To improvise or compose truthfully one must jump off intellectual cliffs without any safety nets. When accomplished, truth will emerge as something only understandable on a subconscious or extra sensory level. Once past knowledge or theory is incorporated in design, only then will you find what you already know. I seek to become semiconscious of truths that are unknowable, through art. William A. Thompson, IV
WATIV, or William A. Thompson, IV, is an introverted musician, whose National Guard unit was activated on April, 27 2004. Upon deployment, and with permission from his higher-ups, Will took with him to Iraq a power book G4 and all necessary music production software. With MIDI, environmental samples, and imagination Will has begun and continues to compose music reflecting his experiences in this war. WATIV is Will's transmission from Baghdad, his way of communicating his experience of war across the world.
William Thompson plays the piano, but also all compositions are written and composed/improvised by Will while he has been an active duty soldier. Other performers, either live or sampled, include: Milton Villarrubia drums, Matthew Golombisky bass, and Robin Boudreaux saxes. Four of the tracks (Dim Blue Voices and Mid-Tour Preludes #s 1, 2, and 3) are acoustic studio recordings performed by III.IV.I Kolective during Will's 15-day leave.
Will studied jazz at the University of New Orleans, whose jazz department was headed by the renowned Ellis Marsalis. Will performed with a group known as the III.IV.I. Kolective, whose goal was to produce new and innovative jazz while remaining true to the traditional piano trio format. Together this group tried to bring together the rhythmic and harmonic elements of pop music, electronica, and classical music. While at the University of New Orleans, Will studied with such greats as Edward Petersen, Doug Bickel, Steven Masakowsky, Victor Atkins, Hank Mackie, Matt Lemmler, Harold Baptist, Jeff Albert, and Brian Seeger.
WATIV's experienced background collides with the sampled sounds from Iraq, bringing us a mix of hard, industrial elements, or moving, aerie melodies. Varying shades of piano and stand-up bass mix with electronica, and are then layered with voices and mysterious environmentally sampled noise creating a somewhat chaotic element. Each of the 9 tracks offers us something different.
The goal of this venture is to produce original, interesting music written from the viewpoint of an American soldier's one-year tour in Iraq. This musical journal is not intended to change anyone's political views on the war. Instead, the author has chosen to enter this tour of duty with no preconceived opinions and simply write music influenced by his surroundings. Until now, no one has had the technological ability to communicate art to an audience while creating that art in a combat theater. Many, such as Hemmingway, have made art as a result of combat, but not while in that environment.
Limited hand-printed edition of 500 CDs. For more information, please go to http://www.wativ.com.
Click Here to Visit the High Mayhem Store
|
