JOHN DUNCAN & MAX SPRINGER -THE CRACKLING (CD by Trente
Oiseaux)
This new work by Duncan, recorded together with the
unknown Max Springer, deals with field recordings made at
the Standford Linear Accelerator in California. The
StandfordLinear Accelator is an atomic particle research
center. Electrons are moved through a tunnel and sped up
for atomic research. According to the cover, ‘the place is
full of contradictions: structures built to dwarf and
outlast their creators, designed to generate subatomic
events that take place in a time scale that is
experientially impossible to image, using forces and
processes that are hostile or lethal to human life, yet
are entirely human created. A ‘city of the dead’ that
seems to have an existence of its own with or without its
operators’ .The electron must be understood as a metaphor
for the process of life: isolated, compelled by a system
that uses the electron’s own energy to force it into path
that leads at a constantly increasing pace to certain
destruction -to a point of certain change, of complete
resolution and the beginning of a new process”. The CD has
one piece, in which slowly these field recordings evolve,
like, indeed, a growing organism. This results in a strong
collage of ambient industrial sounds. Not as harsh as some
of Duncan’s previous works, and less shortwave sounds. But
indeed a strong work. (FdW) Address: <bguenter@mond.rhein-
zeitung.de>
NAMANAX -CASCADING WAVES OF ELECTRONIC TURBULENCE (CD by
Relapse) ATRAX MORGUE -SICKNESS REPORT (CD by Relapse)
As a response to ‘easy listening’, the US label Relapse
started their campaign called ‘Uneasy Listening’ .Here are
the first two assaults being made. Namanax, the in-house
band from Relapse, offer two pieces. The first one (about
11 minutes) is a pulsating beat, with the levels cranked
up to the ultimate noise level. Over that nothing really
happens -but was there any room for that? – so a
hypnotizing drone appears. A pulse alike can be found on
the second piece, but since this is a much longer track
(47 minutes) a lot more is being done with it. Electronics
swirl in and out, feedback drives along. The result is a
varying mix, easy listening for industrial masses.
Atrax Morgue have a past history on cassettes, and as far
as I know this is their first digital effort. According to
the sleeve these 9 tracks (total CD playing time just over
32 minutes) were recorded in hour on august 7th 1995. All
tracks were spontaneously made, and, maybe it’ ‘s short
recording time on one day, I must admit they sound a like.
If you don’t watch your CD player, you might come to think
they are one track. Wrong made wire connections,
feedbacking along old analog synths are what this guy is
using. Because of the relative compactness of these
recordings, I must say that this pleased me from beginning
to end. Hurray that this guy didn’t go for a full 78
minute blow, as that would probably been boring. Now the
shortness is its power. His shrink is also being thanked.
(FdW)
Address: <relapse@relapse.com>
RALF WEHOWSKY -NAMELESS VICTIMS (3″CD by Metamkine)
ELIANE RADIGUE -BIOGENESIS (3″CD by Metamkine)
Again two in the series of ‘cinema for the ears’ .Ralf
Wehowsky was once the founding father of legendary German
post musique concretists P16.D4 and has produced some fine
solo CD’s under the name RLW. This work, divided in 3
parts, uses the sound of a contra bass, which his
intelligently treats with studio techniques. He shifts
away from the analog stuff with P16.D4 and now works
entirely digital. The result is a strong piece of modern
musique concrete. Sometimes the sound is clean and dry and
sometimes remote and wrapped.
Eliane Radigue work is less known to me. Her CD on
Experimental Intermedia is one of my favorites on that
label, in which minimal electronics slowly decay. Her work
with Robert Ashley didn’t appeal to me at all. This one
piece, was recorded in 1973, and is dedicated to her
daughter Anne… and the daughter of Anne, Caroline.
Keeping this in mind, together with the title, I assume
she uses heart sounds, which are minimally treated with
electronics. The heartbeats shift slowly back and forth,
in which electronic drones slowly develop. This work was
created by that other founder of minimal music, Phill
Niblock, so you probably know what to expect here. (FdW)
Address: Metamkine -13, Rue De La Drague 38600 Fontaine –
France
MICHEAL PRIME -CELLULAR RADAR (CD by Micophile)
Prime is one of the members of Morphogenesis, and the
member of that group with active background in solo works.
This is his second solo CD. Unlike his work with
Morphogenesis, which is very electronic but also very
improvised, Prime composes his work. He uses many
‘ecological’ sounds, i.e. natural reverb from different
spaces. The sounds taken from that treated in his studio,
mainly (as far as I can judge) with digital means. The
four pieces on this CD are all relatively long and take
their time to develop. This gets towards ambient like
musique concrete at times and it’s a nice work. A good
follow up to his previous solo works. (FdW)
Address: <mikep@myco.demon.co.uk>
CHIRS WATSON -STEPPING INTO THE DARK (CD on Touch)
KALE ID -ZEN AND THE SURVEILLANCE OF BICYCLE MESSENGERING
(CD on VOID WARE PRODUCTIONS)
A joint review (as it was) for these two which are both
sound effect documentaries, I guess. Touch, as I have said
before, never fail to surprise me with their unpredictable
agenda, if indeed they have one. This CD features natural
field recordings by Chris Watson, formerly of Cabaret
Voltaire and co-composer of ‘Bang! An Open Letter’, the
first ( and some would have it, the best ever) release by
The Hafler Trio. It is a beautifully packaged
presentation, as always, but the potential impact of these
recordings is somewhat lost on me. Perhaps it is a cunning
attempt to gain entry into the potentially lucrative world
of atmospheric recordings for TV or radio. I have heard
far better recordings of natural environments on CDs
purchased in incense/kaftan emporia. Chris details the
circumstances of each of these mystic sessions, which
occured in all sorts of poetically named places ranging
from Scotland to Kenya, from Venuezuela to Germany and
supplied most of the photographs which grace the booklet.
Maybe it serves as a reminder that all we hear is music,
if we are able to expand our concept of the definition a
little. Following on this, it could be construed that Zen
And The Surveillance Of Bicycle Messengering serves the
same purpose and I am most surprised that this did not
make it’s way onto the market via a label like Touch,
perhaps as another in their odd series of vinyl releases
which document runaway trains, air-to-ground
communications and VLF transmissions. Basically it is a
recording made by a bicycle messenger of an eventful day
in Chicago. Anybody who has spent any time in a large city
will recognise the atmosphere present on this CD. It is a
lovely recording of urban noise interjected by bike-to-
base communications even including a request by our
intrepid cyclist to go on lunch. It occurs to me that some
of the sounds may have been intentionally produced but the
beauty of these does not detract from the integrity of it
as a statement of a specific time. I played it three times
in a row and it did not take long for it to leave it’s
identity as a recording behind and insinuate itself into
the space as the sound of that space at that moment. I
rank this as an extremely successful CD…not to be missed
if you enjoy the city and the peculiar melodies made by
the instruments technology has provided. (MP) Address:
<touch@touch.demon.co.uk>
THE SOUNDWORKS EXCHANGE 2 -VARIOUS ARTISTS (CD on Sound
Work Recordings)
Maybe it is an inherent danger with subsidized productions
that the need to compile ( in this case) a completely
stunning set loses it’s edge…who knows. It is this
release that caused me to think of this. It opens with an
odd audio collage of people phoning a number listed in an
issue of the NME which called for new ideas for D. Bowie,
a not altogether untogether fella. It is a rather shabby
attempt almost as thin as the white duke once was himself,
which would have taken on a much deeper psychological and
therefore satirical meaning in the studios of a band like
Negativland or People Like Us, who, incidentally also have
a track on this CD. Miss Bennett has assembled a sampler
from two other pieces…my advice is: Get the originals
and then follow the instructions here…to decline in a
reclining seat and laugh sadistically at this riotous junk
shop frenzy. Another track worthy of mention is a brief
extract from the CD ‘Permafrost’ (on Barooni Records) by
Tommy Koner which is indeed reminiscent of the shifting of
desert sands, softly churning in all directions at once.
Others included, perhaps for their commercial potential,
are Kingsuk Biswas Bedouin Ascent, Peter Kuhlmann and
David Moufang (chum of Jonas Sharp). The introduction to
this booklet claims that the CD stands as permanent
document of a selection of quality artists creating sound
for dance, theatre, film, video, radio and clubs ‘and
traverses the zones of cut-up, fast ‘dance’ ( jeziz, why
the quotation marks here guys ?) music, chill-out, filmic
landscapes, low volume experiments and jazzy blues. So
what’s new in the Soundworks Zoo ? Save your shekels for
another day…multi-syllabilic liner notes do not a record
make, although I suppose they bring in Arts Council cash
There’s loads of other products of similar structure that
deserve more attention. This one is bound to end up on the
Sales stands. Sorry… (HP) Address:
<shinkansen@gn.apc.org>