Metaxu – rumors of… WAR by metaXu

Økapi – Filippo Paolini: Sampler, turntables, tapes & cd’s
Martux_m – Maurizio Martusciello: Sampler
mastering: Pasquale Minieri (Elettra-studio)
post-mastering: Louis Dufort
No type-IMNT 089-2003-distro: Electro Cd-Canada
Vj project :Mattia Casalegno
illustrazione :Camilla Falsini

released 01 January 2001

metaXu was founded by Maurizio Martusciello and Filippo Paolini in Rome (1997). Their common ground is the work into the electroacoustic experimentation as composers and improvisors. Their use of tapes, samples, scatching techniques and lo-fi means allows a sort of “acoustic microscopia,” rich in rubble, casts and lost memories.
The plagiarist and collage effort of Paolini and Martusciello, ideas of “reduced listening,” typical of the acousmatic experience, create an acoustic isomorphism where the meeting point is not an organization principle, but a means of transport: “No form develops, but some effects move, some becomings catapult themselves” (Gilles Deleuze).

Rewiews

Subjectivisten – Italië is misschien niet het land dat elektronica-gewijs het meest van zich laat horen, maar met een band als Metaxu doe je toch mee met de groten. Het is het project van Filippo Paolini en Maurizio Martusciello, die zich bewapenen met samplers, tapes en draaitafels. Rumors of… War, hun tweede cd, bevat 12 composities opgedragen aan cruciale steden in de recente oorlogsgeschiedenis. Het begint met Sarajevo (28-06-1914) en eindigt (niet chronologisch op de cd) met New York (11-09-2001). Zonder te moraliseren staan ze stil bij de gebeurtenissen en slachtoffers. Een requiem waarmee je als luisteraar snel maar vrijwillig in hun beheerste houdgreep zit. Introverte, intieme clicks’n’cuts, droefgeestige orkestraties, vage koren en spookachtige ambient. Het is spannend als Fennesz of Philip Jeck en grijpt bij de keel als Symphony No. 3 van Henryk Górecki. Met name het stuk over New York is een ware thriller. Poëtische schoonheid op de puinhopen van de mensheid.

Flux Europa – Italian duo Metaxu – Maurizio Martusciello and Filippo Paolini – here offer a retrospective of war and suffering over the last century or so, with track titles such as 07021964 Saigon and 06091945 Hiroshima. The recording has extraordinary clarity, post mastered by the estimable Louis Dufort, and the thoughtful examination of each conflict is both poignant and atmospheric. There is no random noise bluster here, despite the opportunity afforded by the subject matter – no dive bombing jet fighters, duelling machine guns or massed tank battles – instead strings and piano music weave their way through electronic clicks and buzzes, the music succeeding in conjuring up everything from the wet heat of the Vietnamese jungle to a cold Spring day in St Petersburg. A modern audience may struggle a little with some of the context: what happened in Sarajevo in June 1914? In Alicant in April 1939? In Belgrade five years ago? The outstanding recording here, however, should present no such problems, even to the Linkin Park generation. 11092001 New York begins with a whine and a rumble, and ends with an extended rush of noise and energy which is as close as you’ll ever want to get to flying into a tall building at speed, with intent. We are left with an impression of futility, of waste and of forgotten purpose: bloodshed in bucketloads, each new cause righteous, each resulting conflict inconclusive. “War is only a cowardly escape from the problems of peace” as Thomas Mann once put it. “Love is the answer” as John Lennon once said (well, more than once actually, but it’s not like we were listening). Decent stuff this, a history lesson and a slab of philosophy all rolled in to something you can play through your hi-fi system, and have done with in under an hour. Recommended. – Stewart Gott

L’entrepôt – Dit Italiaanse duo wordt gevormd door Maurizio Martusciello en Filippo Paolini. Deze twee heren hebben afgaande op het concept van hun plaat zeker een breder wereldbeeld dan hun president (niet echt moeilijk maar ja). Waarover de plaat gaat wordt al duidelijk met de titel, oorlog. De twaalf tracks dragen elk een markering in de tijd met de vermelding waar op dat moment de wapens werden opgenomen, bijvoorbeeld 07021964 Saigon of 02051982 Falkland. En de heren geven met hun gedreven elektroakoestische hoorspelen de gruwel van de oorlog knap weer en maken een anti-oorlogs statement met hun muziek. Alle facetten worden waargegeven, de gruwel van het moment, het verweesde van na de oorlog, het verdriet, het schrijnende van de waanzin. Muziek waar je niet echt vrolijk van wordt maar die tot nadenken stemt. Denk aan de soms intense hoorspelen van Monique Jean, maar meer toegankelijk, dichter bij de pop cultuur aanleunend. De plaat werd geproduceerd door Louis Dufort. – Tom

Exibart – L’etichetta canadese No Type conferma ancora la sua determinazione e lucida consapevolezza estetica pubblicando nei primi mesi del nuovo anno Front di Max Haiven/Jon Vaughn. 73 minuti durante i quali i due musicisti assemblano materiali sonori e che, in perfetta tradizione elettroacustica e concreta, mirano a risvegliare la dimensione dell’ascolto. L’interesse dei due compositori si rivolge ad una dimensione concettuale che, allo stesso tempo, non esime il suono dal trascurare la possibilità di narrare attraverso un sottile approccio pop. Più socialmente impegnato Rumors of… War del progetto Metaxu (Maurizio Martusciello e Filippo Paolini). I due italiani percorrono le strade della sperimentazione elettroacustica ed elettronica evitando la retorica, pur rasentandola (per questioni di materia), grazie ad un rigoroso approccio compositivo. Con il suo quinto album Bleak 1999 il canadese Tomas Jirku spinge gli esiti della minimal techno oltre i cliché che sembrano contraddistinguere la maggior parte delle produzioni laptop oriented. Intercettazioni radio, beat vivisezionati ed evanescenti linee melodiche si incastrano alla perfezione dando vita a scuri paesaggi sonori.[…] – Marco Altavilla

Barcode – Italian duo Maurizio Martusciello and Filippo Paolini deliver their second album under the moniker, Metaxu. Rumors of War is a dark, deeply complex album, commenting on man’s bloody history of torture, murder & war. Crysallized samples burn their imprint onto bleak landscapes of wintery sound, whilst electroacoustic experimentation allows them the freedom to truly explore the tools of destruction via samples, scratching techniques and microscopic elements. Yet what saves Rumors of War from merely becoming a noise album, are the slices of elegant strings that throw layers of flesh and blood onto the inhumane, mechanical idealisms that lie at the albums heartbeat. 01041939 Alicant is extraordinarily moving, conjuring images of figureless marching soldiers striding through blasted landscapes, but watched by the heartwarming strings of an entity that still clings to life on behalf of all humanity. Likewise, the horror of 07121941 Pearl Harbour, washed over by deeply classical orchestral movements, is wonderfully crafted. There is no hiding here, Metaxu show the full horrific ugliness of the human condition through their compulsively imaginitive forays into sound; yet when they decide to offer that glimmer of love and hope, it lifts itself from the page magnificently. On 08031917 St. Petersburg, the whirring mechanical wheels of death-machines do all they can to rid, but fail to drown out the choiral chants of dead souls. Whilst, on 11092001 New York, nothing can stop the ominous build-up of the thunderous wings of destruction smashing into the two towers, the track ends in a solitary bleep of extinction, re-opening still fresh wounds.

EtherREAL – Sans connaître Metaxu, on pose avec confiance ce deuxième album sur le plateau de notre platine CD. Confiance envers le label canadien No Type au parcours irréprochable, qui sortait l’an dernier l’album de Coin Gutter, et envers Maurizio Martusciello, moitié de Metaxu qui nous offrait un excellent concert il y a un an et demi lors du festival Batofar cherche Italie.
Cet a priori positif est immédiatement transcendé à l’écoute du premier morceau. Avec pour thème la guerre, tous les morceaux de cet album prennent pour titre une date et un lieu, repères temporels et géographiques d’un événement historique. Ce premier morceau intitulé 28061914 Sarajevo, nous séduit immédiatement avec une sorte de boucle de cordes subtilement traitée et parsemée de petits glitchs, craquements, et autres bruitages électroniques, samples trafiqués, le tout étant construit autour d’une lente montée. On sait déjà que l’on est en présence d’un grand disque, mais chaque nouveau morceau sera une surprise dépassant nos espérances, chaque pièce venant surpasser la précédente.
Le style est suffisamment original pour être intéressant, une sorte de musique néoclassique ou musique de film, parsemée de petites erreurs numériques apportant une vie fourmillante alliée à une finesse et précision mathématique. Ici des cordes, plus loin un piano lumineux, ou même des cuivres et bleeps sur le superbe 01041939 Alicant, pour une pièce ambient-jazz contemporain. On est tenté de comparer la musique de Metaxu à un croisement entre Max Richter et Steve Reich qui auraient confié leur démo à un artiste de chez Mille Plateaux. Plus tard, 07121941 Pearl Harbour est une véritable bande son de film avec un mixage parfaitement maîtrisé : des cordes tendues mais discrètes créent un sentiment d’inquiétude bientôt appuyé par des nappes de cordes plus graves, le tic-tac d’une pendule, une montée de voix fantomatiques, des cris. Des voix que l’on retrouve à plusieurs occasions, que ce soit via des samples d’émission de radio, ou des choeurs à vous donner la chaire de poule. Plus proche de nous, on prêtera forcément une attention particulière à 11092001 New York: chant du Moyen-Orient et éléments électroniques métronomiques, nappe grave et menaçante, puis montée de cordes bientôt stridentes et souffle d’une déflagration sonore terminant le morceau cut-up.
Rumors of… War est assurément l’un des plus beaux disques que l’on ait pu écouter ces 6 derniers mois, utilisant à merveille le mélange entre musique classique et électronique, certainement le meilleur chemin que pouvait prendre l’electronica dont on semblait avoir fait le tour. – Fabrice Allard

Autres directions – Metaxu est un duo italien formé de Filippo Paolini (aka økapi) et de Maurizio Martusciello (aka martux_m) dont le deuxième album, Rumors of War, a été conçu autour du thème de la guerre, associant à chaque morceau un lieu et une date. Sur cette idée, le duo a mis en scène des témoignages électroacoustiques faisant intervenir différents éléments informatifs et identifiables (sirènes, mitraillettes, trains, hélicoptères etc.) qui peuplent leurs compositions comme des fantômes égarés, y insufflant la vie de leur existence funeste. Travaillant autour de samples, de bandes, ou encore de cds, Metaxu crée des sortes de ralentis cinématographiques extrêmement poignants qui intriguent dès 28061914 Sarajevo, événement-clef s’il en est. Sur une boucle (d’orgue) et des nappes électroniques, des voix sont triturées, déchirées. Les cors et les batteries éparses, militaires, de 01041939 Alicant foudroient. 06091945 Hiroshima est un morceau bizarrement discret, mais 07121941 Pearl Harbour est une composition qui, s’ouvrant sur des bruits de vent, use d’envolées de cordes inquiétantes, avant que le vent ne ressurgisse, portant dans sa complainte des amas de voix, cris et bruits industriels… 08031917 St. Petersburg fait intervenir des chants d’églises russes, ceux que Matthew Elliott apprécie tant, ceux qui déchirent le coeur: des choeurs de voix qui se soulèvent, dignes et solennels, s’alignant sur des hululements électroniques. On ressort de ce disque un peu traumatisé, un peu sceptique… On regarde cette liste de dates et on pense à tout le sang qui a coulé en occident au 20ème siècle. Rumors of War implique une prise de conscience difficile et un malaise certain. – Stéphane

Neural – A tre anni dal loro esordio tornano i Metaxu di Maurizio Martusciello e Filippo Paolini, con una nuova prova elegantemente in bilico fra elettronica e limpida elettroacustica, dedicata ad alcuni tra gli ultimi e più significati episodi bellici (ammesso che in qualche modo ci siano mai guerre più significative di altre). Dodici le incisioni, ognuna delle quali contrassegnata da un luogo geografico preciso (Sarajevo, Belgrado, Saigon, le Falkland e New York, ma la metropoli nordamericana non è certo luogo di guerra, come spesso altri vogliono farci credere). Il risultato è comunque di tutto rilievo, la produzione risulta sensibilissima, con un taglio introspettivo, che ci fa riflettere, su come eventi così tragici, in primo luogo producano effetti che sono soprattutto di natura intima (e solo tangenzialmente politica). Martusciello e Paolini (che assieme a Massimo Pupillo portano parallelamente avanti un altro progetto) già in passato hanno dato prova della loro maestria, il primo forte di un background da musicista contemporaneo specializzato in percussioni, il secondo in qualità di dj e sperimentatore interessato all’improvvisazione. Le scansioni adoperate oscillano fra parti liriche e suoni più secchi, tesi, micro-emergenze click, che si assommano quasi a soffocare i pensieri (drammaticamente incombenti ma ancora vitali). Un disco che consigliamo, per rigore ed estrema densità dei suoni: questo duo italiano, saprà farsi valere, anche su palcoscenici internazionali. – Aurelio Cianciotta

Liability Webzine – Le thème de ce disque est, chacun l’aura compris en voyant les intitulés des titres, la guerre. Cette guerre qui a jalonné le vingtième siècle comme la peste et qui grâce à la médiatisation l’a encore rendue plus ignoble. Il n’y a aucune fierté à faire la guerre et on y trouve aucun honneur. J’enfonce des portes ouvertes me direz-vous mais les aficionados de la bonne guerre sont encore nombreux et il y en a encore qui lui trouve une quelconque vertu. De là on ce que l’on trouve cela normal il n’y a pas loin. Triste monde. Les leçons de l’Histoire ne se retiennent pas ou si peu.
Ce duo composé par les romains Maurizio Martusciello et Filippo Paolini nous proposent de nous rafraîchir un petit peu la mémoire. Les deux hommes qui ont formé ce groupe en 1997 ont pris pour habitude de faire des expérimentations électroacoustiques que ce soit sous forme de compositions ou d’improvisations. Sur Rumors of War le duo est relativement accessible et propose des compositions post-apocalyptiques à la noirceur évidente. On a l’impression de rentrer dans un vaste no man’s land où rien ne pourrait survivre. Rumors of… War est une œuvre sombre et guère optimiste mais le thème abordé par les deux italiens ne l’est pas beaucoup. Cependant et malgré une certaine lenteur et un minimalisme omniprésent les morceaux dégagent une force peu commune. La guerre, finalement, c’est la misère humaine, le recours des faibles et l’absence d’humanité. Metaxu se veut le relais de ce sentiment. Qu’a t’on à gagner dans la guerre? Metaxu donne a réponse: la désolation. Ce disque est comme une sorte de requiem moderne, celui de l’humanité dans sa globalité, du moins celle qui se laisse attirer par des idées extrêmes. Le message que Metaxu veut laisser passer est somme toute assez clair: n’oubliez pas! – Fabien

Music Club – Il precedente incontro con Tomas Jirku (all’epoca di Entropy) mi aveva fatto conoscere un musicista che utilizzava la propria esperienza, costruita con diverse pubblicazioni di vario formato su etichette differenti, per comporre tappeti sonori strumentali in grado di indurre assuefazioni ritmiche e di edificare scenari di isolamento cerebrale. Con il suo quinto lavoro esteso, intitolato Bleak 1999 e dove propone tracce assemblate nel 1999 e successivamente rivedute, consolida ulteriormente tali peculiarità andando nella direzione di un ambient dub minimale (raramente tendente alla techno radicale) e con più di un legame stretto con il micro noise non statico e con le forme più propositive di sperimentazione elettronica. Forse meno curato rispetto ai dischi precedenti, ma anche più capace di convogliare sensazioni di calore umano. Sempre la No Type è il tramite grazie a cui Maurizio Martusciello e Økapi pubblicano il nuovo album a nome Metaxu, album incentrato sulla guerra e sugli atti di violenza massificata. Infatti ciascuno dei dodici pezzi prende spunto non tanto, o non solo, ideologicamente, ma soprattutto materialmente da avvenimenti che hanno segnato il corso della storia, a partire dal 1914 (attentato a Francesco Giuseppe in quel di Sarajevo) sino al 2001 (USA under attack). Quel che ne consegue non muta i geni costituenti la materia sonora plasmata da Metaxu, però ne rappresenta la base di appoggio; campionamenti, suoni concreti e rumori vari che vengono inseriti in un contesto di avanguardia, che, nonostante la natura elettronica o manipolata da cui prende spunto, riesce poi a mostrare vari volti, dall’ambientale al neoclassico, dall’isolazionista al micro-wave/glitch, dall’industriale al “filmico”. Un disco che si insinua nella vostra mente e che, pur senza tormentarvi, genera prima un senso di disagio e alfine di accondiscendenza. – Roberto Michieletto

Sands Zine – Ci sono voluti tre anni per dar seguito all’omonimo esordio dei Metaxu, disco uscito a suo tempo per la tedesca Plate Lunch; anni che hanno visto i due titolari del progetto presumibilmente segnati dagli ultimi avvenimenti politici mondiali e che li hanno inevitabilmente spinto ad una considerazione più ampia su quella che è la più grande piaga della storia dell’umanità, la guerra. Il disco, infatti, nasce da riflessioni su alcuni tra i più significativi episodi bellici del secolo appena trascorso. Ogni traccia è contrassegnata da una data e un luogo: si va dall’assassinio in quel di Sarajevo nel 1914 fino all’attentato dell’11 settembre, storia dei nostri giorni. Il duo, composto da Okapi e Martux_m (all’anagrafe, rispettivamente, Filippo Paolini e Maurizio Martusciello), arriva a questo secondo appuntamento mettendo da parte le esperienze che li hanno visti protagonisti negli ultimi tempi (soprattutto mi riferisco al lato ludico e irriverente che caratterizza l’altro progetto dei due, i grandi Dogon, di cui fa parte anche Massimo Pupillo degli Zu) in cambio di un lavoro più lirico ed intimo. Oltre ad avere una sensibilità degna di lode, sono anche e soprattutto valenti musicisti: Okapi, maestro di turntablism (ha collaborato anche con Christian Marclay), sfodera dal suo cilindro magico campionamenti mai sopra le righe; Martusciello (che ci ha deliziato tra le tantissime altre cose col primo Ossatura e con i Z.e.l.l.e.), crea, assembla e cuce le fonti sonore. Sostanzialmente Rumors of… War lo possiamo inquadrare fra due estremi: da un lato i movimenti sinfonici di Ekkehard Ehlers e dall’altro i micro ritmi dei Pan Sonic, a volte nettamente divisi (28061914 Sarajevo e 11092001 New York), spesso sovrapposti (07121941 Pearl Harbour). Sembra quasi che il duo più che della guerra in sé, ci abbia voluto raccontare del dopo, della quiete dopo la tempesta, del silenzio assordante che segue un’esplosione, tanto è il senso di ineluttabilità che traspare lungo tutto il lavoro. Sul tappeto sonoro emergono particelle di suoni campionati (dall’avvolgente piano classico di 25031999 Belgrade ai suoni concreti di 08031917 St. Petersburg), più o meno irregolari (quasi divertente, e mi scuso con gli autori, il gioco di note e strumenti in 01041939 Alicant), come fossero piccoli segnali di forme che si riaffacciano alla vita; in altri momenti invece l’atmosfera si carica di tensione (il crescendo sinfonico con voci distorte di 61950 Seul e il finale industrial di 11092001 New York). A differenza del suo predecessore, la musica di Rumors of… War assume in più di un’occasione le sembianze di una soundtrack drammatica, mostrandosi come un lavoro più coeso e coerente, laddove il precedente disco colpiva per il suo essere destrutturato ed eterodosso. Se poi volete avere un’opinione personale vi risponderò che il disco è bello, a tratti bellissimo, piacevolissimo da ascoltare e magnificamente equilibrato, quasi sospeso, e coinvolgente. Una splendida conferma. – Alfredo Rastelli

Jade – L’art au secours de la guerre, la musique au secours de la compréhension des conflits: voilà en deux mots résumés la proposition de Metaxu, duo italien basé à Rome, composé de Filippo Paolini et de Maurizio Martusciello. Un condensé de court-circuits historiques fondé sur les vertus de l’échantillonnage, de contorsions de scratch et d’une dimension artisanale auréolée d’un savoir-faire lo-fi de bonne augure. Pas de guerre sans victimes, ni de destruction sans scories. De ces déchets sans relations, le duo s’accorde à reconstruire un univers. De cet amas de pertes, ils recomposent, ils rétablissent sans apologie, ni dénonciation gratuite; les deux musiciens «s’amusent» avec sérieux et délivrent, avec une impartialité relative ce matériau sonore.
L’approche, quant à elle exerce un point de tension entre des climats d’ambiances environnementales habitées d’un microcosme actif (07021964 Saigon, 06091945 Hiroshima) et d’autre part de moments de superbes liturgies dignes d’un Ligeti ou d’un Arvo Pärt (07121941 Pearl Harbour) ou des ambiances proches de Column One (90 % wasser). L’éclectisme d’un Moondog des temps modernes qui rêverait la synthèse de Penumbra, d’Olivier Messiaen et de Francisco López. Très bon !! – Julien Jaffré

Areen – Kummaliselt vaoshoitud muusika, mida artikuleeritakse-transleeritakse nii erinevates keeltes nagu nt ambient, elekt-ro-akustika, idm, klassika jt. Teatav pinge neis lugudes muidugi on (peaks olema juba temaatiliselt [teemaks on sõda, õi-ge-mini sõjad viimase saja aasta jooksul]), aga see on peidetud loo-sügavus-se. Väga vaikne ja rahulik, “ettevaatlik” muusika ­ ettevaatlik küll õn-neks mitte kunstilises, vaid kõlalis-assot-siatiivses plaanis. 06091945 Hiroshima on juba päris jabur ekperimen-taal-ne (glitch+mic-ro-sound+elektroonika) huugamine, ja sealt edasi läheb asi jär-jest tõsisemaks ja ilusamaks. 07121941 Pearl Harbour kombineerib hämmeldusseajava enesestmõistetavusega kergemuusikat ja tontlikult külma ambient’i, ja läbiv klassikaline touch seguneb loos 08031917 St. Petersburg nt veel koorilaulu, glitch’i ja idm-iga. Väga veider, haruldane ja ilus asi. 9/10 – Erkki Luuk

Grooves – When you release a record called Rumors of… War and name all of the tracks after some of the most horrific battles, tragedies, and massacres of the last century — ranging from 28061914 Sarajevo through 11092001 New York — it’s pretty obvious that you’re not out to offer listeners something light and cheerful. That’s not to say that this second album by Italy’s Metaxu is a completely dark and depressing collection, as there are moments when the duo’s glitchy and orchestral-tinged ambience exhibits a fragile and bittersweet beauty that seems to hold a vague sense of hope, but there is definitely an inescapable air of melancholy running through most of the dozen tracks.
Notable pieces include 25031999 Belgrade, which features a minimal piano melody and string samples layered over a backdrop of subtle pops and clicks, and 01091939 Warsaw, where Metaxu lays down a sound-bed of humming static and a quiet drone loop, weaves in some mournful violins, and closes with a segment of a ghostly sounding radio broadcast announcing Britain’s declaration of war on Germany. But the most affecting segment of all may be the ode to the World Trade Center disaster. This six-minute piece starts with a high-pitched beacon tone over a rumbling ambient backdrop that becomes louder as the track progresses. By the final 30 seconds, the sound eerily resembles that of a roaring jet engine that becomes more and more intense, leading to a sudden bang and then one final, futile tone.
Taken in the context of the thoughts and images of September 11th that remain fresh in most people’s minds, it’s a truly chilling composition, and, like the rest of the disc, it’s a reminder that despite its synthetic and mechanical origins, great electronic music can convey messages and emotions just as well as more traditional musical forms. – Greg Clow

Vital – You probably know about Metaxu if you know about Z_E_L_L_E, because Maurizio Martusciello is a part of both of them: with Nicola Catalano they’re Z_E_L_L_E and with Filippo Paolini – Metaxu. Maurizio Martusciello is well known composer on the international electroacoustic scene. Filippo Paolini is also interested in electroacoustic music and improvisations… Rumors of… War is their second album. I haven’t heard the previous one, but it’s quite amazing what they’ve done on this new album. The music is calm and peaceful, without any disturbing or too harsh moments (it’s also not an improvisation), but it’s still clearly and fully present. There’s an electronic and an acoustic side of the music, presented through the use of samplers, turntables, tapes and cds. The sound is placed in a wide atmospheric context, but there are certain moments when some concrete clicky sounds or some parts of the whole musical soundscape are pointed out on the surface. There’s another context on this album: the war. All track-titles are a name of a place and a certain date when some war culminated, like: 06091945 Hiroshima, 11092001 New York, 25031999 Belgrade… It should be mentioned though that the music it’s not suffocated by this context, the music can freely breathe. This is a very successful album by Metaxu, released by one of the most interesting and forward-thinking labels today, also one of my favourite labels in 2003 year, No Type. – B R

Earshot – Metaxu is a new project by Filippo Paolini and Maurizio Martusciello. This Italian duo have made important political statements on their rumors of war release. This album features tracks examining the thin line that exists between war & peace. Through their compositions it is evident that they have concerned themselves with pivotal moments of recent World History… especially the times when History itself seemed to end all at once. They examine chaos and violence through tones, loops, microtones and strangely composed drones and arranged keyboard lines. They examine the many tragedies of the world including those that have happened at Hiroshima, New York City and Sarajevo. These tracks are drenched with hints of darkness, pain and hope. The quietly interwoven clips of news and other spoken word statements scattered around the tracks makes it even more intense.
As a whole this CD is a relaxing yet challenging listen. The track titles are clearly pointing out the meanings behind the music, directing your attentions to events that we should be clearly remembering in the world. The music can be easily played in a set with Jeremy Boyle, Takagi Masakatsu, Tetsue Innoue and newer pieces by Donnachea Costello. – Anne Sulikowski

Blow Up – Differente la’rischiosa operazione di Maurizio Martusciello e Filippo Paolini, in apparenza didascalica: fare musica’sulla’guerra. E’noto che trumors’ non significa trumore’bensì diceria.’voce che corre’e in tal maniera si procede, sviluppando sì un calendario storico di eventi – i titoli dei dodici pezzi sono tutti date e luoghi: 28061914 Sarajevo, 07121941 Pearl Harbour e così via… naturalmente c’è scivolosissimo, anche 11092001 New York – ma preferendo dare un sguardo ‘laterale’ all’umanità violata, velando quasi di pietas certi – eventi – quelli in cui più mostruoso appare il baratro. La costruzione del suono è attenta, il digital processing non teme di giungere alle soglie melodia né di tentare la descrizione emotiva: un blip cinico scandisce il tempo che sta per finire, I’innalzarsi della frequenza di un’onda simula l’approssimarsi di un aereo, alla fine un improwiso risucchio d’antimateria, come lo spegnersi in un lampo del tubo catodico (11092001 New York). Si rimane a distanza dalI’orrore, impossibile awicinarsi di più, tuttavia – anzi, proprio in ragione di quest’atteggiamento – i due italiani realizzano un lavoro che, per onestà intellettuale e ‘misura compositiva’, costituisce un importante esempio di ‘elettronica civile’. – Dionisio Capuano

Voir.ca – Ils jouent de l’échantillonneur, de la platine ou du lecteur de disques compacts, mais ils sont à cent lieues de l’approche “décervelante” qu’adoptent souvent les duos de ce type. Ici, pas d’incessant boum-boum, mais une petite musique tout en subtilités qui peut rappeler le travail de John Wall, cet autre expert du recyclage de la musique des autres. À vrai dire, on ne parle plus de recyclage, mais bien de transmutation, les emprunts étant virtuellement impossibles à identifier et servant à élaborer des univers neufs. Maurizio Martuciello (Ossatura) a une approche électroacoustique du matériau sonore et Filippo Paolini est un ancien élève de conservatoire converti au graphisme et ramené à la musique par le tourne-disque. Leur association produit de l’orfèvrerie sonore. – Réjean Beaucage

All-Music Guide – Metaxu’s first album [Metaxu, 2001, Plate Lunch] is disappointing, but their second [Rumors of… War, 2003, No Type] is a very different affair. The claustrophobic electro-glitch of the 2000 eponymous CD has transformed into a lush set of romantic sample-based constructions. Obviously, the main theme is war. The 12 tracks are titled after key 20th-century historical events of a belligerent nature, from Sarajevo, June 28, 1914 to New York, September 11, 2001. Throughout the album, the music expresses melancholia, mourning and sadness as filtered through the prism of romanticism. Samples of piano and guitar motifs, chants, orchestral music, historical speeches and intimate voices have been assembled to create strongly evocative tracks. Compared to the dryness of the first album, Rumors of… War is downright a crowd pleaser. The sound palette is varied and rich. The electronic textures are used as an accompaniment to the sampled instruments, preserving a certain warmth and a “song” structure. One thinks much more of Tibor Szemzö’s emotional evocations of past memories than of any member of the experimental ambient community (the label’s press release is prone to mention Fennesz and Ekkehard Ehlers, but Metaxu’s music is here even easier to absorb). And despite the fact that some followers of Maurizio Martusciello (one half of Metaxu) since his departure from the group Ossatura will be quite surprised by the accessibility of this music, the project is a success. Each piece proposes a historical reading open to interpretation, a precise evocation of the event, and a powerful emotional charge. Highlights include: the quiet fragmented electronics in Hiroshima; the delicate water sounds providing the basis for Falkland; and the Arabic melody heard in the distance at the beginning of New York, a hint to the fact that this event would have as big (if not bigger) an impact on the population of the Middle-East than on Americans — and there is no other way to describe the finale of that piece than to say that it literally collapses on itself. Recommended. – François Couture

Splendid E-Zine – Admit it: you’ve thought about war more in the last twelve months than you ever have before. Most of us have. We’ve discussed it, sometimes heatedly, with friends and co-workers, read and responded to polls and surveys, and perhaps even attended a rally or two. But how many of us have undertaken an existential examination of modern-day war?
Italian duo Metaxu (Filippo Paolini and Maurizio Martusciello) have engaged in just such an exploration. They present their thoughts in Rumors of War’s twelve pieces, each of which is named for a significant conflict or human-engineered disaster. The album begins with the event that set the ball rolling for World War I — the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand on June 28th, 1914 — and takes us through (what else?) September 11th, 2001. Metaxu have even included the fateful dates in their track titles, just in case you want to grab an encyclopedia.
These aren’t songs in a conventional sense (thank God — can you imagine the lyrics?). At best they’re abstract, conceptual collages punctuated by moments of musicality, some of which are startlingly lovely; at worst, they are aural reconstructions, full of metaphors writ large and loud. 06091945 Hiroshima is a cyclical accumulation of elements from the IDM palette — pops, clicks, clacks, bleeps and burbles — with voices half-audible in the background. Perhaps it’s meant to conjure the sterile stillness that follows a nuclear explosion. 07121941 Pearl Harbor ties more directly into reality, progressing from an ominously beautiful minor-key string sequence to an abrupt and ferocious attack, sounds and voices screaming from the sky like giant angry insects. 02051982 Falkland gradually layers an ominous, rumbling bass presence over a gentle pastoral atmosphere as if directing the full weight of the world’s attention at the titular islands.
11092001 New York will be most listeners’ best bet for making a contextual connection with Metaxu’s muse. If you think you’re no longer haunted by the World Trade Center disaster, listen to this one on headphones and get ready to be disturbed. The hint of Arabic music deep in the collage may not get to you, but later in the tune, when the central, keening drone rises in volume and intensity, becoming the scream of a tortured jet engine pushed beyond its design tolerance, you’ll be well and truly creeped. Fortunately, Metaxu don’t linger over the actual crash; the end, when it comes, is as sudden and sharp and devoid of detail as the real thing must have been.
Rumors of War is an unusual, intermittently powerful album, capable of leaving you disturbed (the aforementioned 11092001 New York) and frustrated (it’s mastered pretty low, so plan on being jolted out of your chair by a handful of quiet-to-loud transitions) in roughly equal measure. There’s no real dialogue between Metaxu and the listener, and no revelation beyond the fact that violence and war are sad, terrible things. Then again, that’s clearly a lesson we need to relearn every twenty years or so. – George Zahora