CD – Crónica

All thirteen tracks on this release were created on a Nord Drum 2 – an analogue percussion synthesizer – following an idea based on a 1-step pattern with variable tempo. Ilia Belorukov is a sound artist from St. Petersburg, Russia, now living in Novi Sad, Serbia, who displays talent equally balanced between improvised music, noise and electroacoustic. On NRD DRM TWO 2022-2024 , the focus of the action is on the reverb algorithms applied to the sound of the synthesizer, strong in the certainty that even a small addition of reverb can profoundly transform the sound without the need for editing or additional recordings. What the thirteen tracks show us is how the layers hidden beneath the surface make the entire project utterly fascinating – despite the undoubted minimalism. Belorukov’s methodical approach is evident from the very first bars. Each track explores a specific configuration of reverb algorithms, creating acoustic spaces that oscillate between claustrophobic intimacy and cavernous openness. The Nord Drum 2, an instrument with a strong personality and often used in more conventional contexts, is stripped here of its traditional rhythmic function to become a generator of textures and atmospheres. The single pattern structure, far from being limiting, becomes the fulcrum of a timbral investigation that proceeds by accumulation and subtraction. Each pulse is shaped through reverb tails that layer and cancel each other out, creating a constantly mutating sonic fabric. The listener finds himself immersed in a dimension where time seems to expand and contract according to purely acoustic logic. Belorukov’s handling of dynamics is particularly effective – moments of apparent stasis are punctuated by sudden spatial openings, while the denser sections maintain a transparency that allows us to perceive the individual constituent elements. It is a delicate balance between compositional control and algorithmic unpredictability, where the artist knows when to intervene and when to let the system evolve autonomously. The project thus takes the form of a deep listening experience, which requires time and attention to reveal its less evident qualities. It is not background music, but rather an invitation to active contemplation, to the discovery of those micro-events that populate the spaces between sounds. In a landscape often dominated by the search for immediate impact, NRD DRM TWO instead proposes a poetics of patience, meticulous observation of the charms hidden within the folds of sound.

 

Ilia Belorukov – NRD DRM TWO 2022-2024