Voices #11
◦ “voices” is the place where we ask, artists reply and you read.
here we got:
Thomas / Kaufmann-Buhler
answering some questions. We have already observed their field recordings / experimental / post-rock work here.
◦ [Toby and Wayne speaking alternately]
[1. IDEA]
■ The A. O.: Can you tell us how the track “I remained a stranger to the birds“ came to light?
► Toby: This track came about following work we did on “Kolmar Park”; Wayne and i decided to continue working together, and expand this project to EP length (at the suggestion of Past Inside the Present label head Zach Frizzell). I really loved Wayne’s approach with his guitar playing, so we decided i should return to my field recording sources and from this came a set that i felt really worked together and flowed well from the first track. Wayne then worked his magic and made it into a full piece.
[2. CREATION]
■ The A. O.: How do you usually approach composition? Do you start with a concept, a sound, a state of mind or what else? How do you generally proceed from the initial seed to the complete work?
► Wayne: For this particular piece with Toby, I had to take things on from a different angle than I normally do with the guitar. Most of my work is done with heavily treated guitar played over loops and with some idea of what the track will sound like before I sit down and record. With ‘I Remained A Stranger to the Birds’ I did most of my recordings in one take while listening to the field recordings that Toby had sent over. I’m not well versed in doing improv on the guitar, so it was really special to react to these field recordings and record how I felt. I ended up recording quite a few additional layers of guitar over them to give it a bit more polish on my side as well as applying less reverb on the guitar than I usually do.
[3. FEEDBACK]
■ The A. O.: What do you hope listeners feel or experience when engaging with your music?
► Toby: With this release, i hope it’s a sense of calm and slowness; at the same time maybe an engagement with or awareness of their outer world.
[4. IDENTITY]
■ The A. O.: In a world saturated with digital music content, how do you try to keep your sound distinct and personally meaningful?
► Toby: I find that developing a personal voice in the sound work (and in the case of field recordings, cultivating a personal ear) are important for creating work that is meaningful to me. For both these approaches, it tends to be about what i find interesting, exciting or moving. From there, i can only hope it is of interest to an audience.
[5. INFLUENCES]
■ The A. O.: Name three albums that you consider relevant to your musical path and why.
► Wayne: ○ ‘Atom Heart Mother’ by Pink Floyd is an album that really got burned into my brain when I first listened to it in high school. Particularly the last track ‘Alan’s Psychedelic Breakfast’, which is played into three parts, which also had an influence on me when recording the second track on this release with Toby.
○ ‘Systems/Layers’ is an album by the instrumental group Rachel’s. I forgot how I first discovered this, but it’s always been on heavy rotation for me. Quite a few hushed field recordings on this…definitely a soundtrack for walking through a park or city. This was definitely another inspiration for my approach to working on this release with Toby as well as listening to sounds in general.
○ And ‘Scenes From The South Island’ by Roy Montgomery is something I’ve only gotten into recently and that’s really helped shape my guitar playing. Roy’s music is definitely something I wished I had been listening to sooner, and this is another album that helped shape my approach to the guitar when sitting down making these tracks. Guitars have a funny way of turning memories and feelings into sound.
[6. REGARDS]
■ The A. O.: Leave us with a quote you love.
► Wayne: This is part of a poem titled “You” by Gertrud Kolmar, not exactly a short quote or anything, but I feel this kinda ties this all up since this release Toby and I made is heavily influenced by her work and the park in Chicago named after her.
“In woods I wandered near and far,
And told the birds your name,
Yet I remained a stranger to the birds;
For when I wept not one would sing amen.
The dappled cows that ranged along the ridge
Continued grazing, seldom raised their heads.
So off I ran, returning to the stones
Which cannot give the child that I desire.”