BRIAN ENO: NEROLI (1993)
1) Neroli.
«Thanks to the calming nature of the piece, Neroli has been implemented in some
maternity wards, both to instill a sense of calm as well as enhance the organic
nature of childbirth» (Wikipedia). I am not quite sure how exactly a series of
intricately looped, digitally synthesized notes is supposed to «enhance the
organic nature of childbirth», but who am I to question advanced psychotheurapetical
practices? Let us instead concentrate on the title — most likely an anagram,
but what for? "Lorien"? Unless the elves actually spend most of their
time frozen in cocoons, not very likely. "Lenoir"? That's a pretty
common surname; probably not the
inventor of the internal combustion engine, though, as that would be too loud
for this album. "Nilore"? What does the man care about nuclear
technology research sites in Pakistan? Beats me.
Anyway, this is basically Thursday Afternoon Vol. 2 — only a «darker» counterpart to that
record's «lighter» aura, as the played notes are much lower; there is also no
humming electronic background whatsoever, so the only thing left between you
and the gradually fading soundwaves of the dripping notes is silence. Imagine
your roof leaking in a regular pattern, with a set of pots capturing the
droplets, as the pattern very slowly shifts due to the droplets dropping at
different speeds, yet essentially remains the same, and that is basically Neroli for you, except the dripping
process has been given an electronic coating. And, of course, it is almost one
hour long.
Perhaps it really does help young mothers, lying in beds resting with nothing much to
do. Perhaps it is a cool soundtrack to help you meditate — as an experiment,
you could try playing it in its entirety every evening before you go to bed,
and it might drain your brain of all the silly, disturbing, nerve-wrecking
events of the day. I am not denying the worth of this as a medical tool (it
should definitely have at least some sort of placebo value), and I am not even
denying it the status of an artistic statement, one that would prompt people to
exclaim: "Ah, that Neroli!
Verily, has a more astute metaphor for the entire universe behaving just like
circles on the water been thought of by mortal man? That Eno — musical
philosophy has never been more profound in its simplicity and directness! Not
even John Cage has got anything on him!"
What I am
denying is the capacity of these «circles on the water» to do much of anything
for me, or for people who, while not denying the powers of «ambient» as a
genre, think that minimalism in composing is long past being valuable per se. Honestly, one Thursday Afternoon per artist is quite
enough; so I would prefer to simply label this «Brian Eno's Limited Time Offer
For Maternity Wards — Not To Be Taken Seriously» and forget that it ever
existed.
"Neroli" isn't an anagram; it's an oil used in perfumes. The connection to this album's ostensible purpose should be obvious.
ReplyDeleteAh, so you listen to it while riding the magic dragon. I can think of no nobler pursuit.
Delete