FRACTAL GUITAR 3

As one can tell from the title, Thelen is back with the third in his 'Fractal Guitar' series where he provides electric guitar, synthesizer, strings, programming, electric piano, organ, samples, keyboards and Mellotron across five tracks, and is joined by other musicians who play on a few each. At the time of the recording he was working on four different albums, all with different line-ups, and many of those involved are also on here in one way or another while some of the pieces themselves are influenced by tracks on some of the others. His long-time sparring partner Jon Durant, with whom he released 'Crossings' as well as working as 'Fractal Sextet' is on four of these, as is touch guitar maestro Markus Reuter, but it is only touch bassist Stefan Huth who is on all five.

There is a wonderful wall of sound complexity about this album, with repeated loops and melodies, and the different guitars pushing the boundaries of what one would expect from the instrument with touch guitars, fretless, koto, yinyang, tremolo and e-bow just a few of the different effects being employed. When I hear Reuter, I expect him often to be improvising as he has built such a powering reputation in that field, yet here he is in a different place stylistically yet still pushing within the framework provided by Thelen to create something which is compelling. In many ways this is a cross between krautrock and Reuter's solo work, fully controlled by Thelen to create something that takes the music to new levels. I have heard a few of Thelen's recent albums in one form or another, and to my ears this is the most complete since the first in this series, as there is an underlying direction and core which allows the musicians to all add their multiple layers yet keep everything moving in the same direction, so the threads join together as opposed to working against each other. This is a great introduction not only to the work of Thelen but what can be achieved when a group of musicians are unafraid to move from the norm and instead want to achieve music which truly is progressing.

Review originally posted at www.therocktologist.com

This is the third release of a series named Fractal Guitar, where Stephan Thelen, a wonderful and talented musician, delivers an exquisite blend of atmospheres made mainly by his guitars, but amazingly complemented by the diversity of guest musicians who have played with him.

Fractal Guitar 3 was released at the end of 2022, however it's recording started in 2021 where Thelen was working on 4 different projects, which speaks about the prolific mind he has (is). Their previous albums have blown my mind and this time the experience is quite the same. What we find here are 5 songs and a total time of 60 minutes, with an additional track which is the edited version of the first epic track of the album.

Its name is 'Through the Stargate', a 16-minute rollercoaster with endless colors, textures, atmospheres that can be better perceived with good headphones. It is a long epic song which works as a journey through not one, but several universes, since Thelen and the so talented guest musicians add a rich diversity of textures, nuances, sounds. Instrumental music that can o introspective, that will open the gates of your mind and make you think and feel. The music is dark and tense, the endless guitar colors guide you from here to there, but there is a constant spacey atmosphere that might take you into a trip to the self. While the minutes pass, you will receive new sounds that you can take as messages, soundscapes that are like thoughts. The guitar work here is amazing (there are several guitars and guitar players involved, by the way), but the drums and the synth work are also great. There is rock, there is a jazzy feeling, there is avant-garde, space rock and atmospheric music. A winning combination.

'Morning Star' keeps the spacey and cosmic energy. The rhythm is more delicate, soft, relaxing. We can hear soundscapes and some string notes here and there, percussion making rhythms while bass add some interesting notes. The music flows, you can keep your eyes closed and enjoy the ride, and though it is mostly peaceful, relaxing, there are a couple of moments where energy increases due to the crimsonian guitars. The music here and in the album in general has polyrhythms, so our senses can be stimulated by new sounds and emotions almost al the time. It is not lineal, which makes this an even more effective experience.

'Glitch' might be my favorite tune here. It is a progressive rock track, the energy is strong in moments, explosive, the use of different electric guitars add powerful nuances, however, I love how there is a constant cosmic atmosphere during the whole track. Of course, a highlight here are those kraut-kosmiche synths added here, reminding me a bit of Tangerine Dream or Ash Ra. What I like about Thelen's music, about his Fractal Guitar albums, is that one can listen to the whole tracks from beginning to end, I mean, it could be just one long track with no pauses, and we would enjoy it the same way as we do knowing they are separated tracks.

This is a kaleidoscopic experience, and we can confirm that by listening to 'Ascension', a 13-minute piece full of interesting figures such as soundscapes, loops, reverb, layers, fretless notes, arpeggios, etc. I am not sure if there are cello or double-bass here or those sounds were made by keyboards, but their addition is wonderful, giving a dark and strong sound to the already fantastic track. Something worth mentioning here is that we can appreciate something very important in music: freedom. I mean, it sounds clear to me that the musicians are free to compose, to improv, to add what they consider it would fit in, so as a result, the music flows naturally, in spite of its different changes. The percussion work here is amazing once again, by the way.

With 'Black or Maroon' they enter in other zones, experimenting a little by with a kind of mid-eastern sound that then opens gates to the Crimsonian elements and sounds, we can appreciate the soundscapes, the touch guitar and the great bass. The cello-like sound I mentioned in the previous track is back here, providing that repetitive but great mid-eastern flavor. Then as usual, the band add countless elements, creating different changes in mood and tempo, but keeping us quite interested in while we are listening to, because it is quite a journey, and a very interesting one. And yeah, all of a sudden we have listened to the whole album, we have lived the whole experience, and I repeat, I love how it flows.

Of course there is an extra track, which is the edited version of 'Through the Stargate', so it is better if instead of reading more details from me, you go and play this album as soon as possible, I bet you will have a cathartic and spacey and great experience.

Enjoy it!