Ahead of the release of their new album Distorted Rooms out September 22nd, Austrian sonic innovators Radian share expansive new single “Skyskryp12”. The track makes potent use of dynamics and contrast to create tension, shifting from moments of almost complete silence to rippling walls of sound. Guitarist Martin Siewart elaborates: “Skyskryp12 plays with the idea of recording an unamplified electric guitar (giving this really thin, ‘zingy’ sound) that only later comes into full flight when the big ‘wall of sound’ guitar amps kick in. There’s a very high dynamic range from the very quiet and abstract middle part to full on playing band in the end, with melodies buzzing around in the room. It’s all about suspense.”
On “Skyskryp12” and throughout Distorted Room, Radian extract dazzling new revelations from familiar instruments, focusing on the sonic possibilities offered by the humble electric guitar. The trio have always been interested in sounds that might be considered byproducts and maximizing their creative and aural potential. Small gestures like switching a pedal on and off or toggling the guitar’s pickup are mic’d and spun into textures that crackle and froth to fascinating effect. The trio expertly hone in on sounds often removed from the sheen of the recording process and mine them for unique, rich textural sound palettes which they then use to paint their meticulous arrangements with. “We often use what we call microscopic micing,” the band notes, “having very quiet sounds that we mic up and amplify to be very loud, thus playing with the usual dynamics and expectations of listeners in a creative way. We also use super-loud sounds and put them in the mix very softly.”
Throughout Distorted Rooms, the trio masterfully blur the lines between human and machine to create a performance that sounds at once physical and unearthly. With ethereal guitar textures loosened from their original plucked notes and played percussion augmented with analog drum machines, Radian reconfigures the very bounds of what three musicians can create together.
Radian 2023 Europe tour dates:
Sept. 23 – Wroclaw, PL – Avant Art Festival [tickets]
Sept. 28 – Poznan, PL – Avant Art Festival [tickets]
Oct. 6 – Wels, AT – Schlachthof Wels [tickets]
Oct. 21 – Fresnes-en-Woëvre, FR – Densités Festival [tickets]
Nov. 23 – Vienna, AT – das Werk
