“mice_parade”
Mice Parade
Ramda
Bubblecore
From the liner notes: “What if we were brought up actively participating in much more challenging music with other people? The long-term benefits would go way beyond the music itself. To place less emphasis on aesthetic value of art/music and more emphasis on the functional value, we must first cast aside the notion that all music students must strive for technical virtuosity. Further, students of music have far too definite pre-set standards of what they should sound like (i.e. someone’s embarrassed to play the piano because ‘they’re not good enough’).”
Ramda is a record recorded by Adam Pierce under the moniker Mice Parade. The liner notes are an interesting read and explain the approach and ideas behind the making of this quite well. All tracks were recorded and mixed in one take. No mistake fixing. “This is an effort to force some improvisation into a studio situation where one person is playing all the instruments, and also an effort to throw away pre-conceived ideas about what it should ‘sound’ like (a completely aesthetic concept).” What results are fascinating, intricate multi-layered tracks with a very organic feel and fresh energy to them. Imperfections are slight and tend to add character and charm rather than detract. Piano, percussion, guitars, violin, vibes, organ, and other instruments are brought in and out of the mix and layered on top of themselves, making for richly textured compositions. There are thick rhythms that get a bit funky at times, perfectly blended instrumentation, smooth ambiance, and divine melodies, all worked out blissfully over 70 some minutes. After hearing this, I’m eager to track down the first Mice Parade album.
Bubblecore Records, 100 Shore Drive, Port Chester, NY 10573; http://www.bubblecore.com
