FREEFORM - Audiotourism Vietnam & China / Audiotourism Vietnam & China Reinterpretations

07'01

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FREEFORM
Audio-Tourism: Vietnam & China
(QS107) Quatermass 2001
08 Tracks. 53mins25secs.

FREEFORM
Audio-Ttourism Reinterpretations
(QS117) Quatermass 2002
08 Tracks. 67mins08secs.
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After six albums and nearly ten years, Simon Pike remains largely unknown, and these two records are unlikely to very much alter this trend. With sonic configurations approaching surgical precision, Freeform has however become something of a legend on the electronic scene, alongside Autechre and Coil. Pike’s releases, flirting in turn with ambient, electronica, techno, dub and industrial have proven to be enduring records. His vision of abstraction has attracted a good few labels, from Worm Interface, who released his two first LPs, to Warp, Skam, Leaf and, more recently, Sub Rosa and their sub-label Quatermass. This apparent dispersion, although likely to have something to do with Freeform not managing to establish himself more firmly, has most definitely allowed him to experiment more freely with sound.
Resulting of two months spent recording street noises, instruments (dan bau, tam thap luc, co’ng or po) and environmental sounds in the Yunnan province, in the South West of China and in Vietnam, Audio-Tourism is not a documentary on traditional oriental music by any stretch of the imagination. Built around these sources, sampled, processed and re-conceptualised, this album is above all the work of an accomplished musician. All beat structures are based on actual percussions, mixed with drum machines to form complex combinations on which Pike applies textured sound combinations, expanding on the sonorities collected. As the man assembles without distinction samples from different areas, each track feeds on combined atmospheres, creating intricate impressionist patchworks of intense beauty.
For the second segment of this project, Simon Pike asked a handful of artists, including Jan Jelinek, Tal, Bill Laswell, Atom™ and Autechre, to work from his material and same sound sources, giving them total freedom of interpretation. More than a remix album, Audio-Tourism Reinterpretations takes the original concept to new heights as each artist give their own vision of the work and reading of the resources available. If the versions by Tal or Bill Laswell do simply with juxtaposing found sounds and electronic treatments, pretty much conserving the elements in their original form, Jan Jelinek’s, Shudo’s or Mash’ta’s processing is more acute, perfectly integrating them into their own soundscapes by fervently deconstructing them. Rather unsurprisingly, the most challenging and detached input comes from Autechre. With a sound design equalling their most intricate and abstract work, the Manchester duo submit a minimalist piece of structural glitch and distorted drones.
This release comes with an additional CD featuring almost thirty minutes of original sound sources. More than a sonic photo album, this gives an interesting insight on the found sounds used on both albums.
The Audio-Tourism collection amazes by its sonic qualities, as Simon Pike avoids the pit falls of a techno-world album by not over-loading his compositions with sound sources, creating intense soundscapes cleverly put together and processed. Audio-Tourism Reinterpretations presents a different angle on the project, with all the artists involved expanding on Pike’s mini-disc recordings and original work, bringing new elements and personalities to the music. If both album work perfectly on their own, the combined listening experience is even more fascinating.
AUDIO-TOURISM VIETNAM & CHINA

AUDIO-TOURISM REINTERPRETATIONS

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TRACK LISTING - Audio-Tourism: Vietnam & China

01	Abla Eedio	05	Ladyburst
02	Kortisin	06	Rakimou
03	Headspin	07	Ol
04	Myopia	08	Seph

TRACK LISTING - Audio-Ttourism Reinterpretations

01	Shackbu	01	Dang Spot
02	Ralome	02	Pino Pomo
03	Little People	03	Last Remembered Thing
04	3 Recurring	04	Lambs Eyes
05	Buddy	05	New Bass Hippo
06	Dead Sea	06	Churn Maiden
07	Gel Lab
08

ALSO CHECK

ELASTIC SPEAKERS Worm Interface 1995 Buy it on line now _	Unit Reflection:cone Bubbled Ect Infinite Timer Backspace Re:1 Gammon Fonk Opp:expone Nenne:int3 Evolve Junction Arche Re Corde _
HETERACHY Worm Interface 1996 Buy it on line now _	Culk Late Surface Caniton Web Abscence Blot Vent Anti Zok Sectors Unres Relocation Namme O _
PATTERN TUB Headphone 1998 _	Upuntia Know Poundland Cautious Persuit A-symetric DLR Monza Lecta (3:32) My Window _
ME SHAPE Sprawl 1999 Buy it on line now _	Yours Sincerely Munchogram Blip Zing Arial Automatic Konk Meng Foil Superfink GNI Tangle Hey _
GREEN PARK Sub Rosa 1999 Buy it on line now _	Tired Of Waiting Precision Clownage Windup Sopping Wet Twentytwo Spinder Wait4me! Craving For Grey Tin I Hope You Like It _
AUDIOTOURISM VIETNAM & CHINA Quatermass 2001 _	Phu Quoc Lijiang Saigon Mekong Delta Lugu Lake Hanoi Crosstalk Terminal 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,(12) _
AUDIOTOURISM REINTERPRETATIONS Quatermass 2002 Buy it on line now _	Traffic Echoes Jan Jelinek Chin Haouss Tin Pak Tal We Made You, We Can Destroy You Shudo Buddhistgroovemaster Mash'ta Lost World Bill Laswell Audiotourist Atom™ A.T. Reform Colongib & Octopus Inc. A.T. Autechre Scene One Scene Two Scene Three Scene Four Scene Five Scene Six

THE SURFER'S GUIDE TO FREEFORM

AUDIO-TOURISM
The Audio-Tourism web site offers a lot of sound snippets from the album, and allows visitor to associate sounds and places.

FREEFARM
The very well designed Freeform official home, Freefarm, hosts a great deal of MP3s and links as well as a complete discography and live updates.

CAUTIOUS PERSUIT
This rather simple but well presented fan site provide some interesting complementary information on the Freeform project.

QUATERMASS
Very old skool type web site for this experimental Belgian record label.

WARP RECORDS
Warp is certainly the most exiting label of the last ten years. Home of British electronica, it also hosts some very good pop-like stuff.