Annalized is a layered, moodily swirling, at points decidedly unpredictable affair that shifts between hauntingly shamanic, playful-to-puzzlingly, and demonic-to-the noisily seared. It’s a release that’s difficult to bracket- sure there are elements of noise, tape looping, manic improv, primal female vocalizing, dada layer, and playful sound texturing present- but it never settles into any of these fully, making it all the more rewarding and satisfying for repeat plays.

This digital release appears on Czechia based Noise Margin- with the release taking in one long twenty-three-minute track and two nearing seven-minute tracks. Annalisa Pascai Saiu is Sardinia born, now living in Turin Italy based transdisciplinary artist. poet, performer, vocalist, visual artist, noisemaker, and improviser. She has been active for some years now, but as far as I can gather(and going from discogs)  Annalized, is her first formal/ proper release- and I must say it’s rather impressive- as she mangers to shift-at-points balance dark shamanism, playful noisiness, with moments of sheer terror and emotional unease.

We open with “I Invoke The Telluric Gods”- this is the longest track here at nearing the twenty-three and twenty-second mark. It opens in a decidedly brooding and darkly mystical manner- with wailing female vocalising, skipping static grain and traces of murky unease- with gruff vocal brushes/ gloomy tone hovers. Then just when we think we’ve got the atmosphere/ tone pegged- we get the addition of the voice of a middle-class English man chattering about visiting a town, going shopping and cryptic rantings, added to this we get London tube/ train announcements and sudden speed-up tape elements. All the while the now mournful and moaning female vocalising carries on, along with the more beaded and speeding static grain- which all nicely building tension/ dept. Around the nine-minute mark, we get the introduction of high pitch tone swirls and swipes, deep guttural chatters and simmering monk-like chants. As we move towards the end of the track we get sudden speed up junk/ improv elements mixed in.

Next, we get two nearing seven-minute tracks- we have first “Daleth on Niman” this begins with a minute or so of the middle-class English man reading a series of bizarre wordplays. Then this fades out to be replaced by earthy eastern female chants, slipping and sliding whispers, shifting textural knocks and ambient ebbs- with growing darts of textured impro fidget, and creepy guttural bays. Lastly, we “6 Sio 6” this blends and shifts through hazed water recording meets jittering static detail, rapid female chants and skittering junk percussion runs.

Annalized, is a playful-yet-primal record- that has one foot in sonic Dada, and other foot in earthy and emotional shamanist, with sidesteps into demonic possession and atmospheric uneasy. Drop by here to check out the release- which at present is available as a free download. I look forward to hearing what Ms Pascai Saiu does next!.