Xqui - 17 Minutes

 

Released: August 1

17 Minutes is something of a documentary experience more-so than a musical one. The title is derived from the length of the piece it self and follows, through clever recording, Xqui as he takes his mid-day walk through territory that we can only partially envision. The audio itself varies with the location, but it definitely feels as though a great bit of terrain is covered in just this short brisk walk. There’s a moment in which it sounds like we are being walked through a a tunnel, though it may as well be a small cave for all I know. The short shattered reverberation of the footsteps echo sharply against hard stone, giving that cold sound impression as the footsteps continue at their characteristically brisk pace. As the walk goes on, the environmental sounds fade in and out behind the backdrop of the footsteps including the sounds of water, wind, and even the occasional bird. 

What I find interesting about the experience is the focus on the walking itself. In many field recording type of albums, there is a tendency to get lost in the meandering sounds of the environment and losing and losing any kind of grounding. But here, the footsteps provide a very physical and tactile grounding to the menagerie of ambient sounds around them. The recording was done exceptionally well to boot, capturing all of the gritty sounds of the walk to include that slight grinding of small rocks, pebbles, and dirt that shifts subtly underfoot as you walk. It feels visceral and upfront, like we are at a level with the shoes and experiencing the walk from their point of view, Which isn’t really a perspective often viewed from in these kinds of pieces.