Third piece in the ReuTRauM series, following those released on Drone Records (IV) and Hau Ruck! (III), this 'ReuTRauM VI' explores yet another place of Reutov... Remember that this series will eventually comprise seven 7", each of them symbolising a different portion of the city, bearer of a different state of mind. A sort of musical guide for a soul trip through Reutoff's native city.
Respecting the idea of releasing each 7" on a different label, it's the turn of By Blade, an excellent Italian label, to contribute to this original and ambitious concept.
Once again, Reutoff prove to be largely equal to this somewhat weird yet all the more captivating project, gratifying us with two excellent tracks, and certainly the best 7" of the series issued thus far. The first title, 'Erle', proves close to the sound this Russian band is known for, akin to such titles as 'Oranus', contained on the 10" 'The Fourth Face', though without using any samples of sorts. The piece starts slowly: a tribal rhythm and a long stretch of unsettling ambience acting as a backdrop, whereupon, little by little, different elements (bells, metallic clatter ...) are added that gradually grow more and more intense and literally carry the listener away before taking him back to where he started from. A procedure that is typical of Reutoff yet never runs the risk of tiring, given their mastery of both the ambiences and the sounds proper to ambient-ritual-post industrial music.
The second title, 'Auge', opens with quite a surprise, a strange melody played by what may be imagined an old, battered tuba, before ceding its place to a long ambient passage, enriched by an array of sonic elements (drones, male-voiced choirs...) that all participate in this special trip.
The track ends with a return of the tuba, and with these notes played on end, ... masterly!
The disc comes in a sober, brown-coloured sleeve, bearing - as usual - two photographs of the place thus explored.
Actually there are two editions of this 7": one in brown vinyl, limited to 50 copies (and already sold out) coming in a wooden case marked with the Reutoff mask, and a second, "normal" edition limited to 350 copies (50 in brown vinyl, 300 in black vinyl).