(PAD02613) CD | DL

The abstract approach of some instrumental electronic music is often related to a cinematographic universe, in which the music is usually seen as a soundtrack for an imaginary film. This notion is crystallized on Music for Films, seminal work by Brian Eno. Surely not as common is a book-inspired electronic music record. This is the case ofFlow my Tears, the new record by The Astroboy, alias of Portuguese musician Luís Fernandes, and the follow-up of The Chromium Fence (2011).

The title is directly related to Flow my tears, the policeman said, awarded novel by American writer Philip K. Dick whose story is translated into music in the course of  8 tracks that define The Astroboy’s new record. The translation process isn’t made as if the record is a soundtrack to the book. Instead, the book’s dystopia and key points inspire a specific musical framework in which words act as a score, and music as a reaction.

The Astroboy’s admiration for the kosmische universe, already patent on his (also P.K. Dick related) previous work, reaches a new level with the participation of Qluster (Hans-Joachim Roedelius, Onnen Bock and Armin Metz) on two of Flow my Tears tracks. Hans-Joachim Roedelius, with his solo work, with Cluster, Harmonia or Brian Eno, personifies krautrock and the german electronic music of the seventies along with Klaus Schulze and the late Conrad Schnitzler, and has inspired a new generation of musicians in which The Astroboy deservedly belongs.

“Say Hello to Jason” and “The Jukebox”, the two Qluster collaborative tracks act as devotional moments in which our focus is not only set to space, but to the infinite space of our imagination. But the record isn’t a pure homage to The Astroboy’s beloved musical scene, and a unique artistic imprint is clearly felt all through the record, as if the artist’s main influences haven been absorbed and then recycled to originate something new. Minimalism, drama, tension and release, experimentalism and pure abstraction are some of the characteristics of The Astroboy’s work in Flow my Tears, certainly a highlight in Portuguese contemporary music.

Rui Miguel Abreu

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O carácter abstrato de muita música eletrónica instrumental costuma favorecer a associação ao universo cinematográfico e de muitas obras é comum dizer-se tratarem-se de peças para filmes imaginários, facto que encontra eco direto na seminal obra de Brian Eno Music For Films. Menos comum é a música eletrónica que nasce das páginas dos livros, mas é exatamente disso que se trata em Flow My Tears, novo trabalho de The Astroboy, projeto de Luís Fernandes que sucede a 090309 e The Chromium Fence.