Dalot - A Sequence of New Tones

"A Sequence of New Tones" is the eighth album by Greek Sound Artist and Composer Maria Papadomanolaki, aka Dalot. It also marks Dalot's return to n5MD since Mutogibito (2016), which was dedicated to the birth of her daughter Athena. Similarly, "A Sequence of New Tones" celebrates the birth of her second daughter, Antonia, and has an autobiographical point of reference, as in many of Papadomanolaki's previous collections.

All compositions are based on field recordings collected during the summer of 2023 from various playgrounds and parks in West London that Maria visited while taking baby Antonia for a walk to sleep. Each recording acts as a starting point for unraveling a series of semi-improvised and quite adventurous pieces. Weaving sampled recordings with analog synthesizers, electric guitar riffs, electroacoustic sound sculpting, and abstract piano and vocals have always been at the core of many of Dalot releases on n5MD, yet in "A Sequence of New Tones," this same vocabulary evokes a deeper timbre and an even more cohesive sequence of emotional movements through sound.

There is a wide range of textures, motions, and styles in the album, such as the lightweight and ethereal opener "A warm embrace," the broken rhythms of "Talking a life for a walk," and "Bonding over tinglings" or the stochastic sparsity of "A name, a phoenix." Elsewhere, we reconcile with the concept of soothing, as in the closing track "A pain worthwhile," and of letting go, as in the obscure atmosphere of "The end of time as we know it."

In many ways, "A Sequence of New Tones" is a mirror release to "Mutogibito" as it follows on from similar source materials, constantly rearranging the build-up. "A Sequence of New Tones", however, gradually deviates from the concept of repetition by opening the compositions up towards making them more ambiguous and vulnerable.

"A Sequence of New Tones" will be released on October 20th (Antonia's second birthday) on a limited edition compact disc in a 110lb thread reclosable kraft case with a drawing of Antonia by her sister Athena on the cover. Each package is hand-stamped and includes a liner note card.