Cover art by Silas Plum
OUC036 : John Americus Witt / Lychnobite
The new album from the fascinating American contemporary composer John Americus Witt (see also ODG115, OUC026, OUC033 and OUC034) with, once again, four radical and strange compositions.
Let him explain:
"So, a Lychnobite is one who works in the night and rests during the day. As someone who falls into this cycle with some regularity, here is what that feels like.
First, “Awaken At Dusk”. This is disorienting, and extremely specific. The feeling of starting the day as the sun sets brings a sense of surreal isolation that has no analogue. The most primal parts of the Self sense that something is off, and send small signals throughout the night to remind one of this fact.
Second, “The Night Machines”. This is where the majority of the work gets done. There is a permission to create and experiment that is absent during daylight hours. One can feel a connection with the other nocturnal things; the patterns they keep and lives they live. This is most profound outdoors. Focus is clear. Instincts are followed without arbitrary and cyclical analysis. Purpose becomes clearer in the moonlight.
Third, we have “The Invisible Hour”. This can vary, as it is not tied to a specific number, but more of a sensation. The outside slows. There is rest. Whatever frenzy was present earlier has receded, leaving in its wake this chunk of hidden time. Few things are pressing. Thoughts are slow, but not labored. It is in this Invisible Hour that one can truly enjoy the sensation of being alone; a living battery trickle-charging in the night.
Fourth, at last, “Peaceful Sleep In A Patch Of Sun”. There is something particularly exhausting about living at night. Sleep comes easy most of the time. Wash the paint from your hands. Take off your headphones. Put down your pen. The sky is a dark, hopeful blue. The birds gingerly being their songs. The world is waking up. As this waking world moves around you, nestle in. Cover your eyes. The sunlight will make its way around the room; patches moving across your body as you sleep."
So be it!
Digital release on the 10th of December 2021
Track listing:
1: Awaken at Dusk
2: The Night Machines
3: The Invisible Hour
4: Peaceful Sleep in a Patch of Sun
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