MIZU Distant Intervals [NNA150]

Distant Intervals, the full-length debut from Brooklyn cellist and composer MIZU (fka Issei Herr), is an exploration of memory, dreams, and the infinite possibilities within imagined worlds. Centered around themes of becoming and transformation, the music encompasses the liminal spaces between our past, present, and future selves – our ever-changing relation to personal memories, the ideals and dreams we have for our futures, and the distance and idealism of these infinite versions of self.

Composed and performed primarily through the vast sound-world of the cello, the album is built through layers of overdubbed improvisations, self-recorded entirely in MIZU’s bedroom closet. There is an element of newfound wonder throughout the album’s nine parts; the sounds of a single cello, an instrument she has known intimately since childhood, are augmented and transformed through the infinite possibilities of digital production and manipulation – layered and processed audio samples, tape loops, and synth ornamentation. Combining up to a hundred layers of overdubbed cello and processed samples, the resulting sound world is lush, vast, and orchestral in scope. A closing feature by rising vocal star Maria BC transforms and elevates Issei’s string-centered sound world into a…  more