Philippe Petit And Friends: A Scent of Garmambrosia

‘A Scent of Garmambrosia’ is an unsettling record. Clouded in a thickness of electronic processing, the music crafted by post-classical composer Philippe Petit in conjunction with an esteemed group of collaborators, delves deep into the listener’s psyche penetrating it with macabre visions of devastation and despair.

Using a mixture of classical instruments such as cello, violin and tuba and blending them with guitar, electronic harp, synth and audio FXs, Petit and his accomplices translate the nightmarish visions usually found in surrealist cinema into an auditory form.

The album opens with a processed blend of guitar strumming and cello bowing enveloping the listener in a mist of confusion. Titled ‘When a Seahorse Met a Seafish,’ the track grows to resemble the aquatic qualities that its name alludes to. An effervescent mix of percussion, high pitched guitar, harp and strings create a sense of underwater flight, which prove a light respite from the gloomy uncertainty of the opening moments of the recording. Eventually however, these give way to the sinister sounds found earlier on.

On ‘The Nuptial Flight of Fireflies’ the listener is taken on an epic voyage through the night. Here eerie horns and audio effects blend with strings to create a dank, yet fantastical atmosphere. Occasional fuzzes of electronic noise burst through the more melodic sentiments of a tuba, presumably to represent the buzzing of flies. A steady chaos builds as the track progresses, all the while the wind instruments provide an unusual sense of calm, like hearing the echoes of a jazz club spill out into the void of a sprawling metropolis.

Collaborators throughout the album include Helena Espvall , Fred Lonberg-Holm and Bela Emerson on cello, Raphaelle Rinaudo (electric harp), Maria Grigoryeva and James Johnston on violins, Andy Diagram (trumpet/FX), Richard Harrison (percussions), Alexander Bruck (strohviol/viola), Tom Heasley (tuba) and Hervé Vincenti (guitar). Bas Mantel provides the artwork.

In spite of the dark nature at work here, there is also an unmistakable fragility to the music which shines throughout the album. On ‘Pellicula’ melancholic strings feature throughout and whilst sombre, they do highlight a more delicate sound from the other, more dystopian ones found in Petit’s armoury. Similarly a solo piano found on ‘Night Elves Jukebox’ stands out in isolation from the manipulated vibrations that intertwine and circulate its presence.

‘A Scent of Garmambrosia’ is not an easy album. That however is not its intention. Philippe Petit and his friends have set about creating a cinematic audio realm with a collection of hard hitting and sometimes hard on the ear recordings. Like the Lynchian worlds these sounds are clearly inspired by Petit and co offer the listener a space to penetrate the impenetrable; making a wealth of sound creation open to personal interpretation.

- Review by Josh Atkin for Fluid Radio

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