{"title":"Rafael Toral","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRafael Toral, born in Lisbon in 1967, is a composer and performer who has been deeply involved with various genres of music throughout his life. He initially explored the realms of Rock, Ambient, Contemporary, Electronic and Free Jazz music. In the 1990s, he gained recognition for his blend of Ambient and Rock on albums like Wave Field and Violence of Discovery and Calm of Acceptance.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn the early 2000s, Toral felt a need for a creative change and embarked on an ambitious project called the Space Program. This experimental endeavor utilized electronic instruments to create music that was melodic without notes and rhythmic without beats. Described as \"visceral and emotive,\" Toral's work stood out from his contemporaries.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThroughout his career, Toral has collaborated with numerous renowned artists such as *Jim O’Rourke*, *Jim Baker*, *Sei Miguel*, *Chris Corsano*, *John Edwards*, *Evan Parker*, *Tatsuya Nakatani*, *Manuel Mota*, *Alvin Lucier*, *Phill Niblock*, *Christian Marclay*, Sonic Youth, Rhys Chatham, Lee Ranaldo, C Spencer Yeh among others. His performances have taken him across Europe, Canada, USA, Mexico, South Korea Japan New Zealand Australia.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBesides music, Toral has also dabbled in visual arts producing videos and\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"spectral-evolution-2","title":"Spectral Evolution","description":"\u003cp\u003eRafael Toral returns to the electric guitar after a decade-plus in his “Space Program,” composing only with self-built electronic modules. Here, the unique compositional fronts of guitar and electronics crush together in a powerful new synthesis, as Toral weaves twelve distinct episodes into a flowing whole. Spectral Evolution imbues the ambiance of jazz harmony-inspired interplay with dense electronic mass in a new expanding universe.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Moikai","offers":[{"title":"Black LP","offer_id":50407416136011,"sku":"2169600","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50407415218507,"sku":"2169599","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/a0959138693_10_24b86fce_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726597606"},{"product_id":"sound-mind-sound-body-30th-anniversary-edition","title":"Sound Mind Sound Body","description":"\u003cp\u003eIt's been nearly 40 years since Rafael Toral began making his own compositions and solo recordings; today, these recordings sound remarkably prescient and perfectly timeless! Drag City reissue \u003ci\u003eSound Mind Sound Body\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eWave Field\u003c\/i\u003e, his first two long out-of-print albums.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eSound Mind Sound Body\u003c\/i\u003e was partly inspired by exploring some of the working principles of Brian Eno and Robert Fripp, extrapolated by Rafael via a unique signal path leading out of his guitar. He paid notice to the massive impact of discreet gestures, creating slow-moving tones and spacious orchestral resonances, drifting and droning with glacial majesty, hardly recognizable as guitar much of the time.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Drag City","offers":[{"title":"2LP - Black","offer_id":50414801486155,"sku":"1025797","price":32.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":51936419217739,"sku":"R7471-1479","price":11.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/b92611e8-9f9a-4750-aa1b-b78bb29bc131_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726685834"},{"product_id":"wave-field","title":"Wave Field","description":"\u003cp\u003eIt's been nearly 40 years since \u003cstrong\u003eRafael Toral\u003c\/strong\u003e began making his own compositions and solo recordings; today, these recordings sound remarkably prescient and perfectly timeless! Drag City reissue \u003cem\u003eSound Mind Sound Body\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eWave Field\u003c\/em\u003e, his first two long out-of-print albums.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eWave Field\u003c\/em\u003e, released in 1995, was a departure from the first album into new composition methods involving the dirty textures of rock guitar, sounding in the open ears of many listeners (like \u003cstrong\u003eJim O’Rourke\u003c\/strong\u003e, who issued the disc in the US on dexter’s cigar) as a synthesis of disparate elements - a nexus where Alvin Lucier, Sonic Youth, My Bloody Valentine and Eno blend together.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eHere, the clangorous potential of the guitar was emphasized, giving a metallic edge to the two extended pieces and ‘radio edit’ coda. The jacket paid subtle tribute to My Bloody Valentine, which, along with the radio edit, suggested a harmony between musical directions as wildly disparate as minimalist experimental and rock.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Drag City","offers":[{"title":"LP - Black","offer_id":51948942688587,"sku":"R1640-1335","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":51936431505739,"sku":"R1640-4199","price":11.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/2000x2000bb_73697af9-3034-44f5-a4c4-ec8d5511a049.jpg?v=1748682444"},{"product_id":"traveling-light","title":"Traveling Light","description":"\u003cp\u003eFrom out of the dark, sparks of feedback birdsong signal a return to the singular sonic environments of Rafael Toral’s sound-world. A year after Spectral Evolution, his acclaimed album of electric guitar conceptions, comes the companion work \u003cem\u003eTraveling Light\u003c\/em\u003e. Sharpening his focus around a set of jazz standards, his move from abstract form to solid song elicits glints from beyond time and space, crafting a unique listening lens for deep listeners.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Drag City","offers":[{"title":"2LP - Black","offer_id":53289539043659,"sku":"R1369-3196","price":36.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":53289539076427,"sku":"R1369-6768","price":11.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/DC948hires.jpg?v=1756734964"}],"url":"https:\/\/shop.roughtrade.com\/de\/collections\/rafael-toral.oembed","provider":"Rough Trade","version":"1.0","type":"link"}