Clap! Clap! - Liquid Portraits (2020)

Clap! Clap!’s music is a unique blend of global dance and timeless sounds drawing from nature, traditional music, field recordings, and the electronic savvy of modern centres like Chicago and London. At its core are the inspiration of everyday life, what Crisci calls “the search for new flavours,” and a unifying narrative approach. The results are albums that play out like sonic movies. 2014's Tayi Bebba was a soundtrack tour of an imaginary island, and 2016's A Thousand Skies told the story of a young girl's journey through the stars.

Following these albums, Crisci took a break from focusing on samples and composition to study sound dynamics and the science of mixing and engineering. He changed his studio and tools, putting more emphasis on the correct melding of analog and digital technology. His third album, Liquid Portraits, is a result of this process with a new compositional approach that puts a stronger focus on field recording and sound design to achieve clarity without diminishing the energy and enthusiasm of the music. As the name hints at, the album is a collection of sonic paintings, an attempt at capturing furtive, subconscious memories through sound. The tracks reference trips Crisci took and people he met – from southern Italy to Hokkaido via the Kif Mountains of Morocco – as well as more abstract ideas of loss, calmness, and childhood. Helped by a small cast of close collaborators – harpist Kety Fusco, singer Martha Da'ro, percussionist Domenico Candellori, and bassist Piero Spitilli – Liquid Portraits is a major new step in Crisci's evolution as an artist.