Breathing Space by Pete Kvidera
Driftworks next, and fifth release is a fantastic album by Minneapolis based soundscape artist, Pete Kvidera. Breathing Space is a masterful journey through densely woven, fog like textures that fall away occasionally to reveal spectral like pin pricks of melody or percussive sounds. Pete is also quite an experimental photographer and his amazing photography graces the album artwork and is fully revealed in the Special Edition booklet where he talks about his approach to this work in further detail.
In his own wards, Pete enjoys endlessly tinkering and experimenting with technology and audio. He’s just as likely to be found behind a soldering iron as a synthesizer and employs electro-acoustic instrumentation, field recordings and synthesizers to combine and recontextualise varied audio sources into novel soundscapes.
"This album emerged from a process of experimentation and unexpected results. Initially, I tried to create a specific sound using multiple audio tracks and a CIat Lonbarde Cocoquantus, but was unsatisfied with the outcome. I then explored granular synthesis, but still didn’t find what I was looking for.
Although I wasn’t particularly satisfied with anything quite yet, over the course of a couple months it resulted in an Ableton Live session that contained a massive chain of effects and modulation. Sometimes the sounds resulted in pleasant washes of static with a tone barely peaking through, other times rhythms appeared out of the fog of effects.
I had discovered a setup that created unpredictable, compelling results, blending rhythms and washes of sound. I recorded individual tracks, adjusted effects, and layered recordings of natural sounds like wind, leaves, and water. The process was quick and intuitive, using minimal gear and I enjoyed not being overly attached to any one sound, allowing for a more relaxed, organic final mix.
With this new setup I started by recording single takes of individual tracks. I’d then adjust the effects and find something that fit well into the mix. Rinse and repeat until there are enough tracks to make a complete song. I started to layer in recordings of wind and leaves, hydrophone recordings of lakes, and simply room tones, and combined into individual audio environments of their own.
The process was quick and intuitive, as I didn’t bother to use a proper keyboard or fancy monitoring gear. Each piece was played by hand with the computer’s keyboard and mixed with a pair of airpods.
The result is a collection of evolving audio environments that feel spontaneous and texturally rich, and I hope listeners find them as unexpected and enjoyable as I do."
