Ambient music can be an acquired taste and those in the mood for more lively entertainment may have well have been disappointed by this evening’s showcase of A Winged Victory For The Sullen’s second album Atomos. Signed to Ólafur Arnalds’ record label Erased Tapes, the duo comprised of Adam Bryanbaum Wiltzie and Dustin O’Halloran delivering evocative sounds that transport as they seep slowly into our consciousness.
This night, the boys were accompanied by a string quartet from Melbourne who apparently had only a day in which to learn their parts. Synths, piano, guitar and strings are brought together to create incidental sounds that seemingly melt into each other to eventually forge grand sweeping vistas. As these sound scapes evolve the duo display a talent for crafting moments of subdued melancholia that leaves a lasting impression on listeners.
There’s an understated grandeur to this music as it moves from stately string sweeps to gentle lullaby designed to take us to a nocturnal world of dreams. The music as much as the wooden surrounds of the Recital Centre cocoons us from any kind of reality that exists outside the room. Fond memories of a Gavin Bryars’ concert from years back come to mind as well as the sublime ambiences Robin Guthrie once recorded with Harold Budd.
The gentleman next to me yawned and looked a little bored but by the end of a spine tingling 70 minute in their company the crowd was left quivering with emotion and taken by the intensity of their music. Atomos, taken from the Greek work meaning invisible, was originally commissioned by Wayne McGregor who’s the resident choreographer at the Royal Ballet.
As we drifted across the deeply atmospheric sounds it’s hard to imagine a troupe of dancers strutting their stuff to this music. There’s been a recent renaissance in contemporary composition and the silken textures that AWVFTS weave put them well ahead of the pack.
BY THE SIDEMAN
Loved: Atomos VI.
Hated: That an hour drifted by in what felt like only a few minutes.
Drank: Water.
