Simon Chioini’s last release Climat avenir depicts a series of meticulously crafted electronic soundscapes. Comprising four concert pieces and a postlude, the album’s environmental approach is made explicit by the artist’s note: “This work cycle is an imagined world voided of any human presence, or succeeding it. It is a prismatic composition: a vibrant landscape, a topographic map, an exploded geode.” Here, nature comes as a structural model where the complexity, diversity and connectedness of ecosystems are transposed into sounds. The cohesiveness of materials and their variations delineate a singular terrain, rendered by the intricacy of the artist’s sophisticated sound design. But these aestheticized compositions also reflect on the negative impact of the human presence on Earth. The fact that all sounds are synthesized—fluorescent, abrasive, corrosive—makes for a sound palette that foreshadows a hostile climatic future.

Despite its sobering message, Climat avenir still shows signs of beauty in its contemplative stance. Sections evolve slowly so the attentive ear can grasp every microsound, every accident on the frequency spectrum, every recurring motive. Now and then, the austerity of the soundscapes gives place to what could be called the transcendental aspect of music. This is best manifested in the finale of “Representation (précieuses)”, the first and most substantial piece of the opus, which culminates on an expanding synth chord after exploring various degrees of noise and harmony. Overall, the whole album presents a highly sensory experience and Chioini’s reflection on nature shows a balance of sorrow and admiration.

Climat avenir ; portrait of unexploited lands, of deserted spaces, of a corrosive and venomous flora. Irked protagonists, roaming livestock, their acidic cries. 

Beauty of the blue-green lakes, of the scintillating stars under clouds of bronze. The earth’s foundational movement.

Crashing ice. Solar winds. 

This work cycle is an imagined world voided of any human presence, or succeeding it. It is a prismatic composition: a vibrant landscape, a topographic map, an exploded geode. Macro. Micro.