Gregory Taylor
Amalgam: Aluminum / Hydrogen
Palace of Lights 2007

01. Bem
02. Gulu
03. Dada
04. Pelog
05. Lima
06. Nem
07. Barang

Recorded live in Madison, Wisconsin in 2006, Amalgam shows Gregory Taylor's love for gamelan, a kind of instrumental set of Indonesian origin, typically featuring a variety of xylophones, metallophones, drums, gongs, bamboo flutes, bowed and plucked strings, and sometimes vocals. Taylor uses synthesis, looping, sampling and such like to process the gamelan repertoire, but the original is deceivingly recognizable. "Deceivingly" since it's not always the 'real' thing you listen to. It doesn't have the immediateness of the original gamelan music (usually played by small ensembles); instead the sounds here are on a highly ambient level, seemingly not moving very fast at all, sometimes made to resemble wind-chimes, creating richly textured music that floats by effortlessly. Put this next to Area C, and then your weary ears at ease. Buoyancy and structure - "music out of music".

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