ambient / classical
Nobody knows for sure what happens after this life is over. Yet, people have always had ideas about it. Some people believe in heaven and hell while others prefer reincarnation. Still others seem to think that the lights go out and that nothing will happen after we die.
Still, it is a scientific fact that whoever dies eventually becomes a part of nature again. Our flesh, our bones, every single cell in our body will disappear and provide food and thus energy to new forms of life. Like a forest that covers a battlefield. It seems like will well forever be a part of mother nature.
Metsänpeitto (lit. 'covered by forest') is a Finnish folk belief that one can become lost in the forest and be transported into another reality; one where the forest is timeless, reversed and distorted. Forest have always had a certain attraction to people and therefore also to their beliefs. Based on that belief, 'Metsänpeitto' is the new opus by violinist/composer Meriheini Luoto. Graduated at the Sibelius Academy in 2016, Luoto has a fresh and exciting view on classical music, folk and ambient and this album is a brilliant statement of that vision.
This album is a rather minimal blend of classical music and experimental ambient. The violin in the central instrument, here and there enhanced with voices, percussion of whistles. Although there are some uptempo and rather joyful folk music passages to be found, the majority of the music on this album is slow, lingering and intriguing. In five tracks, Luoto takes the listener on a strange but exciting journey, something I can always appreciate.
So, who to recommend this album to? Well, I think the fans of avant garde, out of the ordinary music will certainly appreciate this. Fans of Arvo Pärt, Kronos Quartet, Kuro, Henryk Górecki and even Dmitri Shostakovich might want to give this album a good listen, but also fans of (dark) jazz, noise and Nordic ambient. I admit, it can get a bit weird, unconventional and uncomfortable at times but then again, you're not reading articles on Merchants Of Air for pop music references, are you? So yes, check it out. It's something else which is almost always interesting.
Serge
Still, it is a scientific fact that whoever dies eventually becomes a part of nature again. Our flesh, our bones, every single cell in our body will disappear and provide food and thus energy to new forms of life. Like a forest that covers a battlefield. It seems like will well forever be a part of mother nature.
Metsänpeitto (lit. 'covered by forest') is a Finnish folk belief that one can become lost in the forest and be transported into another reality; one where the forest is timeless, reversed and distorted. Forest have always had a certain attraction to people and therefore also to their beliefs. Based on that belief, 'Metsänpeitto' is the new opus by violinist/composer Meriheini Luoto. Graduated at the Sibelius Academy in 2016, Luoto has a fresh and exciting view on classical music, folk and ambient and this album is a brilliant statement of that vision.
This album is a rather minimal blend of classical music and experimental ambient. The violin in the central instrument, here and there enhanced with voices, percussion of whistles. Although there are some uptempo and rather joyful folk music passages to be found, the majority of the music on this album is slow, lingering and intriguing. In five tracks, Luoto takes the listener on a strange but exciting journey, something I can always appreciate.
So, who to recommend this album to? Well, I think the fans of avant garde, out of the ordinary music will certainly appreciate this. Fans of Arvo Pärt, Kronos Quartet, Kuro, Henryk Górecki and even Dmitri Shostakovich might want to give this album a good listen, but also fans of (dark) jazz, noise and Nordic ambient. I admit, it can get a bit weird, unconventional and uncomfortable at times but then again, you're not reading articles on Merchants Of Air for pop music references, are you? So yes, check it out. It's something else which is almost always interesting.
Serge
