Centripetal Force announces the release of Patrick Sansone’s "Infinity Mirrors," a collection of six ambient instrumentals recorded on a variety of synthesizers from Sansone’s vintage collection. The album is being presented in a 350-copy vinyl pressing, as well as an edition of 100 cassettes. The album will also be available digitally. The release date for "Infinity Mirrors" is March 1, 2024.
Patrick Sansone is a Nashville-based multi-instrumentalist, composer, music producer, and photographer. He is also a member of Wilco, The Autumn Defense, and Mellotron Variations. "Infinity Mirrors" is his first album as a solo artist.
Sansone’s interest in synthesizers dates back to his teens in the 1980s when he was afforded the benefits and luxury of time, time to simply discover and enjoy the pure pleasures of sound. Meridian, Mississippi, in the mid-eighties wasn't exactly a synthesizer kind of town, but he did manage to get his hands on a Korg Polysix and an Arp Axxe and spent solitary hours creating sounds and blissing out. It was a foundational experience, one that has led to a lifelong passion for collecting and playing vintage synthesizers. Some of Patrick’s favorites utilized in "Infinity Mirrors" include the Roland Jupiter-8, MiniMoog Model D, and Sequential Circuits Prophet-10, as well as the modern Mellotron D4000 and Teenage Engineering OP-1.
The ideas behind what have become "Infinity Mirrors" have been brewing for several years. Patrick’s plan had always been to use his ever-growing stable of synthesizers in some sort of project, but it wasn't until 2017 that these ideas really started to come together. His goal was not to sit down and record an album. It was more of a desire to engage with new creative processes, an effort to recapture the spirit and energy he enjoyed when he first discovered synthesizers. To accomplish this, Patrick established a set of expectations around which he would record. Central to his expectations was the idea that all of the pieces would be spontaneously created. He decided the instruments needed to be the ones to lead the recording sessions. Patrick arranged several synthesizers from his collection in the studio and set aside a series of evenings for recording. This would allow each composition to retain its own unique mood and identity. Patrick simply entered the room and allowed his instruments to draw him in. There was no planning ahead. It was simply improvisation in its purest form, what he has called “sonic sand-painting.” As a result, four of the six pieces on "Infinity Mirrors" were recorded during these sessions.
Because of Patrick’s involvement in other projects, as well as a demanding tour schedule, the results from the initial recording sessions sat on his digital shelf until 2021. It was while on a night drive from Atlanta to Nashville that Patrick decided to revisit his efforts, and it was upon that return listen that he felt a spark. The music spoke to him in very distinct ways. He felt both connected to and outside of himself as he listened. The experience was striking enough that he decided he would eventually share this music with others.
A few months later, a friend gifted Patrick a photography book, John Pfahl’s "Altered Landscapes." Patrick, a photographer himself, opened to a random page and was taken aback by the image, Pfahl’s “Salt Lake Angles.” There was a rush of excitement as Patrick heard an inner voice proclaim, “This is the cover to your unfinished album!” Inspired by the image, additional compositions were recorded, and the pieces of "Infinity Mirrors" started to fall together. Pfahl had unfortunately passed in 2020, but with some help, Sansone got in touch with the photographer’s estate. Serendipitously, the caretakers were already familiar with Patrick as supporters of Wilco’s Solid Sound Festival, as well as his own photography work, and permission to use “Salt Lake Angles” as the cover for "Infinity Mirrors" was granted.
For listeners who enjoy Klaus Schulze, Brian Eno, and Tangerine Dream.
