Cuneiform Rec.
Richard Pinhas : Tranzition (F,2004)****'
Master of electronics-with-electric-guitar (loops) composer Richard Pinhas already proved his skills with his group Heldon back in the 70's (with "Heldon 6" and "Stand By" amongst my favourites, also because of the marvellous hard edged combination of electronics, drums and electric guitars). In the last years, Pinhas experimented again with loop like evolutions and weavings with again this combination of electronica, guitar and drums. The drumming on the first track, "Dextro" starts in a more direct acid lounge mood, while the rest of the electronic & guitar loops work like a wave of carpetry that moves to a more dimensional density. The second track continues in this mood, and creates on top a futuristic landscape scope vision, with freaky-guitar-wall-of-sounds as electronic carpet breakthroughs further on. The rhythms on the title track "Tranzition" becomes more like hypnotic advanced techno, with the electronica itself like a visually interesting 3D video game, like traveling into some kind of futuristic cyber landscape. Also "Aboulafia Blues" shows a quiet, advanced cybernetic soundscape, with increasing tension energy. Splendid! The last track, "Metatron (an introduction to)" is the longest track. It starts with moody Tangerine Dream like cosmic music creations, which further on transcends into the more typical Pinhas loop-like guitar psych, with additional realms of synthesizer, then conclusively interweaving with one another. A masterly release!
Cuneiform Rec. Richard Pinhas : Metatron (F,2006)**°°
This double CD, after “transition”, by Richard Pinhas takes a few next steps into ideas on compositional processes. “Metatron” refers to what he calls a “loop metatronic system”, a technique to make loops evolve, where they gradually fade out and are replaced by newer material. His group consist of many of his old mates, like Patrick Gauthier on minimoog (on four tracks), Didier Batard on ‘splendid bass’ (on most tracks), Antoine Paganotti on drums, and Jérome Schmidt on laptop and loops. Other guests are Alain Renaud on lead guitar on three tracks, Philipe Simon on violin on three tracks, and Chuck Oken, Jr. on synth (from Djam Karet) on two tracks. “Metatronic” also is a specific angel in the Cabbalist hierarchy, which, like a cube amidst the energy centres, controls like a conscious awareness over them, with the overview as like from a writer, showing the structure behind it. His place could be confused with God, but without him everything would be the same. This indirect contact, as well as the specific cube structure in the Cabbala schemes, and the role this place and figure could play, inspired Japanese manga anime and games, which made him a cyber figure with certain qualities.
When using the core idea of the album well, the controlled loops give the impression as if they steadily growing in energy, which permits the music to have something hypnotic (loop-like) as well as psychedelic (increasing energetic evolution), with some thoughtful evolutions with melodic themes, and some spoken word (by Maurice Dantec, William S.Burroughs, Philippe K.Dick, as well as the robot/search engine-voice from “Bots” by Makoto Yoshihara & Robin Fercoq, and a few others). The repeated “Tikkun” theme in a way has something meditative as well, as if staying on its vibrant and vibrating place eternally. Other times it is the natural “machine” which shows its own musical consistence…
The album would have felt a bit short with just one CD. However, with the compiling two over-full cd’s of over 60 minutes of music, the music shows moments of using the loops more exploitatively, with less work on its evolutions, making the more roughly cut ideas feel a little transparent. On the first album, the only track which works a little less, without disturbing much, is the third track, which uses just a few chords on guitar with a wall effect and with drumming, which is already a more transparent rock kind of outro, too long for this simplicity of an idea. There also has been the aspect of re-launching a “rock” group, which works rather fine on “The Ari” track (CD2), as French rock, based upon improvisation on a drumming loop, an idea which is simple but still effective. The attempts are often still too improvised or not enough structuraly layered, to stand against the strongest loop evolution tracks, or don’t show yet a new alternative for the previous Heldon period of rock driven work. On track 2 from cd2, the improvisation even has something too monotonous to have any similar effect, while its meditative aspect still works out fine. The improvisation on the 4th track tends to be more avant-garde and free but this is not really going anywhere. In that way, if a CD of 90 minutes could have been possible, I think it would have been more effective, while I think there weren’t too many tracks left over into this occasion.
As a bonus, a live video montage is added (playable on any PC or DVD) with one music track, showing Richard’s road travel in the US, doing some stage preparations before concert, and where you can see how the concerts are presented with computer controlled video collages, and how Pinhas plays the guitar live and smokes cigarettes quite often. This montage is not really an essential artefact, but it is a nice bonus gift.
