THE MAGIC SOUND OF FENN O'BERG (1999)

THE PLAYFULNESS THAT ACCOMPANIED THIS ERA OF ELECTRONIC MUSIC, TONGUES FIRMLY PUSHED IN CHEEKS AS CEX, KID606, APHEX, BOGDAN RADCYNZSKI, CEEPHAX, V/VM, THE MEMBERS OF FENN O'BERG (JIM, FENNESZ, PETER 'PITA' REHBERG) AND MANY MORE HELPED ESTABLISHED NOT JUST AN ELEMENT OF THE MUSICAL LANGUAGE BUT A SLIPPERY FORM OF IDENTITY FOR MORE RAREIFIED FORMS OF EXPERIMENTAL COMPUTER SOUND. TRICKSTERISH BY NATURE, I THINK IT DID A LOT TO OFFER ITSELF UP AS THE PISS-TAKING FUN FORM OF MUSIC WHILE GUITAR MUSIC GOT REALLY PO-FACED.

THIS ALBUM COMPILES PERFORMANCES FROM A EUROPEAN TOUR OF IMPROVISED LAPTOP PERFORMANCES (I HAVE NO IDEA HOW THAT EVEN WORKS, SORRY). YOU CAN HEAR BITS THAT ARE IDENTIFIABLY FENNESZ (BITCRUNCHY WHIRLWIND GUITAR FLUTTERING) BUT MOSTLY THEY HAVE A GOOD INTERPLAY OF LIGHT-HEARTED ELECTRONIC EXPLORATION. THERE ARE LITTLE SNATCHES OF FAMILIAR MELODIES (IE FROM FAMOUS SONGS) THAT JUMP INTO THE EAR AND OUT BEFORE YOU CAN PLACE THEM.

WHILE THAT MIGHT NOT SEEM LIKE THE PRESS PHOTO OF A GROUP OF LADS WHO ARE A BARREL OF LAUGHS, THIS IS AVANT-GARDE MUSIC THAT HAS MORE IN COMMON WITH THE SURREALIST/DADAIST TRADITION: IT WOULD RATHER MAKE YOU REACT PHYSICALLY THAN OVERTHINK IT TOO MUCH. IT'S A SIDE OF O'ROURKE WE RARELY SEE AND I THINK IT IS QUITE APPEALING ON THE WHOLE.

LIKE A LOT OF IMPROVISED MUSIC WITH TOO MANY BIG NAMES ON THE MARQUEE PERHAPS IT DOESN'T EXPLORE A PARTICULAR MOOD FOR LONG ENOUGH, UNLESS THAT MOOD IS RESTLESS GLEE, IN WHICH CASE IT DOES THAT FOR THE ENTIRE ALBUM.

I'M HAPPY, AND I'M SINGING, AND A 1-2-3-4 (2001)

IMAGINE LOVING INSIGNIFICANCE AND RUNNING OUT TO BUY THIS, WHICH IS EMINENTLY POSSIBLE AS THEY WERE THE SAME YEAR AND FAIRLY WIDELY-REVIEWED AND -DISTRIBUTED. THIS IS A FUNNY THOUGHT BECAUSE INSIGNIFICANCE IS UNCUT-MAGAZINE FRIENDLY WORDY FOLK ROCK, WHILST THIS IS...A DIFFERENT WORLD.

THAT SAID, I'M HAPPY IS AN ELECTRONIC AND PROGRESSIVE RECORD BY JIM THAT IS ACTUALLY MARKED BY A GENERAL SENSE OF LISTENABILITY AND ACCESSIBILITY. 

 

IF YOU RECALL THAT PIECE BY MATTHEW WEINER THAT SAID, AMONG MANY CRUEL THINGS, THE FOLLOWING:

Despite having left the invention of his music to others, O’Rourke has worked hard to vary his shtick, splicing and combining styles with great command and understanding, a la Bad Timing.

WEINER WAS WRITING IN 2002 AND PERHAPS TOO CLOSE TO APPRECIATE THE EFFECT THAT A RECORD LIKE THIS HAS ON THE FUTURE OF MUSIC. IT'S NOT A TERRIBLE CRITICISM, IN AND AMONG SOME OF THE MEANER THINGS WEINER SAYS, TO SUGGEST THAT O'ROURKE TRAILS IN THE WAKE OF PIONEERS AND UNDERSTANDS THEIR LANGUAGE WITHOUT CREATING NEARLY AS MUCH HIMSELF.

HOWEVER, I SUBMIT: THIS RECORD DOES. IT IS A CLEAR BRIDGE BETWEEN THE OUTER WORLDS OF LAPTOP JIGGERY-POKERY AND THE GLITCH-INFLECTED POP WORLD TO COME. ADMITTEDLY DNTEL, WHOSE FIRST RECORD CAME OUT AT AROUND THE SAME TIME, MIGHT LAY CLAIM TO A MORE SIGNIFICANT STAKE IN THE SONIC OUTCOME (THOUGH O'ROURKE'S WAS RECORDED BETWEEN 1997 AND 1999). BUT THIS IS AS MUCH OF A FOUNDING STONE.

 

THIS GOES ALONGSIDE EARLY FENNESZ AND EKKEHARD EHLERS AND NOBEKAZU TAKEMURA IN THE PANTHEON OF IMPORTANT AND HUMAN-CENTRED ELECTRONIC MUSIC OF 01/02 THAT STILL STANDS UP TODAY. THE CLOSING TRACK 'AND A 1-2-3-4' IS SOME OF JIM'S BEST WORK TO DATE FROM BOTH THE PERSPECTIVE OF 2001 AND THE PERSPECTIVE OF THIS ERA-AGNOSTIC BLOG.

CERTIFIED: GOOD

JIM:COMPUTER:HOTEL (2000)

SO MY FRIEND DAVID SAW JIM AROUND THIS TIME DOING 'LAPTOP MUSIC' WHICH SOUNDS IN 2020 LIKE IT COULD BE ANYTHING BUT AT THE TIME IT WAS GENERALLY ASSOCIATED WITH A PARTICULAR TYPE OF AMNIOTIC, ELUSIVE, "AMBIENT" (WE WILL ENCOUNTER AND PERHAPS DISSECT THIS LATER) MUSIC THAT WAS BY TURNS DISTANT FROM CONVENTIONAL STRUCTURES BUT ALSO, BECAUSE OF THE WAY LAPTOPS AND DIGITAL WORKSPACES WORK, INEVITABLY STRUCTURED.

THIS IS A FAIRLY APPROACHABLE SET OF ELECTRONIC EXCURSIONS THAT PERHAPS HERALDS THE DAWNING OF "LAPTRONICA" WITHOUT EVER REALLY COMMITTING TO IT OR SOUNDING OUT OF PLACE ON A LABEL RUN BY AVANT VETERAN MATS GUSTAFSSON (MUCH MORE OF WHOM LATER I WOULD VENTURE). 

I HEAR BITS OF OVAL AND FENNESZ HERE IN THIS REVISITING OF FLUTTERING AND DECAYED SNATCHES OF ELEGIES; NOT QUITE RIVERS OF SOUND BUT OBSESSIVELY FOLLOWING THE SMALLEST TRIBUTARY UNTIL IT RUNS OUT AND THEN WE RETURN TO THE MAIN SOURCE. 

THE LONG MIDDLE TRACK TAKES SOME TIME TO GET INTERESTING SO MAYBE I WOULDN'T RUSH OUT TO CHECK THIS OUT AGAIN ANY TIME SOON BUT AS INSCRUTABLE COMPUTER COMPOSITIONS WRITTEN ON THE ROAD GO THIS IS A PRETTY GOOD BATCH.