Rick Cox, Thomas Newman

35 Whirlpools Below Sound presents a fantastical soundworld of 19 short, richly detailed, multilayered electro-acoustic soundscapes jointly composed by Thomas Newman and Rick Cox, whose musical friendship and ongoing working relationship date back to 1985.

These enigmatic works, built of often mysterious juxtapositions of sounds, have been gestating and changing shape for many years, with ever an eye toward their eventual completion and release, which this CD marks. The album’s title was taken from a line in Hervey M. Cleckley’s classic psychology study, The Mask of Sanity, in which the author quotes the following sentence from one of his patient’s letters: “Until you gentlemen decide further what my occupation is, you may as well announce me as comforting 35 whirlpools below sound.

“Newman and Cox have been longtime collaborators, and on this nineteen-track album, they have put together some utterly compelling work. These soundscapes are an intriguing blend, sounding like something from a subterranean orchestra, mixed with hints of ambient and experimental music, all wrapped up in a beautiful eeriness. 35 Whirlpools Below Sound is a distinctive effort, and certainly something much different than Newman’s film works.” — Kevin Jagernauth, IndieWire

“Definitely consider picking up this recording by composers and multi-instrumentalists Thomas Newman and Rick Cox…. They’ve created an eerie and fascinating soundscape that will be pretty much unlike anything else you’ve heard before .” —Rick Anderson, CD HotList: New Releases for Libraries