023 - AUT2M - Muziek Voor Muren

  

Albums have as many themes as there are stars in the sky.  Many epic in scope, many simple.  Concepts  range from the eternal struggle of good vs. evil and dark vs. light to  the delicate and simple  wonders  a rainstorm can bring on a lonely evening.  I’ve heard thousands of albums in my lifetime, covering a multitude of motifs.  Yet, in all my time I have never come across an album with a subject such as this one.

Muziek Voor Muren translates directly to “Music for Walls.”  I didn’t know what to expect with a name like that, and honestly I was a bit concerned.  An album based around static objects that largely do nothing during their existence gave me pause.  I expected disaster… but what I got was the opposite.

AUT2M has explored many genres: vaportrap, hardvapour, dreampunk, and most recently ambient.  This wide musical buffet is birthed from a need to evolve, to grow.  “The music I make is often inspired by what I'm listening to at the time. I often get bored when I work on the same genre for a long time so I’ll switch it up a bit,” he explained as to why his work is so diverse.

Muziek Voor Muren’s creation came during a period of listening to minimalistic ambient from Japanese composers.  The music is sparse, with no more than 2-3 instruments playing at any given moment.  The notes are few, often no more than five to six in any given melody or progression.  The effects are small, often just a minute amount of reverb to add a bit more depth.  The compositions are simple, allowing the instruments and melodies to find their place in the album.

Taking each of these ingredients and mixing them, AUT2M has created an album that demands the listener’s attention - this is not an album for casual listening.  There is a depth that comes out of the simplicity that is steeped in emotion.  Gekanteld comes with a sense of unease and tension.  The sounds of a new dawn rising and the hope that springs with it come on Steen.  A profound sense of loss is presented on Onwetend. It's on this track and the one following that I was shaken to my core.

Onwetend and Gesmolten Ogen did something to me that has not happened in years.  They reached into the very center of my being and reminded me of a time I had forgotten.  That feeling of nostalgia coupled by helplessness and loneliness brought me to tears, literal tears.  It's in this that the album became real.  It evolved from just a collection of songs to an intimate experience as few albums ever have.  

The way that Onwetend enters alludes to a simpler time, one where childhood innocence is still strong.  As the song continues, sparse melodies intertwine, dripping with loneliness and longing.  It's so simple.  It never should have affected me this deeply, but it did… and still does.  

Gesmolten Ogen continues where Onwetend leaves off.  It replays many of the themes but as time progresses we are left with less and less, ending up with nothing.  These times have left us leaving only a yearning for things that can never again be.

As with many of the strongest albums in my collection, each song stands on its own but as a whole the sum is greater than the parts.  Muziek Voor Muren is not only a complete album, it is a musical journey.  Starting with hints of foreboding and unease, the album effortlessly leads the listener along a path where we get glimpses of childlike innocence, deep sorrow, the simplicity of nature, and finally - peace.  

It's fascinating and almost astonishing how an album that is themed around walls can be so diverse and engaging.  “I came up with the concept one night when I was sitting in my bedroom, bored of making music, looking at my wall, and thinking about everything that it's been around. The apartment building I live in was built in the 1950s, so that's about 70 years of ‘experiences’ that the wall has had.  I then decided to find some interesting walls around my city, photograph them and build tracks around the feelings those walls give me”

Musiek Voor Muren plays with the idea of history being played out in front of walls. The music is uncomplicated.  Yet it is in this simplicity that the music blooms and flourishes.  Often the music will play a melody, only to have a deeper melody answer back.  This call and response , or echo, is just one of many tiny examples of how AUT2M has elevated this minimalist collection beyond merely music about walls.  

By embracing the principles of Japanese minimalism and transforming it into his own vision, AUT2M has created an album that invites the listener to slow down and reflect.  It's in these quiet reflections that I find myself musing that this album is not only one of the stronger records of 2020 - it is quite possibly AUT2M’s best work to date.

Equipment Used

“It’s kind of boring, but just Ableton and a MIDI keyboard. I’m personally not really big on hardware. I don’t see the point in it when I have a computer. Most of the album was made by just jamming on the MIDI keyboard over and over until I was satisfied with it.”

Acknowledgements

Huge thank you to AUT2M for taking the time to answer my questions, and speaking to me about his album.  Fascinating stuff man.  As always thank you to Blissmonkey for editing and promotion.