by Rob Theakston
The label that's the microsonic equivalent to the sound of one hand clapping is at it again. Taking macro photographs of glass forms, the Montreal-based duo Skoltz_Kolgen took various attributes of these photographs and assembled them into an audio equivalent for Richard Chartier's Line imprint. The result is an hour-long excursion into a series of photographs seamlessly integrated into one long digital symphony with several noticeable movements. Sounds (and lack thereof) and feedback ebb and flow over and into one another, creating unique drones and washes, an audio equivalent to watching the waves crash against a shoreline. Hyalin is intense, highly thought out, and well executed. It could be easily regarded as overly conceptual tomfoolery, but such passive dismissials are convienent and missing the point of this album as well as the entire Line catalog entirely.