As the polar vortex plunges the northern hemisphere into a deep freeze it seems the right time to visit A Certain Grief, the latest opus from Danish collage artist and musician Paw Grabowski aka øjeRum. It is an album that was literally recorded with gloved hands in the cold as he explains himself:
“All sounds are recorded at my girlfriends parents house. They live remote in the country side and have a really old pump organ in the living room. It’s a really old house and in winter they only heat up this room for special occasions. I recorded this two winters ago in freezing cold, with gloves on and candle light. All background sounds are the actual sounds that were in the house while recording; the creaking chair, the crackling and pumping of the organ, the everyday noises of the family talking and working in the kitchen next door. “ – Paw Grabowski
Whether it is one of his mesmerizing collages or a delicate musical composition, few artists conjure the illusory melancholy of nostalgia as effectively as Grabowski. The mournful sounds of the pump organ hang in the air like exhalations of warm breath while the background recording captures every creak and groan that echoes in the bracing stillness of the room. What was cold and empty is now filled with memories and a palpable sense of loss. From the unlikeliest of settings, øjeRum has created a hauntingly beautiful, elegiac suspension of time.
Order: https://shimmeringmoodsrecords.bandcamp.com/album/a-certain-grief
A Certain Grief was released on limited edition cassette and CD via Shimmering Moods. Both editions are sold out at this writing, however digital downloads are available.
Stationary Travels 