| Inspired by the mysteries of the afterlife, Chaos In Premonition returns to the fantastical world Spotted Peccary artists Deborah Martin and Dean De Benedictis built in their first collaboration as Desensitized. Like their previous work Hemispherica Portalis (Portal of 1000 Years), Martin and De Benedictis recorded their latest release live in the studio together, forming nine pieces from edited improvisations. Blending instrumentation such as clay ocarinas, flutes and Tibetan bowls with a variety of digital and analog synthesizers, Chaos in Premonition is an album that invites contradictions and makes peace with them, the only way to approach the question that inspired it: who are we and what made us?
The title track “Chaos In Premonition” begins in quiet vastness and rises to a bewildering crescendo, then fades to an ethereal chorus. Percussive chimes like raindrops in a cavern rise slowly from shadowy depths, evoking the cosmic. From there, the piece builds a sonic mosaic of skittering breakbeats, glitched fragments and glimmering arpeggiations: the birth of a world from quietude. On “Abundant Time” counter-rhythmic clock samples and heartbeats ebb and flow around sinuous drones and gently plucked strings. The two artists employ a rich amalgamation of acoustic and electronic elements throughout the work. With “Immortals And Their Graves,” De Benedictis’ Mayahachi flute moves from calm lulls to sweeping trills to rhythmic stutterings and back again, capturing in its amorphousness the peaks and valleys of a life. Even vocal elements appear in the finale “Sleep Of Innocence” which finds Martin and De Benedictis humming in harmony over celestial chimes, an otherworldly lullaby. Just when one feeling takes hold, it darts away—unknowable, and yet a seamless compositional flow offers a well crafted consistency with every track.
Martin describes the joy of collaboration as discovery; as each artist brings their own unique identity, how their compositional styles will blend is a mystery until uncovered. She continues: “That is what I find most exciting, the endless potential and possibility.” De Benedictis says “the essence and originality of Desensitized lies in how Deborah and I are so different.” From asynchronous perspectives comes sonic synchronicity. On Chaos In Premonition, this accomplished duo embrace their collaborative name Desensitized and weave the ancient and futuristic into an otherworldly tapestry all their own.
Track Listing
1 Ionic Realms [Victronomy Plubonius] (4:52)
2 Abundant Time [Stemiostratamos] (4:46)
3 Chaos In Premonition [Firestimo Mutato] (8:54)
4 Deep Chasm [Subliminostrum] (10:40)
5 Mutations Of The Highest Order [MOTHO] (8:47)
6 Logic Of Expression [Praetoreum] (5:39)
7 Immortals And Their Graves [Sacriligonus] (7:38)
8 Crevices In Dark Places [Anexplicora] (7:12)
9 Sleep Of Innocence [Embulata] (4:52)
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| DESENSITIZED |
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| Recording under his own name, as well as the alias “Surface 10”, Southern California based composer and electronic musician Dean De Benedictis has been exploring all corners of the ambient music genre since 1996. Dean’s interest in a variety of styles and cultures enriches the quality of his musical expression as he searches for common threads within the fabric of differing genres, drawing from them a natural sense of emotion, expanse, and mystery. |
| Whether collaborating with other artists or working on her own, Deborah Martin has been inspiring listeners with her graceful musical journeys on the Spotted Peccary label since 1994. Often powerfully deep, and occasionally playful and carefree, Deborah’s music is always rich and simply beautiful, offering crystal clear visions and magically compelling voyages through an inner realm of ethereal visions, ancestral legends, and timeless places. |
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Together as “Desensitized,” Deborah & Dean share a common vision to partake in a sublime retreat into sonic beauty, transitioning between elements of the natural world under the auspices of modern technology. |
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beth On December 8, 2022 at 10:46 pm
Thank you, Benno, for sharing…this is one of the more adventurous ambient electronic albums of the year!