Wim Mertens
For Amusement Only

"For Amusement Only" ("Solamente Per Divertimento") 1981, first album by Wim Mertens, an extremely experimental work.

8 tracks 'constructed' more than 'composed', using samples taken from the sound of arcade games of the time. These were the first generation of electronic games, video games with very simple and stylized graphics, in which the sound had a significant imprint. They were computerized and repetitive sounds that were well-suited to be used for minimalist compositional experiments, characterized by repetitiveness, coldness, and musical simplicity.

A peculiarity of the record is the icy absence of feelings: no emotion seeps through these sounds. It perfectly aligns with the experiments of the most famous minimalist composers of the time, such as Glass, Reich, and Nyman.

The first track of the album "Insert Coin" takes the teachings of minimalism and pushes them to the extreme; the result is unsettling: a metallic video game voice hypnotically repeats 'insert the coin,' indeed 'insert coin,' for all 46 seconds of the track. After this introduction, in the following pieces, the total emotional asepticism remains constant. Thus, we find the typical noises of the video games of the era: laser shots, spaceship movements, explosions, helicopters. . .

Giving a global judgment on the album is very arduous. Evaluating this work from a musical point of view would not do it complete justice. The work that Mertens presents us is compositionally very poor: a monotonous and cold background. But we must consider that this was precisely the Belgian author's intention, here more than ever faithful to minimalist principles. Furthermore, this album paved the way for a branch of electronic music, which made it a point of reference and a starting point. However, Mertens did not follow this path in his subsequent works, but progressively abandoned the lack of subjectivity that characterizes "For Amusement Only," thus distancing himself from minimalism with each album, composing music that was increasingly 'alive' and infused with emotions.

It's incredible to think that this album was created by the same author of later masterpieces for piano and voice and for orchestra (such as "Struggle For Pleasure," "Strategie De La Rupture," "After Virtue" and many others), yet (even if only for amusement) that's just how it is. . .