Phill Niblock completed ‘BLK+LND’ in November 2023, making it one of the minimalist composer’s final works. Commissioned by bassist Robert Black before his death that summer, it grew from 2021 recordings of Black’s acoustic bass and Neil Leonard’s bass clarinet, with Katie Porter and Lucio Capece also appearing. True to Niblock’s distinctive approach, there’s no melody or rhythm here: instead, dense layers of sustained instrumental sound generate slowly moving microtones and unexpected overtones. It’s a fitting late work from an uncompromising figure who spent five decades pushing minimalist and experimental music to its extremes.
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