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Jon Sonnenberg
Acoustic Selections

Old Man Records

Posted: Thursday, July 31, 2008
By: Matthew Johnson
Features Editor

Usually, it's pretty easy to predict what things are going to sound like when an electronic artist decides to unplug; all of the melodies and harmonies will get reduced to strummed chords on an acoustic guitar, with maybe a touch of piano thrown in for flavor. Forget all about that. Already known for an engineer's attention to detail and a propensity for modifying and even building his own synthesizers, Jon Sonnenberg applies the same innovative spirit to this collection of re-recorded songs from throughout his career in such projects as Travelogue, House of Wires, and Pivot Clowj. Though an instrumental rendition of "The Forgotten" opens things up with the fairly expected strums and tambourines, Acoustic Selections features a wide variety of instruments, ranging from such exotic items as anklung and shehnai to toy pianos and xylophones, proving that electric power isn't a necessity for creating strange and unpredictable sounds. "Home" does an especially good job recreating the moodily bouncing analog synth sound that is something of a Sonnenberg signature, with twanging mouth harp and plucked banjo filling in for filter modulation, and "Winter" uses claves for its clicking rhythm instead of a drum machine. That isn't to say that Sonnenberg is afraid of the regular old acoustic guitar, and in fact some of the best offerings on this collection employ it as their centerpiece. "Freedom is the Edging to the Garden on the Right" accents subdued finger-picking with tabla and djembe before filling things out with symphonic strings, and "Yesterday," perhaps the album's high point, is at heart a classic coffee house performance, just unadorned strums and vocals, though breathy clarinet and the backing vocals of Amanda L. Spayd offer additional color and harmony. Besides the expected folk overtones, several tracks incorporate jazz influences; "World of the Future" in particular is a joyous explosion of pianos and Dixieland-style horns. For all the sonic diversity and innovation on display here, fans of Sonnenberg's electronic work will be impressed by how well his new arrangements manage to encapsulate the moods of the original versions. "Overcome" is just as tranquilly bittersweet in its new incarnation as a stripped down piano ballad, and "Busy" retains its perfect mixture of wistfulness, regret, and resignation whether it's set to the blips and beats of the original recording or, as presented here, as an arrangement of piano, banjo and guitar. If there was any fault to Sonnenberg's previous recordings, it was that his technical prowess and mad scientist approach to sound design could sometimes overshadow his talent for actual songwriting, but the more understated nature of this album lets the songs speak for themselves without detracting in any way from his abilities as a producer and arranger. A pleasure to listen to regardless of your familiarity with Sonnenberg's other projects, Acoustic Selections is a joy to longtime fans and newcomers alike.