Metazoa is my seventh solo classical/minimalist/electronic/instrumental album. It will be on general release on 18 April 2025, and is available now on Bandcamp.
1) Metazoa One (17:14)
2) Cnidaria (7:14)
3) Metazoa Two (8:12)
4) Xenobotany (5:42)
5) Float / Drop (6:24)
6) Metazoa Three (8:45)
7) The Anxiety Machine (Original Full Length Version) (14:37)
8) Aquasoma Three (8:56)
The core of the album is composed of the three pieces named Metazoa. The metazoa are the group of animals that are multicellular and have tissues with differentiated functions (essentially all animals other than sponges and single celled organisms).
I have a long-standing interest in how organisms develop and evolve. I used to be a hospital doctor (neuropathologist). During my training I took a year out to do an intercalated BSc focused on developmental biology and neuroscience. I feel that there are similarities between the way simple processes can interact to produce complex larger-scale patterns in music and biology.
We don’t know, if the clock was turned back and the dice re-rolled, whether the interplay between chance and the fundamental forces driving evolution would lead to a biology similar to that which we have in our world, or whether different patterns would emerge.
The three Metazoa pieces were inspired by the evolution of animals, in a broad sense, rather than attempting to portray any particular creature. They take slight variations on similar sounds and thematic material and let varying patterns develop. Metazoa One was originally released as a single last year.
Cnidaria are the group of soft-bodied stinging aquatic animals including corals, sea anemones, and jellyfish. They are among the most ancient multi-cellular animals known. The track is named after the gently floating rather than the stinging aspect of their lifestyle.
Xenobotany, the study of alien plants, in the absence of the discovery of life on any other planet so far, remains a hypothetical science. The track was inspired by imagined plants on an alien world.
Float / Drop starts gently, but gradually becomes more unsettled.
The Anxiety Machine was originally written as a fairly long instrumental piece. It was later adapted to become The Anxiety Machine Parts 1-3 in our 2023 Hats Off Gentlemen It’s Adequate album ‘The Light Of Ancient Mistakes’. This is the first time I’ve released the original long version of the piece.
The album finishes gently with Aquasoma Three. The piece is named after the simulated peaceful aquatic world in which the characters in Philip K Dick’s ‘A Maze Of Death’ find temporary respite.
Malcolm Galloway, December 2024
Malcolm Galloway is a contemporary classical/minimalist composer and the frontman / multi-instrumentalist / songwriter / producer of award winning prog rock band Hats Off Gentlemen It's Adequate.
His classical music has been played on radio stations including BBC Radio 3 and his combined video-art/music pieces played at the National Gallery. His album Transitions was featured in Sid Smith's Prog magazine pick of the year.
"Packed to the rafters with endlessly dovetailing segments that whizz and whirr with pulse-quickening excitement. Harnessing the power of Reich-like repetition there's both depth and warmth that builds to deliver a coercive momentum... Galloway's ingenious flow of rhythm and melody ensure these tracks are anything but background music." Sid Smith, Prog Magazine
"I love the Oldfield vibe and the way those driving ostinatos create an almost hypnotic sense of the music driving forward and floating AT THE SAME TIME. Bravo!" Julian Haylock classical music critic, former editor of CD Review and International Piano Quarterly, and author of acclaimed books on Mahler, Puccini and Rachmaninov.
As always, if you like it, any support is greatly appreciated.