Posts tagged Celer

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From the liner notes of this release “Hill towns and empty houses pass by, but the smoothness of the train blurs the view”; and this is all Will Long needs to say to portray what he is trying to achieve with this album. With the opening pads of ‘Circle Routes’, the listener is dragged into a sea of enriching ambient with direct immediacy, with layers of folding bliss that are as hypnotic as they are drenched in solitude; where just over nine minutes of your time disappear without realisation.

Each track is interspersed by a field recordings equivalent that represents Long’s daily life in Tokyo and these can be forgiven thematically speaking, as they drift and glue the reflections of Celer’s memories, that are evocatively played out on seas of endless apparitions.

From the desperate throttles of ‘Tangent Lines’, to the threads of hope portrayed on ‘Equal Moments of Completion’, Will Long cascades a shimmering array of swells and pitfalls that simultaneously spark images from all ranges of key change and sound; that disguise the similarities and familiarities of each song, complimenting each other as an albums worth of work, embodying a concept that never fails to impress; where on some other releases this would undoubtedly be deemed as ‘samey’.

As a whole, ‘Sky Limits’ provides enough of a rich tapestry as any for a self-respecting ambient fan to lap up with gusto. As such this isn’t an album that you can just pick up and play; it takes a set mood and space in time where the listener is prepared to sit down and wholeheartedly envelop themselves in another persons story.

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Is de bestemming het doel van de reis? Of is het reizen op zich al de bedoelde bestemming? Is het elders een uitgesteld thuiskomen, al dan niet met vreselijke heimwee? Of is het echte thuiskomen in eigen huis en haard de inspiratie voor het maken van nieuwe plannen voor tochten vanuit de veilige thuishaven? Is de ambient van Celer de reis of de aankomst, het vertrekpunt of misschien het thuiskomen en -zijn? Kun je in zijn nevelige en dromerige wereld overal een thuis vinden?

Will Long bouwt onder zijn artiestennaam Celer composities, die in en uit droomwerelden lijken te drijven. In zijn minimale stukken met serene modulaire structuren zit echter een diepe emotionele laag verstopt. Denk aan een landschap dat voorbijraast als je uit het raam van een trein kijkt. Dichtbij zie je een waas aan kleuren en lijnen, veraf de strakke horizon. Huizen, weilanden, windmolens. De randen van een stad doemen op, en dan: de drukte van een station. En vervolgens weer de relatieve kalmte van het platteland. Zo wisselen ook gedachten zich ondertussen af; van actuele tot mijmerende herinneringen, die in en uit elkaar geweven worden in een labyrintisch spel. Een spel dat verrassend genoeg veelal geen vertrek of aankomst kent, maar in een tussengebied danst tussen toen en dan.

Urbi et Orbi gedragen door een drone, als het spiegelende oppervlak van een meer dat niet beroerd wordt door wind; Longs ambient is als het Stars of the Lidachtige blanke doek waarop je je fantasie mag botvieren, en je beslommeringen lodderig de beslommeringen mag laten. Waarop ongrijpbaarheid van herinnering, droom en realiteit samensmelt met laag op laag aan uitgerekte landerige tonen, die Marsen Jules en ook Machinefabriek in je oproepen. Een plaat als een moment waarin alles kan en mag, en niks hoeft. Nergens en toch ergens.

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In the mid-90′s, I boarded a Boeing 747 and flew across the Atlantic to Orlando, Florida. In that distant era, you could, for a couple of minutes or so, occasionally walk into the cockpit of a passenger jet on a long haul flight (accompanied by a member of the cabin crew), and say hi to the pilot and co-pilot (as you do). At 40, 000 feet, you could gaze out at the clear skies and the cloudy, vanilla scoops that concealed the sea, way below the plane. Nowadays, that’s unimaginable, as is the thought of smoking on a flight, but it really added to the enjoyment of traveling, especially when you consider that, in the 21st century, it’s becoming anything but enjoyable. Sky Limits helps to change that, reveling in the journey rather than the destination.

Celer‘s wispy, jet-lagged ambient music takes you away on its own journey. Slow to burn, Will Long’s music is heartfelt and cozy. It lets you drift away the day, a moment spent in dreamy transit. Celer’s music is high class music, no doubt about it. If you fly with him, you fly first class. In his hands, ambient music is effortless, just as it should be, and Sky Limits is another finely drawn entry. Will Long’s music is a serene window on the world, looking on at people and their emotional labyrinths. Thoughts blur – as does the countryside – as we travel through a green and pleasant land, kept guarded by nature. Sky Limits drops us off in a special place, a golden respite that we thought we’d never find.

The ambient atmosphere is slow, glacial, but in reality we’re moving at a fast pace; the high speed line takes us through cities, towns, unknown and undiscovered neighborhoods and rural communities. The music runs on a cushioned track, connecting the country and the landscape together, chaining them to the mind, body and soul. We can then link the music to a specific moment, a specific point in time and a golden experience; the place where we first heard that sound. Every time the music plays, it reminds us of how we felt, reminds us, somehow, of our own self.

As listeners, we’re on the inside, looking out at a beautiful, pristine horizon that glints and glows in the golden shadows of the sun, a fleeting moment never to be repeated. Celer makes the journey peaceful and serene, interspersing the ambient music with the everyday music of a terminal or a station, but he always brings us back to that restful place. Through “Circle Routes” and “Tangent Lines”, the music coasts along, taking with it a melancholic snapshot of an unforgettable place. You know deep in your heart that you won’t be returning anytime soon. His music has a special kind of clarity, like a lake of glass. Clarity of thought, clarity of air, clarity of mind. It stays with you. Celer’s music isn’t just beautiful. It’s also a reflection on life’s transitory state: in a second, we leave it all behind.

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There’s a very sad tale behind them. They started as a couple but she sadly passed away, and he continued ever since. It’s no coincidence the music is intensely beautiful. Very reminiscent of William Basinski, I think he uses the same process of archaic and warm loops that I think is central to process for Celer. Anything with loops captures me; I think ingrained in my soul is something to do with looping and repetition.

You could almost somewhat say that each ambient thing on this list is thematically united by looping, they all come from the same place. We could break each record down but what I’m drawn to is the same language. This one is just the latest Celer one I’m listening to. When I discovered them I found out their catalogue is humongous. I love nothing more than falling in love with a new artist and then discovering they’ve made about seven thousand albums, because it feels like I’m going to keep having this love affair over and over again. So that was about the sixth Celer record I listened to in the last three weeks. On their Bandcamp alone there must be 55 albums. So yeah, this is just the one I’ve been listening to the last week or so.

Thematically they, or he, seems to explore the same cycle: looping but with minute details and a maturing of the loop within, or a reduction. To me, when things sound archaic, they sound timeless and I love timelessness. It’s so evocative of this sense of infinity, which I love, I’m drawn to a void of nothingness and everything simultaneously, and Celer are reminiscent of that void for me. A lot of these artists touch on that.

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Coming in early March is a new album titled Zigzag, on the Japanese label Spekk. This is a very special album for me, and and step in a different direction as well. The CD is packaged in a 170 x 145mm large & wide custom-made cardboard sleeves, and along with the first orders is Seesaw, a limited edition CDR album in a handmade package, available only with the purchase of the Zigzag album. Thank you for your support, and please don’t miss this special album.

Press text:

Several years ago while living in the United States, I became interested in the minimalist music of the 1960’s and 1970’s, and new wave of the early 1980’s, with the steady pulses, the constant harmonies, and endless continuity. The music had a strong persistence, and while the listener can drift away from following it consciously, the rhythm stays grounded. In it there is something human, like a heartbeat.

At the time I had the idea to use this inspiration with my own music, giving the music a tempo, and a new pathway in a forward direction. I created Zigzag, and agreed to release the album through Spekk, but after several years, the project was delayed, and I went on to other projects, and the initial inspiration and concept disappeared.

In the summer of 2013, I found out that my wife and I would have our first child. Around this time, plans began to come together for the release of Zigzag. After missing the first few doctor’s appointments, I was finally able to attend, and for the first time heard the baby’s heartbeat. It seemed like such a fateful connection between the baby and the music. When new life begins, everything points toward the future.

– Will Long, 2014

Seashore is the debut release by Oh, Yoko, the duo of Rie Mitsutake and Will Long.

Rie Mitsutake, as Miko, has released full-length albums on labels such as Plop (Japan) and Someone Good (Australia). She has toured in Japan and Australia, and also collaborates with many other artists. Will Long, as Celer, has released music on labels from North America, Europe, and Asia. He also operates his own label, Two Acorns, and record store, Floor Sugar. Together they create nostalgic pop, using retro electronic and acoustic instruments, to create something pure for a more simple life.

Seashore is a single from Oh, Yoko’s forthcoming debut album. It also features an instrumental b-side mix by Terre Thaemlitz, and a remix by DJ Sprinkles. It is packaged in a classic Maxi-single case, with a glass-mastered compact disc. Edition of 500 copies.

Projet réunissant Will Long et sa femme Danièle Baquet-Long, Celer est une référence pour bien des observateurs d’une certaine scène drone minimaliste et contemplative. Les deux tourtereaux furent maintes fois reconnus pour leurs objets faits à la main, sortis sur leur propre empreinte indépendante, célébrant leur amour sans faille tout autant que Dame Nature. Seulement voilà, Danièle est morte en juillet 2009 des conséquences d’une anomalie cardiaque. Si Wil tente de maintenir le projet vivant, Celer a perdu la moitié de son âme. Il reste pourtant à Wil une somme très importante d’enregistrements exclusifs en attente de sortie, issus de l’époque passionnée. D’autres releases, sold out depuis longtemps, revoient le jour chez des labels bien assis ou chez des petits nouveaux tout aussi passionnés. C’est la cas du label Dronarivm, propriété du moscovite Dmitry Taldykin, qui ré-édite ce Rags Of Contentment, déjà sorti sur cassette en 2010 chez le label Digitalis Limited.

Pour un label naissant, sortir (ré-éditer pour le coup) un album de Celer n’est pas forcément un fait d’armes des plus original. Ou alors, il faut que l’album en question soit un indispensable. Si on s’accorde sur le fait que l’objectivité est une gageure sans nom, c’est sans doute encore plus vrai pour la musique de Celer, qui parle autant aux oreilles qu à l’âme et à l’épiderme. Chacun détient donc sa vérité sur ce qui serait leur meilleur album. La tonalité générale de leur musique est certes descriptible, mais c’est nettement plus ardu dans l’individualisation des oeuvres. Que chacun plonge le coeur grand ouvert dans leurs réalisations, pour se faire une idée personnelle. Tout en sachant qu’encore aujourd’hui, pléthore de designers sonores peinent à comprendre comment le duo a pu retranscrire autant avec si peu.

Rags Of Contentment, ou 70 minutes d’eaux limpides faussement stagnantes aptes à réchauffer les songes. La procédure est certes simple pour ce qui est de la superposition des drones aux textures tendres et sèches. Mais il y a ce grain, ce son dont on ne saurait être pleinement sûr de l’origine. Cette totale impression de paix, d’évidence et de plénitude dans la complémentarité des lignes. Dans leur trajectoires parallèles comme dans leurs subtils sursauts. Comme quand la basse fréquence vient envelopper l’ensemble pour mieux faire vibrer la corde sensible de Pleased To Be In A State Of Sour Resplendency. Certains musiciens érigent des temples à l’héro pour glorifier leur dark side. Celer, ont bâti à partir de leur amour passionné, une cathédrale musicale qui résonne comme un orgue céleste dans le coeur des mortels qui savent encore s’émouvoir.

Et il y a cette maîtrise dans la manipulation des volumes, qui fait de chaque strate une bouffée d’air pur. Cette désarmante habileté à illustrer des points d’horizons fixes, alors qu’à l’intérieur, chaque vibration fait son office. Dévaste, autant qu’elle apaise. Si Things Gone And Still Here fera le pari de matières plus en collision, c’est sans doute pour mieux souligner tout l’aspect littéralement fusionnel de cette musique et de ceux qui l’ont composé. Avec de tels enregistrements, Celer ont gravé sur gllasmaster des instants feutrés, intimistes et touchés par la grâce. L’autre demeure un miroir même quand la glace se brise.

Merveilleuse pour certains, définitivement chiante pour d’autres, la musique du duo se doit d’être écoutée avec un matériel au niveau. Je ne saurais dire si cet album de Celer est un indispensable. C’est en tous cas un de ceux qui m’a le plus touché. Je vous épargnerais donc une notation encore plus dénuée de sens que d’habitude. Dronarivm crée de belles enveloppes pour accueillir leurs écrins musicaux. Un album de Listening Mirror est déjà disponible. La naissance de ce label est donc une nouvelle tout à fait remarquable.

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In Ländern wie Tibet, Bhutan & Nepal drehen sich die Uhren nicht nur aber hauptsächlich aufgrund von Spiritualität wesentlich langsamer, weshalb die hoch zivilisierte westliche Welt nach der Ruhe & Entspannung dieser Länder bzw. Völker giert, die das einstige Ehepaar Danielle Baquet-Long (R.I.P.) & William Thomas Longunter dem Namen CELER in Töne übertrug, welche z.B. “Rags of Contentment” beschert, das 2009 als Download (Bandcamp) und 2012 als limitierte CD (222 Exemplare) über DRONARIVM erschien.

DRONARIVM, ein Sublabel von RADIODRONE RECORDS (oder umgekehrt), wo seit 2012 kontemporäre Ambient Musik das Licht der Welt erblickt, publiziert “Rags Of Contentment” als CD im edel gestalteten A5 Pappcover, wodurch das die tief berührenden Sounds einen ansprechenden Rahmen erhalten.

Danielle Baquet-Long alias CHUBBY WOLF & William Thomas Long teilten nicht nur die Liebe zur Kunst/ Tonkunst, sondern auch die des Reisens, die sie nach Nepal führte, woher die Inspiration zu “Rags Of Contentment” stammt, das soundtechnisch den buddhistischen Gebetsmühlen ähnelt, wodurch Tibeter wie Nepalesen auf dem Pfad der Erleuchtung Unterstützung erlangen.

Gleich den monotonen aber intensiven Sounds der Gebetsmühlen präsentieren CELER zwei überlange Droneschleifen, deren Dichte direkt von Anfang bis Ende ansaugt und weiter über die Spielzeit (knapp 73 Minuten) hinaus nicht mehr loslässt – Wahnsinn! Melodiös monoton beschreibt die zwei “Hochtonschwergewichte” auf “Rags Of Contentment” eindrucksvoll, die bei voller Hingabe in Ekstase versetzen und für wohlig warme Tiefenentspannung sorgen. Auch nach unzähligen Hördurchläufen ergreifen die Tracks ‘Pleased to be in a state of sour Resplendency‘ & ‘Things gone and still here‘ aufgrund ihrer wuchtigen Intensität geschwind, das die Klasse von CELER‘s “Rags Of Contentment” unterstreicht!

Fazit:

Danielle Baquet-Long (R.I.P.) & Will Long alias CELER erschufen mit “Rags Of Contentment” ein  zeitloses Meisterwerk, dessen Intensität/ Dichte „überrollt“ & entspannt – meine absolute Empfehlung! PS: Erstaunlich welche Mengen an großartigem Output das kreative Ehepaar Long in seiner gemeinsamen Zeit “zusammenschraubte”, als wenn sie eine Ahnung gehabt hätten.

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The debut release by Russian ambient imprint Dronarivm is a compact disc re-issue of Celer’s limited-edition cassette Rags of Contentment. They’ve taken pains to showcase Celer at its best in a brightly-illustrated, elongated, three-panelled foldout postcard designed by Rutger Zuydervelt (aka Machinefabriek, who recently released a set of “postcards” with Will Long, live improvisations sent from a tour of the Lowlands), and adorned with the late Danielle Baquet-Long’s accomplished photography.

For a duo whose work could hardly be called prolix, “Pleased to Be in a State of Sour Resplendency” is particularly stripped and minimal. Their sublime drones are typically constructed layer upon layer but both thirty-odd minute tracks on ‘Rags of Contentment’ waft like the faintest, steady breeze, not even enough to rustle a blade of grass. Gradual change in timbre and temperature are more evident on “Things Gone and Still Here,” but just barely so.

Ragas of calm, resignation to luscious ennui and irrepressible resolve. The record apparently brings to mind Nepal and Eno’s Discreet Music for Will Long, and a night spent outdoors between sundown and darkness in Santa Ana, just being there. Carried away by the big meaningful.

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