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Walt Shaw & Jim Tetlow — A Grain of Sand
(Discus Music 9016DL, 2026, DL)

by Peter Thelen, Published 2026-06-05

A Grain of Sand Cover art

We have covered percussionist Walt Shaw many times before at Exposé, most recently his excellent solo album Cave Printmaker, and two earlier collaborations with Jim Tetlow, Inner Skull Trail and Towards Momentum, both offering amazing evidence as to what can be done in conjunction with a laptop controller, the electronic and the mostly acoustic percussion. A Grain of Sand is their latest effort, from early 2026, and if one appreciated the innovative and experimental spirit on those earlier efforts, this new one will not disappoint. The title is a tribute to William Blake and his Auguries of Innocence, attempting to embrace a similar imagination and vision herein across the eight included tracks, four of which reach for or exceed the ten-minute mark, giving the listener plenty of immersive space to get lost within. Shaw used various acoustic instruments as well as homemade instruments including gongs, cymbals, bowls, frame drum, shakers, found objects, metal objects, springs, saw blades, a dismantled autoharp, broken music box, and much more, some of which were modulated in real time with electronic effects. Tetlow’s main instrument is a laptop with keyboard controller playing various software based instruments, as well as samples from field recordings and effects. There is plenty going on herein that should well illustrate an entire world of unusual sound combinations that can be achieved mixing acoustics, electronics and a blazing spate of creative genius between two musicians intent on producing something highly original. Their process involved recording all eight tracks in a single one-day session, no overdubs, all essentially improvised with the exception of some general structure pre-planning, and some editing after the fact in the weeks that followed. While every piece here is unique among all the others, there are few moments wasted on senseless repetition, each piece is an exploration of ideas and sonic chemistry that always moves in a forward direction, and while on a certain level it’s challenging in its overt strangeness, it’s nonetheless calming and easy on the ears.

Filed under: New releases, 2026 releases

Related artist(s): Walt Shaw, Jim Tetlow

More info
http://discusmusic.bandcamp.com/album/a-grain-of-sand-9016dl-2026

 

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