Might be the first time we’ve heard Eloine solo, although we did encounter this Bryan Day alias on a certain cassette where he matched Swan Vestas with Ypsmael, the unknown musician from Germany.
Here on Moldy Cushions (FLAG DAY RECORDINGS FDR76), Day reminds us he’s been building his own sound devices since the late 1990s – over 25 years, in fine, so presumably his home in San Francisco is now a more engaging and unusual museum of objects than any given “Wunderkammer” of the Renaissance times. This set of nine contracts, tests and schemes (we can’t help but apply building technology terms to such a hard-hatted build-em-up fellow as Day, one whose toolbelt is the envy of every Batman impersonator) has taken him some time to realise, some of it in other countries beside the USA, fitting things in between tour dates and collaborative actions.
The completion of his new studio in San Pablo – dubbed “Clamorworks” on account of all the armour-plated sealife that dwells there – may also have played a role in liberating his hands, mind, and thigh-bones in the realisation of these imaginative cronksteroos. Seems that each piece, from ‘Weird Functions’ to ‘Pancakes In Cement’, began life as a free-spirited improvisation when he picks up any given hand-made veeblefetzer in one hand and a broken household object (such as a digital waffle iron) in the other. So long as sparks are dancing about somewhere in the room, he’s probably happy with the way things are developing. The local Fire Marshall installed a hotline direct to the studio to deal with the frequent emergencies. Matter of fact the mayor of San Pablo insisted that this requirement be explicitly stated as part of planning permission for Clamorworks.
Once the recording has gone down, Eloine commences the editing process – I’m relieved to learn he’s not one of those who insists on giving us the full magoo for every one of his published improvs – and it’s during this stage, presumably a lot calmer than the maniacal performance step, that “structural elements develop”, to use his own term. To put it another way, he composes using magnetic tape (or digital audio files, more likely), following in a long creative tradition of studio experimenters. Eloine could lay a plausible claim to tick many antecedent boxes, from Harry Partch to Pierre Schaeffer by way of Adam Bohman and Damian Bisciglia, yet of course he also strives to find his own inner voice in amongst the shavings of his wonky scrabbling devices and his unique gestural actions.
Not a conventional musical note to be found, yet nor is it “noise” in the sense that a Ron Lessard would’ve recognised. These “moldy cushions”, far from being stale or decaying, offer many a crunchy bite and vitamin-enriched experience for your ears, much like a bowl of fresh apples. (15/07/2024)