Back in the 90's before the internet was the font of all knowledge we had these things called magazines. When a new one dared to appear on shelves it had to make itself instantly attractive
to the grubby fingered youths of the day. Often the way to do that was a super low introductory price and a free gift, most commonly some inferior chocolate such as a Dime bar.
Well following in that grand tradition, my blog is going to sucker you in with a free album of glitchy electronica. Fake Fish Distribution by Icarus; specifically version 76 of 1000. Each version of the album is one time only and completely unique to the buyer. The liner notes describe why no two versions of the album should sound the same:
"Fake Fish Distribution (FFD) uses generative and parametric techniques to create a musical work that draws on contemporary electronic music, algorithmic software processes and designed variation."
Despite that fairly daunting mission statement, the album itself is very well paced and not as exhausting as previous "glitchier-than-thou" efforts such as 2004's I Tweet The Birdy Electric. Of course it's fun for geeks like me to endlessly ponder what these music altering formulae could be, but like any good magic trick I'm sure these tracks would lose their appeal once the secrets have all been revealed.
It could all be one big con of course. What better way to entice collectors who salivate over the thought of owning the only copy! Well, the cynic loses out here because I have listened to
other versions of FFD posted by fellow Icarus fanboys and I can assure that alternate versions ARE all different. The variations rarely account for massive changes in tempo, sound sources or structure though. Instead they add a much more subtle flavour: an extra whoosh here or time-reversed percussion there. At its most extreme this can lead to shaving minutes off track times. I must say I'm quite pleased that my version of Old D is much longer than any other I've heard.
Without full knowledge of the intricate processes involved, I can understand why these variations seem so minimal. No matter the randomness, the tracks keep their individual flavour and the results never sound like random garbage and always come across as being thoroughly composed. Dumptruck Cannibals and Colour Field are the best examples of this but for me its the tracks that seem a bit "off" that are the most interesting. The overall impression of tracks like Shallow Tree and Old D is of an alien ecosystem burbling and frothing with strange life. The album title and track names too all add to this sense of falling down the rabbit hole into a 21st century vision of Wonderland. I mean Spineez of Breakout...what the fuck does that mean? And closing track Two Mbiras doesn't even feature one eponymous African thumb piano.
This is perhaps glitch-electronica at its finest. Powerful beats sustain momentum for background listening, but those willing to delve into its depths will be rewarded with a wealth of detail. For its inventiveness in distribution and composition, Fake Fish Distribution is one of my favourite albums of the year so far.
Welcome to the blog!!!
And here's the link to your free gift:
https://rapidshare.com/files/273475253/Fake Fish Distribution (76).zip
