When I count to ten…
I have listened to and enjoyed many Thierry David albums before, but this is my first review. His New Age, electronic music is singular and so unique that I had a difficult time giving it interpretation. Yes, it is that remarkable. I put all the albums I had into the player to look for a common bond and found it easy to discover. Thierry David’s music is placid, flowing, and highly rhythmic. His latest release Hypnosis is all that and much, much more. Think onomatopoeic. On this album, David pays piano, synthesizer, and does the programming.
Thierry David was born in Paris, France. He became familiar with classical and jazz music at an early age. He attended the Berkley College of Music in Boston, (the Cultural Center of The Universe). A stint in the world of advertising thrust him into the world of music and here he is, one of the most noted composers of Electronica music today. Some call his music experimental. I call it genius.
The recording opens with the shimmering track “Freedom’s Alluring Call.” David composes a tune with a smooth flow and bell-like elements. These elements echo, they summon, and they invite the listener to take steps. Bells usually call a person to do something. The song is a call to action, a signal to begin, but cautiously, as a bell can also toll out a warning.
I have always entertained the idea that music conveys physical moment and my theory is proven by the tune “Mesmerizing Spirals.” The percussion in the song provides a somewhat stop motion beat and I imagine movement with every blink of the eye. This song is not about a slow, death-like spiral, more like gears in motion, more positive and grand.
“Labyrinth of the Unconscious” has some jazzy undertones in it and the melody slithers like some serpent on the hunt. It tests, it twitches. It feels and it touches everything. Perhaps that is what the psyche does and we are blatantly unaware. How do we end up from point A to point B and not recall the journey? How do we remember? How do we forget? David captures the musical progress as we supply the questions.
There are transgressions and there are transgressions. Thierry’s final cut on Hypnosis is called “Nothing to Forgive.” I am a firm believer in giving forgiveness whenever possible. There is a burden to the spirit whenever we carry hate around like a backpack. Let us forget about the slights, the misunderstandings and live in the now. J'ai été impressionné avec les nuances de cette chanson, la clarté, la quiétude.À moi c'était entièrement trop court.
Sometimes Thierry David’s music is referred to as lounge music, but I think it needs and deserves more attention than that. Sure you can play any of his albums in the background and set a mood that is unconscious and ambient, but then there are songs that call to your spirit and you just have to give it more thought, more value. Hypnosis is an entire album like that. You want to know what the song is saying to you at that given moment, or better still, you want to build your mood around it. I for one was mesmerized.
Rating: Excellent