Zimoun - ModularGuitarFields I-VI (2023)

Zimoun is a multi-disciplilnary Swiss artist who is best recognized for his immersive and site-specific installations with cardboard, DC motors and other industrial objects to create large-scale installations of orchestrated noise and movement. His mechanized environments have been shown in prestigiuos museums and galleries worldwide. On his latest musical release, ModularGuitarFields I-VI is entirely based on the sounds of a Tenor Baritone Guitar, combined with select elements of a Modular Synth and a vintage 1960s Magnatone Amp.

ModularGuitarFields I-VI encompasses expansive and atmospheric realms, showcasing Zimoun’s passion for raw, warm sounds, as well as minimalist concepts and approaches. They are minimalist yet sonically dense soundscapes, with a touch of psychedelia and gritty microsounds. These compositions can be understood as sonic sculptures, teeming with movement, not unlike his installation work, and eliciting a hypnotic atmospheric effect and creating immersive environments..

Even in his purely acoustic works, he maintains a profound interest in sound generation and the creation of sonic space. His compositions evoke a sense of place rather than following narrative developments somehow akin to architectural spaces. Although the individual compositions often undergo minimal changes over time, they exhibit continuous developments and variations in their microstructures. They feel more like an organism constantly transforming and living, rather than evolving into something different. This reflects Zimoun’s fundamental interest in creating systems that foster complexity and a multitude of variations within simple structures and elements, continuously nourished and nurtured by the guitar sounds.

ModularGuitarFields I-VI steps away from the quietude and fragility of his fellow 12k artists and and delivers a more intense, drone-based album. While it first comes across like an unforgiving, isolated landscape, the layers hidden within reveal details teeming with life and movement, like exploring the interior of a massive glacier.