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from Exposé Magazine
written by Phil Derby
Dean Santomieri - The Boy Beneath The Sea
(The Foundry fou.12, CD, 2001)
The Foundry label has always been on the cutting edge of ambient, unafraid to take bold steps in different directions. Ambient guitar and drones mixed with a chilling spoken-word children's story? Originally conceived and presented as a live multimedia presentation, the CD is still engaging without the visuals. The story pulls you in, much like the sea envelops the boy John, the main character of Santomieri's story. Starting as an all-too-realistic story of a drowning in a small town, the plot takes a mythic turn as the town begins to attribute a supernatural character to the boy's disappearance. We alternate between the view of the townspeople and Sean, the music moving with the plot. Mostly gentle in tone, the music becomes tumultuous as Sean encounters an underwater "silver tornado" which draws him in and tosses him about violently. The next sequence, a pair of parallel nightmares his parents have, is both poignant and unsettling. In the background of the story at first, Sean's sister becomes a major character at the end. She deals with the tragedy by convincing herself, in a half-sleeping, half-walking state, perhaps months or years after the event, that her brother has indeed become "The Boy Beneath The Sea," and that he's alright down there. This is more about the compelling story than the music. The effects of it will linger long after you hear it.
2001 (c) Phil Derby / Exposé Magazine