Agorafobia

Theodor Bastard

Record Details

Released:
2000

Tracklist

  1. Line One -:-- / 3:46
  2. Сельва -:-- / 5:13
  3. Радио Бристоль -:-- / 4:40
  4. 236 -:-- / 8:22
  5. Фокус-покус -:-- / 3:32
  6. Шаг -:-- / 7:21
  7. Лента -:-- / 4:40
  8. Жизнь насекомых -:-- / 4:23
  9. Теорема -:-- / 7:59
  10. Открытие -:-- / 4:37
  11. Конец лета -:-- / 5:00
Experiments in the field of alpha-beta waves and model programming. Synchronization with the brain, recording of human biorhythms… In the opening and final track, Yana Veva’s voice appears for the first time — noises and whispers. Machine rhythms of telephone networks, ambient and minimalism. The existential background of the music, reflecting the condition of a young man thrown into a harsh life after parental care, the use of ethnic percussion and some other live sounds along with electronic ones, the maturity of the author, combining skill and a wealth of ideas, a great sense of style and a verified structure make the album a real masterpiece. Despite the external restraint of the music, it is not emotionally dry and unnecessarily pretentious. Compared to “8 ways to achieve a lady,” music, on the one hand, is more orthodox, since it contains rhythms and rudiments of melody, although they do not play a significant role in the artistic impression, on the other hand, it is more original due to its polystylicity, abundance of original finds and content. Thus, the compositions “theorem” and “discovery”, which follow each other in the album, amaze with the unity of the musical means used and the shades of the state of consciousness transmitted by them. If the “theorem” is a composition that presses on the psyche with an intricate structure, stumbling rhythms and pained sighs, perfectly conveying the atmosphere of hard intellectual work, then the “discovery”, very close to the “theorem” in general sound, is radically different in form: this composition is very minimalistic, completely linear in structure and has positive energy expressing the enlightenment of consciousness. Another advantage of this music is its purity: there is nothing in it except what is required for the adequate embodiment of the composer’s findings and the expression of the content. On the other hand, this music cannot be blamed for arrogant elitism: the presence of dance rhythms in many compositions facilitates the perception of the album as a whole, while not violating the stylistic integrity. The track “radio Bristol” is made in a lower style than the rest of the compositions; apparently, this is why it got on the air of Radio Record, although in the context of the whole album it is perceived as a passing one. The album Agorafobia ends with a real shock called “the end of summer”, when the tragic piano arpeggio finally breaks through the amorphous, stringy atmosphere. Despite the fact that the style of the band has changed a lot since then, this album is already an integral part of The Theodor Bastard project, a polystylic hybrid of ethnics and electronics. It sounds really experimental, and not just continues the traditions of styles that are considered avant-garde and progressive, regardless of the level of specific representatives.