Peak Ascension from Open Windows by Derek Rogers

L.A.-based electronic musician Derek Rogers is a genius when it comes to balancing minimalism with dense, abstract ideas. His expert sense of patience, mood and timbre was stunningly exemplified in his Circuit Rider collaboration with Lee Noble out on Jehu & Chinaman earlier this year, garnering much praise. But Rogers is tirelessly prolific, and on this Open Windows tape from Hobo Cult he’s outdone himself yet again, crafting dense, fascinating meditations that ooze pure pathos. Kicking off the first side is the epic “Mental Images,” a stark, moody piece in which plaintive drones slither subtly out of synth and phaser oscillations. Haunting shrouds of timbre drift in a sound-space Lovecraft would have called “non-Euclidean,” but for our purposes we can simply say that this one’s a doozy. Soon we’re at the gem “Beautiful Ever Could,” a frigid ambient bliss-out that evokes Former Selves or pre-string ensemble Sean McCann. Tracks like “Street Sweepers At Noon” demonstrate Rogers’ keen talent for evoking visual motifs with his ambitious sonic palette. Finally, don’t go anywhere until “Peak Ascension” rocks the conclusion, baffling the ears with sputters of inchoate pink noise that destabilizes the warm, comforting narcosis provided earlier. If any tape can take you on an unforgettable journey, it’s this one, and it’s a journey well worth taking before the year’s end.

-- Diego Aguilar, Decoder Magazine
http://www.secretdecoder.net/blog/2013/12/10/derek-rogers-open-windows-excerpt/

Derek Rogers (b. 4 September 1980) is a musician active in electronic composition, drone, free-improv, ambient, and noise textures. He utilizes computer processes as well as traditional instrumentation and field recordings to create emotionally resonant work, tending toward long forms and soundscapes.

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