Ravenstine, Allen: Nautilus

We are back with the third installment of Allen Ravenstine’s four EP suite The Tyranny Of Fiction titled Nautilus. The former Peru Ubu synthesist continues his foray into the avant-garde making for quite the ambient head-trip. Ravenstine (modular synthesizer, samplers, aeroplane, piano) has surrounded himself with the following players:

William Blakeney (digital synthesizer, Mellotron, bass, guitar, piano)
Victor Hugo Morales Avilán (grand piano)
Bob Doidge (trumpet)
Frank Greco (trumpet)
Donata Greco (flute)
Giacomo Liguori (percussion)
Leonardo Cincinelli (piano)
Issar Shulman (double bass)

Ravenstine certainly has a unique approach to sounds and minimalism, and when you think the music is sparse, a deeper listen reveals sounds and manipulations not previously heard. The album begins with the aptly titled “Fog� as waves gentle roll into shore and accordion samples have a gypsy like folky sound. Dark synths, creative use of percussion, violin samples, and piano continues a moody journey through varying soundscapes, all flowing rather nicely. Eerie synths begin “A Day At The Beach� and washes of Mellotron forge a path into distorted percussion and melodic trumpet. A few different changes including a reggae section, quite catchy yet completely unconventional. “Meadowlark� brings the listener to the Middle East with its discernable melody, while the brief “Heteromorph� fills the silence with mournful violin. Disjointed percussion and other bizarre sounds give the title track a strange and unsettling aura while the violin returns to the album ending “Red Skies At Night�, another vehicle for Ravenstine’s eerie concoctions.

Nautilus will do nicely for uninterrupted nighttime listening if ambient moods and textures is something you can appreciate.

Released on Waveshaper Media.

Track Listing:
1. Fog (Devil’s Island Mix) (5:08)
2. A Day At The Beach (6:00)
3. Meadowlark (3:46)
4. Heteromorph (1:12)
5. Nautilus (3:48)
6. Java Head (3:05)
7. Prelude (1:35)
8. Tuxedo Moonlight (3:53)
9. Moonlight Marimba (1:42)
10. Red Skies At Night (3:32)

Added: February 26th 2023
Reviewer: Jon Neudorf
Score:
Related Link: Artist @ Bandcamp
Hits: 615
Language: english

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