Sibelius - Symphony No 4

I am working through Sibelius's symphonies at a rate of about one a month (though I'm a bit behind) and this is the halfway point of the cycle. I had forgotten how good the Fourth was, with the exception of the bleak beauty of opening of the first movement. I really enjoyed it all (or did I? It's too gloomy a work to talk about enjoying, exactly). Things I had forgotten or hadn't noticed before: the similarity between the start of the scherzo (the 2nd movement) and the final movement of the Third Symphony. The abrupt and anticlimatic way the whole thing ends (the 2nd movement too). A lot of it is amazingly dissonant, for Sibelius.

Slang Tang, Episode 7 (Dec 2008)

I must say that when I started to listen to this, I was thinking that with a head full of New Year angst, a load of repetitive electronic robot music was the last thing I wanted to hear. Fortunately that feeling evaporated quickly. Most of this is really good and (with the odd exception) not in the least robotic. Best tracks were “Nqayi” by Maga Bo and Teba. Also “5x8 Cell” by Mutamassik – I had heard and enjoyed the two tracks from the “That Which Death Cannot Destroy” album which were posted on Slang Tang’s sister site Fat Planet last year, but this is even better (more irregular beat, more interesting ambience). The track by Digitaldubs & Tippa Irie was also good.

The last three tracks, by Kid606, Kampion and Lackluster, were a bit less interesting. I’d say the Lackluster sounded a bit like Jean-Michel Jarre, but that is probably a mortal insult in electronic circles, so I won’t. At least there wasn't any of that damned skweee this time.

Download and info at http://www.slangtang.com/.


It wasn’t featured in this podcast, but I can’t help mentioning that just before Xmas I had another listen to “El Ventana Esta Abierte” by El Hijo de la Cumbia, from Argentina (see http://terrapinlistens2.blogspot.com/2008/09/el-hijo-de-la-cumbia-el-ventana-esta.html). Awesome.