On “Common Pond“, Russ Young recreates places, events and objects around him “by assembling manipulated audio sources – re-imagining the impression with sound”.
Each track has a different background story, like:
“‘Phil’s House’ is made from recordings of a friend’s 8 upright pianos he kept in his house.
I ended up erasing the notes leaving the mechanics behind. I think it sounds like rain on his roof or rain playing his pianos.”
“‘Lamy’s Sound and Light’ is a local ‘disco equipment’ rental shop at the end of my street. He leaves a cluster of neons flashing all night.”
With this approach, Young creates a new and refreshing concept of ‘environmental soundscapes’.
RUSS YOUNG – COMMON POND
RICHARD GINNS – FALL, RISE
The basic inspiration for this album came from a rather frightening experience when visiting the French Alps in winter “I was alone and the weather was turning fast, a snowstorm completely took over and visibility was next to zero. Far from home, cold, tired and in fear of my surroundings, the reality of where I was really hit me. […]
A path would lead me home … A voice in the distance, to which direction it was coming from exactly I couldn’t tell … I began to trek knowing my ears would guide me … Bringing me back home!!”
The album (later recorded in Manchester), does not focus on the ‘fear’ of the occasion – in which case it probably would have turned out rather dark – but on the ‘guiding voices’ instead. The reassuring positivity of nature’s guidance is what lingers in the guitar-based drone sounds, found sounds and field recordings.
TROUM – DREAMING MUZAK
Originally released in 1998 (on cassette) as Troum’s second album, and rereleased as a limited CDR in 2006, the Zoharum label now re-releases a remastered edition of this fascinating album. Two tracks, about 26 minutes each, “created as a muzak tuning our brainwaves into the proper dreaming stadium”.
Don’t let the ‘muzak’ and ‘dreaming’ connotations misguide you: the drones are in fact rather ‘noisy’: they could be created from the sounds of faraway industries, busy highways, passing freight trains, etc. But at the same time this sound indeed induces an adventurous calm state of mind.
Incomparable in result, of course, but in a way these tracks reminded me of Lou Reed’s legendary album “Metal Machine Music” .
C. REIDER – THE PLANGENTS
“Plangent” [adjective]:
1. Having a loud deep sound
2. Resonant and mournful in sound
On “The Plangents”, C. Reider recreates some of the musical themes he has heard in his dreams: “Music in my dreams is very repetitive, and this music reflects that.”
[Name Your Price download]
RETRACKING VAL – RETRACKING VAL
A Collection of recordings by Matt Moore (Retracking Val, UK) – selected from his ‘not so terrible’ recordings (his own words) from the past years. A remarkably fresh set, with some nice ambient soundscapes, but also some tracks that drift off into other musical territories.
[Name Your Price download]