Chimera by Keith Kelly

Chimera (2020)
This is a tone poem, I guess. I was inspired by the music of Roscoe Mitchell, Jon Gibson, and ideas around myth as a repository of human emotions. Here, presented as if through her own eyes/imagination, is the life of Chimera - three-headed creature made of goat, lion, and dragon. Images and stories about Chimera, presented throughout various cultures, portray the fire-breathing monster that seems to kill for no reason, sending countless men to their deaths, until a fateful encounter with a noted warrior who just happens to be riding another mythical creature. Spare a thought for the Chimera? Maybe.

All the music here is made by me with large chunks made in one pass/one attempt. There are two tracks of mostly keyboards, the first and last, the opening and closing of the eyelids. The second track is about self-discovery, the monster-ness that sits at our core, but particularly in those that are monsters. The third track (at 10ish minutes) is the playfulness one might have as they explore their territory – the sweeping landscapes that surround us and bind us. There is a track about love – For Orthos – that is a kind of blues. Huh…I mean, I was thinking about the blues while I recorded the various parts. Other characters enter Chimera field of vision, Pegasus (found by moonlight, beside a temple) and Belllerophon (hunter, tragic figure himself)- these two see themselves as heroic, which may mean they have to destroy as a means of proving their worth. The last track (bow and arrow), has Chimera slowly passing – reflecting, slowing, gasping.

I cannot make music (well, should I say release music) unless I think it is fucking good. What do I think is good about this music? It’s compelling. I think it holds up to numerous listens – there are enough vertical and horizontal swoops and dashes that wander then knowingly clash. There are parts that I think sound familiar/reminiscent/inspired by and parts that wholly exist as shit only I do – well, I think so. HA! What is not great about it? I will leave criticism to someone else. The best I can do is that this is chamber music and I (as a listener) am guilty at times of passing over music that doesn’t give me the rhythm section thing that makes me want to tap my foot or get down, hang out, etc. That’s for another recording. But for a TONE POEM, being made by one dude, I like it. A lot. Which is why I made and am sharing it.

The process of making this music involved writing down snippets, improvising over pre-existing recordings (my own and others), and pure improvisation (thinking of something the just going with it). There was some marinating – what sounded good with what, what to throw out, what to recycle, etc. Some time spent trying to get the sounds ordered in a way that strikes me, and with a vibe for each piece and for the overall recording. I like to have emergent ideas (and I try to leave room for “a-ha”and dumb luck) and though specific titles came and went, the general order/structure was ever-present from a macro level (instrumentation, musical ideas, meta-constructs, vibe). Chimera as character I find intriguing – she appears as blips across a variety of cultures and time periods. The shifting nature of myth over time is one has held my attention since Ms. Bradley’s (or was it Mr. Heinitz’s?) English class in high school. The ability to read a text in multiple ways, to draw out themes, or to create connections to other ideas, anachronistic ideas are frameworks that still demand my imagination. And it is my hope that this recording captures some of y’alls imaginations.

improvised music from the southwest