the guitar music of

The End Springs

tape (2006), CDR (2006), CDR (2006)

World Of Springs      The End Springs / Donato Epiro : Dust Wind Tales -tapesingle- (US/I,2006)**'

I almost forgot I had a tape player (and a good one too, driven by 3 motors and with 3 heads !), so it was time to find out about it with this tape only release.

Each side is a little over 10 minutes.

First side by The End Springs is a guitar piece, (“dust options & sky rocks”) with acoustic rhythm guitar, building up notes with just a few pickings, while a few flute echo effects are added. One of the strings works like a droning string while a moody rhythmical melody is improvised upon, from chords to a few pickings. This is quickly over.

The track by Donato Epiro ‘”Funerary song for a slug”) starts with a harmonium drone, of which a few tones come out, before a guitar piece appears, with weird anti-chords, and of what sound like some additional glass bottle sounds. The composition is multitracked or multi-layered with weird/odd prepared pickings, like a minimalist oddity, of which after a while the mind gets used to and relaxes to, with enjoyment before the harmonium concludes the piece. Limited to 60 numbered copies.

Info & audio The End Springs: http://www.myspace.com/theendsprings

private      The End Springs : vol II (US,2006)***°

Both releases of The End springs were hand crafted and are already sold out, but the project leader was so friendly to send me a cdr of them to listen. Unfortunately I was unable to play vol. 1.  This second volume (like vol.1, a mini-cdr) was described as being “5 tunes of racing trains, rough blues & folk dreams. The perfect partner for Volume I.” The pieces are experimentally improvised and crafted with multi-tracking with an ear for sounds. The first small piece is a nice picking tune, with a more echoing second guitar on top making a first layer of a texture, with a third layer of an echoing sound, passing by like a wind, based upon a sound like scratching paper or so, fading in and disappearing again, while the melodic guitar tune itself is kept on front leading the mood. The whole combination is cleverly mixed and built up well. This well fitting second tune is more uptempo, like a playful flamenco piece as if made for a puppet on strings, where the rhythm itself is backing with finger-ticking sounds. Also the third guitar piece is composed with three cooperative layers. The main piece is backed by sounds of something which sounds like a seagull-like wind-whistle, and another sound of peeping wood like from a door or floor with a weight on it, and a loop of something comparable to a soft washboard, both participating like a texturing backing chorus, making also this track a happy playful home recording blues. The fourth track is different, and is composed by a rhythm box mixed with some guitar rhythms, and a bit of guitar feedback, all close with the rhythm and the pulsating of the rhythm. Rhythmboxes in general sound harsh, but also this track is subtle and has a dreamy hypnotic effect by combining all sounds into one organic rhythmical track. The last track is played by electric guitar, which plays bluesy solos, while some guitar reverb is added as a second layer and puts a different more experimental effect into the music. At the same time we hear some pulsating sounds in an independently living rhythm, as a knocking-vibrating bass wave sound effect in the background, a second layer of a surreal making texturing effect. I really like the way The End Springs composes and builds up its pieces. By keeping the ideas relatively compact it makes their result really successful.

Info & audio The End Springs: http://www.myspace.com/theendsprings

private      The End Springs : vol II (US,2006)***°

Also the first volume was based upon moody improvisations with acoustic guitars mostly, combined with a second acoustic, amplified or electric guitar. More often, but not everywhere this is combined with semi-acoustic kind of lops of scratches or other sound effects or reverb electric guitar to make a more complete sound picture. A few of the moods are a bit bluesy. Last track also features a bit of piano. Nice.

Info & audio The End Springs: http://www.myspace.com/theendsprings

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