JOHN DUNCAN

CHARGE FIELD

1996 Ash 3.4
Track composed with Giuliana Stefani included on Antiphony.
Released on Ash.

With a glut of mediocre compilations on the market at the moment,it was with some caution that I approached this latest offering from Ash International. However, it soon became obvious that this was no hastily assembled genufection to market forces,but more a labour of love. From the gorgeously produced packaging to the slightly eclectic mixture of artists and soundmongers, such as Chris and Cosey, John Duncan, and RLW – to ‘lesser knowns’ like L.O.S.D. and Mark Poysden all interpreting the VLF recordings of the CD’s compiler Joe Banks a.k.a. Disinformation, this compilation oozes style and quality. Many of the tracks sit seamlessly together, and no sign of any ‘fillers’ here. Surely one of the finest compilations of the last twelve months, this is certainly one to rush out and buy.”
Immerse

The third of Ash International’s thematic double disc compilations presents another sonic panorama of striking enigmas, set between photographs and texts concerning the VLF receptions at the basis of the music of Disinformation. Indeed, it is Disinformation whose music here is interpreted by a wide array of experimenters, many of whom appear out of character. Setting the tone is RLW, of Selektion fame, providing a bleak canvas of low rumbles, pointilized with various tones and crackles. Not allowing a fall into the beautiful gray void, the collection introduces an antiphonal array of textural choirs: dark electroacousticians (RLW, Kapotte Muziek, M. Behrens, Mark Poysden), noisemakers (Bruce Gilbert, John Duncan & Giuliana Stefani, Disinformation), oscillator electronicians (Chris & Cosey, Atom Heart, LOSD, SETI), and electronic pulsationists (People Like Us, Mark Van Hoen, Zbigniew Karkowski & Eric Lyon). And yet this rather facile division gives little indication of the variety encountered along the two-hour journey, or of the density of data emitted and occasionally bulk-downloaded through the speakers during this symphonic ode to the mysterious information in the largest and smallest of particles.
— Joshua Maremont, i/e

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