Massif Trophies
Editions Mego / EMEGO 233 / Vinyl and Download / 2017
A1. Alpe Djouan
A2. Rough Grazing
A3. La Descente
B1. Eaux Rousses
B2. Camping Europa
All source material recorded in Gran Paradiso, July 2015
Engineered at Odd Phasing and Echoes, Amsterdam NL
Photography BJNilsen
Celebrating 27 years as a recording artist, Massif Trophies is Nilsen’s first solo release for Editions Mego. In 2015, he set off on a month-long hiking trip in Gran Paradiso, a national park in the Graian Alps in Italy, to explore the acoustic environments of the alpine landscape. The main inspiration for the album derived from the monotony and physical effort that mountains and high altitudes demand. The compositions reflect upon the perception of a landscape with wildlife, rapid weather changes, horizontal thunderstorms and rock avalanches. Concentrating on the details of the path, zooming in on the micro-cosmos of the vegetation and soil, while resonating the massive alpine terrain and echoing the myths of mountains as accursed or sacred sites. The five pieces contain narratives based on field recordings, experiences and reflections from the journey that rose to over 3000 metres above sea level.