03/02/2009 : Pierre-Yves Macé - Passagenweg

After three albums on Tzadik, Sub Rosa and Orkhêstra, his collaboration with Sylvain Chauveau & Steven Hess (ON) for Second Souffle (brocoli), setting instrumental compositions - or improvisations - for small ensembles against electroacoustic treatments, the young French composer Pierre-Yves Macé now presents his first full-scale work of musique concrète. Passagenweg takes its inspiration from philosopher Walter Benjamin's (1892-1940) Arcades project, an unfinished lifelong attempt to document industrial modernity through Parisian iron-and-glass covered "arcades". The Surrealists, such as Aragon, said they were inspired by the outdated goods to be found in these arcades. Likewise, Macé revives samples of popular French music from the 1920’s and 30’s, filtered through musique concrète and laptop music manipulations. Passagenweg is profoundly original music, the chance meetings of gramophone cracklings and digital glitches, of sweet orchestration and saturated drones. It alternates between ambient soundscapes, melodic lines and fractured collages, all the while remaining lyrical, mysterious and melancholic. - listen - live version free download - see some photos of the CD - buy cd or mp3 with paypal/credit card - buy at Metamkine - digital download at Other Music (US). - buy on iTunes.

 

21/01/2009 : Passagenweg will be out on February 3rd

After three albums on Tzadik, Sub Rosa and Orkhêstra, and his collaboration with Sylvain Chauveau & Steven Hess for ON Second Souffle (Brocoli 003), the young French composer Pierre-Yves Macé now presents his first full-scale work of musique concrète, Passagenweg, inspired by Walter Benjamin’s Arcades project. Gramophone cracklings meet digital glitches. 70 minutes of ambient soundscapes, melodic lines and fractured collages, lyrical, mysterious and melancholic. It will be released on February 2nd (distribution Metamkine & Cod&S, and of course itunes, Other Music and the likes). Listen to the full album and buy it here.

 

05/10/2008 : Announcing Pierre-Yves Macé's Passagenweg

You should already know Pierre-Yves Macé as a member of ON trio, who released Second Souffle last year on Brocoli. Pierre-Yves has already issued brilliant albums on Tzadik, Sub Rosa & Orkhestra labels, collaborating with Sylvain Chauveau, That Summer, quatuor Pli, writter Mathieu Larnaudie, artists Rainier Lericolais, Gaëlle Hippolyte, Gaëlle Boucand and Clotilde Viannay. Passagenweg is its latest masterpiece, a work of musique concrète based on recordings of French songs from the 1920's, and inspired by Walter Benjamin's Passages. The album will be out on Brocoli in January 2009. Meanwhile, you can enjoy the recording of Pierre-Yves's live version of Passagenweg that he performed at the Brocoli festival #1 on October 5th 2006. It's free, so go grab it now here!