“The sleeping body may lie under the stars, and the dreamer may dream of the stars—even of a journey to the stars—but the night of the dream is a night without stars.”—Maurice Blanchot
Lawrence English’s superb Room40 imprint is about to unveil a vast, post-classical concept album from Iranian sound artist Siavash Amini. Serus is scheduled for an August 2 release, and will be Amini’s first work for the Australian label.
The album’s genesis has its roots in the idea of “the other night,” as explored by French philosopher Maurice Blanchot: a night spent in dreams rather than sleep. Prompted by a spell of nocturnal sleeplessness and intoxication, Amini zeroes in on the concept of serus: the sensation of floating in a half-sleep state where familiar objects and people take on new, uncanny qualities. To that effect, he again employs a viscous mix of orchestral instrumentation and harsh ambient noise.
Earlier in June, Amini’s equally tenebrous collaboration with fellow Iranians (by way of Paris) 9T Antiope, Harmistice, was released. That album can be purchased here. For a preview of Serus, check out the opening track “A Recollection Of The Disappeared” below. And for a pre-order just somnambulate over here. Serusly.
Serus tracklisting:
01. A Recollection Of The Disappeared
02. Semblance
03. All That Remained Pt.1
04. All That Remained Pt. 2
More about: Siavash Amini
