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Zethson, Alex / Nikos Veliotis : Cryo (thanatosis produktion)

Pianist Alexander Zethson (Vathres, Fire! Orchestra, Angles) and cellist Nikos Veliotis (MMMD, In Trance 95) present two expansive, darkly immersive improvisations that drift through glacial landscapes of resonant, slowly shifting textures and austere tonal drones, sculpting elemental sound environments of profound stillness and contemplation throughdeep-listening and hypnotic intensity.
 

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product information:

Personnel:



Alexander Zethson-piano

Nikos Veliotis-cello


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UPC: 7320470272985

Label: thanatosis produktion
Catalog ID: THT37
Squidco Product Code: 36069

Format: CD
Condition: New
Released: 2025
Country: Sweden
Packaging: Cardboard Gatefold
Recorded at Artracks Recording Studios, in Athens, Greece, by Clyde Jabra.

Descriptions, Reviews, &c.

Two tracks of dark and slow-moving music by cellist Nikos Veliotis (MMMD, In Trance 95) and pianist Alex Zethson (Vathres, Fire! Orchestra, Angles).



"In the realm of deep-listening and sonic glaciation, CRYO unfolds like a slow-moving polar current - massive, unrelenting, and hypnotic. Pianist Alex Zethson and cellist Nikos Veliotis conjure an austere yet dynamic landscape where resonance is a geological force, shaping valleys of overtones and monolithic drones that stretch beyond time.

Recorded in Athens following an impromptu meeting at the legendary Underflow, CRYO is less an album and more an act of deep resonance. ZethsonŐs piano, anchored in its cavernous lower register, lays down trembling tectonic shifts, while VeliotisŐs cello merges, swells, and disintegrates into the dense reverberations. The result is an organism of sound - one that breathes slowly, its pulse barely perceptible, like the subterranean movements of a glacier. ItŐs a continuation of VeliotisŐs long-standing devotion to drone and minimalism, honed through projects like MMMD, while ZethsonŐs background in jazz and experimental ensembles gives the music an unforced fluidity.

Across the two extended pieces, the duo explores sound at its most elemental, sculpting thick clouds of reverberation and microtonal friction. Rather than chasing crescendo or climax, they lean into stasis, letting tones shimmer and dissolve with a patience that feels almost geological. This is music that doesnŐt just unfold - it erodes, smooths, and carves space in the listenerŐs perception.

Meticulously mastered by Mell Dettmer, whose previous work with Sunn O))) and Earth attests to a deep understanding of heavy, immersive sound, CRYO achieves a physicality that is as much felt as heard. ItŐs an album that could turn any room into a resonating chamber, a piece of sonic architecture that invites stillness, introspection, and perhaps even a little existential vertigo.

To engage with CRYO is to surrender to slowness, to become submerged in a glacial drift of sound that seems to suspend time itself. It demands patience, but rewards those who linger with a profound sense of immersion - like standing at the edge of a vast, frozen sea, listening to the ice breathe."-Vito Camarretta, Chain D.L.K


Get additional information at Chain D.L.K.

Artist Biographies

"Alexander Zethson has completed the bachelor performance programme in jazz at KMH and is currently studying at the second year of the master's programme with Lisa Ullén as his primary instrument teacher.

Alexander has participated in extensive concert and tour activities and has participated in fifteen record productions. The ensembles include:

• Niklas Barnö's free jazz group Je Suis!• A number of tours in Europe with Martin Küchen's group Angles 9

Alexander is also active as arranger and pianist in collaboration with the Trondheim Jazz Orchestra, a cooperation which began in 2011. Zethson, Sofia Jernberg and Lene Grenager has arranged music from Hallingdal and Røros performed by the TJO with Zethson, Jernberg and violinist/Hardanger fiddler Olav Luksengård Mjelva."

-KMH Royal College of Music in Stockholm (https://www.kmh.se/alexander-zethson-received-the-rosenborg-gehrmans-scholarship)
4/9/2025

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.

"Not many Greek improvisers have made names for themselves on the European free music scene; Nikos Veliotis did it by connecting with British musicians in the late '90s while researching issues relating to the performance of graphic scores at Trinity College of Music in London. As a cellist, Veliotis is manifestly interested in extending the sound-making possibilities of his instrument. He's a member of the trio Cranc with harpist Rhodri Davies and violinist Angharad Davies. He's also played with the London Improviser's Orchestra and in duos with guitarist John Bisset and cellist John Wastell. Veliotis is a dedicated performer of contemporary classical works by composers such as Xenakis, Sculthorpe, Cardew, and Bussotti. He's also a member of Texturizer, a duo with Greek electronica artist Coti K. Veliotis has played on an ad hoc basis with Evan Parker, Fred Van Hove, and John Butcher, among others. His solo album, Cello (2001), was issued in limited edition with 100 CDs on the Confront label. Veliotis was the curator for the Athens offshoot of 2:13, a pan-European improvisation club that also has branches in London and Berlin."

-All Music (http://www.allmusic.com/artist/nikos-veliotis-mn0001928030)
4/9/2025

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.


Track Listing:



1. CRYO I 18:39

2. CRYO 2 21:46

Related Categories of Interest:


Improvised Music
Free Improvisation
lowercase, reductionist, micro-improv, sound improv, onkyo sound
Piano & Keyboards
Stringed Instruments
European Improvisation, Composition and Experimental Forms
Duo Recordings
New in Improvised Music
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