Casi Cada Minuto – In White Rooms /Exitab, 2012/

Published October, 2012
by Easterndaze

Slavo Herman has been part of the Bratislava scene for a while, most of the time involved in activities of the collective Noize Konspiracy, an ever changing group of individuals in love with extreme and alternative forms of music. But Slavo’s stuff has always been different, unravelling the more deep, abstract and softer side of the musical region which contrasted with the brutal and lo-fi noise experiments of projects like Gule Tvojho Fotra or Žebrota, and also keeping himself more distanced from the social activities of the core group. A couple of his tracks were available on the Noize Konspiracy compilation including collaboration with the tragically passed away underground legend Cadillac Face, or the more hip-oriented project Jesus Stickers, while still lacking a more compact and official release.

In White Rooms, released by the Exitab label (at the moment the biggest and most influential label connecting Slovak alternative music scene) is an EP which has been in creation for some time and it is a clean proof that Casi Cada Minuto didn’t decide to start making music three months ago. The maturity of the EP is obvious after couple of minutes of listening. This is not an album which is trying to keep up with current musical trends. It is a typical drone/ambient record with all the general specifications and structures. However, the approach of Casi Cada Minuto is not narrow minded or conservative, he is wise enough to accept and penetrate other musical influences borrowing from the dreamy synth sounds of the Emeralds, or Oneohtrix Point Never and combining them with repetitive loops, slowly evolving into differently coloured oceans of sound. The sound itself is not static, Casi Cada Minuto has a good ear for melodies and harmonies as well not afraid to use field recordings and instruments. He avoids the kitschy sound, capable of stylish arrangements. The resulting atmosphere (a crucial factor in releases of this kind) is here developed into a dreamy and sentimental level, with a tenacious background keeping the listener curious to discover another layer and evolution of Slavo’s soundscapes.

Here Slavo talks about his new record and his music on our weekly Radio Wave show.

The sound is beautifully designed and mixed (also thanks to the ::.: aka Danky), the atmosphere is deep and immersing, but if you are expecting a breakthrough album in the field of this genre, you might be disappointed. It is just a really well made ambient album, with a more-than-once listening value. But that is just the proof that Slavo doesn’t want to follow any current trends and he does what he likes and knows best. In White Rooms finally fills out the huge gap on the map of Slovak experimental music and it’s filled by one of its founding members and pioneers in this genre. A solid release to accompany the impending foggy autumn mornings in Bratislava. And ‘solid’ is possibly the best word to describe this in one word. 

by Andrej

Learn more about the Bratislava underground music scene here. 

<a href=“http://exitab.exitmusic.org/album/in-white-rooms” data-mce-href=“http://exitab.exitmusic.org/album/in-white-rooms”>In White Rooms by Casi Cada Minuto</a>