zakè & Angela Winter
'Mid Sky'
'Mid Sky'
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PITP51 |
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ARTIST:
zakè & Angela Winter ALBUM NAME: Mid Sky CATALOGUE NUMBER: PITP51 RELEASED ON: Thursday, August 1, 2024 |
FORMAT:
Numbered 6-Panel Digipak CD + download code Booklet + download code CD EP + download code Digital Download [at] pitp.bandcamp.com Streaming through all major digital streaming platforms DISTRIBUTION: Past Inside the Present D2C (US), Inner Ocean Records (CAN), Juno Records (UK), Phonica (UK), HHV (DE), Soundohm (IT), Tobira Records (JP), Linus Records (JP), Redeye (UK), A Thousand Arms (US), and others PUBLISHING: © 2024 Past Inside the Present ℗ 2024 Past Inside the Present Publishing (BMI) |
CREDITS:
Written, recorded, and produced by zakè & Angela Winter. Mixed and mastered at Ambient Mountain House by James Bernard. Photography by Cynthia Bernard. Design and layout by zakè
Written, recorded, and produced by zakè & Angela Winter. Mixed and mastered at Ambient Mountain House by James Bernard. Photography by Cynthia Bernard. Design and layout by zakè
about
zakè & Angela Winter – Mid Sky (Past Inside the Present, 2024)
"Mid Sky, the first full-length collaboration between Past Inside the Present label head zakè (aka Zach Frizzell) and vocalist Angela Winter, is the result of a patient exchange of ideas and arrangements over the course of more than a year. True to its title, the album occupies a rarefied place between the terrestrial and the cosmic, as Frizzell’s organic drones and field recordings unfurl in tandem with the cascading harmonies of Winter’s otherworldly voice, which creates a beguiling language absent of concrete lyrics.
“Gale” opens the collection with an incandescent quaver that brings to mind a wisping aurora borealis wrapped in muted static, while Winter’s presence grows from a single note into choral fullness, and a rich low-end gathers with each glowing pass. A hushed hiss is central to the conjurings of “Precipice”, over which narcotic synths allow a candlelit vocal arrangement to ebb and flow with stunning emotional power. Halfway through its side-long duration, subterraneous bass swells break the loam, and new layers of complexity stretch across the sonic canvas as Winter experiments with variations in cadence, tonality, and pacing.
Physicality and physiology are innate fascinations in Winter’s approach to singing; she describes an unavoidable tendency to respond and assimilate to the sounds and textures we all experience on a daily basis:
“Whenever I hear some sort of drone out in the world, I push against it vocally. My body does this spontaneously with sustained or rhythmic tones, such as from a lawnmower, leaf blower, car horn, running water, or the high-pitched hiss of a streetlight. I used to not be aware I was doing this, but now I realize I pretty much do it all the time, and always have.”
Given that Frizzell is an avowed sonic diary-keeper in his compositional process, such a naturalistic method on Winter’s part makes this collaboration seem truly fated. “Terminal Sleep” exemplifies their dynamic, as well as a broader theme of contrast across Mid Sky; the surge and relent of voice and drone convey the growing pains of spring, where progress feeds by necessity on the decay and death of last season, and a trillion invisible interactions happen in every square inch of the underbrush. Especially in its final moments, where the crackle of a dusty record counters a speaker-rattling bass purr, the two artists reach a compelling summit.
“Advent” is a brief, beautiful crystallization of the album’s main ideas, an aural dive into the overcast with slow, harmonic pulses and exquisitely placed vocals. Unsurprisingly, regarding her technique, Winter notes, “I worked quickly and intuitively without reviewing or overdubbing, and once I’d recorded a myriad of voices, shifted to a subtractive, sculptural approach for edits, listening deeply until I heard angels in the mix and editing ruthlessly to set them free.”
Mid Sky closes with its monumental title track, an encapsulation of the territory between earth and the infinite, where the downward view is of land and life without borders, while outward is the exosphere, merging with solar wind and brutal nothingness. Winter’s final, quiet hums convey a solemn pensiveness, as though she’s witnessed some ineffable truth beyond expression, and the album’s final minutes comprise a slow fade into the gentle dissonance of uncertainty. This polarity of human and divine elements creates an undeniable grace that, according to Frizzell, is “the perfect orchestration between two individuals at the right moment.”
"Mid Sky, the first full-length collaboration between Past Inside the Present label head zakè (aka Zach Frizzell) and vocalist Angela Winter, is the result of a patient exchange of ideas and arrangements over the course of more than a year. True to its title, the album occupies a rarefied place between the terrestrial and the cosmic, as Frizzell’s organic drones and field recordings unfurl in tandem with the cascading harmonies of Winter’s otherworldly voice, which creates a beguiling language absent of concrete lyrics.
“Gale” opens the collection with an incandescent quaver that brings to mind a wisping aurora borealis wrapped in muted static, while Winter’s presence grows from a single note into choral fullness, and a rich low-end gathers with each glowing pass. A hushed hiss is central to the conjurings of “Precipice”, over which narcotic synths allow a candlelit vocal arrangement to ebb and flow with stunning emotional power. Halfway through its side-long duration, subterraneous bass swells break the loam, and new layers of complexity stretch across the sonic canvas as Winter experiments with variations in cadence, tonality, and pacing.
Physicality and physiology are innate fascinations in Winter’s approach to singing; she describes an unavoidable tendency to respond and assimilate to the sounds and textures we all experience on a daily basis:
“Whenever I hear some sort of drone out in the world, I push against it vocally. My body does this spontaneously with sustained or rhythmic tones, such as from a lawnmower, leaf blower, car horn, running water, or the high-pitched hiss of a streetlight. I used to not be aware I was doing this, but now I realize I pretty much do it all the time, and always have.”
Given that Frizzell is an avowed sonic diary-keeper in his compositional process, such a naturalistic method on Winter’s part makes this collaboration seem truly fated. “Terminal Sleep” exemplifies their dynamic, as well as a broader theme of contrast across Mid Sky; the surge and relent of voice and drone convey the growing pains of spring, where progress feeds by necessity on the decay and death of last season, and a trillion invisible interactions happen in every square inch of the underbrush. Especially in its final moments, where the crackle of a dusty record counters a speaker-rattling bass purr, the two artists reach a compelling summit.
“Advent” is a brief, beautiful crystallization of the album’s main ideas, an aural dive into the overcast with slow, harmonic pulses and exquisitely placed vocals. Unsurprisingly, regarding her technique, Winter notes, “I worked quickly and intuitively without reviewing or overdubbing, and once I’d recorded a myriad of voices, shifted to a subtractive, sculptural approach for edits, listening deeply until I heard angels in the mix and editing ruthlessly to set them free.”
Mid Sky closes with its monumental title track, an encapsulation of the territory between earth and the infinite, where the downward view is of land and life without borders, while outward is the exosphere, merging with solar wind and brutal nothingness. Winter’s final, quiet hums convey a solemn pensiveness, as though she’s witnessed some ineffable truth beyond expression, and the album’s final minutes comprise a slow fade into the gentle dissonance of uncertainty. This polarity of human and divine elements creates an undeniable grace that, according to Frizzell, is “the perfect orchestration between two individuals at the right moment.”
press
"Mid Sky is the debut collaboration between US ambient maestro zakè (aka Zach Frizzell) of Past Inside the Present label and vocalist Angela Winter, and it emerged from a year-long exchange of ideas. According to zakè, Mid Sky is "the perfect orchestration between two individuals at the right moment." We agree as it beautifully navigates a realm between the terrestrial and cosmic with organic drones and ethereal vocals fort and centre.
The album opens with 'Gale,' featuring aurora-like tones and evolving vocals. Tracks like 'Precipice' mix narcotic synths with emotive vocals, while 'Terminal Sleep' contrasts dynamic drones with introspective moments. 'Advent' offers harmonic pulses and sculpted vocals, as Winter's instinctive responses to everyday sounds enrich the album's allure, leading to the monumental title track, a contemplative journey into boundless horizons that blends human and cosmic elements in graceful harmony. A perfect soundtrack to quiet introspection, Mid Sky is another gem in a long line of them from this label."
- Juno Records
✦✦✦
"Mid Sky is the first ever collaboration between the sound artist zakè (the pseudonym of Zach Frizzell) and the vocalist Angela Winter. They have decided over the course of a year to experiment on the ledge between the Earth and the heavens. The result is nearly two hours of eerie drone music, broken only by emotional yet wordless vocals. Zach Frizzell has done his fieldwork, combining sounds from nature with studio sounds to make the sensation of the sheer emptiness of the stratosphere. The pleasant contrast is Angela Winter’s vocals, human tones that fight against the natural realm, reminding us that this liminal zone is still inside our realm. This collaboration needed to happen: these two artists mix perfectly.
Neither artist is new to this at all, and this album indeed seems less radical. Angela Winter’s previous excursions like Sonic Essences have dealt with sheer manipulation of natural sounds, without telling us a definite story. Of course, the moulding of the sound into something ethereal has always been well in her domain. As for zakè, he has dealt with almost every angle of electronica. He has always been working with a variety of other artists, especially on his own Past Inside the Present record label. Mid Sky reminds me a little of his Carolina & Coppice Movements album, where he took to manipulating the background noises in nature with clever distortions and compositions.
The album starts with bringing us through a gale. It begins with a single, drawn-out note that symbolises the hollowing backing of the sky. Then Angela Winter’s vocals are layered on top. Sometimes they are unforgiving like harsh winds, other times they seem more comforting. Then the experience becomes more human. More and more natural sounds are incorporated. The vocals turn from bleakly sustained notes to polyphonic harmonies, and then sometimes even shimmering melodic lines.
In the finale, we are clearly ascending higher into the sky, and that original note has become a series of major chords. The tracks become briefer and more airy. The album ends with musical agreements between the voices and the drones: they melt into each other. It is probably difficult to get a more satisfying ending. Somehow, fifty-thousand feet in the air, both artists have given us an ambient experience worthy of repeating. Though many artists are inspired by nature, few have painted its greatest wonder the way zakè and Angela Winter have. I hope we keep on seeing collaborations of this scale: ambient music is at its best when dealing with themes and landscapes so deep it takes hours to reach the bottom."
- Cyclic Defrost
✦✦✦
"[..] Past Inside the Present serves up a collaborative outing from the big chief zakè and vocalist Angela Winter. ‘Mid Sky’ is the product of “a patient exchange of ideas and arrangements over the course of more than a year” and you can tell it’s a piece of work that has been pored over. Here zakè’s brew of sweeps and drones and field recordings mix seamlessly with Angela’s otherworldy voice.
She talks of working quickly and intuitively and once her myriad of voices are recorded she shifts to “a subtractive, sculptural approach for edits” where she listens deeply until she hears “angels in the mix”. Goodness, they’re here.
While it’s not really fair to talk Cocteau Twins just because there’s a wordless vocal here, ‘Mid Sky’ does have that shimmer, it’s like the sound of the spaces between the grooves of their late 80s work, something like ‘Lazy Calm’ from ‘Victorialand’ or their Harold Budd collaborations."
- Moonbuilding Magazine
The album opens with 'Gale,' featuring aurora-like tones and evolving vocals. Tracks like 'Precipice' mix narcotic synths with emotive vocals, while 'Terminal Sleep' contrasts dynamic drones with introspective moments. 'Advent' offers harmonic pulses and sculpted vocals, as Winter's instinctive responses to everyday sounds enrich the album's allure, leading to the monumental title track, a contemplative journey into boundless horizons that blends human and cosmic elements in graceful harmony. A perfect soundtrack to quiet introspection, Mid Sky is another gem in a long line of them from this label."
- Juno Records
✦✦✦
"Mid Sky is the first ever collaboration between the sound artist zakè (the pseudonym of Zach Frizzell) and the vocalist Angela Winter. They have decided over the course of a year to experiment on the ledge between the Earth and the heavens. The result is nearly two hours of eerie drone music, broken only by emotional yet wordless vocals. Zach Frizzell has done his fieldwork, combining sounds from nature with studio sounds to make the sensation of the sheer emptiness of the stratosphere. The pleasant contrast is Angela Winter’s vocals, human tones that fight against the natural realm, reminding us that this liminal zone is still inside our realm. This collaboration needed to happen: these two artists mix perfectly.
Neither artist is new to this at all, and this album indeed seems less radical. Angela Winter’s previous excursions like Sonic Essences have dealt with sheer manipulation of natural sounds, without telling us a definite story. Of course, the moulding of the sound into something ethereal has always been well in her domain. As for zakè, he has dealt with almost every angle of electronica. He has always been working with a variety of other artists, especially on his own Past Inside the Present record label. Mid Sky reminds me a little of his Carolina & Coppice Movements album, where he took to manipulating the background noises in nature with clever distortions and compositions.
The album starts with bringing us through a gale. It begins with a single, drawn-out note that symbolises the hollowing backing of the sky. Then Angela Winter’s vocals are layered on top. Sometimes they are unforgiving like harsh winds, other times they seem more comforting. Then the experience becomes more human. More and more natural sounds are incorporated. The vocals turn from bleakly sustained notes to polyphonic harmonies, and then sometimes even shimmering melodic lines.
In the finale, we are clearly ascending higher into the sky, and that original note has become a series of major chords. The tracks become briefer and more airy. The album ends with musical agreements between the voices and the drones: they melt into each other. It is probably difficult to get a more satisfying ending. Somehow, fifty-thousand feet in the air, both artists have given us an ambient experience worthy of repeating. Though many artists are inspired by nature, few have painted its greatest wonder the way zakè and Angela Winter have. I hope we keep on seeing collaborations of this scale: ambient music is at its best when dealing with themes and landscapes so deep it takes hours to reach the bottom."
- Cyclic Defrost
✦✦✦
"[..] Past Inside the Present serves up a collaborative outing from the big chief zakè and vocalist Angela Winter. ‘Mid Sky’ is the product of “a patient exchange of ideas and arrangements over the course of more than a year” and you can tell it’s a piece of work that has been pored over. Here zakè’s brew of sweeps and drones and field recordings mix seamlessly with Angela’s otherworldy voice.
She talks of working quickly and intuitively and once her myriad of voices are recorded she shifts to “a subtractive, sculptural approach for edits” where she listens deeply until she hears “angels in the mix”. Goodness, they’re here.
While it’s not really fair to talk Cocteau Twins just because there’s a wordless vocal here, ‘Mid Sky’ does have that shimmer, it’s like the sound of the spaces between the grooves of their late 80s work, something like ‘Lazy Calm’ from ‘Victorialand’ or their Harold Budd collaborations."
- Moonbuilding Magazine
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