EMANUELE ERRANTE
Time Elapsing Handheld
KALKCD57/KALKLP61
Karaoke Kalk 2011
07 Tracks. 44mins10secs

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The boundary between leftfield atmospheric electronica and modern classical is forever getting more blurred as musicians cross-pollinate each genre with elements borrowed from the other. Composers such as Max Richter, Jóhann Jóhannsson or Ólafur Arnalds have done a lot to democratise the use of electronic textures and field recordings in classical music through their respective work, while on the other side, the likes of Murcof, Deaf Center or much of the Miasmah roster have incorporated classical forms and instruments into their electronic set up. One such musician is Italian experimental sound artist Emanuele Errante, whose previous two albums, Migrations (Apegenine, 2006) and Humus (Somnia, 2008), treaded the line between electronica and classical rather convincingly, drawing comparison to Deaf Center, Marsen Jules and Rafael Anton Irisarri amongst others.

With Time Elapsing Handheld, Errante continues to refine his sound, weaving acoustic instruments, field recordings and electronics into tight soundscapes which he applies onto delicate pieces, in turn placing them around beautiful melodies or using them as simple atmospheric components. What characterizes much of Errante’s work though is the extensive use of acoustic and electric guitars, which are often locked into fascinating interactions with each other, at times used as a fine mesh upon which the entire sonic structure relies (Counterclockwise), at others splattered across the fore in delicate formations (Inner, Later, Earlier). On Made To Give, Errante is joined by Simon Scott for perhaps the most atmospheric and dense moment of this record. While the rest of the album feels somewhat pastoral, this is toned down slightly with the addition of sombre undertones and low end drones, but the guitar motif on top retains some of the fluidity heard elsewhere.

Although extremely detailed and refined, Errante’s soundscapes often appear slightly distorted and ethereal, as if heard through a lightly psychedelic filter. This is particularly true on the rather sumptuous Inner, with its sweeping guitar textures and soft hues, or later on the feverish winter glow in which bathes Dorian’s Mirror, while on Memoirs, the constant hammering of a single note creates an shimmering ripple effect over which Errante progressively adds more melodic layers.

With his third solo album, Emanuele Errante has created a wonderful cinematic soundtrack which, although feeding on both electronic conventions and modern classical music, is neither one nor the other, but something altogether different. Time Elapsing Handheld is difficult to pigeonhole, and it is not the least of its charms.

4.2/5

Emanuele Errante | Emanuele Errante (MySpace) | Karaoke Kalk
Amazon UK: CD | LP | DLD US: CD | LP | DLD Boomkat: CD | LP | DLD iTunes: DLD