The starting point for the beat-making of In The Shell was the writing of original music, a blank page on which to develop every single track. The core of the production and song-writing is rooted in the creation of instrumental tracks in the studio; only at a later stage did Baldini look on the outside, establishing the necessary connections and collaborations for the entire album.
The shared element among the songs in the record is the use of a palette of ethnic sounds and samples, recorded and archived by Paolo Baldini himself during his various trips to Africa, and on which he later carried out his unique electronic production and post-production work – the distinctive feature of his musical aesthetics. The personal and family ties that led the Italian producer to visit Sub-Saharan Africa, and especially Senegal, granted him an exclusive observation standpoint on day-to-day contexts which are usually not accessible to those who don’t have a key to participate in the family life of these communities, and allowed him to respectfully use this advantage to record original and unique samples.
In The Shell celebrates such “hybrid” vision, which spans from the all-round exploration of black music, through its electronic components, to the beat-making originated from the use of samples. These two narrative threads intertwine, merge, and alternate, giving birth to the sound and rhythm patterns at the foundation of this album.
The sound landscape described in In The Shell is a visual and sonic collage where past, present, and future coexist. They are interrelated, but never fully integrated. They retain their specific identity, as if they were oversized fragments in a mosaic where natural, archaic, and pristine landscapes perfectly dovetail with scenarios belonging to the cinematic imagery of science-fiction (sometimes Tatooine, sometimes Blade Runners): a sort of borderless no-man’s land where foreign worlds mix with the glimmering light of digital art.
In The Shell is ultimately the map Baldini uses on his journey as a producer, navigating through the diverse landscape that black, Caribbean music originated.
credits
released March 27, 2024
Recorded, mixed and produced by Paolo Baldini DubFiles at Alambic Conspiracy Studio in Pordenone, PN (Italy)
Mastered by Nick Manasseh at The Yard Studio in London (UK)
Music written, arranged and performed by Paolo Baldini DubFiles.
Additional players:
Matteo Da Ros (guitar on tracks 2, 3, 7);
Roberto Dazzan (brass on tracks 5, 9);
Lorenzo Garzia (guitar on tracks 2, 8);
Luca Masseroni (drums on track 6);
Alfredo Puglia (keyboard and programming on tracks 7, 9);
Adriano Viterbini (guitar on track 3)
Bonjo is back! The deepest of Nyabinghi and Afro drums with the Don Adrian Sherwood on the magic desk. Love the Ghanaian flavours this time around, welcome back Master B! Ex-Friendly
