Francisco Lopez – Unitltled #188 – CD – CON-V

www.con-v.org 

Anyone with Francisco Lopez’ considerable credentials will surely be a welcome addition to the roster of any label, and Con-V have persuaded him to contribute one of his full length “untitled” works to their now considerable catalogue.

The Lopez sound in general swamps the active imagineer with a sea of images, and lack of any kind of titling only adds to the mystique of each piece. With no clearly defined conceptual cues being present, it is simply a process of active listening, and allowing oneself to be carried by each segment. Untitled #188 opens with a huge burst of activity, a gristly, taut swirl of electronica that gradually subsides over a prolonged period of time.

Frequencies and activities are slowly deleted, and become mere fixtures, as slowly the listener is plunged into the void, a placid, bubbling vacuum that menacingly lingers, and listened to under headphones leaves only sonic pressure on the ears, with no tangible hooks, or events to link us to reality. We are cast adrift in this uneasy, and slightly threatening environment, like being left in a cold, dark chamber, with no obvious reference points, nothing to hang on to. Gradually, glimmers of light appear, and sounds start to emerge once again, alien sounds that could be the minute movements of atoms, or some huge, alien energy source, once again threatening, but never too close. Everything is rinsed through with vast chasms of reverb, in an indefinable, yet deeply compelling atmosphere. This is film music, food for the imaginations of lonely souls, perhaps the lost soundtrack for some alternative “Eraserhead”, definitely traversing David Lynch territory, with epic and obscure slants and gestures, it will increase Lopez’s stature as a master experimentalist for sure.

I can highly recommend. BGN