Written In Music review *****

How wonderful it is when music manages to surprise you time and again, even after listening to it multiple times? How wonderful it is to always hear something new in it, to discover something with which the composer intended to capture and convey emotion, embedded in the music in such a way that you must focus all your attention on the music to truly discover all the finesse and nuance?

Maison Melody and Mt. Mundane were Stephen Emmer's two previous albums: both impressive and very beautiful and, in all their richness of sound, a very special musical journey, especially considering that Emmer struggled with serious hearing problems that affected both the creative process and his daily life. Emmer was open about this in the three-part interview Written In Music conducted with him last year.

In that interview, Emmer already spoke about developments on the horizon, including a new album that he was very enthusiastic about during the conversation. A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to get acquainted with that new album, Asymmetrical Dot, for the first time, and it is wonderful how you can retrospectively recall a moment from a conversation and also connect with your conversation partner's experience afterwards. Asymmetrical Dot is once again a very beautiful LP by Emmer, and not only that, the album surprises with the instruments used and with the emphatic vocalisation. It is a deliberate choice by Emmer to add precisely that to the sound palette at this particular moment.

Two cultures that came together

When you consider that Emmer grew up as a child of two cultures that came together, Indonesian and Dutch, you already have a small guide for listening to the album: you hear it reflected in the music, and it is incorporated into the title. The asymmetry can be seen in the continuous movement between two cultures, between the experiences of them, and thus also the internalisation thereof.

The Dot

The dot can be explained as the musical symbol for extending a note, longer than its written duration, and this in turn reflects back on life: just as the start of a life, at least that is conceivable for the prospective parents, perhaps takes place even before the moment of conception itself, so too can one consider that life is more than merely the lifespan itself. Memories, emotions, and thoughts of someone generally persist much longer than merely the life you physically shared or are sharing with someone. With two compositions on the album that interpret the two extremes of physical life, Benja’s Birth and Amboina (for Roekie Aronds), Emmer reflects on that very fluid point. In 2025, he welcomed his grandson, and in that same year, he lost his beloved mother. What holds true for both compositions is that Emmer manages to infuse them with both love and awe for the processes of life.

Benja's Birth and Amboina

He has lovingly given the miracle of birth life, air, and light into a composition, and the way the composition flows is simply breathtaking. Still completely unaware of the path written for Benja in the future, Emmer has written a very beautiful composition with subtlety. The way the instruments blend together, the way the voices ethereally mingle in what one might see as a flock of birds wishing Benja a very safe journey, is nothing short of beautiful. When you can translate the grief over the loss of your mother into music as beautifully as Emmer manages to do, where the warmth for her resonates in every fiber of the composition and you can conjure up the image of a dancer dancing stylishly and with complete surrender, then that previously mentioned point comes to mind once again, and you feel in everything, including the fusion of the sounds, that Emmer is paying a beautiful tribute to his mother here.

Emmer already knew how to touch people with his music. No doubt about that. You could hear that on the previous two albums already. It was also personal. With Asymmetric Dot, Stephen takes a step further in the development of his music; sounding more explicit yet simultaneously still restrained, he brings musical worlds together in what you can simply call an exciting whole.

Transcending The Archetype

And that happens right from the opening composition, Transcending The Archetype, where you can hear jazz influences, ethereal vocals, and simultaneously subtly presented electronics, as well as a build-up like we heard more of on the two previous albums. Yes, this transcends genre.

Accepting The Albatros

The moment you listen to Accepting The Albatros and consider that it might be about Emmer's acceptance of his hearing problems, you can imagine that the beeps and other musical interruptions in the music of that composition might well represent the disturbances Emmer experiences in his hearing, perhaps later expressed through the recurring timpani strokes and the nervous-sounding strings. That is an assumption, it must be said, but listen to the continuous resonance of the timpani stroke, and it remains just as present as Emmer's issues.

Tremendous richness of voices

Whether this is the case is something we hope to address in a new conversation with him. In any case, it is beautiful: the voices of at least two of the participating singers, Beth Hirsch, Alejandra Quintanilla, and Arpi Alto, come together very beautifully here. Possibly even all three, harmonising beautifully and, conversely, sometimes contrasting with one another. And the ladies can be heard in more compositions: a tremendous richness of voices that gives the album extra depth. More than extraordinarily enjoyable! And that while the theme in the song is also beautifully embraced. Consider how Emmer brought the compositions to life: he has given his music a very fine form, more eclectic than before, with influences from diverse styles and cultures, and it is a joy to listen to throughout the entire album.

Emmer speaks of his most personal album to date; it is also his most diverse album, and gosh, what a magnificent LP he has made of it. A description of the diverse pieces, then? Although the temptation is great to describe even more, it is above all an album to wander around in and discover for yourself. That is still happening here, full of curiosity for what awaits and still enjoying the new aspects that keep catching your eye.

Immerse yourself

Dive into the album with headphones, immerse yourself in what Emmer has created here with an international group of guests, and simply let yourself be amazed by the magically beautiful music Emmer has brought together. On the album, we hear an international cast hailing from Armenia, Peru, Indonesia, Venezuela, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the Netherlands. The diversity of the musicians calls for dialogue, and it is precisely this dialogue that gives this album exactly this character.

Exceptionally good production

And when you consider that Emmer had the opportunity to collaborate on the production with Fernando Aponte (associate producer to Ryuichi Sakamoto and Grammy winner), concertmaster and violinist Everton Nelson, and the equally Grammy-winning mastering engineer Patricia Sullivan, you understand exactly how exceptionally good the album's production is.

Stephen Emmer has created a musical world that any creator should be very proud of. And just to get back to the back of your mind: made to the best of his ability. Just try finding that anywhere else.

Most beautiful thing

Emmer has not only found his own path, but he has made it immediately audible, highly enjoyable, and surprising for every listener: you will continue to marvel. Listen, yes, preferably with headphones, to this collection of compositions. This one is called Asymmetric Dot, and in all its variety and new sounds, and with the addition of vocals, this album is the most beautiful thing Emmer has ever made.

[Written In Music - Marcel Hartenberg]

Listen to Asymmetrical Dot on your favourite music platform here

Buy the Asymmetrical Dot album on CD here