NYC-based label Purplish Records continues its tradition of releasing music on cassette in carefully curated batches, with its latest double release standing out as a remarkable gem. This release features the innovative works of Ipek Eginli and Jad Atoui, each exploring unique sonic landscapes—Eginli crafting ethereal soundscapes with prepared piano and modular synthesizers, while Atoui transforms discarded hard drives into mechanical compositional machines.
Jad Atoui’s Ghost Sectors delivers a visceral experience, filled with thumping, humming, and crunching textures as modified hard drives are set into motion. The release has been mastered by Ziad Moukarzel, a name well known to followers of Beirut’s experimental music scene, particularly through his work at the Beirut Synthesizer Center. Atoui’s approach gives this album a distinctive depth, turning repurposed hard drives into instruments that produce raw, electro-mechanical etudes.
Ghost Sectors is composed entirely of sounds and tones generated by these modified drives, each track performed as a live take to capture their mechanical essence. The concept originated from a commission by Yarn/Wire, leading Atoui to collaborate with mechanical engineer Sevag Babikian in transforming motors and needles into instruments capable of generating rhythm and melody. The album’s title reflects the concept of “ghost sectors”—forgotten data fragments within hard drives that remain hidden yet persist beneath the surface. Much like lost memories, people, or places that time has obscured, these sonic elements exist in the background, evoking a sense of lingering presence.
In contrast, Ipek Eginli’s work offers a different perspective, merging prepared piano techniques with modular synthesis to create an evocative, airborne experience. Her release, Clouds Carry Me to the Sky Every Morning, resembles a sonic journey that lifts the listener into an ethereal realm. The album’s composition draws parallels to John Cage’s Imaginary Landscapes, but with a dynamic, ever-shifting motion akin to floating at high altitude.
Eginli’s narrative unfolds through the sensation of being carried into the sky by clouds, capturing both emotional depth and physical movement. The music conveys themes of surrender, learning to let go, and embracing uncertainty, ultimately arriving at a place where loss and freedom coexist. The journey concludes with a sense of lightness—like a cloud drifting effortlessly.
The interplay between prepared and unprepared piano strings creates distinct tonal characters, as percussive sounds and resonant overtones shape evolving modal structures. Meanwhile, live electronics from modular synthesizers are triggered by the piano’s resonance, allowing for an improvisational exploration that shifts between atonality, poly-modality, and rhythmic fragmentation. The result is a dynamic conversation between acoustic and electronic elements, constantly pushing the boundaries of structure and spontaneity.
This double release from Purplish Records exemplifies the label’s commitment to experimental and boundary-pushing sound art. Whether through Atoui’s mechanical compositions or Eginli’s expansive sonic landscapes, both artists challenge conventional expectations and invite listeners into unexplored auditory realms.
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