This is a ghost story. Nova Materia‘s new album came by midnight. A place nearby a nature reserve. My home. A taxi stopped, motor still running, ringing the bell, a young man said sorry for being so late, we had both our masks on, I received the envelope. Inside, the cover of the vinyl had something familiar (the old Made To Measure-label from Bruxelles back again!), set for release at the end of June. First pressing, fresh from the factory, a short note added, and, hand-written, the permission to play it – first time ever – in my next night show. If I like it. Too kind. I cannot remember I ever got an album under such circumstances. Secret delivery by night. I was awake, had done my little meditation exercise – a glass of „Two Left Feet“, two candles burning, my record-player in motion, gave it a go. I didn‘t know the name of the composers – that can happen, months ago, I couldn‘t relate anything with Floating Points.
I listened to the album from start to end. „To enjoy in all its aural elements, please listen on headphones. Compatible with stereo on loudspeakers.“ These guys care for sound, don‘t they? My headphones are quite good ones, and though their suggestion is old school, it makes sense. The sound quality stunning *, and more important, the whole album is a quiet burner. A revelation. A journey through an ancient area, real, surreal, desolate, full of mythology, history, horizon.
Now here comes the challenge. It‘s known as „The Stonehenge Trap“. Imagine you are impressed by the aura of such a power spot, and want your music to be informed with it, live up to its nameless mysteries. So what will happen with fresh field recordings, the music in your mind at hand (in fragments)? It can all too easily end up in some „new age nirwana“. Or „electro-acoustic ivory tower studies“. Nothing like that. Listened a second time, a third time. I was caught inside, softly seduced, on the other side. A lesson in getting there, A five-star album in the rare genre of where-am-i-music. Eduardo Henriquez und Caroline Chaspoul have painted their masterpiece.
* The 3Dio Free Space Pro II comes with two matched, integrated DPA 4060 capsules mounted at the opening of the ear canal. The Free Space Pro II delivers a very sensitive and natural binaural recording. The extremely low noise floor of the DPA 4060 capsules results in a very open and dynamic binaural realism, especially during very delicate recordings. This sensitivity, coupled with the wide dynamic range of the microphone capsules, makes the Free Space Pro II ideally suited for professional studio recording and high-end recording binaural capture. The quiet ‚openness‘ of the mic is great for field recording as well.