SOLO ANDATA: BAND OF THE WEEK @ THE SILENT BALLET

http://thesilentballet.com/dnn/Default.aspx

12k is having another strong year with stellar releases from Giuseppe Ielasi, Lawrence English, Pillowdiver, Seaworthy, and Tomasz Bednarczyk — now add Solo Andata to that list. The Australian duo is by no means new to the music scene; Paul Fiocco and Kane Ilkin debuted in 2006 with Fyris Swan on Hefty Records before moving over to 12k with a live album including Taylor Deupree and Seaworthy. The two labels appear to have quite different philosophies, so such a move is not necessarily a guaranteed success, but Fiocco and Ilkin make it look easy. Solo Andata embraces the experimental nature of 12k and ventures into the sparse compositions littered with acoustic instrumentation and lots and lots of space, a key concept fueling the label. Whereas many of their new label mates create electronic-based music, Solo Andata avoid this limitation and instead head for the more traditional instrumentation along the lines of piano, violin, cello, guitar, and miscellaneous homemade tools. The end effect is a base of gentle ambience embedded with brief clustering of notes, providing all the ingredients for a wonderful album and inviting the listener’s imagination to fill in the blanks and make it a personal triumph.