Behaving
by Keaton Henson
Release date: 7th October 2015
Track list: Shower / Don't Dance / False Alarm / The River / Preacher / Offerings / Vivisect / Healing / Confessional //
Keaton Henson's music has
slowly developed through each of his releases. Although he has slowly explored
new genres and developed his own musical style, there are still the
recognisable elements in his music that he is consistent with: raw minimalistic
instrumentation and the pure emotion that is weaved throughout each piece and
are consistent in all of his work; Dear, Birthdays, and Romantic Works. Behaving is Keaton
Henson's surprise release and more of a surprise due to him writing
this album under an alias - Behaving.
The change
in style of this album feels by far the largest development of his work against
the rest. It is an electronic album that still incorporates phrases of piano,
but is much more focused on an electronic style - and an experimental
electronic style at that. The incorporation of piano and the electronicism
gives a similar feeling to the likes of James Blake and Blake's self-titled album.
His works
retains the hauntingly beautiful aura that it contains in all of his previous
releases, with subtle electronic beats combined. He incorporates the use of
samples in different ways – sometimes voices (that are repeated in the
background of the tracks), and occasionally, what sound like, electroacoustic
samples. In the track, Shower, the opening electroacoustic sample
is eerie, a distressed call that immediately gives off this haunting
soundscape. Another electroacoustic sample is the opening of Offerings, it’s a recording of a coin rolling and
settling on glass, bouncing back and forth on the material before settling
where the piece develops into the piano ostinato and delicate electronic
backing rhythms.
Throughout Behaving he plays with his vocals –
experimenting with the pitch and tone of his vocal phrases. This allows him to
use all of these parts of his edited vocals as background and foreground
voices, as well as ending phrases by fading out his normal vocals with a
lowering in pitch – making his voice unrecognisable. Henson proved that even without his
vocals as the main foreground instrument that he can create just as beautiful
pieces of work with his instrumental release - Romantic Works. His vocals have always been a
strong element for him and still are, even with the altered sections of his
voice.
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