OSCILLATIONS: DEGENERATES by The Passage

This 1982 release by post-punk group The Passage is generally considered to be their masterpiece,  but should also be considered undervalued and relatively unheard  in a world filled with synthpop foppery. DEGENERATES was preceeded by a duo of of dark,  minimalist  works (PINDROP and FOR ALL AND NONE,  from 1980 and 1981, respectively),  that showed leader Dick Witt's embrace of The Fall's Mark E. Smith and his disturbingly neurotic polemics. While the Fall created guitar-laden personal/political narratives,  Witt modeled song structures that were made obliquely compelling  by their jarring experimentation and synthetic sound sources (sometimes overly shrill in their use of digital synths and limited recording resources).  DEGENERATES is definitely the most "electronic" of their releases up to that point,  with keyboard synthesizers used prominently throughout. Strangely enough,  it also contains their most catchy tune,  an ode to sexual liberation and chromosomal juggling called "XoYo".  While some listeners may have been put off by its peripatetic wordplay,  amateur psychology,  Shakespearean borrowings,  and liberal sexual politics,  the song was still as commercial as Witts ever got. And it was nearly joyous in its synthetic bounce,  a far cry from the darkness , failed loves,  and dystopian scenarios found on the rest of the album.  The album's title most certainly refers to the content of this song.  For an even better example of this body politic,  be sure to check out "Taboos" now included on the CD re-release.  Witts was joined by Andy Wilson (guitar) and Paul Mahoney (drums) for this album.  You may want to check out all of The Passage's recordings,  as they reward repeated listens with their challenging musical structures,  literate verbosity,  and compelling musicality.

VOICEOVER: Scott Walker on Our Innate Aggression

           THE RHYME OF OUR MADNESS BURNS CITIES AND PUSH  'N' SHOVES

                                            (from "Rhymes of Goodbye)

UNSENT MAIL ART

 I recently came across a postcard I had created more than twenty years ago as part of my then ongoing involvement with Correspondence Art,  an international group of artists,  poets,  and musicians that  happily bypassed the commercial gallery system in favor of a more egalitarian approach to being seen,  read,  and heard. The international postal system was our forum.  I'm sure all of us were attracted by Mail Art's inclusiveness,  lack of censorship,  and collaborative spirit.  The inexpensive media and small scale were also nice considerations.  Xerography,  rubber stamps,  and collage made frequent appearances in this work,  often in the same sending.  The above work uses all those techniques,  but adds painting to the mix as well.  The origins of Mail Art can be easily traced back to movements like dada,  Fluxus,  Cubism,  and Pop Art,  all of which served as springboards for the use of ignoble materials and the avant garde.  New York (and later,  Long Island) artist Ray Johnson (1927-1995) is considered by many to be Mail Art's founding father,  who continued to mythologize himself up to his suicide in the mid-nineties.  His death is widely thought to be his final artwork, as numerical evidence suggests a well thought-out performance/suicide.  Personally,  I enjoyed the immediacy of creating imagery and sending it out into the world or as Ray Johnson said,  "Mail Art has no history,  only a present".

And at 19 cents a sending,  it was quite the bargain! Today,  digital media is omni-present and has helped Mail Art to evolve and flourish,  but at what price?  

THIS IS HOW YOU DISAPPEAR

This is a remix of a new track that will form part of my latest CDr titled THIS IS HOW YOU DISAPPEAR.  It's a bit more quietly textural and (dare I say) melodic than the original mix.  Dirty little clots of sound emerge as the track slowly progresses.  The primary inspiration here is the music of Scott Walker,  who has made a career of vanishing and reappearing anew.

A SECULAR DIRGE

Here again is the sound of electricity filtered,  flipped,  and mangled by This Second Sleep.  These are sound events beyond program or narrative,  and seem more akin to the "happy accidents" found while manipulating paint,  mis-hearing a series of words,  or just listening to the world around us.  Thanks again to Delphine, John Cage,  and Don Buchla.

VOICEOVER: David Lynch on the Irrational in Art

            "I keep hoping people will like abstractions,  space to 
            dream,  consider things that don't necessarily add up."