Tristin Norwell -‘Mal Influence’ (Cinefonietta)

The debut solo release from a clearly vastly talented man, this work reportedly (i.e. what the press release says – so who am I to argue?) was originally conceived as a ‘Cinefonietta’ an imaginary soundtrack using an orchestra larger than a chamber orchestra but smaller than a symphony orchestra. It evolved over time to become a collection of of compositions that also reflect his interest in electronica and music production, straddling the worlds of both classical and modern music, and producing something really rather fantastic.

It’s perhaps a bit of a cliche to think of instrumental music as being like a soundtrack (after all, how many great soundtracks do feature words and actual singing?!) – and even if this a soundtrack to an imaginary film (rather than an imaginary soundtrack – it is here, and it exists), the strength of it is that it enables you to create you own films for it.

And some of the pieces are sublime, others bordering on the disturbing, but it never adds up to anything less than compelling. Expect to hear more from Mr. Norwell on the strength of this album.

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Mal Influence is out now on Cinefonietta

NB the video for ‘Response’ by Raoul Teague is just as amazing as the music