Tomasz Krakowiak

Tomasz Krakowiak's latest work on Bocian Records is a purely sonic affair. Performed on acoustic percussion instruments, it has little to do with percussion music. Each piece is named after a particular location and or a sonic event present there. Krakowiak's monotonous playing a specific instrument seems to achieve an effect of a field recording made at the given location. What makes this effort successful is a broad range of his techniques and sonic intuition. These excellent recordings oscillate between subtle, single vibrations of metal and meaty wall of sound, with mechanical rasping in the middle of the spectrum. Abstract, yet very physical, and surprisingly direct. This is one of the most interesting free improv projects of this year, even though it isn't typical improvised music as it features structures characteristic of sound sculpture Ð no dramatic effects or themes, it is all about the texture of sound and interaction between its layers. Moulins seems to be an example of an interesting trend among drummers who play with free-improv groups but in their solo work focus on purely sonoristic explorations  see the latest releases from Will Guthrie (Sticks, Stones and Breaking Bones, 2012), Chris Corsano (Cut, 2012) or Eli Keszler (Cold, 2011). Krakowiak's release stands out here, though, owing to its originality.