Interval Signals, one of two recordings from Brian Pyle’s Ensemble Economique solo project released in December, is a 40-minute pastiche of field recordings, radio sounds, and as the album’s title implies—interval signals.
Review: Ensemble Economique – Interval Signals
National Music Reviews
Ensemble Economique
Interval Signals
Denovali Records
Street: 12.13.13
Ensemble Economique = Starving Weirdos + Jefre Cantu-Ledesma
Interval Signals, one of two recordings from Brian Pyle’s Ensemble Economique solo project released in December, is a 40-minute pastiche of field recordings, radio sounds, and as the album’s title implies—interval signals. There is a comforting sense of familiarity in the sort of noise featured in this recording—broadcast signals, rain, conversational voice, and what sounds like traffic. Instrumental sounds, such as a stray organ or piano melody, layer into elements of musique concrete. When creating a tape edit or loop—I use tape as a specific example, because there are very few opportunities for revision with that format, in the event of a mistake—there is a feeling of unpredictability and potential magic that occurs. I am not aware of Pyle’s specific composition and production setup, but that feeling is present. At its best, Interval Signals recalls another time and place, distant or perhaps imagined—but the music and sensation it creates are consistently unique. –T.H.
Interval Signals
Denovali Records
Street: 12.13.13
Ensemble Economique = Starving Weirdos + Jefre Cantu-Ledesma
Interval Signals, one of two recordings from Brian Pyle’s Ensemble Economique solo project released in December, is a 40-minute pastiche of field recordings, radio sounds, and as the album’s title implies—interval signals. There is a comforting sense of familiarity in the sort of noise featured in this recording—broadcast signals, rain, conversational voice, and what sounds like traffic. Instrumental sounds, such as a stray organ or piano melody, layer into elements of musique concrete. When creating a tape edit or loop—I use tape as a specific example, because there are very few opportunities for revision with that format, in the event of a mistake—there is a feeling of unpredictability and potential magic that occurs. I am not aware of Pyle’s specific composition and production setup, but that feeling is present. At its best, Interval Signals recalls another time and place, distant or perhaps imagined—but the music and sensation it creates are consistently unique. –T.H.
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