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Kevin Kastning / Bruno Råberg — Silent Dimensions
(Greydisc GDR3588, 2024, CD)

by Peter Thelen, Published 2024-08-02

Silent Dimensions Cover art

One need look no further than the title of the opening track, “The Constitution of Silence,” in order to get a clue regarding how this latest Kevin Kastning collaboration with Swedesh double bassist Bruno Råberg will unfold. As with most of Kastning’s previous efforts, the eight pieces herein seem to be loose and improvisational, though well thought out in advance, as Räberg knows precisely what note to play in order to accentuate and anticipate the motion and direction of Kastning’s next move — whether he is playing his 36-string double-neck contraguitar or something more simple like a 16-, 24-, or 28-string subcontraguitar, Kastning is a master of all of them and makes playing them sound effortless, which it most certainly is not. Råberg sticks to his one instrument, whether plucked or bowed, he also is a master of his craft. Throughout, the duo plays in a gentle and precise way that often hints of jazz but simply cannot be tied down to any single idiom, instead wandering freely across the vast musical spectrum, going anywhere and everywhere that two musicians of this caliber might find themselves from one moment to the next. The two-part “Transfigure Varnish” makes an immersive deep dive into a soft and dreamy otherworld guiding the listener along as it proceeds, with some percussive elements creating a soft cadence during the first part, while the second part follows at a more brisk but complimentary pace. Barely a minute in length, “Aniline I” launches with a beautiful bowed bass melody, while Kastning’s jangly guitars play counterpoint. “Memory Present Echo” churns along somewhat randomly, keeping the listener wondering where things are going from one measure to the next. The album’s longest track is the appropriately titled “Light Still and Moving,” a piece that drifts along tastefully through a number of different ideas as it proceeds. The gentle nature of the album as a whole gives it a bit of an ambient feel that calms without making a listener sleepy.

Filed under: New releases, 2024 releases

Related artist(s): Kevin Kastning

More info
http://kevinkastning.bandcamp.com/album/silent-dimensions

 

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