Mingle
Static
Kvitnu

Mingle is the project of Italian composer and musician Andrea Gastaldello, who operates inside the field of 'electronic/experimental/minimalism' music. Static was released some four months back, so again we are running a bit late and after with the Kvitnu releases. Sorry for that. Multi-instrumentalist artist Andrea Gastaldello (guitar, piano, keyboards, cable-noise, programming, percussions, plus 'rumors and unwrapping Candies'...) hail from Northern Italy, from the city of Castiglione delle Stiviere in the Mantova province (in English: Mantua), in the Lombardia region (English: Lombardy). If we go way back in history in this region we find that 'by the fifth century AD, the Roman Empire was collapsing. Mantua was overrun by a series of invaders, including the Visigoths [nomadic tribes of Germanic peoples referred to collectively as the Goths], Vandals [East Germanic tribe, or group of tribes, who were first heard of in southern Poland, but later moved around Europe establishing kingdoms in Spain and later North Africa in the 5th century], and Ostrogoths [a branch of the later Goths (the other major branch being the Visigoths)]. After 568 the Lombards seized control of the part of northern Italy which is now known as Lombardy and included Mantua.' History lesson aside, here's the sound of Static.

According to his Tumblr site Andrea Gastaldello (who started as a guitar player) has been scoring music for documentary films for years. He has also been a DJ; he has composed music for others to record; he has been involved with various collaborations; and he has released several recordings, both as Mingle as well as with other projects (AG Project and De Curtis). It seems that Static is the third full Mingle album, following Movements (2011) and Masks (2012), both launched (digitally) by the label Tannen Records. Then there has been two collaborative recordings between Mingle and Deison (a.k.a. Cristiano Deison): the albums Everything Collapse(d) (2014, Aagoo Records/REV. Laboratories) and Weak Life (released in February 2015, by Aagoo Records). Busy man for sure, Andrea.

The experimental, ambient, electronic compositions on Static are not static at all. Well, they are static too, but the tracks sound indeed dynamic and flexible. The eleven songs take you on a pleasant journey throughout some exciting sound landscapes and back. The tracks are gracious, both in melody and in rhythms. They hold different temperatures as well as colour. Check out the shimmering opener "Final", the calm and quiet "Slow", or the drifting "Afterdark", or the pleasant groove of the title-track. Gastaldello has settled in Verona (not far from Castiglione delle Stiviere), and it's said that the fog of the Italian plain inspire his musical works: 'a melancholic journey in the deep of the soul.' Mingle is about making 'minimalist music, sophisticated melodies and compelling rhythms' to which you can 'listen, see and think.' Right, yes, and that is a fact. You can listen to Mingle's tracks to see/think, and it's not hard to imagine this as cinematic soundscapes, or music that goes perfect along with moving images. 'The image is blurred, external forces affect the balance, everything interferes. The movement is restricted, static. Internal impulses are blocked, giving up on expressing outwardly. The time is the present, the current moment, this is the time to lay down attention, the attention to a motionless state of mind, or almost...'. Dig in to feel the vibe of the sound of Static. This is heart-warming, human ambient music.

Copyright © 2015 H. Oppøyen