Things that go buzz: Golden Hornet’s Insectum

Golden Hornet’s
Insectum

For this album to exist, a lot of thought had to go into presenting the science behind the compositions. Golden Hornet’s Insectum takes a micro philosophical approach to the world’s oldest living creatures, arthopods. Here composers studied these insects, how they moved and behaved, the environment around them and the functionality of their little lives against a cosmic scale.

We encounter these insects without stopping to think about the functionality and motives behind how they co-exist in nature. Take for instance, a summer evening near a creek. Skipping rocks or meditating to the sound of water rushing by, out of existence floats a series of water striders elegantly moving by like a professional rowing crew hoping to win their first Olympic gold.

What you have here is experimental aural awareness by composers/performers Susie Ibarra (drums and percussion), Jeffrey Zeigler (cello), and Graham Reynolds (piano, keyboards, and electronics).

Insectum was originally inspired by the pioneering imagery of renowned 17th-century scientific illustrator-entomologist Maria Sibylla Merian. The project went one step further by consulting entomologists Alex Wild and Jo-anne Holly at The University of Texas at Austin to not just build a comprehensive understanding of these insects but to build a connection to our relationship with them.

Insectum is challenging, engaging and well thought out, providing you with mental landscapes and opening up to a new world grappling with the challenges of climate change.

The album reminds me of how Yo La Tengo re-imagined Jean Painleve’s work to build awareness of an underwater world. Golden Hornet gives us a chance to connect in new ways, something unexpected yet mesmerizing.

“The artistic process of working with the UT Austin entomologists Alex and Jo-anne made sure that we were not just using popular or romantic ideas of what each insect represents,” says Graham Reynolds, also the Artistic Director of Golden Hornet. “They helped us to understand what was actually real or correct to each particular insect and explained the nuances that the public might not know. The track ‘Army Ants’, we originally had it as very regimented and strict on time, but that’s not the truth. They swarm at first and then retreat as a straight line, so we added Susie’s drum intro to capture that moment.”