See also: Valentina Magaletti - A Queer Anthology of Drums
Double dose of Valentina Magaletti courtesy of her exciting new imprint, Permanent Draft. Proceedings begin with a look back to A Queer Anthology of Drums, her much celebrated collection first released digitally by Takuroku in 2020 and then afforded short, long-sold-out vinyl pressing around 18 months later. This is a record of textures, of space, and of subtle sonic shifts, fluidly drawing on the more outre expressions of dub, minimal techno, sound art, library music and, as a product of the imaginative approach to percussion, elements of musique concrete. There's the addition of one new track to the original running order, added right to the start, but it's the close that best evidences the cross-disciplinary approach, a uniquely melodic moment seemingly at odds with the preceding eight tracks, yet also an effective coalescing of those disparate investigations into a rewarding, almost cathartic release that's gone just as you get a grip on it. Second up is the highly limited four-song 45, Lucha Libre, a full force celebration of Magaletti's versatility and adventurous impulses. It's impossible to pigeonhole this kinda thing, an interdisciplinary melding of post-punk/no-wave experimentation (ala Dome perhaps?), dub exploration, the freeform dynamics of krautrock and something else distinctly avant and probing. We primarily think of Magaletti as a drummer, but it's a limited understanding that undersells such uniquely elusive and compelling noise making. All that and now a label boss, too? A force of nature!
