Ekin Fil & Ella Zwietnig: Far Within Reach EP – “sheer ambient beauty”

Turkish composer, Ekin Üzeltüzenci (A.K.A. Ekin Fil), first appeared on our radar three years ago with her album, Maps.

Having spent the best part of the last decade dispensing gorgeous sound collages, last year’s Coda is up there with the strongest work she has so far produced.

In the world of collaboration, Fil has seemingly found a new spark, first with Nadja‘s Aidan Baker with last year’s shoegaze-inspired The Dark Well EP.

Now, the Turkish composer joins forces with Austrian Berlin-based composer, Ella Zwietnig, for Far Within Reach.

Like Fil, Zwietnig‘s stock is high in the world of composition, collaborating with Sizarr & Robot Koccomes, as well as assisting the late Jóhann Jóhannsson and producing her own music under the moniker, UMA.

Chris Corsano & Bill Orcutt: Made Out of Sound – “musicianship at its peak”

Zwietnig‘s delicate soundscapes are just enough for Ekin Fil to wrap her voice around. Fil‘s possesses a faint vocal style that never extends beyond ghostly whispers and while many may suggest this is music designed for churches, it’s actually the kind that would be more fitting for a wake. There’s no better example of this than the beautiful finale to Far Within Reach that is The Reckoning.

After the eerie piano drones of Intro, the title track follows, enveloped in whirring organs, heavenly drones and Ekin Fil‘s soft sighs that are straight from the assemblage of angels the likes of Julianna Barwick lead.

Yuko Araki: End of Trilogy – “a portal to an alternative universe”

Flickering with a certain shade of light, as absurd as it sounds, on the right day, Loop Light is the kind of composition that could somehow end up on a Disney film. Not so Uneven, which is cloaked in sheer ambient beauty, akin to being in free fall from misty skies. It’s the finest moment on Far Within Reach.

Shifting the needle after what has been a successful decade in composition, Far Within Reach is another solid collaboration for Ekin Fil, adding her own colours to the canvass of a collage artists likes the above mentioned Barwick and Grouper‘s Liz Harris have made their own during this century.

Ekin Fil is equally accomplished and alongside Ella Zwietnig, on Far Within Reach the pair showcase their finest qualities.

Far Within Reach is out now. Purchase from Bandcamp.