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<DIV><FONT size=2><A href="http://www.autistici.com/" target=_blank><FONT
size=3>http://www.autistici.com/</FONT></A><BR><BR><FONT size=3>Out now on
KESH<BR><BR>The Milk Factory Review:<BR><BR>Autistici is the solo project of
Sheffield-based David Newman, who also runs the excellent Audiobulb imprint. His
first major release, Volume Objects, appeared on Taylor Deupree’s 12K last year,
but, prior to this, Newman had released a handful of EPs on small labels, and
his music had also been featured on a number of compilations. On his debut
album, Newman crafted his soundscapes, built from both treated acoustic sound
sources and purely electronic components, with delicate impressionist touches,
weaving them into beautiful evocative pieces.<BR><BR>With Complex Tone Test,
released on Cambridge-based Keshhhhhh Recordings, Newman manipulates
electro-acoustic textures once again, weaving them into vast ethereal formations
which often appear pretty static and monolithic, yet constantly morph and
evolve, their course altered ever so slightly over their lifespan. This is very
much the case with the more minimal pieces found here. The fluid drone
structures of Refractory or Meadow Bed are extremely bare and gossamer, but are
animated by a momentum deep within their respective sonic fabric which gives
them a particular sheen, while the ampler La Spaziale S1 Vivaldi at times seems
to echo in all sorts of directions at once.<BR><BR>This time round though,
Newman pushes purely electronic components much more forward and deploys an
arsenal of clicks and glitches to give tracks such as Meticule, Resonating Wire,
Closing or Annualized Light (2.2) a totally different outline. The result is
particularly impressive on Resonating Wire and Annualized Light (2.2), which,
despite pretty desolate backdrops, are given strong relief with just a few
additional noises, while the glitches heard toward the beginning of Meticule
progressively gather into a fully-formed rhythmic pulse later on. Elsewhere,
Newman brings richer patterns to his electro-acoustic formations. The
mellotron-fuelled Key For A Lockable Cabinet is a particularly vibrant and
pastoral piece, while later, the more complex layering of real instruments and
electronics on Disintegrated Interest pushes the record in a much more
challenging direction for a moment.<BR><BR>Stepping in the limelight once again
as Autistici, David Newman has created with Complex Tone Test, a record that
takes the space defined by its predecessor and expands it greatly, without
altering its very essence in the slightest. The result is particularly
convincing, ensuring Autistici’s place amongst the more imaginative musicians of
his generation.</FONT></FONT></DIV>
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