Steinbrüchel’s Narrow is an album of reduction and transformation. Like much of Steinbrüchel’s recorded work, the genesis of Narrow stems from a singular idea concerned with the notion of ‘static development’. Working with a limited palette of source material Narrow’s elegance is in its varying perspectives on related sonic materials.
The title track is the nexus here - a somewhat more organic sound palette than heard previously in Steinbrüchel’s work - Narrow is a subharmonic oceanic-like composition. Melodic layers like waves gentle swell and fall in a pulsing undulation that is uniquely Steinbrüchel in nature.
The following variations, seek to redefine the qualities of the title work. Like a time-lapse of sunlight passing across a space, at any one point certain objects are highlighted, whilst others are muted and reduced - n-variations are audio time-lapse miniatures. Small segments of a greater moment, refocused, analysed and recomposed. Rather than repeating themes and characteristics, each variation digs deeper into the original composition, unearthing unfamiliar elements and minimal layers lost in the dense flows of Narrow.
Narrow seeks out the sonic traces that lie in-between and underneath perception. The five variations uncover the hidden sonic artefacts that exist within the original composition and in doing so reveal a deeper sonic quality that is exquisite in its detail.