It’s been a familiar phenomenon since at least the late noughties: electronic music producers who really let the bass rumble when they’re DJing want to create great art with their albums. Sam Shepherd, alias Floating Points, technically falls into this category too, because the impact of his DJ sets and 12-inch singles differs from that of his albums. Now, together with the San Francisco Ballet Orchestra, he is releasing his first ballet score, Mere Mortals. But Floating Points can venture into high culture without batting an eyelid, because his exploration of sound is also embedded in his more functional tracks. Spoiler: this ballet score has a different quality to ‘David Guetta meets Rondo Veneziano’.
In the narrative of Mere Mortals, the Greek myth of Pandora is juxtaposed with the impact of AI on contemporary society. In its most melodic moments, the music is reminiscent of Claude Debussy’s late work, whilst in its most experimental passages, Iannis Xenakis and György Ligeti are not far away. The balance between the orchestra and the synthesiser is well-struck, but when Floating Points sets the tone, this sometimes leads to techno-inspired outbursts. Yet Mere Mortals is at its best whenever the electronic textures blend with the orchestra beyond recognition.
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Mere Mortals
