänge und kleine knackende Entladungen, warme und stoische elektronische Basstöne; fast so etwas wie eine ambiente Klangmalerei. Der letzte Track ist dann ruhig, warm und versöhnlich; Elektronik und Streichinstrument lassen das Album entspannt ausklingen.»Stillness Soundtracks« mäandert zwischen Kontemplation und Anspannung, zwischen akustischen und digitalen Klängen und hält so, auch ohne die Filme zu kennen, die Spannung über die komplette Albumlänge.HHV MAG

Though I haven't heard all of Rutger Zuydervelt's Machinefabriek output (is such a thing even possible, given the staggering number of Machinefabriek recordings he's issued since 2004 on labels such as 12K, Staalpaat, Important, Experimedia, Type, Home Normal, and Dekorder?), I'd be willing to wager Stillness Soundtracks is one of his most accessible outings. It's an uncharacteristically melodic and even sometimes pretty collection whose contents were designed by Zuydervelt to accompany short films by Esther Kokmeijer but engage satisfyingly on purely musical terms. The videos initially were made available to the public on a USB stick that Kokmeijer and Zuydervelt prepared in a limited edition of 100 (now sold out); the Glacial Movements release supplements the project's five scores with two exclusive tracks that for whatever reason Zuydervelt has titled “(Chinstrap).”While the music was scored in accordance with footage of Antarctica and Greenland and of icebergs and sprawling vistas, Stillness Soundtracks also stands out in stark contrast to a number of other recordings on the Glacial Movements label for eschewing icy soundscaping for something far less severe. It turns out that this was a deliberate choice, as Zuydervelt rejected the idea of wedding images of bleak mountains of ice to dark, cold soundscapes in favour of, in his words, “lush arrangements and … romantic themes.”The warmth in the music comes from its instrumentation, pastoral character, and laid-back feel. Given that it's a Machinefabriek recording, electronics naturally figure prominently into the sound design but so too do acoustic instruments such as marimba, piano, strings, and organ. A beat pattern does lend some degree of slow-motion animation to “Stillness #2 (The FRAM, Greenland),” but for the most part the settings make good on the promise of their “Stillness” titles, with “Stillness #2 (Ilulissat, Greenland),” a quiet and austere exercise in micro-sound, a good illustration.In the absence of visuals (the CD package's imagery aside), pieces like “Stillness #3 (The Protector, Antarctica)” and “Stillness #4 (Yalour Islands, Antarctica)” suggest the grandeur of the physical settings through their slow-motion ambient-drone design. So peaceful, in fact, is the music in the latter that its slow crawl begins to seem veritably entropic. Elsewhere, nature-based field recordings of bird and water sounds mingle with delicate acoustic expressions in such a way as to make “(Chinstrap)” stylistically blend with the video-related material. Any listener coming to the Machinefabriek discography for the first time might find the prospect daunting and be at a loss as to where to begin. With that in mind, Stillness Soundtracks would seem to offer an ideal entry point, given its comparatively accessible nature.TEXTURA

Il nuovo Machinefabriek, che poi tanto nuovo non è, proietta verso la dimensione cinematografica l'arte di un musicista che può forgiarsi del titolo di rappresentante emblematico di un'intera generazione sperimentale, pure con una discreta sicurezza. Di sicuro, se si volesse cercare un centro nel quale convergono tre delle principali direttrici sonore degli ultimi anni – ovvero modern classical, ambient e field recordings, per definirle in maniera spicciola e capirsi al volo – l'arte dell'olandese sarebbe tra i primi e più convincenti risultati. Un'arte che lui stesso ha sempre definito come composta da “film senza immagini”, motivo per cui questo “Stillness Soundtracks” assume facilmente le forme del compimento ritardato da un lato, e del mezzo auto-tradimento (o della caduta in tentazione) dall'altro. Il nuovo Machinefabriek non è poi tanto nuovo, si diceva: il progetto risale infatti a più di un anno fa, quando Zuydervelt aveva accettato di sposare la causa della connazionale Esther Kokmeijer e lavorare alla musica che avrebbe accompagnato i cinematic landscape del suo “Stillness”. Ovvero niente di diverso da dei filmati ripresi con camera ferma in alcune fra le più suggestive location dei due poli del nostro pianeta, dall'Antartide alla Groenlandia. Una forma di dialogo tra suono e immagine che è divenuta autentica consuetudine di certa ambient music, per lo meno da quando Steve Roach ha aperto la strada con la storica serie “Quiet Music”. A risultarne era stata una sorta di sinfonia tascabile in cinque movimenti, pubblicata su in edizione superlimited su Usb e pronta, complice soprattutto la natura glaciale, a far innamorare il sempre attento Alessandro Tedeschi. La scelta stilistica, evidente già a partire dall'inchino ai Roll The Dice del primo movimento - privo di titolo e, come gli altri quattro, corredato esclusivamente dall'indicazione della location dove è stato girato il filmato corrispondente – è quella di tenersi il più possibile lontano dai cliché ambientali legati alle rigide temperature dei poli. Dunque niente flussi di droni, spazio e orpelli ridotti al minimo e strumentazione limitata ad archi e campionatore, per quello che si rivela ben presto come il disco più umano della corposa saga Machinefabriek. Qualcosa di cui il maestro Phill Niblock andrebbe decisamente fiero, considerato il corposo debito con il post-minimalismo pagato in particolare nella quiete ferma del secondo movimento (con tanto di coda nel silenzio in stile Murcof) e nella lunga litania immobile del terzo. È una prosecuzione, neanche troppo velata, del percorso avviato nello splendido “Dauw” e proseguito, ormai quattro anni fa, con l'altrettanto valido “Daas”: gli undici minuti del quarto movimento, ambientato tra gli iceberg e i pinguini delle Isole Yalour, ne “umanizza” la perfezione formale recuperando l'intimismo minimale delle collaborazioni con Stephen Vitiello. A chiudere il cerchio è l'inedito calore del canale Leimar descritto nel quinto movimento, che trova similitudini solo nelle aggiunte primaverili dei due “(Chinstrap)”, miniature coloratissime che ricordano certi esperimenti di F.S. Blumm e spezzano (pure troppo) il non-ritmo. Ed è l'abuso di quest'ultimo a rivelare le (comunque relative) difficoltà che il romanticismo nero pece di questi cinque diamanti dalla classe sopraffina incontra nel sopravvivere senza le immagini che nasce per accompagnare. Niente di troppo strano, se non stessimo parlando di uno che ha composto alcuni fra i “film senza immagini” più suggestivi degli ultimi anni, dalle quali la sua musica arriva invece questa volta a dipendere.ONDA ROCK

Soundtracks are always a dicey thing to talk about. Stripped of the visual images they underscore and the story a film maker is telling, a sound track can be a beautiful thing yet fall short on its own. This collection of music by Netherlandish Machinefabriek does well, it's got an iceberg on the cover and icebergs in this domain of composition indicate calm, sedate and distant tempos punctuated by crisp aural landscapes. The titles are of little assistance, there are two labeled "Chinstrap" and five notated as "Stillness" followed by place names that aren't known for their tropical night life. You'll need a quiet room for this; long stretches of the tracks seem like little more than a microphone bumping in a shoulder bag and listening in your car is hopeless. When sounds do arrive, they pulsate greenly, creep silently and seem to have a mind of their own. Droning noises appear and fade, birds call in the distance, waves wash ashore. Are these sounds from Greenland in the summer? Should they be? What if they are just from the Frieslandian shore around the corner from where Rutger Zuydervelt keeps a studio? There's mystery here, mystery and near silence. Perhaps, just maybe, we are to imaging the movie without ever knowing where it's playing. Perhaps it's playing in your head right now, and you don't even have the sound track yet.INK 19

Belle surprise que ce disque qui présente le travail de Machinefabriek (Rutger Zuyderfelt) sous un jour nouveau. Moins bruitiste, plus mélodique qu’à l’habitude, Stilness Soundtracks propose une série de morceaux d’électronique ambiante composés pour accompagner un film d’Esther Kokmeijer. Celle-ci est allée filmer des scènes en Antartique et au Groenland – des trucs lents et majestueux, imposants, auxquels la musique de Machinefabriek donne vie. C’est d’ailleurs ce qui explique la parution de ce disque chez Glacial Movements, qui publie habituellement des projets plus isolationnistes que celui-ci. Une écoute charmante et étonnamment accessible. Recommandé. [Ci-dessous: Tout l’album est en écoute libre sur bandcamp.] Here’s a nice surprise: a new aspect of Machinefabriek’s work. Less noise-based and a lot more melodious than Rutger Zuyderfelt’s usual fare, Stilness Soundtracks delivers a series of ambient electronica pieces made to accompany a film by Esther Kokmeijer. The filmmaker shot footage in Antarctica and Greenland – long, majestic, impressive sequences through which Machibefabriek’s music breathes life. That’s what explains the project’s release on Glacial Movements, a label whose catalog is a lot more isolationist-sounding than this. Stilness Soundtracks is a gorgeous listen and a surprisingly accessible album. Recommended. [Below: The whole album is up for streaming on bandcamp.].MONSIEUR DELIRE

This release collects some tracks composed for a series of short films by Esther Kokmeijer and are focused on a more narrative musical forms than previous releases from Rutger Zuydervelt. Even if based of the usual elements, notably a focused melodic instinct, the underlying soundscape is methodically based upon drone and field recordings, perhaps original records of the movie, so it's more evocative.The quiet melodic lines of "(Chinstrap)" open this release forcing to understand the term stillness as tranquillity rather than boredom. Stillness #1 (The FRAM, Greenland) is an hypnotic track based on a drone and an almost martial beat. "Stillness #2 (Ilulissat, Greenland)" reworks the lines of the first track using a more subtly constructed soundscape while "Stillness #3 (The Protector, Antarctica)" recalls the drone of the second track focusing on the musical impact. "(Chinstrap)", it's not a fault but another track with the same name, acts as an interlude to the second part of this release formed by two long tracks: "Stillness #4 (Yalour Islands, Antarctica)" based upon a simple melodic line but developed for the construction of a quiet and evocative soundscape that is the picture of the places of the title. "Stillness #5 (Lemair Channel, Antarctica)" closes this release with a sad melodic line based upon string instruments.With his blend of field recordings, synth lines and careful production this is one of the best release of this artist and one of the most evocative and beautiful release of the year. It creates a desire to see the movie. Highly recommanded.CHAIN DLK

.... but flutes not as you may have known them. Also one of the most interesting, slow moving album I heard lately. It's important to give it some space, so I've let some space become open for 2 pieces from Machinefabriek. And there is a wonderful piece from a jazz duo from Poland who merge jazz, eastern music and percussion to make a sound that will mesmerise.ABC NET SOUNDQUALITY