Reviews:
(Lost in a sea of sound) Water ripples in outward patterns with the slightest disturbance. Peaceful space is found within the live performance of Stephen Flinn & Bryan Eubanks, and like glassy surfaced bodies of water, their sonic energy sends waves through the conscious. The balance rests on patience and understanding. Their instruments easily have the ability to crash the tranquil spirit, but their wisdom of how these sounds are unleashed is true testament to their alluring symphony. Stephen Flinn is the force behind percussion and gongs, while Bryan Eubanks orchestrates both saxophone and electronics. The performance was recorded live from PAS-Berlin on March 17th, 2023. A half hour of subtle sonic gestures paring to create an aural world filled with stirring mystery. The comparison that comes to mind is the fourth track titled the "Searchers" on Jerry Goldsmith's Planet of the Apes OST. The live recording by Stephen and Bryan would have fit in beautifully here, adding a much more real and raw feeling to the desert foray. Released by the label Public Eyesore on compact disc. Another addition for the label that pushes all boundaries and shares sounds challenging our comfortable spaces. - Ken Lower
(Vital Weekly) Public Eyesore Records and its cassette offshoot Eh? Records present a series of releases on the fringes of electro-acoustic improvisation and modern music, as they, perhaps, always do. The first is by Stephen Flinn (percussion and gons) and Bryan Eubanks (saxophone, electronics). It’s been a while since I last heard something from either. Their CD contains a 31-minute recording from a concert they did at the Petersburg Art Space in Berlin in 2023 and is described by the label as “spontaneous improvisation”. Both musicians have a background in this kind of music, which works well. I have no idea what this performance space looks like and if the reverb I hear is from the space or artificially created, but it gives the music a sharp edge. There is great tension between both players and their respective approaches to their instruments. There is a lot of scraping with a bow over metallic percussion pieces, to which Eubanks responds with similar sharpish saxophone playing. Sometimes the music is very close by, sometimes very distant. This is created by moving the recorder through this space, or the players move around or using various techniques—that contradiction of far away and close by fuels the tension even further. The tension between the players is from the way they respond to each other or do not respond, of course, and their interaction with the performance space. The result is some intense music, captivating for the full 31 minutes. - Frans de Waard
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