TRACKS: 01 Droplet
02 Watching It Unfold
03 The Prelude To
04 The Surface Of Everything
05 Galaxies Of Dust
06 Stillness In Motion
07 ... And Clouds For Company
A
Colour For Autumn is the second in a series of editions from
Australian sound artist Lawrence English that trace the experience
of seasonal transit. Following on from For Varying Degrees of
Winter (published by Baskaru), A Colour For Autumn reflects
on and explores the transitory nature of Autumn - counterpointing
the uniformity of the ‘term’ with the varied qualities
expressed by landscapes in different countries.
Like all environmental phenomena, seasonal variation is highly
localised, and expressed not only visually through vegetation
etc, but also sonically as insect life, leaves under foot and
fauna all change in response to the climatic shifts. Northern
and southern hemisphere experiences of Autumn are strikingly different
and it’s also this contrast which rests at the very centre
of A Colour For Autumn.
Recorded between 2007-2009, this series of pieces acts almost
as small auditory portraits of given spaces in the often gentle
throes of Autumn - ‘Droplet’ for example features
field recordings gathered in Notre-Dame De La Garde in Marseilles,
capturing the infamous ‘Mistral’ wind as it blows
the first cooler breezes of Autumn into the city in 2007. By contrast
‘Watching It Unfold’ measures a more Australian experience
of Autumn - a series of open static phrases, shifting ever so
slightly - a reflection of the slow changes of the season around
English’s home of Brisbane.
Working with a range of analog approaches, A Colour For Autumn
is a tonally rich affair, sourcing much of it’s sounds from
a mixture of instruments, field recordings and assorted electronics.
A Colour For Autumn also features contributions from New Zealand’s
Dean Roberts (whose vocals adorn the opening moments of the album)
and Viennese musician Christian Fennesz, who offers intricate
clusters of electronics in ‘The Surface Of Everything’.
This is an album of subtle variation, graded hues and tonal warmth,
all of which act as an invitation for the listener to consider
their own localised transition of Autumn.