Lovecraft by Raz Mesinai

"Lovecraft, it turns out, was a complicated man who, apparently, remained afraid of just about everything that resided on the side of the 'other' throughout the majority of his life, which living in Brooklyn for a time only seemed to escalate. The reasons for this can be many, for one his childhood was tormented, having to see both of your parents institutionalized at different times can’t be good for someone. However, my goal with these compositions is not to point a finger at another fearful man or speak on why he was afraid, or even of whom (Jordan Peele can tackle that one better than I can) but, instead my job is in bringing his nightmares to light in the sonic realm, outside of words completely, by utilizing graphic notation to organize interactions between people, in hope to shed light on the phenomenon that when someone such as Lovecraft converts those fears to art we find a nightmare that we all mutually share." - R

Part of the "Wordless Worlds" series of electro acoustic compositions and sonic interpretations of the works of great storytellers, these pieces were composed and recorded during the late 90's and early 2000's, utilizing graphic notation (book forthcoming), analog tape and an EMU-E6400 for arranging and processing. Remastered in 2022.

Please note: The song titles for Lovecraft differ from that of "Kafka", as in they are not referring to those stories in particular, although one can move them around and will in different times apply to areas of any of Lovecraft's stories.

“He professes a sound and vision unlike any other.” - All About Jazz

"Raz Mesinai is a musical Ibn Battuta, spanning continents and eras foreshadowing the future." - Hisham Aidi, author of 'Rebel Music: Race, Empire and the New Muslim Youth Culture'

upa.nyc