and/24

Track List:

01. Steinbrüchel: Bank
02. Aaron Ximm: Negative Architectures
03. Kenneth Kirschner: May 6, 2001 (Abridged)
04. Tomas Korber: Financial District
05. Taylor Deupree: Dust

On the night of Sunday, May 6, 2001, composer Kenneth Kirschner, as part
of a series of pieces documenting the sounds of different New York City
neighborhoods, took his tape recorder to the Financial District of Lower
Manhattan to begin field recordings for a new piece. The resulting
low-resolution portrait captured the sounds of a deserted urban landscape:
the empty, winding streets of old Dutch New Amsterdam, its modern,
towering skyscrapers -- and a region of the city that, several months later,
would be renamed Ground Zero.

and/OAR is proud to present May 6, 2001, a collection of five interpretations
by five renowned contemporary composers of Kenneth Kirschner's field
recording portrait.

In addition to an abridged version of Kirschner's original 2001 composition
based on his field recording portrait, the CD also includes pieces by Taylor
Deupree (USA), Tomas Korber (Switzerland), Ralph Steinbrüchel
(Switzerland), and Aaron Ximm (aka Quiet American; USA), all utilizing the
2001 Financial District field recording as their sole source material. The
result is a project that obliquely and subtly evokes the source recording and
its subsequent meanings, while also standing on its own as an estimable
example of each artist's mastery of his craft.

In conjunction with the release of the CD, and/OAR is pleased to present
two MP3s of related recordings. The first is the raw field recording itself,
which is the source material for the entire project. This 46-minute,
low-resolution soundscape of New York City in early 2001 is presented here
both for interested listeners and for fellow artists who may wish to make use
of it: http://www.kennethkirschner.com/field050601.mp3

Additionally, the unedited, 36-minute version of Kirschner's abridged
composition is available here:
http://www.kennethkirschner.com/kirschner050601.mp3

Reviews
_________________________________________________________________________________

The Squid's Ear (April 2008)
From the Pacific Northwest's most visible city, Seattle's and/OAR label has
been quietly — surely and steadily — passing considerable muster amongst
experimental music's cognoscenti. Aligned with a veritable who's who of
folks doing work around, throughout and across the margins, artists bursting
at the underground's seams where the truly innovative recordings reside,
label owner Dale Lloyd's a crafty conduit for talent; each and/OAR release,
smartly if simply packaged (though Lloyd's recently moved the catalog into
more tangible digipaks), offers tantalizing glimpses into psyches pushing at
those sacred envelopes, be it isolationist drone, murky microsound,
electroacoustic paraphrasing or any number of twilight zones in between.

The best and the brightest are well represented on May 6, 2001. The nucleus
of the recording arises from, as the inside sleeve tells it, "a field recording by
Kenneth Kirschner recorded in the financial district of Lower Manhattan on
May 6, 2001." Exactly how that date is significant is unclear, nor is the modus
operandi of said "field recording" in evidence anywhere amongst the five
contributors tracks. Nevertheless, what is significant is that each artist, in
their own indomitable styles, has flensed out whatever inherent traits
Kirschner's sample contained. Distorted low-end "bass" thrums launch
Steinbruchel's "Bank" until long-distance cushioned static charges and a
single elongated tone attacks the fundamental waveform: one could almost
see this as the artist's "re-imagining" of Alvin Lucier's "Music On A Long Thin
Wire" outputted through the skein of contemporary signal processors. Brittle,
if a bit cold, it remains well connected to Steinbruchel's trademark
imprimatur. Aaron Ximm's built a respectable career out of documenting
sonic texture via his own astute field recordings, but "Negative Architectures"
is nothing if not atypical: fixing Kirschner's sample inside a cyclotron, he's
concocted a diminuitive tornadic whirligig of sound that tosses off random
bits like so much aural debris.

Kirschner's own contribution makes a blizzard out of Steinbruchel's
narrow tone, stretching it tautly across barren, desolate horizons creased by
digitalia as tiny microevents attempt to rise above the machinic gusts —
riveting stuff for certain. Tomas Korber chimes in with the lengthiest piece: at
over 22 minutes, "Financial District" at first is barely noticeable, just near-
invisible curdling sounds that gently fizz right at audibility's edge, but it
doesn't last long. Soon those brusque digital windstorms blow again, gusty
enough to achieve torrential rage, the rising rocket exhaust blast attaining
Merzbow-ian proportions, before those earlier sound curdles begin to
metamorphose into herds of otherworldly, scuttling microorganisms — listen
close and revel. Finally, Taylor Deupree's closing "Dust" is the "sunniest"
piece of all, its somersaulting hums and strange rubbings something of a
balm compared to the coarser grains that preceded it. Rubberstamp the
date: May 6, 2001 affixes itself in memory sans any pre-existing genre
conditions. (Darren Bergstein)

E / I (September 2007)
Some few months before the event which seemed to hamper all motion like
a jammed cinema reel took place, Kenneth Kirschner was prowling the
Financial District of Lower Manhattan, that area where a rupture in the real
took place on the eleventh of September. These now overexposed events
would seem to have retroactively infused Kirschner’s recording with a certain
ominous complexion. In the staid immobility of pieces, in their reliance on
heavily processed concrete sounds which oftentimes sound frozen, halted,
they render this urban activity more fully alive and visible. Strange, then, that
while the events which gave this recording its bite is now itself dead,
assassinated by the camera, perhaps, Kirschner’s work still possesses a
certain glimmer, a certain vitality or sense of life. Asides from Kirschner
himself, Taylor Deupree, Aaron Ximm, Steinbruchel, and Tomas Korber act
as parasites, colonizing the surprisingly quiet aural environment that
collected like dust around the Twin Towers. The selection from Steinbruchel
is a dry, intimate, and detailed low frequency drone while Ximm, filling out the
other end of the spectrum, features slurred electronic tones interspersed
with sudden moments of panic and fluidity. Even in the clearer, more
coherent moments, as in the work from Deupree, where tone clusters are
allowed to refract gently in subtle ways, there is an overarching sense of
something physical and dangerous. All of this comes to fruition in the twenty-
two minute piece from Korber, which is an endless sliding from silence, to
methodical probing of nocturnal themes, to downright unsettling audio murk.
Korber’s piece is thus vigorous and vibrant; especially near the latter
portions of the composition where particular parts exceed their limited place
and explode the constraints of the balanced totality, that is, when the high-
density textures ring out in deranged exaltation before collapsing into a dull
shimmering. It’s a rich and inventive set of interpretations, and a fine twisting
together of individual fibers into an intricate whole. (Max Schaefer)

The Wire (January 2007)
In what must have been the wee hours of 6 May 2001, composer Kenneth
Kirschner captured New York City in a state of near silence with a set of field
recordings from its financial district, a series of quietly undulating grey
drones with no discernible human activity. The absence of humanity
becomes even more profound considering that just a few months later, the
area was one of the sites by the attacks of 11 September. Kirschner has
made this recording available for free download from his website, and
and/OAR commissioned four notable sound artists to rework the piece.
Ralph Steinbrüchel extracts sonorous harmonics for his radiant, if desolate
composition; Aaron Ximm re-engineers Kirschner's sounds into a
mechanical chugging; and Tomas Korber's lengthy remix dynamically
explodes through a compressed hiss and collapses into minute crackling,
comparable to the strategies of Francisco Lopez. Taylor Deupree concludes
matters with a hearty melding of discordant activity and electronic melody.
(Jim Haynes)

Touching Extremes (December 2006)
The strange coincidence between the intentions of Kenneth Kirschner, who
on May 6, 2001 recorded sounds from the Financial District of Manhattan to
start a new documentary work about New York, and the disguised
organizations that decided that this particular area would become a symbol
of destructive political greed masked as "war of religions", is what gives this
work its ominous complexion. All the involved composers designed their
tracks by working on the same sources, most of them with stunningly
engrossing results and - above all - keeping their own artistic personality
intact and recognizable. Kirschner's field recordings - here presented in an
abridged version, the full one being available for downloading at the label's
website - privilege obscure imagery of pulsating nocturnal energies, whirring
loops of distant noise, traffic and subterranean hiss as disquieting
presences scrutinizing us from behind. Steinbrüchel and Ximm are at the
extreme opposites of the sonic range: the Swiss artist offers an almost
immutable, low-frequency electronic drone while Ximm seems to depict the
movement of inhuman entities from the underground in what's the most
active track in terms of scansion. Taylor Deupree's is probably the most
"musical" contribution, his short track mixing interlocking circular patterns of
harmonic semi-degradation with what sounds like heavily processed
"concrete" sounds. Finally, total silence and, possibly, solitude are
necessary to appreciate the dynamic range of Tomas Korber's piece,
clocking at 22'04" and, for this reason, the one track that touches all the
different sensations - silence, menace, human and urban activity - that the
whole record means to let us experience, and that become reasons for more
and more anxiousness with each new listening, thus determining the
complete success of this conceptual, yet emotional project. (Massimo Ricci)

Digimag (November 2006)
La notte di domenica 6 maggio 2001, Kenneth Kirschner, compositore
americano noto per i suoi esperimenti di riproduzione random-infinita del
suono, si aggira per i quartieri di New York con la sua attrezzatura per
riprese audio alla ricerca di spunti per nuovi pezzi.

Dal materiale acquisito, che contiene anche un prezioso documento degli
spazi del Financial District di Manhattan ancora occupato dalle torri, nasce
oggi un cd dal titolo May 6, 2001. Il lavoro contiene cinque tracce per
altrettante interpretazioni, tutte ottenute a partire dallo stesso materiale, ed è
stato pubblicato lo scorso settembre da and/OAR, etichetta attiva dal 2002
nota ai cultori del field recording, che focalizza le sue produzioni su audio-
reportage, documentazioni e registrazioni d'ambiente e minimalismo
sonoro, con una particolare attenzione alle implicazioni puramente estetiche,
oltre che documentaristiche, presenti in queste tecniche di audioripresa.

L'acquisizione di esterni sonori (ma talvolta anche di interni...si pensi, per
esempio, alla medicina) si può avvalere di svariate attrezzature, più o meno
professionali, impiegate ad esempio nel giornalismo o nel cinema, che
vanno dall'assemblato di microfono, cuffie e registratore portatile (o
computer), all'utilizzo di particolari microfoni a contatto (per esempio da muro
o per intercettazioni) e binaurali (cioè auricolari), fino alla scelta di strumenti
specificamente nati per la ricerca scientifica come idrofoni, geofoni e così via.

In fondo il concetto è molto semplice: acquisire il suon. Lo si può fare come
più ci piace e a seconda della quantità di gusto che abbiamo in dotazione:
se digitiamo su Google la parola “rutto” per esempio, abbiamo
immediatamente accesso a una libreria vastissima di registrazioni che
documentano l'attività digestiva di ignoti. La gamma dei prodotti per le
registrazioni ambientali è infatti molto vasta e la fantasia con cui questi
possono essere combinati insieme è pressochè infinita. Lo testimonia
anche la diffusione del field recording in Italia, che spesso viene praticato
con strumenti comuni e di uso tutt'altro che specialistico come minidisc
portatili, walkman, telecamerine digitali ecc...

Tralasciando la musica concreta o l'utilizzo del nastro nella musica
cosiddetta colta, dove l'utilizzo del materiale sonoro prodotto senza artificio è
piuttosto evidente, prendiamo in considerazione le produzioni musicali pop
elettroniche degli ultimi anni.

Qui il field recording viene spesso utilizzato come materiale da sottoporre a
processi digitali attraverso il software e, per lo più, concepito come un
particolare effetto sonoro: una sorta di sfondo o disturbo indifferenziato che,
mescolato con altri media, è in grado di generare connessioni casuali e
inaspettate che arricchiscono una composizione, un brano o una canzone.

In questo senso moltissimi dischi che hanno fatto la storia della musica pop
o folk possono rientrare a buon diritto in questa categoria; basta pensare,
banalmente e senza sforzo, alla presenza delle regitsrazioni d'ambiente nei
primi come poi in quasi tutti i lavori dei Pink Floyd (motociclette che partono
in Atom Heart Mother, uccelli del paradiso in Ummagumma, colazioni a Los
Angeles, fino alle mense affollate in The Final Cut). Si tratta spesso di un
uso puramente descrittivo delle registrazioni, volto a sortire un'effetto di
immedesimazione quasi visiva dell'ascoltatore in un determinato contesto.

Pensando invece ad etichette come Folkways, impegnata da decenni a
documentare e collezionare le trasormazioni del suono negli ambienti
naturali ed urbani, ci accorgiamo inoltre che esiste un'arte ristretta del field
recording che consiste nell'uscire di casa, possibilmente viaggiare,
ascoltare e catturare dei suoni. Ma questa è solo una questione di metodo e
in fondo ciò che conta è che nella musica, da quando esistono strumenti in
grado di acquisire il suono, niente è mai nuovo, alla faccia dell'autoralità e
dei primati...E meno male!

Se poi uniamo il field recording con la vera e propria filosofia dell'Open
Source allora il passo è fatto! Finalmente, come si augurerebbe Blanchot,
potremmo assistere alla scomparsa, o meglio all'esaurimento dell'autore,
cioè del soggetto che percepisce illusoriamente l'opera (il suo oggetto)
come frutto di una qualche attività intellettuale originaria (l'ho fatto io!)
piuttosto che come rielaborazione di un materiale già dato. E in qualche
misura questo vale anche per la musica stumentale se prendiamo in
considerazione l'idea di genere...

In ogni caso and/OAR propone lavori interessanti sia per chi ama la musica
sia per chi è semplicemente curioso di calarsi con le orecchie dentro
differenze geografiche, come nel caso del lavoro di Marc Behrens e Paulo
Raposo uscito a ottobre, che hanno ripreso Lisbona (città-sonora già
evocata Wim Venders nel suo film Lisbon Story) spostandosi su Ferry Boats,
creando un ritratto di 23 minuti molto suggestivo.

May 6, 2001 contiene cinque interpretazioni a partire dallo stesso field
recording di partenza. Oltre quella di Kirschner : Taylor Deupree, Tomas
Korber, Ralph Steinbruekel e Aaron Ximm. Ogni singola interpretazione
appare particolarmente ispirata nelle intenzioni lasciando emergere
suggestive riflessioni distese nel tempo, coadiuvate dall'utilizzo di strumenti
musicali, equalizzazioni raffinate, tagli, sovrapposizioni o dall'accostamento
di parti grezze e parti manipolate.

Dal sito web di and/OAR è possibile scaricare l'mp3 contenente la versione
grezza di 46 minuti a bassa risoluzione e l'editing (molto bello secondo me)
realizzato da Kirshner sulla base di quel materiale: il ritratto che ne esce è
un paesaggio urbano sordo e desolato, fatto di echi lontani e profondi e
segnato dai percorsi dell'aria ventosa di New York e da piccole raffiche di
corrente che sfiorano, rivelandole, le geometrie degli edifici.

Tutto, le strade, gli uffici, i grandi spazi metropolitani appaiono immersi in
una strana atmosfera, insolita rispetto al viavai e all'operosità che
animavano il Financial Districy allora: è normale che i critici americani siano
stati colpiti dalle similitudini di quel silenzio con il silenzio di oggi a Ground
Zero. (Alessandro Massobrio)

Vital Weekly (October 2006)
The Financial District of Lower Manhattan... perhaps this won't immediately
ring a bell or two, but it's the area of New York where the World Trade Center
was. At night this used to be a quiet neighborhood, with big skyscrapers and
office buildings. Several months before September 11th, 2001, Kenneth
Kirschner walked out one Sunday night to make a field
recording of the area, as part of a series to record various New York
neighborhoods.

This recording was sent to various composers to ask their interpretation of
the sound material, using solely these field recordings. We find here
luminaries as Taylor Deupree, Ralph Steinbrüchel, Tomas Korber and Aaron
Ximm along with a piece that Kirschner did himself. As you can imagine this
is an album you can listen with mixed feelings: either ignore whatever
happened at the World Trade Center and view this a series of highly
processed and highly 'silent' music (with Tomas Korber being its champion
here) or one could see this as solemn requiem to those events.
I prefer to choose the latter.

The emptiness that was there when Kirschner made his recordings versus
the real emptiness that is now there, and that comes alive through the
music. Each of the five musicians seems to be aware of this, keeping in
mind the tragedy through softly humming and buzzing of sounds that slowly
evolve and revolve. Not a release to make you happy, but quite an essential
and highly human release. (Frans de Waard)

Revue & Corrigée (September 2006)
Nouvelle apparition de Tomas Korber au sein d'un collectif international qui
planche sur une prise de son faite le 6 Mai 2001 dans le district financier du
bas Manhattan par Kenneth Kirschner. Le document quasi 'brut' est inclut
dans la compilation permettant une écoute comparative.

Si l'ensemble des traitements et analyses de l'outil electronique misent en
oeuvre par les protagonistes de '6-05-2001' est un des intérets du disque l'
autre tient à leur complémentarité.

En ouverture Steinbruchel à disséqué la masse bruitiste en tranches
fréquentielles bien précises qui portées par des dynamiques variées met en
valeur la nature ondulatoire et mélodique des trames issue du fichier MP3
de K Kirschner. On est immergé dans une fine stratification de hauteurs qui
gomment les références de départ soulignent l'invariance des paramétres
sonores en musique. L'opération aurait par exemple pu s'appliquer à un
orchestre avec des résultats approchant. Purgés des attaques et des
transitoires d'attaques l'identité d'un timbre ce fond dans le creuset
générique des pressions d'airs.

Vient ensuite le travail plus ou moins rythmique d'Aaron Xxim: large usage
de traitements donnant une couleur classique à la piéce et le "document "
de Kenneth Kirschner; Deux pistes ou 'le message est le medium': timbres
brouillés, longs espaces réverbérer, souffle urbain et chaire numérique
s'écoulant d'une artére USB.

La piéce qui suit de Tomas Korber est plus complexe, plus longue,
composer avec des articulations subtiles jouant d'achoppements bruit /
silence, onde / corpuscule, espace / temps qui la rend passionnante et
pleine d'une poésie trés personnelle. On pense au processus si étrange de
particules à la fois ondes et corpuscules, grains et étirements,séparations
et superpositions,au terme de Louis de Broglie 'onde de guidage' comme
suggétions de ce que l'on y entends.

Le premier tiers est une puissante monté de bruit filtré suivi d'une
granulation assez massive qui peu a peu va maigrir pour laisser percecoir la
succession de chaque grain jusqu'au silence.

John Cage dans un livre éponyme écrit : 'un son est aigu ou grave doux ou
fort il a un certain timbre,dure un certain temps et posséde une envellope '.

Cette réalité Tomas Korber l'explore brillamment et gageons que l'auditeur
aura envie de découvrir les autres parties de ce bijou qui confirme son style
unique et une grande cohérence.

La derniere piéce de Taylor Deupree, acteur connu oeuvrant à la frontiére de
l'expérimental et de la pop délivre des douceurs mélodiques peu à peu
contaminer par un monde plus sale de sons traités. Une monté en
puissance qui s'arréte brutalement comme si la place avait manqué.

Conclusion, 6 Mai 2001 est une construction bien faite,passionnante par
endroit qui offre un panel de propositions proche du vade mecum de la
musique electro et acoustique actuelle.

Tokafi (September 2006)

ALBUM OF THE MONTH:
A bond between seemingly unconnected compositions...

The sampler (as a collection of thematically connected tracks) and the remix
have been two of the driving forces behind electronic music. The former
allowed for the public to catch up with developments in an increasingly
atomised world and for red threads to appear within purely individual lines.
The latter was a sort of virtual handshake – the 21st century equivalent of the
cover version. May 6, 2001, even though it will for convenience’s sake be
dubbed thus, is neither a sampler nor a remix album. And yet, it is interesting
to keep these terms in mind when writing about a record, which plays with
conventional forms of collaboration.

If it didn’t sound utterly ridiculous considering the proportions of their fame,
one could well call this a super-group. Yet it is no exaggeration to claim that
within their clearly defined circles, the artists involved here have all
sharpened awareness for certain aspects of their trade. Kenneth Kirschner
is one of the main proponents of the Open License and of Creative
Commons, a man of word and deeds, who has followed up his statements
for freedom of expression with the decision of freely releasing his entire
oeuvre on the Web. Taylor Deupree founded 12K and LINE, two of the
leading labels of the past five years and visionary outlets of microtonal
music. We’ve already had the pleasure of previously reviewing material by
Tomas Korber, whose veinal mix of Spanish and Swiss blood, as well as a
passion for Rock in his early career, has led to a unique style of emotionally
charged passages as part of often very up-front and direct encounters in
sound. Steinbrüchel, meanwhile, who has been received with open arms in
the “club scene”, despite his approach being strictly non-entertaining, is likes
his audiences to “be quiet and to listen”. And finally it is good welcoming
back Aaron Ximm, who will be better known under his “Quiet American”
moniker and whom we had slightly lost track of. Without a doubt, he is one of
the few acts, who have turned field recordings from being mere aural
documentaries into an art form of their own. So, while they are not exactly
likely to pop up in the charts next to Britney Spears any time soon, these
distinguished gentlemen have all contributed to the debate in music and
sharpened the senses. And that makes them a perfect team for a project
initiated by Kirschner.

For it was him, who took a walk down the Financial District of Lower
Manhattan on the date mentioned in the album’s title, with his microphone
picking up the noises and sounds around him. This field recording, which
can be downloaded in its entirety from Ken’s site, in turn served as the basis
for all of the pieces on May, 6. Which brings us back to the remix and the
sampler and why this is neither. The aim of the project was never to simply
present the source material from different perspectives, but rather to use it
as a common pool from whence to draw inspiration. Every kind of electronic
treatment was allowed and there was no obligation in any way to include a
certain amount of the original. And yet the record lives off the belief that even
after several manipulations and dissections, the spirit of that day in
Manhattan will shine through and create a bond between seemingly
unconnected compositions. At the same time, the result is never just a string
of tracks bunched together on the same disc. It is more like different artists
weaving together a huge carpet, each one connecting the knots at his side of
the room. And even though this is not the first time it has been tried, things
have turned out especially rewarding on this occasion.

There are two reasons for that. Firstly, the original field recordings seems to
have been a particularly appealing muse. The finished tracks are all
abundant with ideas, three dimensional textures and surprising structures
and they all sound fresh and inspired. And secondly, all artists have taken
the liberty of confounding expectations just a bit by stepping out of their usual
contexts. Steinbrüchel’s airy piano breaths over a heaving and groaning
bass line, in stark contrast to his mostly extremely poignant efforts, stretch for
a majestic fifteen minutes. In the meantime, Aaron Ximm’s “Negative
Architectures”, surprisingly, hardly leaves a shred of the source material
intact, while Taylor Deupree’s finely woven, glistening chain of harmonies is
set behind a wall of gurgling and rumbling. Korber’s “Financial District”,
meanwhile, is close to his recent album work (this would have worked
perfectly on “Effacement”), but it is a daring twenty two minutes nevertheless:
High-pitched sonorities lead into a cascade of sounds slowly dying down
like a camp fire in the night. Kirschner’s own contribution is darkly tinged and
mysterious, transporting the recordings to five minutes to midnight.
Something is going on here, among a dream of rustling leaves and the wind
whispering in the moon-lit streets, but it is impossible to pinpoint, what. A
multi-layered musique noire, drastically abridged from the 36-minute original
for continuity’s sake.

Which is yet another proof that the point behind May 6, 2001 was not to
satisfy anyone’s vanities, nor to present yet another compilation of loosely
connected tracks. Instead, this is about sharing the same moment, then
telling a story about it and allowing yourself to be as subjective as possible. It
is a joint experience and a common understanding that binds these pieces
together. And that is so much more than any old remix album or sampler
could claim. (Tobias Fischer)

Smallfish (August 2006)
Kenneth Kirschner's work is highly regarded around the world and it's not
hard to see why. His ability to take found sounds, field recordings, tape loops
and semi-classic arrangements and turn them in to engaging, atmospheric
and, often, haunting works is second to none. This piece was originally
sourced in 2001 in the financial district of New York and has subsequently
been manipulated, reinterpreted and revised by 4 high profile minimalist
electronic composers / artists. Taylor Deupree, Steinbruchel, Aaron Ximm
and Tomas Korber all provide dramatically different tracks based on the
original work. From Deupree's simply stunning melodic, signature
arrangement right through to the beautiful, desolate workings of Korber's
wonderfully deep high frequency work, there's a whole world to enjoy here.
There's even an abridged version of the original by Kirschner himself. When
you have artists of this calibre on one CD you know you can't go wrong and
this comes as a highly, highly recommended item. Superb. (Mike Oliver)

EARlabs (June 2006)
This release on Dale Lloyd’s and/OAR label is especially significant to me
for two reasons: First, it serves as an archetype to what ever name one
wants to assign to the art of reinterpreting/recontextualizing pristine field
recordings , and, second, it showcases the talents of five prolific and talented
artists.

The five compositions are all derived from raw field recordings of Lower
Manhattan’s Financial District captured by Kenneth Kirschner on the evening
of May 6, 2001. Personally, I would recommend listening to the untouched
field recording (46 m 43 s) to get a general feel of what these five artists had
to work with before listening to CD (Note 1). However, nothing is really lost
should you choose not to do so.

Ralph Steinbrüchel’s interpretation titled "bank" (15 m 45 s), which is the
lead track, contains his signature style of beautiful tones and harmonics, and
I was pleasantly surprised by the dark undertones that are clearly evident
throughout the track. This is followed by Aaron Ximm’s "negative
architectures" (5 m 27 s). The Quiet American’s unique contribution is the
only rhythmic piece present here with some scratchy percussive effects and
a catchy wah-wah sound. Kenneth Kirschners’s contribution (14 m 22 s) is
the third track and is a truncated version of a lengthier on-line mp3 that can
be downloaded from his website (Note 2). Kirschner’s version definitely falls
in the drone genre - dense and thunderous at times but interrupted by
comparatively milder episodes of noisy static. Following Kirschner’s opaque
version, is the more abrasive approach of Tomas Korber's (22 m 07 s)
"financial district". Although relatively quiet at the beginning, the initial calm
evolves into a brief rush of white noise and then Korber’s trademark sounds
make their presence known - not harsh, but coarse and abstract. The track is
surprisingly milder than what I expected being very low-keyed at times and
even containing a gently resonating drone towards the end of the track. The
album ends with the Taylor Deupree’s beautiful interpretation (4m 16s)
appropriately titled "dust". Although the shortest track, Deupree’s
construction is a vigorous, flowing, and slightly gritty microtonal drone
sprinkled with the 12K microsound aesthetic, but textured with some
interesting discordant sounds. (Larry Johnson)