Cassette Review // Concrete Colored Paint "Free Association" (Park 70)

$6 //
Edition of 50 //
https://park70.bandcamp.com/album/free-association //

What begins with the sounds of birds chirping builds up with a small symphony of strings.   It builds and loops in quite a way which makes me think about the spring time and how everything is in bloom.    This creates an ambient air around it all as well, as sometimes you can be focused on these birds chirping and other similar sounds but other times you simply hear the strings.  I think it is a good example of how the beauty in music created by man can also be found in nature.

A whirr comes through now in waves and there is this aura behind it all.   A whistling and then what sound like key tones being played in the far background.   I'm pretty sure that I can hear a dog barking now as well.  The sounds of birds has returned, which is nice to hear as a constant on this cassette.    That slow drive is back there but the sound shifts to solely the birds for a moment and then those keys are back.   Briefly, a burst comes through like a modem before triumphant tones and then the song comes to an end.

Deep strings come through  now, sad, as there is a conversation behind it.  Someone can be heard asking what is so funny.  It sounds like children and could be a field recording paired with such desolate strings.   A loud engine type of sound now, like a motorcycle drive-by, as we then have these softer tones in a droning loop.   The background field recording is still there, just a bit more minimal now.   There is a calming sense to this song though the voices still sound like children to me, which can be a snap back into reality at times.   It grows louder now, to where this laser drone is drowning out the background talking.

Tones now slowly build like a 1980's movie while those chirping birds are also back there again.   A whistling loop is created with the birds as the mystery drones behind it.    This loops with little change and it doesn't seem like it is that long of a song either before the first side reaches the end.

On the flip side we open with some speaking- with sounds like a sermon- and you can hear these tones opening up behind it all.   The words calm down and go away as we have this mystical exploration of sound.   The whistles come in like a bird call, but I'm also reminded of "The X-Files" a little bit more.    The build here is a bit slower, but it feels like we're being taken away to a different planet.    The tones can feel a bit like magic now, but I still get the sense like we're drifting.

With the sound of a lot of birds now, there are some electronic tones coming through which have a more upbeat vibe.   This song just feels like it's fun, even if it could perhaps turn into that movie "The Birds" and be less fun in a hurry.   Blissed out now, this feels like floating around on clouds.   A darker synth comes through now like a video game while the birds continue to chirp and it just feels like we're about to break into something big-- with some beats this could be huge, but as it is now it is also just so intense.   This sound could be shattering the very fabric of time and space.

A slower synth now with just beautiful pianos accompanying it.   This actually sounds like a cover of a pop song and though I know it is not, if you told me that this was I would believe you because it just has that feeling of being acoustic based percussion presented in an 8bit style with just a pure essence of dance.