Voyage Bekoz V

Running Time: 13:21

Released On: "Zōuhy" - Various Artists (20 tracks)

Label: Attenuation Circuit

Release Date: 28th March 2021

Format: Download

Buy Link: Bandcamp

< Reverbnation Edit - 8:43 / Alonetone: Full Cycle - 27:58 >   

And a new label for the Bullet, in the shape of Sascha Stadlmeier's Attenuation Circuit, though we had no idea where this was going to end up when we first saw this canine brass quartet (pictured above) accompanying a compilation call out on Facebook from the inimitable {AN} Eel. But, because it was him, we knew it would be somewhere good, and who doesn't want to go somewhere good? It was an unusual callout in the sense that it had no specific theme (musique du général, geddit?), that was interesting in itself, but from where would come inspiration without a theme? People normally told us what to do, and now we were being asked to think for ourselves? I confess, a degree of panic set in. I listened to a Hawkwind live album in the hope that something would come to me.

"My mum's got a washing machine!" So goes the shout, just prior to the encore, and then the album is over.

No ideas come, nada. So I'm just sat there, deep in thought, staring aimlessly into space. With no hope in my heart, I walk up the stairs, marvelling at the embroideries we had hung there to hide the wall that obscures our view of the house next door. There must be answers in The Mmatterialisation Chamber, surely? I fight my way past the overflowing laundry baskets on the landing to get there, but still no concept was kindled. I sat in front of the computer screen, catching up on the news of some money-laundering scandal. I shivered, early February, a cold morning, probably should put the central heating back on for a while, or I could just wear a jumper.

"You don't have any clean ones," Sam tells me, "they're all in the wash, you haven't done any for a fortnight."

Cold and devoid of sentient thought, I was on the verge of giving up when the doorbell rang. Well, knocked, we don't have a doorbell, now I come to think of it. Skit came bouncing in, not one to stand on ceremony, or indeed wait for his knocking to be answered.

"Look what Skit find!" He shouted joyously, holding up a bottle of fabric conditioner, which he found hysterically funny because it was called Magic Soft (*other fabric conditioners are available), and because he's a man-child.

And then it hit me! Not the fabric conditioner, his aim was off, luckily, I meant the idea. Washing! Why hadn't I thought of it before? What if we were to take the washing machine on a voyage of imagination, a journey into deep space in search of alien life?

"And you call Skit a man-child?"

So we bundled the towels in and set about strategically placing four magnetic condenser microphones around the accessible parts of the machine, finally Blu-Tacking (*other sticky blue shit that takes paint off walls in big chunks is available) my Sony IC Recorder to the transparent door. The 28 minute 30° eco cycle duly set (for those worrying about the previously referred to state of the towels, please be assured we did use laundry disinfectant), tea and biscuits it was.

o

The finished recordings were quite fascinating, each sounding slightly different due to the varied placing of the microphones. And bizarrely, the track recorded by the Sony IC device was a fraction of a second out of synch by half way through. Although initially annoyed by this as it really shouldn't happen, it turned out to be beneficially serendipitous as we found it produced a really interesting effect, akin to an old WEM Copycat (ask your dad). So much so that we actually ended up playing around with the position in the mix of all the tracks, spreading the five out across the full stereo spectrum and ultimately adjusting the synch of each slightly. The result was a 27:58 (oh yes, we're suing the washing machine manufacturer, 28 minutes, my arse) epic cycle (pun intended), complete with the occasional glimpse of Magic family life in the quieter bits (she never shuts up). Unfortunately, however, that was a 'bit' longer then Mr. Eel had in mind.
"That's an EP!" He said, "Seriously, I'd much rather half that."

"B...b...but that would just be a spin cycle. And the towels were attracting attention from SETI."

o

Not to be beaten, Skit and I spent an hour or so carefully editing the track down to a more manageable length, shortening each section, rather than removing anything, until we had an end result that was this mini-epic 'cosmic voyage'. And, of course,  towels our mums would be proud of.

THE GROOVE