Woodpecker Wooliams and Golden Cup meet Love Cult: “Saransk”

Live improvisation of the experimental ambient variety is captured in a new release by Russian label Full of Nothing. Featuring the collective spontaneity of UK’s Woodpecker Wooliams, psychedelic Italian act Golden Cup, and Russian duo Love Cult (Anya Kuts/Ivan Afanasyev), the album is titled In Russia because, well, why get fancy? The improbable family of auditory ecstasy creators performed in Moscow, Saransk, Saint Petersburg, and the Baltic’s in April 2011 and two of the improvs make up this set. “Saransk” and “Saint Petersburg” form a satisfyingly big picture listening experience. The improvisations utilize intuition because this music could easily have come from one composer’s mind instead of four individual, yet clearly likeminded, souls. Nary a single sound dominates, as balance is remarkably tight and controlled. Field recordings evoke eerie forests of ancient histories; electronic squeals and drones add texture, tonal dynamics, and movement to both compositions. We travel with the performers and are taken on a journey we won’t soon forget. The only question left to ask is, are there recordings from the rest of the tour?

In Russia is available on Bandcamp

Written by Jeff Daily