Customer Reviews

Flux & Mutability

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

A warm, colorful and enchanting piece of work, Flux & Mutability is a complete contrast to its predecessor (Plight & Premonition). Where that album was chilly, forbidding and almost devoid of actual music, this one overflows with dreamy synth tones and pleasant atmospheres. It's a radiant ambience that still doesn't captivate all your attention, but creeps into your consciousness before you realize what's happened. Sylvian starts building some comfy clouds which are gradually added to as "Flux" progresses; some aimless stray notes here, some toned-down percussion there, some faint unintelligible voice snippets here, some breezy winds there. It suggests sitting on a porch some sunny spring day. The outside world makes its presence felt as it comes and goes, but never really intrudes.

The slightly longer "Mutability" consists only of David's keyboards and some airy barely-there flute, and it almost makes the first half seem busy and active by comparison. Again there's no real melody, but an easy-flowing atmosphere of warm and pleasant sounds. It meanders in the ether for a good 20 minutes, not really going anywhere but not intending to. Ambient fans should find a lot to enjoy, and Sylvian fans should just be warned that it's a far cry from Secrets of the Beehive. Excuse me while I drift off...

This is the companion piece to Czukay and Sylvian's "Plight and Premonition". And here, the first work finds the addition of some jazz elements into the soundscaping, courtesy of Markus Stockhausen et al. Stockhausen _fils_ is most significant here, as these works share some elements germaine to his father's impressive body of work. But while Karlheinz Stockhausen tends to create pieces of avant-garde spikiness, these two pieces are warm, droning, slowly-spinning constellations of sounds and fragments that draw the listener in to either bathe in the wash or to explore the bits that drift by. The second piece here returns course back to the same seas navigated on "Plight...", which should be purchased in tandem with this release, if possible.

...is on display here, as Sylvian and Czukay carry the listener on another aural journey of remarkable proportions. "Flux" is the musical equivalent of a still life - a sonic space where nothing much happens but everything moves. As other reviewers have quite rightly said, "Flux" evokes a summer's day, passersby and a bright hot sun that the listeners can see but need not venture out into, warm and comfortable as they are in the shade...

"Mutability" is simply remarkable, a gently susurrating helix of sounds - keyboard/guitar sounds that shimmer drift at glacier speed, fragments of flute that are hints of melody - that spiral up and out and spread into a wide surging that creates an eternity - in the somewhat surprising time of 21 minutes (it doesn't seem that long, whilst simultaneously seeming longer). This is aural mysticism at a very high level of expression - perfect for meditating or just chilling.

"Flux + Mutability" is the second of two companion albums, that would be the only output by these artists under the banner of Sylvian/Czukay. "F+M" picks up where "P&P" left off by continuing an ongoing experiment in dubbing, ambient-drone stylings and civil tape implementations.

Flux is perhaps this duo's most accessible piece, as it is their only piece to contain something of a rhythm section. Throughout the piece ambient guitar drones are punctuated by various guitar riffs and flughorne meanderings, all to a soundtrack of personal recordings made by Czukay.

Mutability differs from Flux more than Premonition did for Plight as Mutability simply stated, is a series of guitar drones in a styling reminiscent of whale soundtracks. I have a hard time seeing where on this track Czukay contributed, but the listening experience is enjoyable all the same.

Best Quote (From Previous Reviews):

"a gently susurrating helix of sounds" [B. J. C. White]

This CD and the accompanying "Plight and Premonition" are excellent backdrops for your imaginings. Like a painting that one sits and contemplates, after a period of time, the viewer or in this case the listener of this music will find him or herself in the midsts of the work. Some may find this haunting, to others releasing, to still others it creates a space that is simply not the day to day. Buy these, and Harold Budd's "the Pearl" and the "White Arcades," sit back, close your eyes, relax and drop into another reality.

I personally preferred Plight and Premonition. First of all the surprise effect is no longer as great in my opinion. But it is still a very beautiful piece of work that is the fruit of a unique collaboration.

The second collaborative effort between David Sylvian and Holger Czukay, "Flux and Mutability" follows the same formula as its predecessor ("Plight and Premonition")-- two extended ambient tracks, titled "Flux" and "Mutability" respectively. Like its predecessor, the two tracks gently twist and turn, but while I found "Flux" highly engaging and a great listen, "Mutability" lost me, and it lost me early. About five minutes into the piece, I found myself waiting for it to end, and clocking in over 20 minutes, that took a while.

By and large as a rule I'm opposed to extended works, but Sylvian and Czukay had a pretty good batting average-- three of the four extended works in their two collaborations are superb, but my distaste for "Mutability" really effects my opinion of this album. It's not unlistenable, but 20 minutes of not going anywhere gets old fast. If you enjoyed "Plight and Premonition" or are a fan of either of these gentlemen, check this out, but if you've heard neither, I'd recommend "Plight and Premonition" first, come here if you're desperate for more.