Toshi Makihara & Jim Meneses - Next Bug

Toshi Makihara / Jim Meneses - Next Bug
This is one of those albums that took me by surprise at a time I thought nothing can surprise me anymore (you know that feeling ?). Its been a few years now that I started to re- enjoy and appreciate improvisations and this album is among those improvised music that made me realize I have been missing out on some essential music.
I met Jim Meneses at a Blast show in Holland in 2002 (Jim played with Blast on the album Wire Stitched Ears) At the end of a train ride back to Amsterdam he have me a cd and told me something like "this is my latest project its a improvisation I did with another percussionist"
I had no clue what was waiting for me when I put on my little Koss SportaPro headphones late that night. ....
I can't find another term to describe this cd other then Electro Acoustic (Yes I know this term has been overused and I probably like using this in another context then the usual known one.) The point I am trying to make by saying its Electro Acoustic is that this is a rare example of mixing electronic designed and controlled sounds with pure acoustic timbres that actually sound "physical" and the result fully lives up to the term.
Jim Menese has developed a system of controlling/ playing/generating sounds/events he designed with a Midi Mallet Interface
It seems that a lot of time and thought was put into designing these sounds/soundscapes some sound mechanic and technical some give the sense of of open spaces some abrasive some Jim has a huge palette of sounds he can draw from and react in real time depending on the mood and need of the interplay between him and Toshi's percussion.
So this work is special in 2 different planes one is the way acoustic and electronic are able to work and interact and the other is the quality of musicianship that Jim and Toshi demonstrate here.
This cd was released by French label Sonore a sound sample can be heard here
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