REVIEW & INTERVIEW: MADDRIGAL ‘ESSENCE/LACK THEREOF...’
“Sembrance” revolves around the resolution of a conflict with one’s identity. As we constantly interact with space, environment, and people, our identity becomes interchangeable. Although the nature of fluidity holds all the answers, our desire to have a definite answer sometimes can throw us off the track. “It’s a track on accepting that there is not really a moment when I am my true self. I always navigate between being myself as an individual and the need for others’ approval which I think tends to erase people’s differences to be accepted,” said Maddrigal, “for a song, it is quite unstable but remains close to the electronic music that we know.”
Do we know the answer to who I am? Maybe the question itself means more than a wordy response. “I prefer to leave the question hanging,” he said, “I think we can find answers about ourselves by listening to music. Songs can make us feel certain emotions, and by experiencing them, we can learn more about ourselves.”
Art making is a spontaneous process for Maddrigal. A spur-of-the-moment idea could often turn into a meaningful project. “I try to create worlds in which the songs can evolve,” he commented, “I imagine my music as a movie scene where I’m just capturing a moment.”
Essence/Lack Thereof... is built upon collecting the surrounding sounds, from the noise we don’t normally notice but constantly exist around us to the voice of relatives, purring of a cat. Through experimentation and creative rearrangements, an identical world emerged from the one we are familiar with.
“I want the listeners to enter a meditative state. To let go of control. You can listen carefully and discover new sounds from each listening. Still, you can also listen to it as a whole without any particular focus,” said Maddrigal, “you have to accept and let yourself go in the flow. I put a lot of details, and at the same time, there are melodic loops that repeat for a long. Each song is like an abstract painting in which you see what you want.”
The listening experience of Essence/Lack Thereof... is a stimulated and engaging one. Like a kaleidoscope, in the countless interactions and interferences of reflection, what’s real is in all.
