Bendik Giske (NO/DE) is an artist and saxophonist whose expressive use of physicality,vulnerability and endurance have already won him much critical acclaim. You can hear allof this in his debut album Surrender, released at the start of 2019 on SmalltownSupersound, which can be described as Giske stripped to the core: no overdubs, looping,or effects. Just his body, breath, the saxophone and a resonant physical space, plus lotsof microphones.The body is important for Giske, even more so than as an acoustic musician. Not just inthe strength and muscle control required to accomplish circular breathing on thesaxophone, the unusual technique he employs to mesmerizing effect. It's also reflected inthe tradition of dance he practiced as a child in Bali - where he split his time betweenOslo with his artist parents - and enjoyed as part of an electronic music epiphany in hisadopted hometown of Berlin. And body is implied in his sense of queerness, which hashelped him create his own sound, blossoming luxuriantly not only on record but also inhis striking, embodied performances.As such, in the past Giske has likened his performance to transmuting electronic musicthrough all of his human faults, akin to becoming a machine. And with second albumCracks he introduces a new set of parameters for the automated processes of his musclememory to work against. His decision to collaborate with producer André Bratten and hisextensive studio of electronic machines saw Giske play in the new 'resonant' space ofBratten's reactive studio tuned to his original sounds.In a sense, you could call it generative music - a term coined by Brian Eno to describemusic made within a set of rules that can constantly evolve within that system. But herethe only algorithms at work are responding to Giske's self-imposed constraints (orparameters) - like the afore-mentioned circular breathing. As a practice, it induces in theplayer - and perhaps the listener, too - a kind of altered state, more open to discovery,and as a cycle of sound it defies time. This atemporality, or out-of-timeliness, hints attheorist José Muñoz's notion of "queer time", which is a chronology wholly other thanthe default.If this new studio-as-an-instrument process has brought Giske one step closer to theman-machine, it's also a way to bridge the separation - or crack - between the two. Thiskind of liminal space, according to Giske, is to be treasured: "The tracks wedgethemselves into the cracks of our perceived reality to explore them for their beauty. Acelebration of corporeal states and divergent behaviors," he explains. He cheerfullyadmits to mining the thought universe of Muñoz - especially his book Cruising Utopia- asinspiration, and the resulting Cracks have a sensual, deeply-felt and lingering beauty witha touch of the superhuman.
Release date:
August 27, 2021
Label:
Install our app to receive notifications when new upcoming releases are added.

Recommended equipment and accessories
-
Vinyl Care - Top Picks
A selection of accesories to keep your turntable equipment & vinyl records in the best shape
-
Vevor Ultrasonic Cleaner
Thoroughly clean and restore your vinyl records, removing dust, dirt, and grime from every groove without damaging the surface
-
Technics SL-1500C Turntable
Features a direct-drive motor, a high-precision tonearm, and a premium MM cartridge, delivering exceptional sound quality
-
Cartridges - Top Picks
A selection of turnatble cartridges that provide great performance and sound quality
-
Turntables - Top Picks
A selection of reliable record players you can buy today, for every budget
Featured Upcoming Vinyl
-
Grizzly Bear Painted Ruins (Oxblood) [2xLP]
Warp Records
October 17, 2025 -
Everything But the Girl The Best of Everything But the Girl [2xLP]
Chrysalis
November 14, 2025 -
Buckingham Nicks Buckingham Nicks
Rhino Records
September 19, 2025 -
Ebba Åsman When You Know
Dorado
October 17, 2025 -
Lawn God Made The Highway (Evergreen)
Exploding In Sound Records
September 19, 2025 -
Faithless Champion Sounds [2xLP]
Faithless
September 19, 2025 -
The Casket Lottery Feel The Teeth
Iodine Recordings
September 26, 2025 -
Weakened Friends Feels Like Hell (Nuclear Splatter)
Don Giovanni
October 10, 2025 -
The Warlocks The Manic Excessive Sounds Of
Cleopatra Records
October 31, 2025 -
Yukon Blonde Friendship & Rock 'N' Roll
Dine Alone Music Inc
September 19, 2025 -
Verses GT Verses GT (Clear)
Luckyme
October 17, 2025 -
Armand Hammer & Alchemist Mercy
Rhymesayers
November 7, 2025 -
The Lunar Effect Fortune's Always Hiding
Svart Records
November 14, 2025 -
Biffy Clyro Futique
Warner Records
September 26, 2025