Been a while since the Downstream has included an entry from the ever expanding “Remix! Tree” at the Freesound website, freesound.iua.upf.edu. The site is a trading place for recorders and admirers of raw field recordings. The Tree is where folks go to tweak sonic reality more to their liking. Take, for example, a trio of tracks that begin with eerily dripping water drops (MP3), then loop a segment to distantly musical effect (MP3), finally warping the material until it sounds entirely synthesized (MP3). And, as it turns out, even the original track involves some slight of ear; what appears cavernous was, in fact, recorded inside a washing machine. More info on the original and resulting tracks at freesound.iua.upf.edu. They’re all attributed to a user who goes by the handle roscoetoon, whose Freesound member profile reads, “I couldn’t hold a tune if it had handles on it.”
Current Activities
• October 13, 2016: This day marks the start of the 250th weekly Disquiet Junto project. • November 16, 2016: I'll be sharing the mic at Adobe Books in San Francisco with my fellow 33 1/3 author Evie Nagy for an evening hosted, from 7pm to 10pm, by Marc Kate (facebook.com). • December 1, 2016: A likely speaking engagement. Details to come. • December 13, 2016: This day marks the 20th anniversary of Disquiet.com. • January 5, 2017: This day marks the 5th anniversary of the Disquiet Junto. • Ongoing: The Disquiet Junto series of weekly communal music projects explore constraints as a springboard for creativity and productivity. There is a new project each Thursday afternoon (California time), and it is due the following Monday at 11:59pm: disquiet.com/junto. • My book on Aphex Twin's landmark 1994 album, Selected Ambient Works Vol. II, published as part of the 33 1/3 series, an imprint of Bloomsbury, is now in its second printing. It can be purchased at amazon.com, among other places.