The very first release on the brand new Tench label comes in a digipack with beautiful landscape photography by James Luckett.
These sober, black & white, pictures perfectly fit the music of Marc Ostermeier on his new album: “Chance Reconstruction”.
Though it’s the first release on Tench, it’s not the first work of Ostermeier, who has released earlier work (also in 2010) on Parvo Art (Percolate) and on Hibernate (Lakefront).
Combining acoustic piano and guitar with electronic textures, his work can be catalogued next to that of Rafael Anton Irisarri, Goldmund, Peter Broderick, Library Tapes and Labradford.
Quiet, reflective and melancholic piano/guitar melodies, sometimes even only hints of melodies, are the heart of the 10 tracks on this album.
In parts, the music on Chance Reconstruction is more abstract, but (quote the website notes): “there is no doubt that the operating word is still ‘melancholy’. The hesitant piano melodies take on an almost conversational form, but from someone repeating and rephrasing his thoughts as he talks to himself, imagining different outcomes of something he cannot change.”
While melancholy is the perfect word, it’s the fascinating electronic decoration of the acoustic sounds that prevents this album to become too ‘easy’ to listen to.
If the reference artists mentioned above mean anything to you, you should not hesitate to check out Chance Reconstruction.
Tench have set themselves a high standard with this beautiful first release!!