Very happy to see these two important Phauss albums reissued by the Room 40 label. Audiodrome (RM4177) and Nya Sverige – Nothing But The Truth (RM4178) have been reissued as CDs, both with books – the first one contains photos, documents, and artworks, while the second contains the text of a conversation between Phauss and Lawrence English (label boss), plus documents from their USA tour of the 1990s.
Phauss was Carl Michael von Hausswolff (CMVH) and Eric Pauser, both Swedish artists. CMVH founded the Radium 226.05 label in 1983, although before that it was an art gallery in Goteborg, and went through other cultural incarnations – a magazine, a place for film screenings, and a music venue. Zbigniew Karkowski, Erik Pauser, Ulrich Hillebrand, and Freddie Wadling were just some of the names bubbling in that cauldron. I think Pauser threw in his lot with this nexus of activity around 1986, and the year after that we saw the first Phauss release arrive, Audiodrome. For some reason I thought this (and all original vinyl Radium records) had become major collector’s items, but I see it’s possible to buy a copy for around £40. Radium was a real artists’ label; the creators did the designs, layouts, and controlled the content of the releases. “We also had some support from the Swedish Council for Cultural Affairs – a kind of a platform support,” CMVH told this magazine in 2002. “I think we gave away most of the records.”
Audiodrome (originally released as Radium RA 029) was recorded in 1986 and 1983, both sides taking in an extensive panoply of countries, reflecting the Phauss mission to travel and collect field recordings from other countries – side one covers Switzerland, Syria, Lebanon, Iran, Pakistan, India, Thailand, The Philippines and USA. The 1983 tapes were made in Morocco, Algeria, Niger, Benin and Nigeria. That’s right, two long sides of documentary / field recordings / phonography – a method which may seem familiar now, but there’s quite a bit more to it. For one thing, the creators appeared to use some form of “chance procedure” to assemble the diffuse and diverse tapes – but one should use that phrase with caution. “Chance systems can only function if they’re established within a strict framework,” points out Carl. “The Phauss Audiodrome recording used a pre-randomized time frame [which] the sounds would be fitted into.” While the first piece was made in conjunction with a video project (Prodrome), the Morocco and Laos recordings on the B side are likened here (in the press notes) to the cut-ups of Burroughs and Gysin. Radio, aircraft, street musicians and snatches of dialogue and conversation all contribute to this “unsteadying journey”. The effect they were after was some sort of geographical shift, putting together one country on top of another; more than just a “travelogue”, or a clever collage of elements, they seemed to be intent on bringing about some sort of alchemical change in the world, or at least a shift in the way we perceive the world. “The concentration of recordings makes an interesting picture of the whole,” said CMVH in that 2002 interview. “How the world looks…how it functions. It might be a difficult task to theorize upon it, but emotionally you get it. This goes for Audiodrome and Nya Sverige-Nothing But The Truth.”
By the time of the second album, I think Phauss had started their work of replaying their field recordings in other countries; the idea that in every city you perform, you could relay that city’s own sounds back to the audience, as part of the performance, and see what psychic consequences might result. Certainly this became a tactic that CMVH would pursue in his solo career. Nya Sverige-Nothing But The Truth is from 1991, came out on CD, and was released by Anckarstrom in Sweden. A single track of some 53 mins, it may include sub-sections titled Moving Towards The Sun, Supreme Bliss, and Folkwar. Phauss made the recordings while touring the USA, along with The Hafler Trio and Zbigniew Karkowski. I gather this tour – dubbed “extreme Swedish Industrial” in one of the flyers – has since acquired a reputation as some sort of benchmark of excellence in the field of experimental sound-art, assuming that excellence is something you equate with risk-taking and danger, including setting the stage on fire, and engaging in “intense physical rituals”.
Sonically, this is quite a different proposition to the field-recording collage method of Audiodrome, and mostly comprises ultra-chilly, greyed-out mysterious soaring drones, much like a good deal of the very abstract material I associate with CMVH’s solo career from, say, 1997 onwards. It starts out disquieting, and perpetually stands on the edge of tipping over into something horrifying – the aircraft roar gradually turns into the teeth of a spinning buzzsaw. I’d also like to think Nya Sverige is somewhat critical if not outright hostile, almost amounting to a clandestine assault on the very country where it was made – bombing the USA through subversive sounds. I base this assessment on certain solo records by Carl Michael where there’s a very real sense of political engagement – not just a deep connection with the chosen location, but tapping into a nation’s psyche, to produce a very profound forensic examination of what makes the country tick.
In this respect, he (and Phauss) are not too far away from major 20th century conceptualists such as Joseph Beuys or Marcel Duchamp, both of whom he admires. As such, it’s perfectly plausible to view both of these records as extremely significant art statements, and both are recommended. From 2nd March 2023.