Leandro Fresco & Rafael Anton Irisarri – Una Presencia En La Brisa (2020)

Review by Tim Clarke: Una Presencia En La Brisa translates to “a presence in the breeze,” which aptly conveys the atmosphere of this new album of ambient drone by Leandro Fresco and Rafael Anton Irisarri, their second together for A Strangely Isolated Place. Much like the image of the shrouded figure on the album cover, there’s a pronounced ripple at the surface, beyond which grainy shadows are discernible. Many will no doubt have their interest piqued by the involvement of Irisarri, whose prolific and often glowering output is always worthy of attention. However, there’s a distinct lightness and breathiness to this collaboration that I can only assume originates from Fresco. The groundlessness of these six tracks speaks, perhaps, to the fact that Fresco and Irisarri have never met, instead collaborating remotely, gradually shaping the air between them into mutually pleasing contours. The choral wash of opener “Elevado Como Barrilete” (“raised like a kite”) immediately brings to mind 10cc’s ambient-pop classic “I’m Not in Love,” elevating the listener to a realm of airy, gently buffeted bliss. Faint, drawn-out piano notes are discernible in “El Vacío En Sus Ojos” (“the void in your eyes”), reminiscent of some of the more placid passages in Tim Hecker’s Harmony in Ultraviolet. On “Cuando La Rutina Nos Toma Desprevenidos” (“when the routine takes us off guard”), Auburn Lull-esque guitar drones are punctuated by the eerie sound of dripping water, then gradually build in chest-crushing intensity. “Mientras Más Me Alejo De Ti, Menos Me Importa Cuan Lejos Estoy” (“the more I walk away from you, the less I care how far away I am”) has the kind of portentous orchestral throb you’d expect from a Hans Zimmer score to a film set in deep space. “El Reflejo Que El Sol Ha Perdido” (“the reflection the sun has lost”) sets the listener adrift in a sea of shimmering overtones. “El Viento Aún Nos Lleva Sumergidos” (“the wind still keeps us submerged”) brings the album to an uneasy conclusion as a vortex of filtered tones whips around the ears, like passing between a car wash’s abrasive spinning brushes. Once you emerge from the other side and begin to map out where you’ve been, Leandro and Irisarri’s methods seem relatively simple: a handful of carefully deployed instrumental textures, rubbing up against each other over the course of six, seven, eight minutes at a time. But, like taking a walk in the elements, time spent navigating these bracing winds leaves you feeling invigorated and humbled. — dustedmagazine

Track List: 01 - Elevado como barrilete 02 - El vacío en sus ojos 03 - Cuando la rutina nos toma desprevenidos 04 - Mientras más me alejo de ti, menos me importa cuan lejos estoy 05 - El reflejo que el sol ha perdido 06 - El viento aún nos lleva sumergidos

Media Report: Genre: ambient Origin: USA / Argentina Format: FLAC Format/Info: Free Lossless Audio Codec Bit rate mode: Variable Channel(s): 2 channels Sampling rate: 44.1 KHz Bit depth: 16 bits Compression mode: Lossless Writing library: libFLAC 1.2.1 (UTC 2007-09-17)

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