miguel a. garcía - reviews :

"I'd be because this "armiarma" is an invitation for meeting some of that textures Lynch proposes to us,
or just because xedh doesn't go so far from the flowing of the american. xedh, as the said one, watches,
listens closely, and what is better, invites us to listen closely, to observe the sound edges of the "spider"
wich leads the album. At this point, also it'd be the "spider" wouldn't be "armiarma", or by listening to it
so closely it'd stop being "spider", the same as the coffe cup stops being itself by watching it very
closely. In that case, it'd be right the one who claims the beauty in the rotten body. And maybe this
would be the rottest xedh's work up today. But it is the most beautiful." Xabier Erkizia about the piece
"Armiarma" (www.ertza.net/eng/artistak/erkizia.html)

"Conceived by Miguel A. García as a vision of industrial past and future landscapes, the music distilled by
Xedh is a music of immersion, inscribed in a broad and evocative current that makes textures and their
alternation an excellent narrative element. A music of planes where silence envelops perverse rhythms
and opens gaps through which oppressive atmospheres slip in - pulsing music, inviting us on an inner
journey, full of images and colours, of a strangely pictorial quality." Victor Nubla ( www.hronir.org )

"Basque musician Miguel A. García has chosen the risky path of skeletal, self-generated sounds: a
feedback mixer, a couple of microphones capturing the performer's gestures, and a sine oscillator. Over
the years, the improv recordings based on no-input gear have varied from exhilarating to utterly
disposable, and after listening I can easily put García high in the first group. With recordings like this,
suggestion is everything, and "Armiarmak" luckily creates some fertile emotional short-circuit with the
listener. The frequencies in the opening "Suge arrosa", for example, eventually structure themselves in
grating loops, reminding of string plucking, then the composition boils down to a static unrest, with
sparse fog-horn wails. "Acuphenos" is melting ice and mist, rich in bubbling, muddy basses. "Eve"
accumulates electrics shocks in a bruitist crescendo, leading to the glorious "side b" of the cd (yep,
there's a flipside, apparently), featuring the painfully high frequencies of the title track, and the heap of
audio debris, hisses and feedback of "Suge gorria". When, in the final "Itapoa (for Rafael Flores)", the
sampled guitar of former Comando Bruno adds a more recognizable musical quality, it has an almost
surrealistic effect, lost as it is in García's swarm of electronics. " Eugenio Maggi about "Armiarmak"
( www.chaindlk.com )

"Xedh confirms by planting an enormous (rusted) nail in the allegedly apocalyptic landscape of the
modern industry of sounds assembly. Heir of a certain oldschool tradition (and not least) , the man of
Bilbao dismantles some musical commonplaces for better building a singular work which takes all his
actual relevance - There is this amplitude, the density of a formal, un-narrative suggestion of reality
filtered through the abstractive prism of Xedh composition, and these constant calls to break up, if you
definitively refuse to look beyond." Thierry Massard about the piece "Composition in red"
( massard.blogspot.com )

“Miguel A.GARCIA est un des principaux activistes de la scène underground de Bilbao, apparu dans le
sillage du festival MEM à la suite du terroriste sonore Mattin. Jeune espagnol nourrit à la musique
industrielle et aux sinewaves de la new improvisation, il organise des soirées clandestines dans différents
lofts de la ville industrielle basque. Soirées mêlant rock, musique industrielle, new improvisation, nowave
recyclée … ne prêtant aucune attention aux genres, voulant seulement la musique comme
débordement. L'économie de la musique est dans un tel état de désastre, qu'il reste à inventer des
alternatives, à reconstruire des réseaux, connecter ses acteurs autrement que par Internet,
l'organisation de concerts comme acte politique. L'improvisation est pour Miguel GARCIA cette tentative
de rendre les musiciens acteurs d'un projet collectif, d'une économie souterraine qui se joue dans les
marges de la cité et se partage. Activiste mais surtout musicien, il avance des propositions sonores
comme d'autres des mots d'ordre politiques. "Armiarmak" est un disque construit avec circuits intégrés,
table de mixae, micros-contact et sine-waves, disque qui s'inscrit dans une longue histoire : celle de
l'improvisation et de l'électro-acoustique, dans cette mémoire à dépasser, avec cette culture à partir de
laquelle il faut se construire. Comment s'en débarrasser pour ne pas être immobilisé par elle sans la
noyer dans le bruit blanc, son angoisse ? Effacer les phrases et les gestes par le chant des instruments
tournant solitaires, Duchamp en ombre portée. Tentative de faire sortir le "bruit" de son enveloppe
étouffante, de dessiner des paysages imaginaires fait de clicks & cuts, de buzz et de craquements.
"Armiarmak" est un disque fragile comme tous ceux de cette jeune génération "trop cultivée", ils doivent
oublier cette culture pour se trouver, casser leur outil informatique pour le reconstruire autrement.
GARCIA rejoint le club de ces bad boys des musiques électroniques à l'instar des Jean-Philippe Gross,
Arnaud Rivière, Alexandre Bellenger … À suivre …” Michel Henritzi, Revue&Corrigée

"Further subdued electronic murmurings of a quite different hue on Armiarmak, by the young Basque
composer Miguel A. García. He produced it using nothing but a mixing desk and an oscillator for the most
part, but whereas many dabblers using similar tools emerge with something clean, somnolent and
insipid, García’s minimalist work has a gritty, vaguely ugly texture which appeals to me, along with its
unblinkingly stern countenance throughout. To listen is like staring into the stony visage of your own
executioner." Ed Pinsent, Sound Projector magazine, about "Armiarmak" ( www.thesoundprojector.com )
"Miguel a. garcía nos rodea en este tema de impulsos electricos y de texturas desnudas haciendo visible
de manera excepcional el esqueleto electrónico de la pieza. Sin duda es una de las figuras mas
relevantes del panorama electronico español." Jordi Giraldez, Sismografo radio broadcast, about the piece
"Suge arrosa" (www.rtve.es/radio/20080818/sismografo/139033.shtml)

"Miguel A. García is one of the few artists working in the laptop domain that manages to go beyond the
sterile audio terrain that many practioners of digital music tend to get lost in and never find a way out.
Xedh exploits the pristine frequencies and extreme sonic range...and still ensures that his music has
some muscle and perhaps a bit of humor." Jeff Surak about the piece "Exadh" ( www.zeromoon.com )
"After a long strings of MP3 and CDR releases, which showed a constant improving of his playing, Miguel A
Garcia made the big step and now releases his first real CD. He worked first as Xedh, but also as several
projects I never heard of such as Baba Llaga and Valvula Antirretorno. Here he uses strictly 'a mixer with
a pair of microphones, which register its 'human activity' and the sine waves extracted from a simple
oscillator'. That might be hard to believe I think. One thing that can be noted here is that the conversion
to entirely being microsound didn't happen, and that's a great thing. Garcia started out in the more noise
end of the musical spectrum, and then slowly worked his way towards microsound. Here on 'Armiarmak'
he seems to be interested in melting the two opposites together, and he succeeds rather well. Despite
the fact that this album has many 'soft' spots where the music drops in volume quite a bit, there are also
many instances were the sound gets quite loud. Garcia seems to be introducing here also the element of
improvisation (perhaps already present before, but now more clearer), and his electro-acoustic music,
spiced with lots of processed sine waves (making them very high or very low end), gives us some highly
refined pieces of micro- and macrosound. Its probably a great step for Garcia to go to real CDs but this
first one is surely also a great step for him as a composer." Frans de Waard about "Armiarmak"
( www.vitalweekly.net )

“Another release by Miguel A. Garcia, also known as Xedh, whose work is getting better all the time.
Starting out with industrial music, heavy beats and noise, these days its a very interesting mix of
microsound and on this album modern classical music. 'Vinduskarm' was recorded in 2006 already, and he
uses to some extent classical instruments, which he puts on his computer together into some highly
interesting music. This release has three pieces, of which the second and third are in three parts. In the
last part Xedh uses brass and strings to create an intense and beautiful piece of modern classical music.
In the second piece it seems that field recordings play the all important role, and the instruments are
absent. In the first piece, in one part only, the balance between instruments, electronics and field
recordings seems to be the same. Xedh adds electronics and field recordings to the total spectrum of
sounds. His recent CD release was good, but this is even better. Well balanced, owing to microsound, but
the combination with real instruments works great. Perhaps a great pity that this is only released as a
limited CDR and not as a real CD, but then we should be glad we can hear this after all. ." Frans de
Waard about "Vinduskarm" ( www.vitalweekly.net )

“Spanish sound artist Miguel Angel Garcia, also known as Xedh, recorded Subsuelos during a number of
“intense nocturnal sessions taken inside a 200 meter squared abandoned pavilion, with the initial
intention of making an exploration of this sound-space”. The results have been issued on MP3 and FLAC
files by this very label in May 2008; this is the “physical” version of the album. Garcia utilized sounds
exclusively coming from within the large room, adding a series of typically suggestive, if unsettling
electronic tones which he proceeded to recapture via the same microphones. At the beginning of the CD
– a minute and a half of scarcely perceptible presences welcoming the listener - one would be justified
in thinking about yet another specimen of environmental examination in a vain attempt to give a musical
voice to the menacing quietness of the night. Instead we’re in for a chain of events that surprise us quite
often, abruptly shifting the focus of the piece over various sonic settings – some of them extremely
beautiful, others less uplifting but stimulating nonetheless – which contribute to place the music in close
proximity to acousmatic sharpness rather than cause an obvious “installation association”. The
malleability of the materials processed by Garcia is evident and superbly exploited throughout,
unfathomable halos, echoes of forlornness and devastating excrescences succeeding in consecutive
scenes amidst traces of loaded stillness. Although there’s nothing exactly innovative in this kind of
notion I didn’t manage to locate stereotypes, frequently discarding the rational approach to simply put
my perceptiveness in abandon mode for a sheer enjoyment of the states of trance that several episodes
generate, with a particular mention for the breathtaking throbbing that certain subsonic emissions
produce and the reiterative reverberations at the opening of the final track “Ipurtargik”, a magnificently
remote resonance that defies any tentative description. A commendable work from a composer whose
maturity will hopefully bring additional juicy fruits, Subsuelos comes in a 50-copy ultra-limited edition.
It should be attentively considered when appraising the next future of nowadays’ ambience-based
electroacoustic perspicuity.” Massimo Ricci, Touching Extremes Magazine, about "Subsuelos"
( braindeadeternity.blogspot.com)

“Record of the week. The last several days, busy as they’ve been with work and home-related duties,
I’ve enjoyed multiple opportunities for quality, undisturbed listening. While such a luxury comes only in
phases, it’s even rarer that I can put a tentative playlist together that will truly play itself out. But
playlists can quickly grow stale. I imagine I’m not alone, in that it often happens I’m halfway through a
disc or a run of them, only to abandon it for something more faithful, music that has proven to serve all
moods or is likely to shield itself from any unanticipated distractions. That said, I must’ve listened to
armiarmak ten times last week. I don’t know that Miguel A. García, aka Xedh, is much known outside his
own circles in Basque Country and larger Spain — though he once was invited to perform in DC’s Sonic
Circuits Festival — and it gives me cause to consider the migratory nature of some experimental music
practitioners; why some spend as much time bonding with individuals from varied regions as they do
composing, while others do not or can not. But that’s roots for another discussion. García’s short list of
releases dates back to just 2007, the majority featured on free netlabels. This, his first “proper”
hardcopy release comes on RMO (Basque), a label with which I’m only recently familiar. Having heard —
and having been intrigued by — “Armiarma,” which can be heard HERE on Homphoni, it’s gratifying to
learn that the single solid 14-minute track was a mere opening into something larger, an expanded
theme complete with teeth, daydreams, and shortness of breath. That’s how I hear armiarmak, as
something living within a generative, searching effort bound by the electronic confines of a single disc.
García’s imagination is clearly conscious of the value in the self-imposition of limits. A sizable array of
tools was used to create the music/sounds, and it’s interesting when listening to consider the discipline
that went into some of it. “Itapoa” has, to my ears, four to five source tracks, each having been shaved
of some of it’s fidelity. This results in something far more minimalist than the preceding tracks,
themselves containing the fleeting sparseness of an Onkyo standard(!). The disc notes García’s
“instrumentation”: microphones, mixers, and sine waves; additional bits of outside material are tools in
the chest on three of the tracks. I’m not reminded of any one particular artist when listening to the disc,
however, certain passages ring of the chance atmospherics in the recordings of Werner Dafeldecker or
Burkhard Beins, while another suggests Fennesz arriving at a performance venue only to find a single AC
outlet to his disposal. But let’s not spend further energy in comparison exercises. Those interested are
advised to start with the Homophoni track (linked above), which can also be heard on the disc. The fix
complete, I’m now happily buried in more of the unheard, and within that pile it would be nice to find
another faithful selection. I’d be interested to learn of others lurking in the Basque region.” Alan Jones,
Bagatellen, about "Armiarmak" ( www.bagatellen.com )

"Miguel A. García teje como las arañas (armiarmak, en euskara) un complejo entramado de sonidos,
referencias, tiempos y narraciones. […] El disco me produce reflexiones sobre lo que sería por un lado lo
emocional, cálido y accesible en la música, y por otro lado lo que seria más frío, seco, abstruso,
exigente para el público y un poco más neutro (consciente de la imposibilidad de la completa
neutralidad). Llamemos a lo primero lo dulce, y lo frío a lo segundo. Precisando un poco más, llamo
dulce a las melodías, a las sugerencias de grandes e impresionantes espacios que nos llevan a
dimensiones narrativas, a lo espectacular y a los efectismos, a las bolas de frecuencias graves que hacen
que nos vibren las tripas, a las partes violentas muy distorsionadas… Creo que es precisamente en esta
dicotomía dulce/frío donde se encuentra este trabajo de Miguel Ángel. Sabe trabajar con lo poco
emocional, y en las primeras escuchas lamenté el que no fuera así todo el disco. Las partes más cálidas
las veía como los puntos por los que cojeaba el trabajo, y en cambio, después de unas cuantas escuchas,
me pareció que son precisamente esos mismos puntos los que completan el trabajo y lo salvan de ser
algo demasiado impenetrable.
En una comparación con otra disciplina artística como la pintura, El cuadrado negro sobre blanco o El
cuadrado blanco sobre blanco de Malevich, vistos en libros de historia, serían un buen ejemplo de lo
distante, desafectado y lo casi neutro. Pero es al verlas en directo cuando apreciamos el dulce: El rastro
de la pincelada y la plasticidad de la pintura aportan el punto sensual, y eso es que salva a estas obras
de ser impenetrables o fríos en exceso.
Y ya comparando una disciplina que trabaja con imagen con una que trabaja con sonido, me atreveré a
afirmar que el sonido juega con ventaja en cuanto a la capacidad penetrante. Claro que las imágenes
pueden sugerir mucho y afectar, pero la música posee una gran facilidad para colársenos por no sabemos
dónde y emocionar con muy pocos y muy simples elementos (dos notas o un harmónico pueden bastar).
Tantas escenas de cine que nos han hecho llorar a miles de espectadores, ¿hubieran conseguido todas el
mismo efecto sin banda sonora? Se puede hablar hasta de poder manipulador, y precisamente en el cine
la música ha sido muchas veces el recurso para evidenciar el carácter de cada escena y dirigir las
sensaciones del espectador. Y el dirigir contradice la noción de que el espectador completa la obra. En
vez de dejar que el receptor de alguna forma analice, se le embriaga con harmónicos y se le impresiona
con efectismos. Aquí estoy hablando, claro, de aquello que hemos llamado dulce.
Armiarmak me lleva a pensar que quien maneja sonidos debe tener cuidado con esta capacidad de
penetración. No debe caer en el uso excesivo de lo dulce con el fin de no atentar contra el oyente y
utilizar además un recurso demasiado fácil para la creación. Y tampoco debe prescindir totalmente de
ello, para que el resultado no sea impenetrable, y para no desaprovechar una cualidad de la música.
[...]" Oier Iruretagoiena, Audiolab blog, about "Armiarmak" ( www.arteleku.net/4.1/blog/audiolab )

“Miguel A. García es un nombre pujante en la música experimental del País Vasco. Afincado en Vitoria,
Miguel propone un trabajo cuya lectura resulta siempre estimulante y cuyas críticas, apoyos y
colaboraciones han sido siempre numerosos y de calidad, participando en festivales y museos de todo el
mundo. La propuesta de Miguel se centra en el micro-industrial experimental, basado en grabaciones de
campo y en el trabajo de estudio, con una mezcladora-trituradora, en la que los elementos sonoros son
modificados hasta ralentizarlos o distorsionarlos hasta determinarles una nueva entidad, en base siempre
al propósito de focalizar una experiencia nueva y emocional. Los sonidos electrónicos, chirridos, pitidos,
campos de fuerza, etc, son los reales protagonistas del trabajo, así, la música de “Armiarmak”, que en
euskera significa “araña”, fluye entre dos polos, uno más reflexivo y ambiental, y otro más ruidista y
estridente, tejiendo una tela de araña de claroscuros, de blancos y negros en contraste, donde la
desnudez de los elementos y hasta el silencio juegan un papel determinante. La emoción está muy
presente en el disco, y hasta en un tema se incorporan elementos musicales, como en el último tema,
“Itapoa”, aunque por supuesto, manipulados hasta perder su esencia original. “Armiarmak” juega
siempre a dos bandas, pues es tan relajante como perturbador, resultando en esa dialéctica la esencia
de un trabajo eminentemente experimental, muy interesante, y que abre una ventana a la pequeña
escena del País Vasco en lo que se refiere a música experimental electrónica y a la que visto lo visto hay
que seguir más de cerca.” A. Monreal, La Defunción magazine, about “Armiarmak ( www.ladefuncion.com )

“Miguel A. Garcia has apparently been active on the sound art/ installation scene for quite some time,
only recently making the transition to recorded media on small netlabels such as Homophoni, Zeromoon,
and Trans>parent Radiation in the States..a popular stamping ground for new and well established
experimental artists. Armiarmak, Garcia’s debut in CD format is an exploratory work, taking as its point
of departure, a trajectory that transcends conventional physical instrumentation, and uses the studio
mixer and two stereo microphones as the sole source of sound. So what emerges here are essentially
feedback transitions, that Garcia manipulates in real time, in order to engender a field of tones, and
subtle gradations of sound, sourced entirely from the studio. Having carried out these kinds of
experiments myself, I can verify that this can be a fun, and oftentimes excruciating experience, as
feedback is notoriously difficult to harness and bring into any kind of tangible form. I likened the process
to wrestling with a wild animal, as attempting to cage feedback in the “sweet spot” hovering between
equilibrium and chaos is a bit of a trial, that requires both patience and skill. Here though, Garcia brings
all of the wildest components under control with apparent ease to activate a sonic sensorium that
bristles with an electric charge, teetering on the brink of chaos, yet hovering in that sweet zone, that is
both interesting and full of tension. For Garcia, this sweet spot is a zone of ultra minimalist fragments,
crackles and splinters of sound – soft scrapings and grazings, as the equipment, brought under his
control, yields glistening treasures that flicker and flutter and finally evaporate into silence.
Occasionally, as on “eve”, Garcia allows the feedback to gather momentum, as he relinquishes his
controlling hand momentarily, but this is then brought back into equilibrium to maintain the focus and
restraint of the rest of the collection. If I sound enthused, then you would be absolutely correct, as a
few years back, this kind of methodology was quite prolific on the experimental circuit – Garcia’s forte,
is in not letting the equipment govern the final outcome, and rather than spiralling off into the noise and
chaos typified by a feedback system, effortlessly produces a sublime and fascinating collection of
minimalist electronics. Very highly recommended. “ Baz Nichols, White Line magazine,
about “Armiarmak” ( http://whiteline1.wordpress.com)