Kranky
Christina Carter : Living Contact (US,rec.1995-1998,re.2005)*°
This is a re-release of a previous limited CDR edition of 100, recorded between 1995-1998. Christina Carter is part of a duo Scorces with Heather Leigh, and of Charalambides, first as a duo, now as a trio with Tom Carter.
Two tracks of the CD, especially the first track, “Silouhette” is recorded SO quietly on the CD, that there’s almost nothing to hear, and I had to put the volume up much to hear anything. I wondered if this wasn’t an error, because the second track has a certain normal level again. On this particular solo release of Christina Carter I notice the slow evolutions of development coming from similar improvised modes to the Charalambides. All tracks stay in that improvisational mode and are really rough ideas, packed with so much fragility (including the two over-silent recordings) one can hardly notice what it’s all about.
We hear slow slightly repetitive extreme-minimal(ist) acoustic guitar fingerpicking evolutions with a down to the bone skeletal playing, which is almost scary and suicidal. “Body energy exchange” takes the minimal fingerpicking core to delve for new sounds and ideas, which still is more an improvised looking for ideas than really finding them, missing some self-assuredness to take just anything forward and perhaps also the discipline to do so. The edge between amateurish weakness and professional delicacy is kept so vague, one can hardly notice how many true ideas are behind this microscopic world. It is hardly noticeable if this is a delicacy of developed nonsense or whether it is ever surpassing this level. Perhaps the intention is just trying to work within this vulnerable world, and showing that aspect of the introverted shell, a kind of drone-mood spinning into this shpere but with nothing more to articulate.
