Castings Reviews
In this post I will be responding to two reviews, both reviewing the band Castings.
Castings will be one of the main bands I will be using while I’m researching experimental music. They are a local Newcastle band, although they play mainly in Sydney because there isn’t a market for their style of music in Newcastle – which is a subject I will be exploring further in a later post.
My brother Nick is a member of the band and he is a wealth of information concerning experimental music – I hope to be interviewing him too on the subject soon so stay tuned!
In completing this post, I’m hoping it will delve into the world of experimental music and I’ll be able to pull out some characteristics of experimental music that will lead to explaining the concept more and may also lead to deciphering why this genre of music hasn’t made it into the mainstream.
The first review I will be looking at is a Foxy Digitalis review of Castings’ ‘Allo Hickory’ album from 2005.
In reading this review, it appears to be very obscure, like many believe experimental music is. It begins with describing weather and the intricacies of weather changes and what results.
This in-depth explanation describing the weather in intricate detail can be likened with experimental music’s obsession with sound and the minute detail used in experimental music. The use of sound in experimental music can range a great deal. The sounds can be large, notable and highly obvious, to be being so small and unnoticeable, they have to be pointed out to be heard.
If this is the case with some sound in experimental music, many ask the question why include the sound at all? The reasoning behind including these minute sounds is that there are layers and layers of them, creating the music heard. Without them, a difference would be noted and the music would lose its layered quality and also the importance of sound. Simos empahsises this in the review from dB magazine when he speaks of the “minute detail” and “subtle samples.”
This review from dB magazine also talks about the music acting as a navigation. This statement demonstrates its relationship with the journey and where the song goes and how it is produced.
The in-depth analysis and description of the sound from the Foxy Digitalis review reinforces the importance of sound and attention to detail within the genre of experimental music.
For example; “Distorted spastic guitar exercises intermingle with reverb-laden drum blasts. All the while, there are various cryptic hums that underpin the whole piece, giving it a certain cohesiveness it would otherwise lack.” The reference to cohesiveness is important as this is an integral part of experimental music.
This quote from dB magazine’s review demonstrates to some extent the purpose and process of experimental music; “Castings is an improvising ensemble with it’s collective eye fixed on making noise soundscapes which alternate from serene to dissonant, lush to stark.”
Finally, I’m choosing to close with this quote from the Foxy Digitalis review which I believe is the perfect encapsulation of experimental music; “Sounds disorienting, and it is, but it’s equally enchanting.”
Millie
References:
Foxy Digitalis – Castings “Allo Hickory” http://www.digitalisindustries.com/foxyd/reviews.php?which=954
Db Magazine – Castings http://www.dbmagazine.com.au/346/cd-Castings.shtml
MySpace – Castings http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=17535028
