Alice Hebborn’s move to the countryside in 2021 helped inform the profoundly moving and contemplative sounds that make up her first full-length album. Saisons is inspired not only by readings on ecofeminism and environmental harmony; the tactile, direct act of walks in the country helped birth this seven-movement album that combines acoustic and electronic textures, pairing the present-day rush of human interaction with the unhurried passage of time through nature.
With this new record, Hebborn explained on her Bandcamp page that she “explore(s) the idea of an ideal where humans live in harmony with nature. I wanted the album to mirror how nature functions: all elements influencing and transforming one another in an interconnected, balanced way.” The musicians credited on Saisons are Alice Hebborn on electronics, Nao Momitani on piano, and a young group of Belgian musicians comprising the LAPS Ensemble. The result is a seven-movement work that blends neoclassical and ambient themes full of contemplation, meditation, and tension.
The first movement sets the scene with a low-key electronic pulse, gradually bringing in Momitani’s elegant, fluttering, mysterious piano runs and various instrumental swells, introducing the concept of nature while acknowledging the presence of human beings. The second movement continues along this same path, introducing choral elements. Nature really does possess its own music, and it’s no surprise that Bernie Krause’s The Great Animal Orchestra was on Alice Hebborn’s reading list during the making of this album, as well as the writings of ecofeminist author Starhawk, who has written on the topic of the hierarchal relationships between humans and nature.
The third movement has an increased sense of urgency, as rumbling percussion is front and center while Hebborn, Momitani, and the LAPS ensemble are rushing alongside. This is perhaps an acknowledgment of a great disrupter: climate change. As the sound of wind (or perhaps rain) is introduced in the final moments of the movement, it brings the organic elements – part of the record’s primary influence – into the picture and continues into the next movement, but with a more contemplative, deliberate – and perhaps mysterious – sound to the music it accompanies.
All seven movements inhabit a distinct set of notes, chords, and organic elements to create an ode to nature, whether in the intense piano trills of the fifth movement or the low, languid pacing of the final movement. There’s no denying that the music here is stunning, profound, and gorgeously realized and executed. However, what’s more important is that this music feels like a living, breathing thing. “Nao and I wanted the music to feel alive, like nature itself,” explains Alice Hebborn. “It’s not a rigid composition, but a constantly shifting, breathing piece.”