Article
2012 Top 10s & 20s

Albums
Poppy Ackroyd
Mario Basanov
Ryan Blotnick
Peter Broderick
Celer
Débruit
Vladislav Delay
Taylor Deupree
El Fog
Forma
Masayoshi Fujita
Golden Gardens
Grouper
Mano Le Tough
Lusine
Yann Novak
Paniyolo
Strategy
The Swifter
thisquietarmy
Robert Scott Thompson
Christiaan Virant

Compilations / Mixes
Cambio
Hernan Cattaneo
Change The Beat
DJ Deep
Eskimonde
Full Body Workout 10
We Love Detroit

EPs / Singles
Andrew Bayer
Birds of Passage
Brancaccio & Bishop
Maya Jane Coles
Eskmo
Ether
Gerwin, Nuage & 2 Shy
Glacis
The Green Kingdom
H. Salut / Hopeless L. M. B.
Her Name is Calla
Herrmutt Lobby
Darren McClure
Oh, Yoko
Michael Price
Danilo Rispoli
Silencio
Phil Tangent
Widesky
Windsor for the Derby

Michael Price: A Stillness
Erased Tapes

One could easily conceive of A Stillness (a four-track, limited-edition vinyl release, including music sheets and downloads) as less a formal release-unto-itself and more like a submission Michael Price made to a film production company, given that the recording's twelve minutes seem almost too short to qualify as a full-fledged release and more a selling-point for its creator's gifts as a composer of emotive orchestral material. In other words, one could easily imagine Price's music as a soundtrack for a Joe Wright project on the order of Pride & Prejudice, Atonement, or Anna Karenina.

It comes as no surprise, then, to learn that Price does, in fact, have strong roots in the cinematic world, having been an assistant to Michael Kamen for the film score to 1996's Event Horizon as well as involved in subsequent projects Children of Men, Lord of the Rings, Quantum of Solace, and the recent BBC series Sherlock. But more than two decades ago, Price composed work for contemporary dance choreographers, which makes A Stillness, short though it is, feel like something of a homecoming for him. Intimate and heartfelt, the EP's four classical-flavoured pieces are stirring, strings-based settings. That Price is able to create music so touching and poignant as “A Bridge” and that conveys so much emotion in a mere three minutes is impressive indeed. Titles like “A Reaching” and “A Tenderness” hint at a depth of feeling that his quartet of melodious miniatures genuinely captures. One comes away from the release expecting to see Price's name deservedly attached to some upcoming film project for a major studio, given how strong an advertisement the EP is for his musical artistry.

January 2013