The NOTON/raster-noton founder follows up earlier releases Unitxt and Univrs with the third and final installment of the UNI series.
Alva Noto is the alias of pioneering German sound and visual artist Carsten Nicolai. A staunch minimalist, Nicolai’s experiments in sound often strip electronic music down to its core – glitchy, synthetic frequencies, pulsating white noise, and rumbling basslines. His latest album, UNIEQAV, is no different. The release, which might well be his most dancefloor-focussed record to date, is the logical conclusion to a trilogy whose roots lie on the dancefloor of Tokyo’s UNIT club. Channeling an intricate system of codes and signals, UNIEQAV sees Nicolai composes pristine sonic sculptures that shift between techno, ambient, and drone. Live, the album echoes its source material. Illuminating scientific phenomena like sound and light frequencies, Nicolai’s accompanying video works transform UNIEQAV into a dazzling audiovisual experience.
Listen to a trio of album cuts below and catch the Dutch premiere of Alva Noto’s live audiovisual performance of UNIEQAV at the opening night of FIBER Weekends 2018. The concert is presented in collaboration with The Rest Is Noise at Muziekgebouw aan ‘t IJ on Friday, 23 November.