A New York Minute

They Say...

Review by François Couture, All Music Guide

This two-CD set samples many sides of Alan Licht's musical persona. What strikes immediately is his resourcefulness and restlessness: no two pieces explore the same ground. Disc One presents four studio works recorded between 1997 and 2003. "A New York Minute" is a 15-minute sound collage of snippets from a month's worth of radio weather reports. It sheds light on how an announcer can "improvise" inside a pre-fabricated, 60-second routine -- and how the weatherman would like to have the power to influence your day with his lamentable comments. But even though it is rich in parallel meanings, the piece looses its appeal after only a few listens. On the contrary, "Freaky Friday" gains charm with every listen. A 20-minute multi-tracked guitar piece, it borrows from ambient guitar soundscapes, and post-rock chords to create a rapturing atmosphere. Disc Two contains two 38-minute guitar pieces recorded live in March 2000. "14, Second, Fifth" sails the dividing sea between ambient and noise. Something rattles the strings softly and regularly (a hand-held fan perhaps?) while Licht weaves soaring soundscapes, shifting between a clean and distorted sound. "Remington Khan" starts with a very long fade-in (over three minutes in duration) to reveal a vaguely folk guitar motif over, which Licht knits a series of variations. Peaceful, almost pastoral, compared to what came before, the piece nevertheless challenges folk's structures, and stays true to the guitarist's esthetic of change in repetition. Signal overload in vigorously strummed passages alter the listening pleasure, but it's small picking for a great set.