miles_gurtu: omonimo (Shakti, 2004)

Italo-swiss producer Robert Miles (born Roberto Concina) is mainly renown as the mastermind of the so-called dream-house season which spanned over the mid-Nineties. His more recent work is nevertheless very far from the Oldfield-inspired piano cavalcades of "Children" and "Fable": "Organik" (2001) and "miles_gurtu" lean towards a smoky, warm trip-hop style with strong chill-out and jazzy elements.
"miles_gurtu", particularly, is a collaboration with quintessential jazz drummer Trilok Gurtu and steeps deeply into experimental, rhythm-based electroacoustic ambiences. A wide range of acoustic instruments (double-bass, guitar, cello, trumpet) are often played with unconventional techniques and combine with field recordings and electronic manipulation to create nocturnal, nebulous soundscapes which might remind the mood of early Four Tet works.
Minimoog eerie landscapes, theremin and Rhodes e-piano are under the responsibility of prog-blues legend Mike Patto (Patto, Centipede, Spooky Tooth) and many electric guitar/drums interlocks show something more than a resemblance to King Crimson.
The production is astounding: the beats are fractured, refined, while the overall sound is warm, organic, steamy and tridimensional. miles_gurtu is an extremely elegant and well-crafted album, coupling experimentation and a cathy pleasantness.


Tracklist:

1. Golden Rust
2. Soul Driven
3. Wearing Masks
4. Tragedy : Comedy (stream it!)
   
5. Omen
6. Loom
7. Languages of Conscious Thought
8. Without a Doubt
9. Small World
10. Small World (reprise)
11. Inductive
12. The Big Picture
13. Xenon

Download (~200 kbps)