This review deals with a re-issued release, so I will mainly copy-paste my initial thoughts (laziness, I guess), written down a year ago, with some small adaptations and additions here and there.
The concept / content of this release is an interesting element, at least for me. The Customs And Culture Of Andalucía Vol. 1 was recorded in a small yet beautiful village called Canillas de Albeida. That’s somewhere in the inlands of Andalusia, at the feet of the Sierras de Tejeda, Almijara y Alhama, one of the many beautiful nature reserves in that region. It’s not that far away from the Mediterranean coast (yet stay away from that mass-touristic area) and pretty close to Málaga. It’s a region which I (and my family) do visit a lot, deeply appreciated by undersigned because of its breath-taking nature and tranquility (at least at the inlands), the charming villages and the (excellent) local food. So, this recording brings homage to that (mainly unspoiled) region, cf. the cover picture (I guess this must still be the most malicious ones I've ever used on this webzine) and the carefully selected samples (as well as the titles of each aural piece). Yet since this isn’t a tourists’ guide…
Another interesting thing is the Music itself. …although, ‘Music’ is not exactly a fitting description. The Customs And Culture Of Andalucía Vol. 1 consists of four chapters, referring respectively to the traditional Andalusian music, food, customs and culture. Each single one of these four elegies clocks exactly seven minutes (that’s not new at all, cf. the previous release, Squeeks, released via Gates Of Hypnos) and they do have a very comparable ‘spine’, despite some modest yet important, specific nuances.
The ‘core’ of each lullaby is draped around a very raw and distorted portion of Static Noise, brutally penetrated by a Harsh Noise Wall sound. For each ‘song’, the specific wall-of-sound rumbles forth, unstoppable, like an all-devastating avalanche. But it sort of progresses too, slowly and almost unremarkably, even cryptic and enigmatic, if you want to. This goes for all four of these compositions, being characterized by a sagacious yet delicate evolution. Besides, things get injected by deep-edged drones, piercing industrials and shrieking metallics (listen to the final sequence of the last track!), as well as those characteristic yet subtle (probably environmental) field recordings. The Music Of Andalucía, for example, contains different fragments from traditional local Music (what else did you think), yet all four these tracks have other samples involved too - spoken words, excerpts from different recordings (like radio transmissions, I guess), and more.
This piece was initially released on March 6th 2023 via Triumph Of Kings, a label run by Peter Beswick. This re-release sees the light via another label by this guy (known from acts like Carrion or D¥$FUNCTion, amongst several others), i.e. Untitled Record Label, which offered us, the innocent audience, a split in between Empty Pool and D¥$FUNCTion earlier this year (link for the review: see below).
https://untitledrecordlabel.bandcamp.com/album/the-customs-and-culture-of-andaluc-a-vol-1
https://www.concreteweb.be/reviews/empty-pool-dysfunction
https://www.concreteweb.be/reviews/empty-pool-carrion
https://www.concreteweb.be/reviews/empty-pool