Central to Buddhism is the concept of Impermanence coupled with the human tendency to Attachment and the pain it brings as we try to prevent change (even for the better). A great part of Enlightenment is learning to find your own permanence in the constant flow of change that is necessary for life to fully express itself.
The video below covers the whole album in one place, coupled with photos I took of structures that illustrate how we try to impose stability and security on our environment. While we seek to create security and permanence, life is is still breaking down that order.
Pop the video to Full Screen and change the Quality settings (bottom right) to Full HD 1080p.
0:00:00 - Same & Change 0:18:20 - Flow & Resistance 0:27:18 - Dancing With Shifting Sand 0:32:02 - Building Glory 0:35:24 - Acceptance 0:40:52 - Release
The Dignity of Synthesis Pts. 1-4
I commonly have a few tracks that don’t make it onto the main album. This time I didn’t want two tracks in the run-sheet, even as bonus material, I felt they didn’t fit at all. I decided to pop them out as a stand alone EP. To make it 15 mins I added two more tracks. This is available FREE on Bandcamp with the addition of a re-mix of “Release” off the main album.
Deliberately I decided to crib the title and cover art style from The Human League’s “The Dignity of Labour” EP. I am aware that my music is not in line with what is happening in the post-90’s EDM world. I want to build on the root of electronic music as it was in the 70’s & 80’s. For me synthesizer music is about building unique sounds and letting them play in pieces that take advantage of those textures.
Bloma is a talented fellow from Melbourne (a few states south of me). I asked him if he would like to do a version of an early iteration of “Release”. He returned with:
A slightly different take on Benedict’s spacious epic. I used a bunch of tape emulation effects, added a subtle bassline in there, and shortened the length a little bit. There’s also a sample of cats meowing underneath the whole song, to make the song sound like it’s in a certain location. I had a lot of fun doing it, so thanks Benedict for the song!