De Moi – Drifting Intervals
De Moi, colloquially known as Czech musician and sound artist Vojtech Vesely, comes to us all the way from Prague with his latest offering, the twelve-song Drifting Intervals (DI). Less of an “album” (at least in the traditional sense) and more of an “experience,” DI is based around an innovative technique that Vesely developed himself – a constantly evolving and gradual fusing of several musical intervals into one, seamless, ambient texture. The result is something hypnotic, soothing, and pristine – and despite being technically a digitized work of art, feels like a welcome way to help you unplug from the world. Falling somewhere on the spectrum between ambient noise, new age, and drone music, Drifting Intervals feels like music that might heal the soul… Or at the very least, provide a lovely soundscape for which to fall asleep to.
De Moi’s approach to creating DI is fascinating to say the least. Vesely is heavily inspired by the experimental tape-loop techniques of William Basinski (Disintegration Loops); the wild delay systems of Terry Riley and King Crimson’s Robert Fripp; and even Pauline Oliveros’ studies of the acoustics of a large, underground water cistern. Needless to say, this album is more of an embodiment of space, time, and depth, rather than any sort of tangible melody. Vesely has innovated a way to create a nearly infinite swirl of reverb, pushing his compositions to sound like they exist in a space that’s several kilometers wide. I’m not sure what that translates to in miles for us Americans… but take my word for it – DI sounds cavernous. Chasmal. Immense.
We’re seasoned music-based writers over here at the blog, but I’m willing to admit that it’s nearly impossible for me to review this album in a typical way. To its credit, DI is that unique. It’s simply too abstract of a curation to point out any one, standout element. The instruments, or in this case, intervals, are barely even identifiable – and that mystery becomes the entire appeal. The experience of listening to Drifting Intervals is meditative in every sense of the word. There are galactic twinkles that sprinkle their way into your headphones, washed out by a never ending wall of synth pads, strings, and hums. A few plinks of guitar may needle their way into your eardrums. A purview of his website shows EBows placed on dulcimers, reverberating springs, and a litany of obscure-looking guitar pedals. But regardless of whatever medium created these sounds, this is a droning symphony of noise that lasts just over 35 minutes. Vesely has created something heavenly here – healing music that washes over and through you in a way that feels truly all-encompassing.
Drifting Intervals is available now (March 10, 2025). Check it out on your favorite streaming service, including bandcamp (below) or Spotify. For more information about De Moi (including some fascinating visuals), be sure to check out his website as well.
Categorised in: Album Reviews
This post was written by Nick Sessanna