Raben by Àlex Reviriego

After a year with plenty of band-oriented releases and collaborations, Àlex Reviriego goes back to the solo, his favourite format and one that he’s been cultivating since the very beginning of his career. Following Blaue Tauben (Sirulita 2018), Raben is the second chapter of his “german poets trilogy”, this time inspired by the writings of Paul Celan.

If the Trakl-inspired Blaue Tauben was full-on in the bleak expressionistic domain, packed with grit and aggression, this new collection of solo pieces gravitates toward a more contemplative and pensive mood. Extremely slow, repetitive bowings, muted stubborn tremolos and luminous harmonics interact in an almost static dance, reflecting Celan’s stark and cryptic language.

Rejecting almost any tendency towards development, narrative or overt emotionality, this music is “just there”, facing us with a blank stare, listening to us as much as we listen to it. As happens with the characters on Sprachtgritter or Fadensonnen, words and acts are repeated, again and again, creating an inner chart of codes and meanings.

Recorded by Ferran Fages with a minimal setup and mastered by Lasse Marhaug, it retains the numbing cold of the winter days of 2019 when it was recorded.

BIO:
Àlex Reviriego (Barcelona, 1986) plays double bass, organ and electronics. He is a member of the bands Phicus, Inhumankind, Ràdium and Möhit, and one of the most active and in-demand musicians in the experimental music scene in Spain, appearing on recordings and concerts across styles as diverse as contemporary composition, black metal, folk and harsh noise. His solo work explores the timbric possibilities of the unaccompanied double bass, focusing on extended bowing techniques and slow repetitive developments. Raben (Tripticks Tapes 2021) is the second installment of a trilogy started with Blaue Tauben (Sirulita 2019), loosely based around the figures of Georg Trakl, Paul Celan and Friedrich Hölderlin.

Tracklist

1.	Rabenüberschwärmte	4:33

2.	Weizenwoge	3:16

3.	Welchen	7:45

4.	Himmels	3:46

5.	Blau	7:22

6.	Des	5:55

7.	untern	1:38

8.	Obern	5:05

9.	(Unter ein Bild)	1:43

Credits

released July 16, 2021

Double Bass: Àlex Reviriego

Recorded by Ferran Fages at V20, winter 2019.
Mixed and Mastered by Lasse Marhaug.
Cover by Tània Gumbau.

Song titles based on Unter ein Bild, by Paul Celan.

Thanks to Tània Gumbau, Ferran Fages, Lasse Marhaug and Víctor Hugo.

License