On Christopher Hipgrave's debut with "Day" and "Subtleties"
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Label: Home Normal, Under The Spire
Year: 2009
Format: CD
What a fenomenal debut from this English sound artist and composer. We have previously at Soundscaping expressed our impression of Home Normal and now we find its fourth released musician, Christopher Hipgrave, also out with a lovely follow-up to his debut album, “Day”, on the new low-key label, Under The Spire, with the subtle (sic) “Subtleties”.
Hipgrave first impressed us with his study of the day’s movement. Sprinkled with tiny observations of the miniscule details in a day’s passing, Hipgrave lays out a mixture of glitchy electronics and minimal soundscapes that are reminiscent of Ezekiel Honig’s early, minimal works. The pieces seem to focus on the slow-moving aspects of life; the gradual waking of life in early morning hours and the coming of day. Next there is a study of the slowly rising sun, on a track that imaginatively sets you in a stop-motion kind of mood, believing the sun rises in slow, jagged movements, changing from view of the full sun, to simply the details of the rising sun reflected in its slow movement across a wall or field.
For his venture on “Under The Spire”, Hipgrave brings us a shimmering tapestry of colourful sounds, very reminiscent of Bailleau’s “Air Resort” in its accomplishment of sounding both majestic and spacious in how the soundscapes just expand into the room and marvels the listener, and on the other hand it sounds organic and warm, the long-form drones of circa 10 minute tracks based around organ-based instruments and shrill tones of glitchy electronica and high-frequency bells and ringing sounds. The two pieces stand apart quite alot and for quite co-inciding releases, one is struck by the thought Hipgrave may have been at this game for a little while albeit honing his productions in secret before stepping forward with a refined result. That is of course only a credit to his musicianship and underlines the strength and variety this pair of debut (so to speak) albums are capable of.
Definitely worth checking out, that is if you can come across the now out-of-print releases (though you might find a copy or so still of “Day” over at Home Normal).
Web resources:
Christopher Hipgrave official website
Christopher Hipgrave on myspace
Home Normal label website
Under The Spire label website
