Dictaphone project was formed 1998 by two musicians: Oliver Doerell and Roger Doring. Vertigo II is their second full-value album released on the label City Centre Offices. In this album we hear the feelings, thoughts and emotions of a man demonstrated to himself through an old black-and-white TV set. This emotional music penetrates into your mind and a little bit later, after the incubation period, it starts ruling your consciousness.From the very beginning of the album you can feel the special unique Doerell's style. Metal door squeak, abstract piano, complicated percussion consisting of various sounds of acoustic nature. All this is seasoned by the warm noise creating the atmosphere of old silent movies. In the first track "Rising Minimal" the leading role is played by the sound of phlegmatic Doerell's clarinet forming the basic plot of the composition and demonstrating us the sound pictures. The plot of the film is extremely familiar and simple, it's about something that had happened erlier, now we can live through it ones again and recollect all the feelings and emotions we felt at that moment.
Further comes the night and ... rain. Clarinet and saxophone sound in the "Night Rain" and slowly tell us about the sad events in the 'film' Vertigo II and skillfully reproduce all emotions of the film heroes.
Central story, perhaps, the most tragic one, is represented in the composition "The Last Song". Pressing atmosphere, pain and heaviness of things happening make you feel like crying because of despair. Very gloomy and monotonous clarinet of Doerell press over the listeners like a heavy plate, these sounds go straight into your heart and they'll stay there for a long time. Unexpectedly, the last minute of the track frees us from the dark mood, we are glad to hear slow pleasant melody with slight percussion quietly beating somewhere nearby.
"The Frame" is one more extremely important beautiful, lyric and relaxing track with leisurely guitar playing. Some kind of musical low-fi flight over your own life.
No questions after listening to the album. Perfect beginning, denouement and final part. Excellent music, concept and representation. Solid reason to wait for the following works of this team.
- Dictaphone
- City Centre Offices