This was written over one listen.

I’m not sure what I was going for, but I know that I was trying to capture the song in written form.

Surprising I know.

This is a slow song and as such I was afforded a bit more time to get things down. I’m not sure if that had much of an impact; there are parts here that are really rough, but I feel that toward the end of the song I was getting to something that was capturing what I felt was a big part of what was happening with the sounds.

Bill Laswell’s “Echo” is from Possession. Originally Possession was the title of the moniker and the album was called Off World One, but it looks like when re-released Bill Laswell used his own name and had the album’s title changed to the moniker.

I hope you enjoy.

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Something low stirs away, muffled at first. It gradually becomes clearer and percussion reveals itself with a sense of motion. More sounds reveal themselves and gather around the percussion. It’s a slow build toward something, though it’s not a search for something grand nor climactic. The mood remains relaxed and at ease.

Many sounds pull back for a moment, letting some of the percussion flow on. Then some sounds come back and carry more striking percussion with makes a brief mark, then falls away.

The striking percussion returns with voices floating along in the distance. Bass comes in and plays along, carrying a groove with it that comes off as easy. Some earlier percussion returns and the sound is big, though still calm and relaxed. It almost feels like a dance of sorts. The striking pulls back as other sounds echo in and out.

In the calmness and the afforded space a sense of breathing comes forward, and maybe in the clarity there is also a sense of peace. There is a stillness, even when the beat resumes in full.

The percussion and bass play on and formless shapes stretch out as clouds drift on above. The bass shifts into something a little busier, though still following the rhythm. The striking percussion stops to allow other familiar percussive sounds to return and a long hum stretches itself outward underneath, almost cradling. It stretches and flows and expands and brings in a great calm and peace. It is a sense of relaxation and stretching out and letting go. It almost looks within itself.

The striking percussion returns though it is mostly muted and warping. The bass comes back, creating new scenes with the hum and slowly the music becomes richer as it allows itself to unravel and change and shift. It seems as formless as it does formed and it continues on, drifting on and changing whilst not changing at all, drifting on and letting itself be carried upon air currents that only reveal themselves from what they carry, and the sounds flow smoothly and forward, looking toward whatever lies ahead, even as they gradually pull away, leaving the hum and whatever other sounds appear for brief moments.

The hum stretches out and remains low and at ease, familiar and new all the same, and it is beautiful, even at the song’s end.