I, SYNTHESIST: Art of Survival

I, Synthesist

Art of Survival

© 2007 Chris Ianuzzi (837101419895)

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There is a powerful electronic union of persistent beats and thought-full lyrics laced together into memory-sticking melodies and enveloping orchestrations.

notes

syn•the•sist
one who combines diverse conceptions into a coherent whole

The music of I, Synthesist (composer/producer Chris Ianuzzi) is indeed a coherent whole that blends the past and present in electronic music. The sound is complex and multi-layered; the songs are classic and accessible. You can call it Electropop: it doesn’t take an MFA in composition to enjoy. If the future is a trend worth following, I,Synthesist, is right on-trend for his second full-length release, The Art of Survival. The name is fitting: Through the trendy and the trivial, art survives.

Reaching beyond the well-loved synth-pop sound of his first album, Avalanche, The Art of Survival takes a broader dive into modern music. There is a powerful electronic union of persistent beats and thought-full lyrics laced together into memory-sticking melodies and enveloping orchestrations.

In the studio and at live performances, Ianuzzi uses classic analog synthesizers as well as cutting-edge digital technologies and tools to – sometimes literally – get his hands on the sonic DNA upon which each song is constructed. Ianuzzi is a sophisticated composer; This album showcases this ability without abandoning his synth-pop sensibility – which is no mean feat. There’s music for your head and music to move it to.

From the ball bearing ruminations of the title track to the 20-minute electro-symphonic landscape of “The Overlook,” these are the contrasts that set the music of I,Synthesist free from any narrowly-defined genre. “Time Machine” is an instantly winning classic, simultaneously electro and balladesque. A killer bassline and the chunky, blocky scrape of a synth glock move the track forward, tumbling it through the whirl of the percussion storm, adding to the thickening mix with each funked-up spin. “Telepathy” slowly rockets into a dance-floor fireworks show. “Anthems” is definitely a departure for I,Synthesist, speaking to ghosts both sonic and human. Profound and simple, it’s another example of this album’s cerebral appeal – at once enigmatic and compelling.

The first I, Synthesist album, Avalanche, was released in 2004. Avalanche received a High Five on the German Alternative Charts. Songs from Avalanche reached the top 10 on the French Alternative Charts. I, Synthesist was invited to play at the 2005 Wave Gotik Treffen festival in Leipzig, Germany after a short European tour. I, Synthesist has also performed at numerous East Coast clubs and venues including the Knitting Factory (with Psyche), and will participate in the 2007 DarkStar festival.

Art of Survival is the next full-length release by I, Synthesist. Art of Survival will be released internationally in November 2007.

reviews

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  • Electropop with an experimental edge
    author: Max Clarke

    The new I, Synthesist album builds on the same electronic and dance roots that Chris Ianuzzi drew on for 2004's Avalanche. (He's been on the scene in NYC since the 1980s, working with electronic pioneers like Man Parrish, Suzanne Ciani, and even Vangelis.) But this time around, he's expanded his vision of expressionist electropop, journeying beyond pure synthesized pleasure into darker and more adventurous territory. The sonic spectrum is gritty and glitchy; melodies veer suddenly into dissonance, then back into line; voices are reflected, distorted, and multiplied. Strong beats anchor everything (until the expansive ambient piece that concludes the disc). Ianuzzi's vocals resonate throughout with a very human sense of desperation, confusion, and passion. It's a hard album to sum up in a short review: the sound and feel are constantly changing, from song to song and from moment to moment. To me, it evokes the mixture of uncompromising futurism and real emotion in John Foxx's post-Ultravox solo album Metamatic. Songs like "Telepathy," "Don't Belong," and "Time Machine" have been getting enthusiastic crowd responses at I, Synthesist live shows (and deservedly so). But my favorite track is probably "Waterfall," an intense blast of feeling that hums in the brain like a fragment of a dream.

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