'Mentos Gulgendo (1)' is the Nowacka sisters' consuming Slip debut: a mercurial set for transfigured organ and voice, shaped to shudder, creep, or take flight.
From the rough, anchored sound of a Unitra Estrada 207 AR organ, Antonina and Mila alchemise 6 nagging, fearful pieces, which alternate between burrowing, prickly beds of processed instrumental sound and more spacious sighs, buoyed up by dancing, full-blooded vocals. The Polish duo's careful ear for the grain of the organ - sometimes allowing it to sink in, more often urging, pressuring it onwards - makes for a magnetic, addictive listen.
'Mentos Gulgendo' is a new project by Antonina Nowacka and Mila Nowacka, who make possessed, hallucinatory sound and visuals as WIDT, most recently in a wild, unnerving collaboration with German producer Christoph De Babalon for Bocian in 2018.
The pair state:
“Mentos Gulgendo shares its name with a fictional philosopher and author of the “harmless lunatics” theory, which states our universe has been created by the representatives of the cosmic madhouse. The madhouse’s representatives used the finest and most subtle electromagnetic waves to weave a field of transcendental beauty penetrating the structure of each other. The field expanded, invading the solid structures of rationality and therefore transforming the traditional form of identity into a liquid, unsustainable fat.”
'Mentos Gulgendo (1)' [SLP057] is available from September 2020 on tape and/or download. A companion release - '(2)' - is available from the Endless Happiness label on the same day.
Music composed, performed and recorded by Antonina Nowacka and Mila Nowacka at the Family Allotments "Kaloria", using a Unitra Estrada 207 AR organ. Mastered by Filip Marcinkowski. Artwork by Masia Debska. Distributed by Boomkat.
credits
released September 2, 2020
Music composed, performed and recorded by Antonina Nowacka and Mila Nowacka at the Family Allotments "Kaloria", using a Unitra Estrada 207 AR organ.
Mastered by Filip Marcinkowski
Artwork by Masia Debska
supported by 12 fans who also own “Mentos Gulgendo (1)”
I love Antonina Nowacka's vocal work -- for instance, the Mondoj album or her Unsound collaboration with Sofie Birch -- but this is something far different, and captivating in a totally different way. Heavily psychedelic, minimalist organ drones Philip Sherburne
supported by 12 fans who also own “Mentos Gulgendo (1)”
A recording that touches something ancient in us and brings a shift to places not yet discovered. It's hard to describe in any sensible way something that definitely mixes the spirit of Palestrina with the legacy of minimalism, reductionism and improvisation, although that's not really important here. A deeply emotional thing that doesn't talk about humanity, but speaks directly to it. jiristepan
Malmö-based twins Inez and Ella Johansson use minimalist instrumentation and close harmonies to make catchy, weird indie pop. Bandcamp New & Notable Mar 30, 2023
Swirly tropicália-inflected psych rock from Guadalajara, Mexico's UAY sounds like Thee Oh Sees mixed with Caetano Veloso. Bandcamp New & Notable Mar 30, 2023
supported by 9 fans who also own “Mentos Gulgendo (1)”
A really well curated selection of pieces spanning many different eras and styles. The beautiful playing of Curtis brings out the best of the composers featured here. Highly recommended. tctclr