Mexico City-based artist and producer, Tristan Arp has released his new album Sculpturegardening. Embracing a slightly different sound than his 2020 LP Suggested Forms, this new project is slower and softer than some past work. That is embodied by the gentle opener “Pond In Moonlight” that sounds like being out by a body of water on a warm, beautiful, cloudless night as the moonlight flickers on the water.
The project was made using modular synthesizers to generate probabilistic melodies and rhythms. This was then shaped and composed into soft ambient productions and a variety of drum patterns from straight away four on the floor to reggaeton. The title also represents the type of place Tristan Arp wants to enter when listening to this project.
“With sculpturegardening, my concept was to approach music like gardening. I collaborated with machines inspired by the way a gardener collaborates with the earth. A gardener creates the conditions for the plants to come to life and develop on their own. In a similar way, I created a set of conditions and probabilities for the music to make itself," explains Tristan Arp.
Album Review: Tristan Arp – Sculpturegardening
Producer Spotlight: Crystallizer From Soundtoys Brings Mind Warping Sound Design
Magnetic Mix 166: Lindsey Herbert x Selective Response Live In Los Angeles
“A sculpture garden to me can be a really beautiful environment of balance between randomness and order––between nature and human interaction. Things that are either extremely organized or completely random tend to not resonate with us.”
There are moments that feel random as synth notes cascade over each other like a small waterfall. The finale “Cloud Surface” captures the mood of the entire project, soaring above with delicate synth notes that flutter and roll over each other with precision. Despite that randomness, the chaos feels organized and composed to maximum beauty and effect. Get your copy of the project here via Wisdom Teeth and feel its blissful notes wash over you.
