Browse by Artist: FJELLSTRØM, MARCUS

Artist:	FJELLSTRØM, MARCUS
Title:	Exercises In Estrangement
Label:	LAMPSE AUDIOVISUAL RECORDINGS (UK)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	LAMP 002CD

"The title of this album summarizes in two words what the listener's expectations should be. The word 'exercise' might have to protect ourselves from something alien that will make us want to turn away. What young composer Marcus Fjellström has given us is a collection of very dark and melancholic pieces with a strange beauty. Normally composing works for orchestras and chamber musicians, as well as scores for films, these two practises have filtered through in 'Exercises.' Long, haunting ambient tracks are reminiscent of dark Lynchian worlds. Frantic orchestral moments could be the soundtrack to a Svankmajer mechanical puppet show or even a surreal circus performance. Like all the above would not qualify for an easy viewing, so Marcus' music is not one to embrace very quickly. It requires repeated listening in order to peel through all the layers and find the hidden musical pathways he has laid for us. An obvious comparison is the works of avant-garde composers such as John Cage, Steve Reich and Luciano Berio. A stronger reference point though would be the early experimentations of leading electronic music composer and Cage's close friend Morton Subotnick, as well as the output of modern electronica mavericks Aphex Twin and Autechre. Marcus, like them, acknowledges the advantages of the electronic medium and doesn't hesitate to place it at the centre of his work. Exercises In Estrangement is a strong example of the possible directions in modern (classical) music. Already paved by names such as Ligeti, Thomas Köner, Supersilent and Deathprod, to name but a few, the path is long..."

Artist:	FJELLSTRØM, MARCUS
Title:	Gebrauchsmusik
Label:	LAMPSE AUDIOVISUAL RECORDINGS (UK)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	LAMP 006CD

"Gebrauchsmusik is German for 'Utility Music', and Swedish composer and producer Marcus Fjellström's second excursion into post-classical experimentation is exactly that; thirteen tracks with each one written to suit a certain theme. War, art, festivity, sadness, death and resurrection are all interpreted by Fjellström in his unique style, taking a classical framework and distorting, confusing and manipulating it to suit his needs. String sections are crushed into a smokey Lynchian haze while staccato plucking is twisted to give out an almost Autechre-like resonance. While listening to Gebrauchsmusik it can be difficult to hear where the acoustic instruments stop and the electronic manipulation begins, a line which has been approached somewhat gingerly for some time now and rarely managed so effortlessly. The obvious comment on listening to music as unashamedly visual as this is that it sounds like a film score, Fjellström here has gone all the way on Gebrauchsmusik writing music which almost requires to be slotted into a piece of cinema -- 'War Music' should be paired with the disturbing images of battle, 'Fairytale Music' should skip and wisp around an enchanted forest and 'Death Music' should be signaling a funeral procession in it's solemn grandeur. Taking influence from John Cage, Morton Feldman and David Lynch's right hand man Angelo Badalamenti, Fjellström has developed a style which manages to transcend the current classical/electronic explosion. It is clear from the offset that the young musician has a deep understanding of what has come before as he blends elements of musique concrete, avant-classical and early electronic experimentations into his compositions. Instead of merely coming across as an homage, this album genuinely acts as a step forward in a crowded genre and is another daring leap for the forward-thinking Lampse label."

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