Country : Canada Label : Whited Sepulchre Records Genres and styles : Electroacoustic / Experimental / Contemporary Year : 2023

Jason Doell – Becoming in Shadows ~ Of Being Touched

· by Varun Swarup

Becoming in Shadows ~ Of Being Touched is a ticket to the uncanny valley for those willing to take the ride. In the driver’s seat is Jason Doell, a Toronto-based sound artist who, using a prepared piano as his vehicle of choice, guides his listeners through some eerie and perplexing electroacoustic terrain with this release. However unsettling this world may be, it is not a hostile one, and it doesn’t take much to hear how lovingly Doell has crafted the three soundscapes that together makeup Becoming in Shadows.

At the heart of this release is a man and a piano, but Doell does not simply play the piano, he plays with the piano. Without any rhythm or melody to speak of, this album revels in the many organic textures and fascinating timbres Doell is able to source from the instrument. Amidst the atonal and listless harmonies there is delightful sonic variety here and Doell makes an orchestra of sorts out of the piano. Especially lovely is the bowed piano texture used to great effect in “of becoming.”

These acoustics are processed digitally and fed through an algorithm that adds a particular haphazardness to it all. The result then is an album that sounds exactly what it looks like, a computer-generated fever dream. Eventually, the moments where something resembling normalcy appear feel especially poignant and beautiful. While it makes for a challenging listen, for what it is, it is done exceptionally well.

Latest 360 Content

Festival Classica | Marie-Nicole Lemieux and the torero side of Carmen

Festival Classica | Marie-Nicole Lemieux and the torero side of Carmen

Nuits d’Afrique 2025: Flavia Coelho Presents Ginga

Nuits d’Afrique 2025: Flavia Coelho Presents Ginga

Colonial Shadows, Ancestral Light: The Politics of “Wayqeycuna”

Colonial Shadows, Ancestral Light: The Politics of “Wayqeycuna”

Ambre Ciel, Peaceful Melodies Between Sky and Sea

Ambre Ciel, Peaceful Melodies Between Sky and Sea

Backxwash – Only Dust Remains

Backxwash – Only Dust Remains

Rebecca Foon & Aliayta Foon-Dancoes – Reverie

Rebecca Foon & Aliayta Foon-Dancoes – Reverie

Misc – Beat Bouquet

Misc – Beat Bouquet

Heaven FM – A Surreal Broadcast from the Beyond

Heaven FM – A Surreal Broadcast from the Beyond

Guillaume Lefebvre – Au loin

Guillaume Lefebvre – Au loin

Angel Wang; Phoenix Orchestra – Phoenix Rising

Angel Wang; Phoenix Orchestra – Phoenix Rising

CMIM 2025 | Assessment of a Successful First Event

CMIM 2025 | Assessment of a Successful First Event

The Centre des Musiciens du Monde’s music Tree that brings people together

The Centre des Musiciens du Monde’s music Tree that brings people together

Festival Classica | Pavane For a Flaxen-Haired Gypsy Girl

Festival Classica | Pavane For a Flaxen-Haired Gypsy Girl

Festival des Saveurs | Carminda Mac Lorin, The Woman of Many Hats

Festival des Saveurs | Carminda Mac Lorin, The Woman of Many Hats

SAT X EAF | Amselysen and The Ideal Perfume of A Serial Killer

SAT X EAF | Amselysen and The Ideal Perfume of A Serial Killer

Festival Classica 2025 | Women’s Cellos

Festival Classica 2025 | Women’s Cellos

Nuits d’Afrique 2025: ALL About The Program

Nuits d’Afrique 2025: ALL About The Program

Festival Classica: An Ode to Hope with Elvira Misbakhova

Festival Classica: An Ode to Hope with Elvira Misbakhova

Festival des Saveurs | Aldo Guizmo Goes “Str8 Forward”

Festival des Saveurs | Aldo Guizmo Goes “Str8 Forward”

Deafhaven – Lonely People with Power

Deafhaven – Lonely People with Power

Transforming Hiroshima mon amour into contemporary opera: Christian Lapointe and Rosa Lind tell the story

Transforming Hiroshima mon amour into contemporary opera: Christian Lapointe and Rosa Lind tell the story

Sparks – MAD!

Sparks – MAD!

“Hiroshima, mon amour”: An Evening to Remember

“Hiroshima, mon amour”: An Evening to Remember

Subscribe to our newsletter