Alva Noto: Unitxt

'Unitxt,' the 2008 album by Alva Noto, also known as Carsten Nicolai or simply 'Noto,' celebrates the German composer's 28th studio album to be released, excluding collaborations. In typical form, the composer combines heavy glitch elements with complex rhythmic structures to create an offering in the inimitable Alva Noto style.

Alva Noto: Unitxt

The album consists of 25 tracks, separated into two distinct parts: 10 original compositions followed by a series of 15 tracks realised by converting data from programs such as 'Powerpoint' or 'Fontlab4.0' into digital audio files, creating compositions informed by the aesthetics of noise music comparable to the Japanese artist Merzbow.

Minimal in style, with every track devoid of traditional harmonic and melodic constructs, this album is dependant on two clear elements, the sounds used by the composer and their rhythmic use within each track. This is shown immediately from the first track, 'u_07.' In this particular track, Alva Noto has combined surprisingly bassy glitches with various digital beeps. Later, Anne-James Chaton features in edited vocal elements which lie atop Noto's rhythmic glitch backing.

The electronic timbres used later develop in 'u_08' to give a clear brooding characteristic, rather curious considering the lack of harmony, illustrating the composer's ability to create emotions out of sounds rather than complete music. In contrast to this, the later tracks of the album which were created from executable data serve as more of a blank canvas from an emotional standpoint. These later tracks serve a greater stylistic purpose and can also serve to introduce fans of noise music to Noto's work.

For a review of Noto's earlier 'Insen' album, click here.

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