Invisible Architecture 3 – Microstoria

Like the other volumes in the Invisible Architecture series, this one by Microstoria is short (under 40 minutes) and has been assembled from the duo's live performance at the event in Brussels, summer 2000. Unlike Microstoria's previous releases, though, it presents music that is of a much more ambient nature. If you envision the association of Markus Popp and Jan St. Werner as a tug of war between their respective projects (Oval and Mouse on Mars), then for this album Popp won. His glitchy (de)constructions and sedated atmospheres dominate the music. That is not to say St. Werner goes unnoticed. His odd samples (toy guitar in "Soso Sound"?) and flawed reconstructed melodies give the tunes their soul. Each track sounds like it has been cut, pasted, recut, digitally stretched, tied in a knot, and replaced. Samples and cycles are jerky and rough-edged, yet the music holds on to its soothing feel. Is the title of the last track, "Endless Summer NAMM," winking at Fennesz's album Endless Summer? It should, because his influence would be hard to deny. Invisible Architecture No. 3 is a smooth ride on a gravel road. ~ François Couture, All Music Guide