A sonic tincture of shamanic energy, at once ecstatic and shadowy, fragile and surreal, fluid and psychedelic.
Chari Chuang’s wordless crystalline voice graces three songs, with traces of Persian inflection. Deep basslines hint at dub, while analog modular synth skitters and chuffs the outlines of a rhythmic grid, propelled forward by pulsing north African drums. Sustaining guitars bring a searing edge. Cello and reeds echo plaintively in the distance. Rich’s sparse piano adds droplets of modal jazz to this dark tea.
credits
released November 1, 2011
Haroun Serang: guitar on 1
Chari Chuang: voice on 2,6,9
Edo Castro: bass on 3,6,9
Hans Christian: cello on 3,5,7,9
Slim Heilpern: chromatic harmonica on 4
Robert Rich: synths & MOTM, flutes, steel guitars, piano, bass, percussion
Recorded, mixed and mastered by Robert Rich at Soundscape, 2011.
Microphones by ADK, Blue, Josephson, Royer.
Custom Sustainiac lap steel guitar by Todd Plummer.
Software by Camel Audio, Izotope, Flux, Audio Damage, Galbanum.
Thanks to Jeff Taylor-Cross/Apple, Paul Schreiber/MOTM, Dan Brown/AudioSage, Chuck Oken/Noise Bug, +Dixie.
Edo Castro appears courtesy of Passion Star Records.
Cover art and design by John Bergin
REVIEWS:
===============================================
A beautiful poetic album... soaked by a fascinating shamanic aura. (Sylvain Lupari, GoD)
Fragility, free-floating, psychedelic, shadowy and surreal. (Ulf Backstrom - Merlin Prog)
Pure listening pleasure... (Archie Patterson, Eurock)
===============================================
Thirty years, still going strong. Medicine Box might be Robert Rich's finest release -- no small accomplishment considering it's his 26th solo work along with 14 collaborations.
The ambient maestro started out performing nine-hour "sleep concerts" for audiences dozing in sleeping bags. Over the years he has shifted from atmospheric drones to more organically lush compositions fusing electric and acoustic instruments while dabbling in world-beat rhythmic patterns. Using alternate tunings, microtones and an array of homemade instruments, Rich's music is a far cry from new age.
Medicine Box opens with warmly textured percussion, heavenly keys and acoustic guitar supporting a gorgeously crying electric guitar. The beauty of following cut "Kaaruwana" is indescribable, with Chari Chuang's haunting wordless vocals gliding over a somber Middle Eastern-flavored soundscape. Her angelic voice graces two other selections. Rich's imaginative use of lap steel guitar on "Callyx" is another of many high points as well as his keyboard mastery throughout. Some cuts are anchored by exotic percussion, others gently float with minimal rhythmic support. This album pleases body and soul as well as the ears. (Warren Barker, Progression Magazine)
► Watch on DTube
► Watch Source (IPFS)
Copying/Pasting full texts is frowned upon by the community.
Some tips to share content and add value:
Repeated copy/paste posts could be considered spam. Spam is discouraged by the community, and may result in action from the cheetah bot.
Creative Commons: If you are posting content under a Creative Commons license, please attribute and link according to the specific license. If you are posting content under CC0 or Public Domain please consider noting that at the end of your post.
If you are actually the original author, please do reply to let us know!
Thank You!
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
Hi! I am a robot. I just upvoted you! I found similar content that readers might be interested in:
https://robertrich.bandcamp.com/album/medicine-box-24-bit-96-khz
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
Follow me
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit