Martin Franklin & Michael Northam
"An Opening Of The Earth: Recovered"
“….excavating the sonic crust with heavy synthesised drones, trebly buzzes and popping bursts of sound……eerie as hell.”
Darren Bergstein, I/E (from review of original release)
"An Opening Of The Earth: Recovered" revisits a spontaneous collaboration between the two musicians, captured in the early 90's. Recorded in an obsolete format, no longer playable with today's technology. The old playback device, recovered from dusty storage for one last use, and the recording of this event brought back into the present - recovered once again.At once a sonic artifact of the recent past and a touchstone for contemporary developments in lo-fi electronic sound.
Franklin and Northam's original meeting saw them both on the cusp of developments in their own careers. Franklin's seminal Ambient trio, TUU shortly after embarked on an enduring series of CD releases and performances across Europe. Michael Northam's nomadic life as a travelling sound artist continued from this point onward, leaving a trail of recorded evidence from projects in 25 countries.
Mythic imagery of man descending into the mysteries of the Inner Earth is conjured in this intense recorded performance.Using lo-fi sampling, eerie drones, percussive metal instruments and effects, the players trace an intuitive path through a midnight electronic improvisation. Snippets of sound from other projects of that time slip in and out of the mix, roughly recorded Theatre rehearsals, and audio of UK street life appear from dictaphone tapes. Like an unearthed archeological find, the recordings of this ritualistic performance tie the pieces to their location, as well as the events of their time.
After unearthing the original tapes, Martin Franklin has created all new mixes for this Faria Records release, including previous unheard sections, re-interpreted and enhanced for the 21st Century listener.
Limited edition of 500 pieces, FAR-23, 2008
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