Anton Friisgaard has a Master’s Degree in making bleepy-bloopy music and a long list of ambient releases for bespoke Copenhagen imprints under his belt, though his artist bio points out that he has also put out music through labels based “in countries like […] Cairo.” His second release under his real name—previous records were put out under the Hvildag moniker—is inspired by Balinese gamelan. If those are more red flags for you than you’d see at a regular CCP convention, fret not: »Teratai Åkande« (“Water Lily” in both Bahasa Indonesia and Danish), released through the ever-reliant STROOM 〰, avoids the usual trappings of similar endeavours.
In fact, the producer’s entry point to the world of gamelan was a performance by Balinese avant-garde composer Dewa Alit’s Gamelan Salukat, known for enriching the vast tradition by pushing the envelope. After getting in touch with Alit, Anton Friisgaard travelled to Bali in 2018 for a few weeks of studio time together with the ensemble’s Pande Made Gangga Sentana, I Nyoman Suwida, Dewa Badukk, Putu Septa, and Suryana Putra. “Teratai Åkande” then took six years to complete, but the results underscore that all the work was worth it: Leaning more into the tonal qualities of gamelan instrumentarium than the music’s intricate rhythms allows Friisgaard to weave together wonderfully subtle pieces devoid of trite fourth world tropes. His treatment of his collaborators’ contributions is both careful and innovative, the album as a whole soothing and exciting.
