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Reviews
Places
(CD)
Live at the Kulture Klatsch (CD)
Microscopic
Horrors (DVD)
Assaults & Reprieves (CD)
Descent to Self (CD)
Reviews
of Unreleased Songs
| SEPTEMBER
21, 2005 BY AMY ATKINS from the Boise Weekly
Wednesday, September 28, 6:30 p.m., FREE, Smoky Mountain Pizza & Pasta on State St. --Amy Atkins "Krispen Hartung's new release, Places, caught my ear from the very beginning. The opening track, Continuum brilliantly sets the mood for the rest of the cd. Hartung's clever use of pulses, looped motifs, swelling harmonies and first-rate improvisation combine to form these unique, all-guitar compositions. The resulting music transcends the monotony of unchanging tempo and tonality, allowing the artist to express himself as if his guitar were speaking its own language - indeed, it spoke to me. On all eleven tracks, Hartung stretches the boundaries of the acoustic/electric guitar, creating inventive collages of non-traditional sounds, oblique melodies and delightful dissonance. You will find it relaxing, intoxicating and thought provoking all at once. If I must make comparisons, the guitar work is at times reminiscent of John McLaughlin while tracks 5 (Fremmed Sinn) and 6 (Min.7 Sec. Evolution), embrace other-world sounds ala the Kronos Quartet; pick abrasions (like a scratchy violin bow) and the pizzicato effect (simulated by plucking strings above the nut) provide some of the string-like qualities. Even so, this is truly original art. Places is a cd that musicians and non-musicians alike will thoroughly enjoy." Ben
Burdick ******************************************************************************** "Much like a painter layers textures of paint to create a piece of art, Hartung does the same with sounds to create a truly unique album of improvisational, ambient music." The Boise Weekly ********************************************************************** "Rather than merely lull you into a meditative state, Krispen Hartung's New Age instrumentals challenge the ear with improvisational guitar solos that verge on the avant-garde. Creating experimental yet arresting musical moods, Hartung wrings sounds out of his acoustic guitar that you've never heard before." ********************************************************************** "Idaho
based guitar player Krispen Hartungs' new record features his unique approach
on the guitar. His compositons reflect his abstract thoughts and uncommon melodies.
********************************************************************** "Krispen's album is truly creative, unique and thought-provoking!" Steven Cravis - Composer and Producer ********************************************************************** I find the cd "Places" a must for music listeners who are seeking a transcendent journey into the avant-garde and improvisational sound. Mike Oglesbee - Artist *************************************************************** La musica dei Grandi Antichi
Una
Vorticella o una creatura lovecraftiana? Krispen Hartung è un musicista
statunitense che dalla sua base di Boise, Idaho lancia da anni anomali progetti
sonori. Fremmed Sinn significa mente aliena in norvegese e narra di un mostruoso essere che emerge dal mare per dominare telepaticamente le menti umane. Lovecraft Resurrected, come è facile immaginare dal titolo, prevede il ritorno dello scrittore di Providence dall'oltretomba per guidare una schiera di spiriti e soggiogare una città. The Rise of Cthulhu è un allucinato viaggio musicale che tenta di descrivere la risalita della città di R'lyeh dal limo del fondo oceanico fino alla superficie. In questo caso il brano è accompagnato anche da un video assai sperimentale che tenta di associare alle note la figura di un... Non vi riveliamo altro, invitandovi a visitare il sito. English Translation The music of the Great Ancients
Online are the music and video productions created by Krispen Hartung and based on the imagination of the Master of Providence.
A Vorticella or a Lovecraft creature? Krispen Hartung is a U.S. musician from Boise, Idaho, who has produced diverse music projects for many years. At first listen, the acoustic guitar style of Hartung can be erroneously classified in the vast New Age sea, but if you pay more attention to his compositions you’ll notice something extraneous and somewhat disturbing, both in his technique (some passages could remember Randy Rhodes) and in his themes. Just regarding these, some of his new productions, all easily downloadable from his own site and highly influenced by Lovecraft themes, are really intriguing.
Fremmen Sinn means "alien mind" in Norwegian and tells the story of a monster that crawls from the sea to dominate human minds with its telepathic powers.
Lovecraft Resurrected, as it is easy to understand from the title, talks about the return of the Providence writer from his death to guide a horde of spirits and rule a city.
The Rise of Cthulhu is a hallucinated musical trip that tries to describe the rise of the R’lyeh city from the ocean depths to the surface. In this case the musical piece is accompanied by a really experimental video that tries to associate to the musical notes the image of a... We won’t tell you anything else, inviting you to visit his site. *************************************************************** Places - "Krispen Hartung" (Krispen Hartung Records) cd 2004
*************************************************************** Frippertronix 2005 (from Mixposure) [Review of the song Fremmed Sinn] "Very adept usage of the looping tool and some really interesting guitar work interspersed with the background loops...a strange and haunting journey and very well executed improvisation." - Valkir *************************************************************** Reminds me of the Fripp-Eno stuff (from Mixposure) [Review of the song Fremmed Sinn] "Quite like some of Robert Fripp's early excursions into echo-looping improv's. Slowly builds into some dark "lurking" that's well-produced and recorded properly." - Captioned *************************************************************** Very
Nice (from Mixposure) *************************************************************** *************************************************************** "Fusion
jazz guitarist Krispen Hartung (www.krispenhartung.com) has garnered a cult lesbian
following in the Northwest with his CDs (latest Places), a DVD (in which microscopic
creatures dance to avant-garde music) and his honerary dykey coffeehouse stage
performances, where phrases like 'Sometimes I think a less material life is a
truer life' make the New Age lesbians swoon" - Diane Anderson-Minshall (Curve
Magazine) Live at the Kulture Klatsch by Krispen Hartung & Vincent Miresse "The self-titled Krispen Hartung Vincent Miresse: Live at the Kulture Klatsch is a CD of spontaneous compositions supposedly recorded live at the Kulture Klatsch on two different occasions. "Supposedly" because there is not a trace of audience, not even a spoon falling to the floor, which is a shame because I believe that audience response would heighten the sense of spontaneity. The music here is a soundscape for cosmic travel by two guys who improvise with each other. Krispen Hartung's acoustic guitar is looped (an electronic process by which rhythms and lines repeat themselves), and this repetition threads the astral tapestry while Vincent Miresse adds aural colors with a variety of instruments: didgeridoo, chimes, dumbek, udu and singing bowl. There are no tangible melodies here, and despite the use of ethnic instruments, there are no earth rhythms. This is not meditative or spiritual fare--it is a study in repetition and abstract wandering (not a slur, as I believe that this is their intent). Of the eight titles which clock in at 79:34, I would have chosen "Saga of the Lord Abstractomondo" to define and give the CD a title." - Larry Conklin of the Boise Weekly ******************************************************************************** Hello Again (from Mixposure - Review of the song Artificial Reprise) "Love what you are doing here, its fidgety, tense and dramatically melodic at points. The sound is very precise as well, never meandering into a bad place. Good stuff, drt" ******************************************************************************** "Keep up the good work!" - HEADSTONE (http://www.soundclick.com/headstone) ******************************************************************************** ******************************************************************************** Great
One! (from Mixposure
- Review
of the song Space Train) ******************************************************************************** Another Great Track (from Mixposure - Review of the song Space Train "Once again, you amaze and astound with your looping prowess. The percussion adds just he right ambience to your sonic explorations...What a cool atmospheric piece of music." - Valkir ******************************************************************************** Crystal Clear (from Mixposure - Review of the song Space Train "Wow! i love the sound of that guitar!" - Fiddlerblue ******************************************************************************** Sweet Man! (from Mixposure - Review of the song Space Train I'm LOVING this tune... another HIGH-END talent joins in th' MIX! & it's not just the splendid guitar, but also the percussion that will hold the listener spellbound. A most calming effect on the psyche, & instant recognition by the ear (of true talent). I give this one a MOST HIGHLY RECOMMENDED, as well as a Zzaj "PICK"! - Zzaj Productions ******************************************************************************** ;o) (from Mixposure - Review of the song Space Train "There's some tension in the almost droning acoustic guitar. The tension is amplified by those jungle drums. I can't really see a space train to this. More like a jungle. A group of 18th century discoverers are sailing through a river in the jungle for the first time. The mood onboard is relaxed, and one of the crewman is playing guitar. But there's more, various unplacable drum sounds are coming from the dence forest. A scene like that. A shriek from an unkown beast. And again. Thats a flute isn't it ? Cool sound. Another shriek and another shriek, maybe the crew gets a little scary now, what kind of bird is this ? hehe.5:14 more scary effects maybe it's becoming night. Those sounds remind me of night anyway." - Treeman ******************************************************************************** Australopitecus!! (from Mixposure - Review of the song Space Train "This song is exotic. nice ostinatto and when the guitar appears...ghosts...and voices...solos." - Travalinqua ******************************************************************************** Nice (from Mixposure - Review of the song Swim "Wierd, melodic and rythmnic as it is it captured my attention right away. That high bleep isn't disturbing but it's a wierd element to combine with that relaxing acoustic guitar jingle's that are heard in the back. Maybe turn down the volume of that sound a bit. The drumming is mystic, and seems to fade in and out at random times, adding little crescendo's. I think this track slowly intesifies as it progresses and I'm glad the acoustic guitar part is louder now. Very relaxing, chilling out. This track writes a story in my mind about me relaxing in the sun, smoking a pure joint ( no tabacco, that sucks !), near the sea. When the THC starts to take it's effect, there's a car who is driving back and I'm hearing this '' reverse alarm '' bigger cars usually have. Trippy & warm ( sand ). I'm listening it again. And again." - Treeman Hypnotic (from Mixposure - Review of the song Swim "That repeating high acoustic chord is like a clock ticking, hypnotic and pulsing, the percussion as always is just awesome. I love the patterns you play over this...melodic and a nice structure. Don't know why you called this swim but no matter, it is a pleasing piece." - Valkir The Natural Call (from Mixposure - Review of the song Swim "Well, a neat piece of acoustic device and oriented drum, bells, etc. I feel the flow of the melody here and there like the humble bees. Swinging the chords of the melody like searching for the honey desperately. Next, I feel the ease of the stream, the water padding down the path and seeking the place for its final destination. Wow, this is indeed the flow of the nature. Smooth and easy ride that I almost closed my eye to enjoy the sensational mood, but I can't coz I was typing the review at the same time. No doubt is quite repetitive according to Valkir, I agreed but I still find it interesting compared to other silly looping stuff somewhere." - Piperon Very Fresh Work (from Mixposure - Review of the song Swim "I
am in a very comfortable atmosphere with this good music. Time flows slowly. When
young, it seems to be the seen scenery of the early morning of summer. The percussion
became quiet and my ear concentrated the performance of a guitar. It is a very
fresh work. Great!!" - FlawTips
Microscopic Horrors by Krispen Hartung "Wonderful, and very creative." Michael
Peters ******************************************************************************** "I'm
viewing/listening to Krispen's DVD at the moment. Wow! I'd say it is like being
back in David
Auker
"From
the moment you see Kris Hartung sporting his coke-bottle thrift store glasses
on the cover along with a maniacal grin that says he's had way too many Red Bulls,
wears his underwear too tight and doesn't photograph very well at 3am, you know
that there is a subversive sense of humor at play here. This is further confirmed
when the various starring organisms are given their own rogue's gallery as way
of introduction, leaving one to wonder exactly how many B-Grade horror films Hartung
was exposed to during his childhood. The presentation is as tongue-in-cheek as
films such as "Mars Attacks!", where the director is smiling behind
the camera with a wink and a nod at his own joke regardless of whether anyone
else gets it or not and not caring if they do. The music ranges from stark and
haunting to layered and lush, and shows off Hartung's ever growing artistic range
as an avant-garde guitarist and musician. This is a film that touches all of the
senses, some of them intriguing and engaging and others that are just downright
violating. This film will move the viewer at one level or another rather than
leaving a sense of blase', but only those who share Hartung's sense of the absurd
and understand his humor will truly "get it". Grant
Keely *************************************************************** La musica dei Grandi Antichi
Una
Vorticella o una creatura lovecraftiana?Krispen Hartung è un musicista
statunitense che dalla sua base di Boise, Idaho lancia da anni anomali progetti
sonori. Fremmed Sinn significa mente aliena in norvegese e narra di un mostruoso essere che emerge dal mare per dominare telepaticamente le menti umane. Lovecraft Resurrected, come è facile immaginare dal titolo, prevede il ritorno dello scrittore di Providence dall'oltretomba per guidare una schiera di spiriti e soggiogare una città. The Rise of Cthulhu è un allucinato viaggio musicale che tenta di descrivere la risalita della città di R'lyeh dal limo del fondo oceanico fino alla superficie. In questo caso il brano è accompagnato anche da un video assai sperimentale che tenta di associare alle note la figura di un... Non vi riveliamo altro, invitandovi a visitare il sito. English Translation The music of the Great Ancients
Online are the music and video productions created by Krispen Hartung and based on the imagination of the Master of Providence.
A Vorticella or a Lovecraft creature? Krispen Hartung is a U.S. musician from Boise, Idaho, who has produced diverse music projects for many years. At first listen, the acoustic guitar style of Hartung can be erroneously classified in the vast New Age sea, but if you pay more attention to his compositions you’ll notice something extraneous and somewhat disturbing, both in his technique (some passages could remember Randy Rhodes) and in his themes. Just regarding these, some of his new productions, all easily downloadable from his own site and highly influenced by Lovecraft themes, are really intriguing.
Fremmen Sinn means "alien mind" in Norwegian and tells the story of a monster that crawls from the sea to dominate human minds with its telepathic powers.
Lovecraft Resurrected, as it is easy to understand from the title, talks about the return of the Providence writer from his death to guide a horde of spirits and rule a city.
The Rise of Cthulhu is a hallucinated musical trip that tries to describe the rise of the R’lyeh city from the ocean depths to the surface. In this case the musical piece is accompanied by a really experimental video that tries to associate to the musical notes the image of a... We won’t tell you anything else, inviting you to visit his site.
I haven't found anything similar, which is kind of a surprise. It is a cool topic. I really enjoyed your video work. It reminded me oddly of something from Lovecraft-- moving gelatinous shapes mounted on walls-- very cool! Thomas
Park, Mystified Assaults & Reprieves by Hume's Fork (Krispen Hartung et al) "When I walked in, the group was grooving on a 10-minute plus jam that soared and glided around the room. Their thick wall of sound came across as intricate and dynamic as it was powerful. [Hume's Fork] jams like its in a musical league beyond other bands in terms of improvisation skills and emotional complexity..." - JD Hunter, The Boise Weekly "Sound Advice"
Poco
mas de 70 minutos de "composiciones espontáneamente creadas y grabadas
en vivo en una sola toma, sin sobregrabaciones ni multi-tracking"... Mmmm,
alguien podría llegar a pensar que es "un poco" demasiado prolongado,
¿no es cierto? Extendido en exceso para mantener el foco creativo y la
atención del escucha, ¿tal vez?... ¡NADA DE ESO! Los 70 minutos
que integran este CD son de primera línea sin que la música, por
espontánea, caiga en meandrosos derroteros que no conducen a nada. Si bien
la libertad y la improvisación dominan la totalidad del disco, la música
nunca pierde el cause ni cae en pasajes insustanciales y anodinos, como muchas
veces ocurre con este tipo de obras. HUME'S
FORK es el vástago directo de la banda de Jazz-Rock, RIFT, fundada en Boise
(USA) por el versátil y multifacético músico Krispen HARTUNG.
Conjuntamente con DAVIS, ANDERSON y OLSON, con HUME'S FORK se centraron en el
lado mas instrumental y de improvisación espacial de su música.
Los resultados presentados en este disco son las mejores improvisaciones en vivo
grabadas por la banda en un lapso de 16 meses comprendido entre los años
1996 y 1997. Luego de recorrer estos EXCELENTES 10 temas, resulta obligado reconocer
que los conciertos de este grupo deben haber sido realmente impresionantes. El largo e inspirado fluir instrumental, la libertad en la improvisación y, particularmente, un aire casi despreocupado, definen la obra. La banda transmite un animo alegre, como si realmente disfrutara a medida que va creando. La música surge natural y relajadamente de sus instrumentos, como si la creación de esas sofisticadas, sincronizadas y deliciosas composiciones no les demandase esfuerzo alguno. Un obsequio para los degustadores de la improvisación espacial con buenas dosis de sutil guitarra. CONCLUSION: Un puente entre el presente, el clásico Krautrock de Agitation Free y las legendarias bandas de improvisación psicodélica instrumental de fines de los '60 y los tempranos '70. Setenta minutos ininterrumpidos del mejor Space-Jam que se puede conseguir en el mercado, incluyendo toques de Jazz Rock y algún detalle de Avant-Garde. EXCELENTE Y FUNDAMENTAL para los cultores de este estilo instrumental. Paul
Puleston 2004 English Translation: "A little more than 70 minutes of 'spontaneous compositions, created and recorded live in one take, without overdubbing or multitracking' . . . Mmm, someone might think that it is a 'little' too long? Too long to maintain the creative focus and attention, maybe? NOT! The 70 minutes of this CD are of the first rank without which the spontaneous music falls in wandering course that do not conduce anything. If the liberty and improvisation totally dominate the work, the music does not lose the course nor in ineffective innocuous passages like it happens with these types of work.
Descent to Self by Krispen Hartung Reviews of the song Discourse with a Wave "Moody.
This starts very moody and unusual. It's also really relaxing. I could chill out
to this, although it's a little scary too. I like those lower bass sounds, unpredictable
and heavy .1:17 the song gets slightly more happy but I still feel sadness. A
most interesting blend.The pads are arranged almost the same as the bassline,
unpredictable and relaxing. I like that slow buildup a lot. Production is nice
overall. Around 3:40, with that extra guitar layer, the overall sound might become
too chaotic. Maybe remove some layers and actually focus on that layer. It' s
a nice guitar though. This track should fit somewhere in the ambient genre too.
It's long, which is needed for tracks like this to capture the ambiance. I read
above this was a live recording, live recordings often offer the purest form of
inspiration. Just listenin' and dreamin' now.Thinking of trumpets hehe."
- Treeman "Awe inspiring. The atmospheric bed you laid is a hauntingly beautiful foundation for some emotionally charged guitar fx. A blissfully meditative piece." - Valkir "I
love stuff like this. A one time performance that never can be recaptured live,
but preserved for the future! Great musical preserves! I love like to do things
like this too. . . . haven't in a while. I like the moodiness of the track and
the tone colour is very cool, and appropriately named!" - Gezha "Really very good. This track reminds me of Dire Straits meets Jeam Michel Jarre and not in a bad way. Very moody and ultimately quite a sad track. The guitar solo part is fantastic, you really sound like you are an accomplished player. was not expecting to like this as usually try to avoid the guitar but was pleasantly surprised. Thanks, drt" "Haunting intro and the great skill continues through the song. I like it, keep it up. this is nicely done." - Contristo THE SPACE VOYAGER! "Neat cowbell, the grand synth is cool too. This is wavey indeed and a sense of space tune in it too. Like the Voyager music into the space of unknown world. I think it should be named "The Space Vogayer" instead. I always have a passion for space music and science fiction movies. I do not why they classified them as fiction since they are real. They should be called science fact instead. Oh, oh there go my science thoery again. I stay till 3:40 and the guitars plays ripe through the sky like the meteors brightening the space world in enima and esctacy endurances." - Piperon "A totally hypnotic track, fantastic improvisation yet again. With this track I can just drift away with my headphones on and imagine just watching the clouds float by against a blue sky. Thank heavens for recording technology, or we wouldn't have been able to hear this track ever again." - Riviera sun "This is a beautiful piece of organic ambient music. The deeply ambient pads here are laced with a delicate guitar that seems to trickle its way through the track. The changes in this are very subtle which i think makes them all the more satisfying from a listener's perspective, as this makes you tune in fully to the music. It's reminiscent of some of floyd's work and if i could play guitar like this guy, i'd be making music like this too. Stunning track." - Mixposure
Reviews of the song Entanglement "Almost 13-tone music ;) good mix of abstract (12-tone) and classic music flavoured with cool and modern beats. good quality mix! very interesting to listen to... the guitar just gives it the right finish. great music!" - Zeropage "Incredible. What an incredible piece of music. Controlled chaos and just constant movement makes this one heck of a ride. The guitar solo sound you have reminds me of Jan Hammer's sound and phrasing, a huge compliment indeed. Absolutely tasty guitar playing, just right, not too much at all. Not much else to say, this is just a masterpiece." - Valkir "Ok this is STUNNING I'm speechless. What can you say BUT JUST EXCELLENT. Too many things here to compliement. Talented to the MAX. Cheers." - Kat Speel
Reviews
of the song Australopithecus fusionensis "Great guitar work and improvisational skills!" -Gezha Reviews of songs not yet released on CD Review of Krispen Hartung & Vincent Miresse's "Tiny Monsters Ex Nihilo" "Love live improvized music because I believe it's the purest form of inspiration. The results are usually very interesting, but the most fun is while making it. This is certainly experimental and reminding me of souncscapish material, but it could also be the buildup to something else. I like those effects on the acoustic guitar. So far the mood is rather strange because of various percussion like effects that fade through the music and the guitar itself. The song never seems to really start and sticks to the soundscape like sound. 3:01 suddenly a didgeridoo fades in,great instrument and I play it myself. 3:19 the bass of the bass guitar is too hollow but it's gone again. The didgeridoo really makes this piece even wierder. yeah this song has some problems with bass but overall production is fine. I know from experience live tracks are harder to produce and master then other tracks ( logical in fact ). 5:33 some really nice FX work strange and relaxing. Are that bongo´s ? hehe. I agree with the genre choice here, this is what experimental world music sounds like ^_^ . Anyways nice track, maybe some poetry reading would be a nice add. Listen to Rotcod Zzaj's work if you find the time, it did remind me a little of this." - Treeman "Space Floater. Kris, This is an awesome piece and should Have an edited down version to submit for documentary type use. It is very nicely refrained and easy. Do more of this!!" - Steve Fulton (Boise, Idaho) "Hey this is great visual stuff, lots of space. Nothing overdone, very mind bending, keeps me hanging on every note. Really dig the echoplex twisting and turning of your lines, I use a Electrix Repeater, but mainly for flushing out ideas, never thought of it as an instrument. The carefully placed percussion sounds and digi all make for an enjoyable experience." - Bobby Wayne "THE AMBIENTIC INSTRUMENTALIST! Very cool and spacious soundscape in this revolutional and creative track. I heard some tiny tinke twist with the guitar. Awesome skill and love the ambientic production. The effects are superb and the playful skills of Krispen Hartung is indeed challenging and professional. The A class of ambientic instrumentalist, beautifully crafted with a dynamite twist atmosphere. Very haunting and very interesting piece of experimental track." - Piperon
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