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PENDULUM (LS-1017, 1999) $10.00 
Kevin Keller teams up with cellist David Darling and guitarist Jeff Pearce to create a kaleidoscopic musical journey
in six parts. Pendulum combines turn-of-the-century Impressionism
with modern electronics to create majestic, floating soundscapes, with a
mixture of drones and cello, sparkling synthesizer textures, and deep throbbing
bass lines. Rhythmic textures - pulsing, hypnotic, and seductive - ride
across deep space, until the music drifts off into the distance. Like giant
waves of sound washing over you, Pendulum pushes contemporary classical
music to the next level. |
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1. Convergence (4:23) |
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2. Arc of the Pendulum (13:33) |
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3. Hall of Mirrors (6:17) |
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4. Awakened (4:20) |
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5. Invisible Rituals (13:11) |
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6. Distanced (9:24) |
*Although the tracks are listed separately, the music unfolds
as one continuous arc.
Composed, arranged, performed and produced by Kevin Keller
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Guest Artists: |
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David Darling - cello on Arc of the Pendulum |
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Bruna Lamy - whispers on Invisible Rituals |
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Jeff Pearce - electric guitar on Distanced |
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Recorded and mixed at Visionary Matrix Studio, Berkeley, CA, with
additional recording in Linden, IN, and Goshen, CT
Mastered by Bob Olhsson and Kevin Keller at Hearts of Space Studio,
Sausalito, CA
Cover Image by Wernher Krutein/Photovault, San Francisco |
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Click below to purchase Pendulum
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Named one of the Top 25 Albums of 1999 by NPR's
John Diliberto.  |
"The music of Kevin Keller is a formidable departure from modern
styles today. Instead of concentrating on drone- or percussion-based electronic
music, Keller produces an almost symphonic, classical/ambient fusion
that is influenced by many electronic styles. "Arc of the Pendulum"
sets the tone, a drifting symphony with piano to the fore, augmented by
David Darling's cello. Even up through the finale, "Distanced",
with Jeff Pearce on guitar, one thing that Keller does so well is to keep
the music to uncharted territories, both tonally and melodically. It makes
for an album that is as fascinating to listen to closely as it is to drift
off to, barely any of it being familiar. This is a superb release, recommended
to all electronic listeners." -Mike McLatchey/Expose
"Following his critically acclaimed "Intermezzo" of 1996,
Kevin Keller further explores the melding of electronic and classical
ambience. From the opening "Convergence", Keller's modern electronics
collate floating soundscapes with drones and other-worldly instrumentation.
Keller takes occasional side swings into mantric chanting and a unique tribal,
bass-pulsing concoction augmented by French whispers. David Darling's wide-ranging
and multifaceted cello, Jeff Pearce's layered guitar solos, and Keller's
keyboards punctuate the silence of deep space. Highlighting the mood swings
of "Pendulum" is the majestic and peaceful "Distanced"
with piano and shimmering guitar lines. Keller and his colleagues push the
electronic envelope with this intriguing exploration." -Ted Cox/Tower
Records
"Kevin Keller is gradually working himself into the league of such
staunch purveyors of the space music genre as Harold Budd, Steve Roach,
and Robert Rich. "Pendulum" is Keller's most fully realized opus
to date, with six tracks gradually unfolding into meticulously conceived
and executed soundscapes." -Derk Richardson/SF Bay Guardian
"Easily viewed as one continuous piece, "Pendulum" is
a well thought-out smooth sonic journey. Keller's well-crafted synth timbres
are predominant throughout the CD, but they share the space nicely with
David Darling's reverberant cello, Jeff Pearce's guitar loops and Bruna
Lamy's infinite whispers. The overall mood of the album is that of vastness,
with Keller's well-placed, ever evolving rhythms transporting the listener
through it...one of the summer's finest releases."-Chuck van Zyl/Star's End
"Keller's music fuses perfectly the classical elements of
the piano and the cello with the synthetic textures of the synthesizers
to create atmospheres marked with melancholia and ghostly impressions."
-Jean-Francois Fecteau/Le Vestibule |
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Q: Is there a concept behind "Pendulum" that you can
tell us about?
A: Pendulum is about time, and our different perceptions of time.
It is about the juxtaposition of linear time with the Infinite, the eternal
now.
Q: How does "Pendulum" differ from your other releases?
A: With this album, I wanted to create a musical tapestry whose separate
sections could be heard as happening simultaneously. It is as if you are
scanning a singular moment in time, slowly shifting your focus from one
end to the other. But all of the music is happening at the same moment,
even though you aren't aware of it, as if time was suspended for the length
of the album. The music happens very organically, almost like a dream state,
and it shifts imperceptibly from one environment to another, much like minutes
passing from sunrise to sunset.
Q: Once again, you've chosen a very alluring cover image. Could you tell
us about its creation?
A: Through the course of working together on the cover of Intermezzo,
Wernher Krutein and I developed a creative and artistic bond that seems
to transcend our individual egos. We are able to bounce ideas off of each
other without worrying what the other person might think. Wernher's ability
to take an abstract concept and turn it into a living, vibrant image is
unrivaled, in my opinion. When we finished Intermezzo, neither one
of us could wait to start another project together. Wernher was involved
in the "Pendulum" project right from the very beginning, even
before any of the music actually existed!
It was important to us that the cover image be reflective of the idea of
time without being too literal. We also wanted to show the juxtaposition
of linear, "human" time with non-linear, "universal"
time, as well as the convergence of these two different worlds. Working
with these ideas, Wernher created the cover image, which we affectionately
called "Clockwise".
For the back cover, Wernher visited the California Academy of Science, where
a Foucault Pendulum is swinging, proving the rotation of the earth. The
image of the pendulum swinging through space was such a powerful metaphor
that I thought it would be a perfect complement to the front cover. All
of the music happens in that single swing of the pendulum.
Q: How did you come to work with David Darling and Jeff Pearce?
A: David Darling has always been one of my musical heroes - the depth and
sensibility of his music has inspired me ever since I first heard Eos
(Darling's collaboration with Terje Rypdal) back in 1983. When I began working
on Pendulum in late 1996, I mentioned to Stephen Hill (Hearts of Space)
that the cello would be a featured instrument. It so happened that David
was recording an album for HOS in Los Angeles at that time, and so Stephen
introduced us. David was very interested in the project, and we set up a
recording session at his home in Connecticut later in 1997. Working with
him is such a joy because he is simultaneously able to play a scored part
and weave improvised lines into the music. The line between improvisation
and structure is completely blurred. Some of my favorite moments in "Arc
of the Pendulum" are the ones that David created right there in the
moment, even as he was hearing the piece for the very first time.
Jeff Pearce and I "met" around the same time, as a result of having
both done Living Room Concerts on Echoes. I say it that way because, even
to this day, we have never actually met in person. All of our exchanges
have been either through telephone conversations or FedEx packages. Jeff
and I exchanged CDs, and there was a great deal of mutual admiration between
us. When I first got The Hidden Rift, I couldn't stop listening to
it. I just put the CD player on repeat and went very deeply into the zone
that Jeff created. We immediately began thinking of how we might collaborate
on a piece of music togther. One night, I sat at the piano and recorded
a slow-motion, spacious improvisation called "Distanced". It struck
me as the perfect opportunity for Jeff to play along, so I sent him the
ADAT tape. Jeff recorded three different takes with three different guitar
sounds, and sent the tape back to me for mixdown. All three takes were so
wonderful that I ended up using all of them, so the piece is very lush and
atmospheric as a result. It was wonderful collaborating with Jeff in this
way because the music is a perfect blend of our two styles.
Q: As you are working on an album, do you have any routine that you follow?
What does a typical day consist of?
A: It fluctuates based on what kind of creative projects I might have
going on, but there are certain things that happen in almost a ritual fashion.
A "typical day" would start with me waking up and writing in my
journal. I find that connecting with my creative mind through words is a
very centering way to begin the day. I use it as a way of checking in on
myself, the way that I'm feeling about my life and my music. The rest of
the morning usually involves practicing piano, working out new music and
arrangements. I use the early afternoon to deal with more "business"
type matters, like planning for concerts, making phone calls, and answering
e-mails. After lunch, I block out the rest of the afternoon for a hike through
Wildcat Canyon, which is a 4000-acre open space park near my home.
This time alone out in nature is the most important part of my life. I feel
deeply connected to my natural surroundings, and this connection informs
and inspires my music. Out there, everything makes sense to me, and I am
continually awestruck by the power and magic of the Universe.
After returning home and having dinner, I usually go back to the studio
where I work on mixes and electronic programming. It's funny to me that
I use the morning for acoustic music and the evening for electronic music,
and that the afternoon outdoors serves as a bridge between those two musical
worlds.
Q: Do you find that there are things that consistently inspire you and
your music?
A: Yes, time alone out in nature is the one constant in my life. Ever
since I was a kid, I have been fascinated by the natural world and the secrets
that drive it. I often think about how much life and death exists at the
same moment. And how the world is self-regulating. When you stop to the
think about it, the world is so liquid. Everything is in a constant state
of change and evolution, and this is the inspiration for my creative work.
I feel like music serves as a bridge between the visible and the invisible,
between the ethereal and the physical. |
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