Released on: 25th September 2020
Swedish composer Anna Von Hausswolff is ruminating over Italys’ Sacro Bosco on her new album All Thoughts Fly. Her fifth album written exclusively for the pipe organ takes us on a journey past the earthy constructions of Bomarzos’ Park of Monsters and into a whimsical dimension where gravelly bass tones converge with scattered timbres in a verbose chorus of mythical energy.
Giving a sense of magic and awe Von Hauswolffs’ fingertips impress a dance on the organ. Expressing a pure and naive fascination with man made monsters. Monsters that lay petrified in stone. And monsters behind a feeling of wonder in a sombre reflection of mans’ banal possession of nature. Von Hausswolff bounces with her inspiration and creates a beautiful monologue that articulates meaning within the confines of a bestial domain. Where it exudes strength and diversity with one instrument alone.
All Thoughts Fly says so much without words. Encapsulating delight and in an occasionally subdued voice, one that has long been sequestered by religion, conveys harmony with the natural world. As a reflection it is congruous with mother nature, mixing god-like quakes with verdant tones. The album is captivating from its inception and even in its darkest moments reverberates a sense of glee.
The less is more idiom applies here. Von Hausswolff expresses the gamut of tones and timbres that the old pipe organ can generate in a phenomenal display of wistful playfulness and heartfelt introversion. Where at its core All Thoughts Fly is an uncompromising expedition through the mind and spirit of Von Hausswolff it is also a noble souvenir from a study of grotesque gardens and bombastic winds.
8/10
