Reviews
“On an improv/folk/jazz bent, this is gorgeously graceful stuff that ebbs and flows in whatever direction it feels like.”
The Communion
“The serenity in these songs feels hard-won, and their delicate but determined emotional precision constitutes a quiet triumph.”
The Wire
“It is an intimate experience, sounding very close to the listener... It's a dreamy rich soup of a sound.”
Vanguard
“This is a strange kind of lo-fi lounge music, and Perri knows how to make it smooth but also keep it interesting... [T]he warm instrumentation and Perri's tuneful voice make for a record that produces more of a soulful pop feel than the ambient backdrop of his nom de plum.”
Urban Pollution
“Basing most of the restructuring around acoustic guitar, subtle colors from horns, woodwinds and musical ephemera, both rock and orchestral… It adds up to a fine addition to the new folk movement and establishes Perri as a versatile artist worth keeping an eye on.”
Ink 19
The Communion
“The serenity in these songs feels hard-won, and their delicate but determined emotional precision constitutes a quiet triumph.”
The Wire
“It is an intimate experience, sounding very close to the listener... It's a dreamy rich soup of a sound.”
Vanguard
“This is a strange kind of lo-fi lounge music, and Perri knows how to make it smooth but also keep it interesting... [T]he warm instrumentation and Perri's tuneful voice make for a record that produces more of a soulful pop feel than the ambient backdrop of his nom de plum.”
Urban Pollution
“Basing most of the restructuring around acoustic guitar, subtle colors from horns, woodwinds and musical ephemera, both rock and orchestral… It adds up to a fine addition to the new folk movement and establishes Perri as a versatile artist worth keeping an eye on.”
Ink 19
 | Tiny MirrorsSandro Perri CD / 180gLP / DL |
CST047
 | Like Hearts SwellingPolmo Polpo CD / 180gLP / DL |
CST026
 | Dull LightsEric Chenaux CD / 180gLP / DL |
CST043
 | Sloppy GroundEric Chenaux CD / 180gLP / DL |
CST052
 | Glissandro 70Glissandro 70 CD / 180gLP / DL |
CST037
Description
Not long after the 2003 release of Like Hearts Swelling by Polmo Polpo, Toronto’s Sandro Perri began performing under his own name. Perri then began recording the results, in various locations and with various configurations of players. In 2005, he self-released a first batch of songs on CD-R, featuring re-interpretations of material from Like Hearts Swelling. We fell in love with it, and a fifth track has been added for the Constellation release.These are lovely tunes that extrapolate beautifully from their origins in Perri’s more diffuse, multi-layered, pulsing electronic compositions. But they also serve to remind that Perri has always played guitar; Polmo Polpo merely swaddled it in a throne of drones and submarine beats. Perri still takes the clustered, layered approach to propel the opening track, “Romeo Heart (slight return)”, using an additional nine players (from Toronto’s out-music and improv community) to generate a rippling fabric through which the original melody now weaves. The four songs that follow are each distinct in approach, but strip back to Perri solo or with one or two other players. In every case, Perri’s voice carries an infectious, quietly ecstatic tune.
A must for Polmo Polpo fans and a sweet collection of songs in its own right, Sandro Perri Plays Polmo Polpo is another window on Toronto’s improv and avant songwriter culture.
Release date: 11 September 2006 (Europe), 25 September 2006 (rest of world)
Running time: 27:01
Packaging notes
CD xxxxxxxxx xxxxx.LP xxxxxxxxx xxxxx.
Tracklist
1. Romeo Heart (slight return)2. Requiem For A Fox
3. Sky Histoire
4. Dreaming
5. Circles
Credits
PERSONNELSandro Perri: guitar, voice, drums
GUESTS
Eric Chenaux: harmonica on TRACK 1; electric guitar, backing vocals on TRACK 2
Shayne Cox: drums on TRACK 1
Ryan Driver: flute on TRACK 1
Craig Dunsmuir: bass on TRACK 1
Jen Parker: SK-1 on TRACK 1
Marcus Quin: bass clarinet on TRACK 1
Andy Swan: paino on TRACK 1
Nick Zubeck: ebow guitar on TRACK 1
Doug Tielli: trombone on TRACK 2
John Jowett: euphonium on TRACKS 3, 5
Don Pyle: tambourine on TRACK 5
TRACK 1 recorded at The House Of Miracles in Toronto by Andy Magoffin, November 2004. TRACK 2 recorded at The Honey Pot in Toronto by Sandro, January 2005. TRACK 3 recorded at Hallamusic in Toronto by Jeff McMurrich, November 2005 and at The Honey Pot by Sandro, April 2006. TRACKS 4 + 5 recorded at Bunny Down Sound in Toronto by Don Pyle, June 2005. Mastered at Grey Market by Harris Newman.
