Gropina - Microcosmo

Paesaggi Records

£12.33

Format: 12" Vinyl
Catalogue No.: PSGG003
Release Date: 25 Sep 2021
Genre: Downtempo / Leftfield / House

A1 - Microcosmo 5:02
A2 - Awumbuk 5:28
B1 - Natura Naturans 5:47
B2 - Omen 7:00

After his debut "Mare Aperto", Amsterdam-based Gropina returns to the light with a four tracks 12” EP out on Paesaggi Records.

“Microcosmo” is a synth melody with a slow-rolling Roland 606 drum-machine rhythm, Quena flute by Hamburg saxophonist Linus Kleinlosen, ambient pads, and natural field recordings. The atmosphere of the song brings you into a dewdrop in a blade of grass in the early morning hours right after the twilight of a sunny day. Following we fade into a dreamy dancefloor jam called “Awumbuk” where bittersweet chords are backed with a Yamaha RX5 rhythm, a groovy FM baseline from a Yamaha DX100, and Roland D50 Lush pads. On the flip, we can find an adventurous downtempo break jam called “Natura Naturans” marked by trance-y elements, a solid bassline, and an evocative flute melody. The journey ends with “Omen” which is a dark slow jam characterized by a live processed drum machine groove with a hint of wave influence and a metaphysical vibe to it.

Side B and the riso-printed insert depict the head of the bifid siren from the Romanesque church of S.Pietro in Gropina. In Christian symbology, the fish-tailed siren represents the seductive power of the senses and illusion, which distracts man from the spiritual realm by attracting him to ephemeral pleasures. The siren, like every human-animal hybrid creature, is the duality of intellect-primordial instincts and the conflict between the double nature of man.

Microcosmo has been conceived and recorded between 2018 and 2020.  The release includes a riso-printed insert and a sticker.
The release is hand-stamped.
Mastered at MaSpaventi Studio.
Instruments used: Roland 606 - Yamaha RX5 - Kawai K4 - Yamaha DX100 - Roland D50