Magic Towers: “N. 4 Sides A & B”

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Magic Towers: “N. 4 Sides A & B”

May 1, 2012 0

Magic Towers are an experimental ambient/drone duo from the Northern Italian city of Vittorio Veneto. Their new release N. 4 comes to us via NO=FI Recordings. The two sides of the cassette each present fifteen minutes of droning synths and heady atmospherics. Dissonant, remote, and often disturbing, the composition was quite fittingly recorded during All Soul’s Day of last year in Milan. The tape’s palate is stark but broad, ranging from quiet whirrs to thunderous percussion, all haunted with varying degrees of dread and decay. Side A is the less combative of the two pieces, with a simmering midsection that gives way to sustained high-frequency undulations, while side B begins with atramental tape hiss that shifts toward grating synths that are frankly pretty hard to take even at low decibels. As an exercise that aims to explore the role sound plays in perception, N. 4 succeeds, but it may leave you feeling as physically drained as mentally stimulated.