really<\/em> knows what he\u2019s doing.<\/p>\nStill, you can take \u201cHarmonic Poems\u201d one of two ways, both of which are justified in their own right. Composed via a series of found sounds, field recordings and objects that are turned way, way up past 11, this album is a true work of art. Pizarro himself lends excruciatingly haunting spoken word layers to a couple tracks, including \u201c13 Years \u2014 Deep Creek Blues,\u201d where the vocals could be used on the soundtrack to a \u201cSaw\u201d movie. Reciting his poetry, the effects placed on Pizarro\u2019s voice are so evocative, leaving the lights off while listening sort of feels like an impossibility.<\/p>\n
Adding to the legend of the recording, of course, is the length to which the artist goes to get his sounds. The aforementioned \u201c13 Years,\u201d as an example, makes use of a homemade lung, a rainstorm and the tones of a flowing creek. It\u2019s nothing if not ambitious, inventive and boldly imaginative. Yeah, it\u2019s not going to make you tap your toe, but while considering the intellect and acumen behind everything, you can\u2019t help but pause to appreciate how original the West Virginian is.<\/p>\n
Plus, there are occasional moments of familiarity that cut through the noise enough to make things feel at least a tiny bit more recognizable. The one-two centerpiece of the album is \u201cAokigahara\u201d and \u201cAokigahara Pt. II,\u201d and in addition to creating an exceptional amount of atmosphere, experimentalist James Wolf\u2019s violin appears, adding a new layer to the production that ultimately gives things an added dash of traditional musicality. It\u2019s also creepy as hell, which doesn\u2019t hurt, either.<\/p>\n
As for the other way you can take this set? Well, you can have your pick. Pretentious. Over-indulgence at its most over-indulged. Inaccessible. Pointless. The list goes on and on. In fact, it\u2019s almost easier to ridicule something like this for its lack of apology than it is to find the many things here one can value. A single listen and the arguments become clear as day.<\/p>\n
Supporters argue that if you don\u2019t like it, you just don\u2019t get it.<\/p>\n
Critics argue that this simply isn\u2019t music.<\/p>\n
Supporters argue that this is art in the highest form.<\/p>\n
Critics argue that there\u2019s nothing artistic about three-and-a-half minutes of static.<\/p>\n
The disagreements could go on for days and it\u2019s impossible to claim one side as right and the other as wrong. Above all else, this is the kind of stuff that speaks directly to preference. It\u2019s not an easy listen and it almost singlehandedly redefines the word abstract. But damn if it doesn\u2019t immediately take you to a very specific place you previously never knew existed.<\/p>\n
Which, of course, is what makes \u201cHarmonic Poems\u201d a success and Guillermo Pizarro a musical mind worth celebrating. It might not be an attraction you\u2019re used to riding, but if nothing else, the ticket you buy will grant you access to a journey you won\u2019t soon forget.<\/p>\n
** 2 STARS OUT OF 4 **<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The best music is supposed to transport you. It takes you to a place far away from wherever you are. Such is why nostalgia is such a prominent element in…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":1113334,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1113333","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-reviews"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fnpsites.net\/playlist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1113333","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fnpsites.net\/playlist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fnpsites.net\/playlist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fnpsites.net\/playlist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fnpsites.net\/playlist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1113333"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/fnpsites.net\/playlist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1113333\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fnpsites.net\/playlist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1113334"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fnpsites.net\/playlist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1113333"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fnpsites.net\/playlist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1113333"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fnpsites.net\/playlist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1113333"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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The best music is supposed to transport you. It takes you to a place far away from wherever you are. Such is why nostalgia is such a prominent element in the art. Never mind the objective quality of a song; good or bad, if you associate it with a certain memory, you\u2019ll continue to return to it for as long as it activates a certain feeling within your soul. Smash Mouth\u2019s \u201cAll Star\u201d isn\u2019t a particularly great song by any standard, but to those who have longing memories for the summer of 1999, it can provide something other songs can\u2019t.<\/p>\n