SOUNDTRACK: ERIC CHENAUX-Sloppy Ground [CST052] (2008).
It took several listens before I fully enjoyed this disc. There’s something about Chenaux’s voice that is very calming, almost soporific. And, since his general songwriting style is kind of ambient and almost formless–with no real choruses or even rhythms, the disc tends to get lost in the ether. There’s also some unusual instrumentation (electric harp & guitarjo (!)) too, which continues the otherworldly feel of the disc.
What really hooked me into the disc though was the three “funk marches” that distinguish themselves from the rest of the disc. “Have I Lost My Eyes” comes in like a raging gust of fresh air after the first three drifting tracks. It’s got a strong melody and raw drums that propel this fantastic track. “Boon Harp” & “Old Peculiar” have a similar strong vibe. And they are really the anchors of this disc.
The rest of the album isn’t bad, I just find it hard to listen to in one lengthy sitting. The opening three songs tend to drift a round a little too much. But one at a time, these songs are pretty cool.
[READ: Last Week of September 2009] The Fifth Column & The Flexicon
These two pieces were part of the list of uncollected David Foster Wallace publications. The difference with thee two pieces is that he plays a small role along with several other authors. Both of these pieces are sort of a exquisite corpse idea. Although unlike a true exquisite corpse, (in which the author sees only a little of the end of the previous author’s work) it’s pretty clear that the authors had access to the entire work. The quotes in bold are from The Howling Fantods.
For a delightful exquisite corpse piece that I authored see the untitled comic strip on my website. About ten years ago I started an exquisite corpse comic strip and sent it to a number of people who all had a lot of fun continuing the story. I have finally put it online at paulswalls.com/comic. (See, artists, I told you I’d do something with the cartoons some day!) (more…)
I Just Read About That... 