Firstly, a little bit of history. When the compact cassette became popular during the 1970s and into the 1980s, it was on the back of a few significant attributes. It was much more compact and able to store more music than rival formats. The user was able to create their own playlists, and use the medium to make multiple copies. It was accompanied by a piece of iconic, portable hardware. And the music industry powers that be had a bitter bone to pick over the legality of what the populace would do with such conveniences. Sound familiar? Which is why I find it vaguely ironic that the current underground, in its backlash against digital formats, has taken to the compact cassette as its ‘tangible’ alternative.
I mention this only because within 15 seconds of pressing ‘play’ on my very reliable tape player, I was reminded of the total fallibility of the medium. The sound turned to a high pitch squeak, then stopped altogether, leaving me to untangle the mess of stretched brown magnetic tape from the heads of my player. The medium is fun in a nostalgic way, but there are good reasons it was largely phased out. The music on this particular cassette is worth keeping, but it’s just not going to last very long unless I transfer it.
Kutomo from Finland takes side one and delivers 25 minutes of ‘Songs For The Astral Traveller’. It’s the kind of music you wish new age music actually was – improvised organ/synth moving slowly about as a wash with heavily delayed flute meandering, then topped with Kutomo’s (also heavily delayed) voice explorations, which sit somewhere between Gregorian and Tibetan monks with dashes of Andes Mountain chanting. It all floats along beautifully but with a cheapness and subtle sense of grit that stops it being wallpaper. The side closes out with Melbourne’s Anonymeye adding some of his guitar filigree as he reworks a Kutomo track.
Which is a nice segue into the ‘Songs For The Last Minute Traveller’ side by Anonymeye. Early Anonymeye recordings had interest but were hampered by technical/technique problems which were not entirely transcended by creativity. However, this collection demonstrates considerable development. There is a recognisable Anonymeye sound now, based around acoustic guitar improvisations (with the aid of loop pedals) and similar synth explorations. These are distinguished by an airiness and lightness of touch. A sense of the whimsical is ever present. Perhaps through a concentration on the treble end of the sound spectrum, the music is able to float, ungrounded and transient. The occasional synth note that strays into bass territory is then a stark contrast, adding brief but significant points of difference. Some subtle traces of degraded digital processing keep you aware that this is music attached to the now as much as it seeks timelessness. Very beautiful indeed. A reworking by Kutomo finishes off the side and the segue back to the first side is in place, one advantage the cassette does have over formats.
I’ve only heard a couple of things on the Bedroom Suck Records label, but it’s all been rather excellent and their profile is a little less obscure these days. So I’d recommend tracking down a copy. Just make sure you transfer it across to a sturdier format before the cheap cassette disintegrates and takes the music with it.
Adrian Elmer
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