Detailed Reviews [ Aleksandra Dudziak - 2017 - "HB Level of Your Heart Belief in…Him Who Is"]

Prolusion. Polish artist, composer and musician Aleksandra DUDZIAK has an active career as a musician that has been ongoing for at least 15 years, and while I do not know too many details about it I am aware of her role in her band Beam-Light that started out back in 2005. "HB. Level of Your Heart Belief in...Him Who Is" is her first solo album, and was self released back in 2017.

Analysis. While the album title may be unusual, the type of music explored on it is probably even more unique. Or perhaps unconventional is a better word here, as there's not too many conventional elements that make up these compositions. This is on a level that possibly goes beyond unconstrained forms of music, like for instance free form jazz. The impression I get is that the music as well as the vocals here are made so that they at all times resonate not only with the lyrics of each given moment, but also with the emotions the lyrics are meant to inspire. How close my perception here is to reality I don't know, but in my head that is the most logical explanation for the musical contents of this album. The songs themselves appear to revolve around a simple piano and vocal foundation for the core part, with flute elements and folk-oriented rhythm details being notable recurring elements. But a plethora of instrument details come and go in each of the songs, in some of them at a more leisurely pace and with alterations made with care, while in other songs or parts of songs these changes are abrupt, frantic and dramatic. There's a liberal use of sound effects throughout, and they are treated in much the same manner as the instruments. To some extent one might say that the sound effects are instruments as well, or at least used as instruments or in place of instruments for details the instruments cannot create directly or indirectly. The vocals have a large role to play on this album, with lengthy lyrics to deliver on just about all the songs and treating topics I surmise are personally important to Dudziak. And the vocal aspect of the songs can be the most chaotic one here, with layers and layers of echoing resonances, dampened backing vocals, vocal harmonies that may or may not dissolve and numerous other minor and major details. The impression I get is that the vocals to a greater extent than the instruments are used to emphasize the sheer emotional aspect of the lyrics. A similar role as the instruments, but focusing more on raw emotion rather than mood and atmosphere. Hence the frantic sections can get really chaotic at times, while the calmer sections tend to be more pleasant and inviting. This is a challenging album and a challenging listen on many levels. Performance and execution isn't among them as such, as Dudziak is a skilled vocalist, and one I'd guess would have at least a bit of classical schooling. She is an elegant piano player too, and while not delivering any breathtaking movements or technical details as far as I could hear she knows this instrument well. Mix and production are also very well catered for. The music itself, or at least the total arrangements, are truly demanding at times though, and to the point that I expect that the commercial reach for this album may well be somewhat limited due to that. In terms of style and genre, which at best is a secondary point for this production, my broad overall impression is that piano ballads, jazz and world music are the main ones present, possibly with a dash of classical music.

Conclusion. "HB. Level of Your Heart Belief in...Him Who Is" is a production that should intrigue those who have a desire to experience remarkable and unusual music. Experimental, free form and avant-garde are all fitting descriptions for the material on this album, and in many ways I'd say that this album is above average challenging also for these types of orientations. To state a specific genre here isn't the easiest of tasks though, and as such I'd recommend this album to an audience less concerned about style and more interested in form, orientation and substance.

Progmessor: July 2021
The Rating Room