Matthew Herbert – One One
[Accidental, 2010]
Matthew Herbert is a recognized experimenter with sound. Music, harmonies and mood are not enough, that’s why in each album he releases there are additional layers of interpretation and meaning. He makes you not only listen to music, but to focus, single-task,… think, after all. He already used sounds of chicken farm, industrial processes, human sounds, music recorded at a substantial height or underground as deep layers. His current album, One One, is the first volume of a trilogy and should represent a day in the life of… The following albums will be One Pig (sounds sampled from one pig) and One Club (noise of a club crowd). The tracks on One One are named after places – from Valencia to Tokyo, from Manchester to Milan. The geography is pretty wide, so are the patterns used in music. Herbert prefers to paint his soundscapes with a few strokes. You only see general, brighter lines at first, guessing the silhouettes. And then you start looking into a seemingly monochrome grey background, where you find the subtlety of lines and the artist’s mastery.
This way or another, you have to deal with context. Matthew Herbert is not someone who makes loud statements. He talks to those who are ready and want to listen. And if you let yourself dive into the intimacy of this album, you can hear a lot of things – from the lyrics almost whispered to your ear to the ornaments and halftones of the melodies. All this makes Herbert one of my all-time favorite artists.
By the way, One One made me re-listen to Bodily Functions – the album that turned my world upside down in early 2000s. Same relaxed and easy feel about it, with Matthew Herbert’s vocals (himself!). The only thing lacking is probably Dani Siciliano’s vocals as well.
Read & Listen:
Official website
Myspace
Matthew Herbert bio
