Auraltone Records is just getting its start as a label–I believe they’re all of five releases old at the time I’m writing this–but they’re quickly gaining note as purveyors of interesting, diverse music. (In the past I’ve reviewed their releases “Gnosis” by Paragate and “Musical Sculptures” by Tim Risher and Claus Gahrn.) Into this growing catalog, add Tom DePlonty’s broad and engaging CD, Corridor. The disc’s strength come from the range of styles DePlonty covers without a hint of strain. He finesses the graceful lilt of a straightforward piano piece like “Halo” and tackles its more complex cohort “Cold Spot” with an equally deft hand. Then he ably pilots sound explorations like the hushed-ambient floater “The Beguiling Charm of Pleasure” and the edgier, dense spacemusic-styled “Glare.” And when the blends them, as with the hesitant, echo-augmented narrative of “The Cup of Wands,” or upbeat pieces like “Zen Baby” or my favorite track here, the very catchy “Sleeping Monsters Lie” (both of which DePlonty calls “lullabies”) the results and the experience are heightened. DePlonty notes that his music is created by “building up, breaking down, transforming and juxtaposing patterns,” often taken from improvised snippets. There’s play at work on Corridor, and the pleasure of discovery comes through on every track. Corridor gets better with each subsequent listen–and there have been many for me–and leaves me wanting more from Tom DePlonty.
Available from Auraltone.
Hypnagogue Music Reviews 