Fractal Sextet

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A quick post about what I’ve been up to this past week….

The passage of time is often surprisingly fast, and unbelievably, it’s been a little over 12 years since I last visited Faust studios in Prague, where I first visited when Ted Parsons and Eraldo Bernocchi and myself recorded the second Metallic Taste of Blood album, Doctoring The Dead:

Returning to Faust was always on the cards, and this time round, it’s been another unique experience recording some new Fractal Sextet material. Having recorded the first two albums (Fractal Sextet and Sky Full Of Hope) remotely, it was kind of important to get everyone together to explore Stephan Thelen and Fabio Anile’s new material, and also to attempt some group improvisation. Up close, face to face and with the studio clock ticking in a way no shared cloud service, or remote recording process can replicate.

Amazingly, this was the first time ever all six Fractal Sextet members had been in the same location at the same time.

There’s an uncommon amount of unique items to be found at Faust, like this vintage Czech made Studio bass in the studio, also lots of strange paintings, Theremins, vintage microphones and odd ornaments. The strange old man clock in the video at the top of this post, is still there in the control room, watching over the proceedings. See also this Soviet era synthesizer below, one of many dotted around the various rooms.

This was pretty much my location for the sessions, situated right next to Andi Pupato’s unique percussion set up.

I am pleased to report the collective Gestalt of the group, hard to define but definitely in evidence, will at some point yield a third album. Lots of work to do before anyone hears this third album of course: choosing the best takes, refining, editing, mixing, mastering etc, but the raw material we’ve recorded together seems to have surpassed all expectations, certainly mine anyway

Photo by Derek Saxenmayer, who engineered the sessions (also the MTOB sessions back in 2014). Left to Right - A partially visible Fabio Anile, Jon, me, Andi and Stephan.

The connections made through music never cease to amaze me, it seems hard to believe that six people from such different places and diverse backgrounds are able to function as a cohesive unit. Listening back to the takes, there was a real sense of collective and co-operative improvisation, as if everyone was able to sense the bigger picture and really listen and react in the moment. This is rare, in my experience.

Above - Jon Durant’s custom fretless/fretted double neck guitar, which travels in a special case aptly named “The Beast” along with a selection of pedals only half of which you can see in the picture. Jon’s set up is perhaps in direct contrast to his ability to take a minimal approach to things.

Yogev Gabay in the drum booth (photo by Derek Saxenmeyer)

One of the great things about Faust is it’s fantastic location, situated in a residential area, but also a short walk or tram ride from some of the sights in Prague that people come from all over the world to see.

We did manage to take a breather with a walk to the centre, passing through the King Charles bridge. L-R Stephan Thelen, Andi Pupato, Fabio Anile, Yogev Gabay, me, Jon Durant.

Of course, post sessions, I took the opportunity to wander a bit myself, Prague has something for everyone, a mix of old and new and the sometimes the totally surreal.

I am certainly looking forward to hearing how things develop, and hoping it won’t be another 12 years before I set foot in Faust again.

Next stop, Voyage 35….

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