New album: Ramón Oliveras – A Certain Darkness Is Needed to See the Stars

What happens after you die? What remains, when nothing of you is left?

Inspired by queer practice, which celebrates the dissolution and transcending of boundaries, Ramón Oliveras’ solo piece explores the non-dualistic state of life/death and invites the listener on an introspective somatic journey. It utilizes the full weight of the drums and combines elements of drum rituals, contemporary minimalism, and techno-rave to create an intense sound and movement experience. An invitation to reconcile with one’s own mortality and celebrate the beauty of life.

The piece can be heard live as a ritual performance with Swiss and German book prize winner Kim de l’Horizon on February 7th/8th at Gessnerallee Zurich, as a concert on January 17th at Neubad Luzern and as a record release show on May 1st at Moods Zürich. Other dates in Europe are currently under negotiation.

“A Certain Darkness Is Needed to See the Stars” is an energetic, minimal, polyrhythmic
composition. It was played on a single prepared drum set (with aluminium foil), without any loops or overdubs. This means that it can never be played live in exactly the same way again. It’s always going to be slightly different. Time and form dissolve as loops and repetitions take hold. The piece expands and contracts. It changes texture while still maintaining a steady pulsating fluidity. The listener is forced to cede control and relax into it. You never know how long any given theme will stay the same, nor what will follow. It’s analogous to our life – we are not in control. This active letting go (or “allowing things to be”) creates the potential for a therapeutic fusion of listener and music.

It’s a solo drum performance piece, that revolves around the non-dualistic state of life/death and one’s own body. With its high energy minimal polyrhythms, it uses the full force of the drums and musically moves between drum rituals, contemporary minimalism and techno rave.

More at Ramón Oliveras.