moogmemory by Matthew Bourne
“Moog is a regal breed of synthesisers that are slightly untamable, which is why we (musicians) love them. Always on the edge of boiling over; taming one’s Minimoog was like riding a wild mustang, and bringing it to heel. When the polyphonic Moog Memorymoog first appeared in 1982, it was like having a team of six mustangs pulling a stage coach, its power was thrilling, and everybody had better get off the road to let it through...
“Its name was derived from the Apollo-era, onboard computer memory needed to save patches - once one had laboured with its 18 oscillators, modulation possibilities, and the gorgeous ‘Mooginess’ that lives within its filter circuits. The sheer amount of electronics under the hood of a Memorymoog made it literally pump out hot air; making her prone to pit stops and custom updates as the years went by.
“I first met Matthew Bourne, a prodigious improvising pianist, who was fascinating to watch as he took that conventional instrument ‘off road’ in an emotional sweat. Post-gig, and still wild-eyed, he made a beeline for me, having heard that I also owned a Memorymoog. Matt was keen to compare notes, and to discuss the fact that he was having the Lintronics Advanced Memorymoog (LAMM) conversion done to his (this is the Memorymoog equivalent of open heart surgery, which replaces 1,300 components over eight weeks of bench time, costing as much as a new machine). I immediately thought that Matt was insane. Some years later, moogmemory is Matt’s paean to this living, breathing machine. No other instruments are used on the album, and its capabilities are drawn out by this extremely empathetic musician: beautiful, brooding landscapes of thick impasto to translucent sunbursts; Dr. Bob would be proud!”
Graham Massey (808 State) November 2015
Tracklist
| 1. | Somewhere I Have Never Travelled (For Coral Evans) | 7:08 |
| 2. | Alex | 6:47 |
| 3. | Nils | 5:42 |
| 4. | On Rivock Edge | 9:57 |
| 5. | Sam | 4:37 |
| 6. | Andrew | 4:08 |
| 7. | Horn & Vellum | 6:51 |
| 8. | Daniziel | 5:27 |
| 9. | I Loved Her Madly | 12:27 |
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With a reputation as a fearlessly unpredictable pianist and composer, Matthew Bourne is a passionate explorer of sound, possessed of a burning desire to make music on anything old, broken or infirm.