Taking a picture of Jeff Coffin taking a picture of Bird's grave on Monday.
The internet is an amazing thing. I can’t imagine just how much farther I would have fallen into the pit of musical discovery if I had Allmusic, Wikipedia and YouTube available to me on my phone 13 or 14 years ago. This week, I introduce musique concrète and play the work of Pierre Schaeffer, a movement and artist ridiculously far-removed from mainstream music, but brought near with just a mouse click.
I cannot emphasize this nearly enough: if you are even a little curious about electronic music, you must own OHM: The Early Gurus of Electronic Music. It’s a compilation of ground-breaking electronic artists, from which I picked this week’s Pierre Schaeffer track. To paraphrase Brian Eno from the liner notes, every aspect of how we experience music is influenced by these pioneers; everything is electronic, from assemblage of sounds in the studio to amplification at concerts.
On a completely unrelated note, I also discuss Robert Deeble’s new record, Heart Like Feathers. Please join his Kickstarter campaign to get this thing released. He’s an amazing storyteller, and just a fascinating artist. Line his pockets, folks.
Enjoy the show.
- “Etude Aux Chemins De Fer” – Pierre Schaeffer (OHM: The Early Gurus of Electronic Music | Ellipses Arts | 1948)
- “Kitchen Sink” – Amon Tobin (Foley Room | Ninja Tune | 2007)
- “Eclipse” – Robert Deeble (Thirteen Stories | Pete Records | 2004)
- “Redux: Porky, Boots and Floyd” – Jeff Coffin and Charlie Peacock (Arc of the Circle | Runway Market | 2006)
Radio Free Raytown 