Experimenting with ways of writing reviews, or reporting about what the music might sound like. In this episode, Robin James keeps out of the story to see how that might work. Always interested in how we communicate, music is the obvious medium, and speaking your ideas in another language is also interesting. We hope you find the responses by Tony Van Dorst to be an interesting self-portrait of the artist WXR_JR.
Think of forever lost recordings hidden in a vault
Think of forever lost recordings hidden in a vault, wrapped in an old brown paper bag or wrapping paper to protect them from contamination, degeneration and erosion. The tapes are carefully dusted off, expertly restored and remastered and then presented to the world. Listening, for me, is opening myself up to all forms of sound without bias. Listening differs from appreciating or judging; I think we still think too much that we are listening when we are actually trying to understand, catalog or judge what we hear according to certain prevailing standards. When listening, I try not to look for references to something that is already known or familiar but I am always surprised at how difficult that is. It is very difficult to listen without prejudice.
Igloo :: What did you hear that changed your path along the way?
WXR_JR :: Silence during the pandemic. Silence too is sound, albeit the absence of sound. Silence is at times stronger than the most heavy sound, more frightening than the most terrible scream. Silence can be an essential part of a release, you just have to know how to dose it. But isn’t that true with everything?
Let’s also remember especially those who are less fortunate than we are. I abhor the thought of people having to make heartbreaking choices at this time of year: food or heat. Anyone who thinks of publishing a charity compilation to alleviate the suffering for these people, I am happy to offer a non-released track that’s still in the vault if they wish. All the best to all your readers, WXR_JR.
What does WXR_JR mean?
To understand this a bit we also have to go back very far in time. Flanders (Belgium) has not always been prosperous. Long before the 1st WW, my grandfather (who had to leave school, or what was supposed to pass for it, already at the age of 7) worked as a shoeshine boy to earn some money to help financially the brooding family he was part of when he was just a kid. This was not by choice but by sheer necessity. In our village, just about everyone used to have a nickname. It was usually derived from a profession, character trait or even a disability. My grandfather was called Wikser because in the dialect of the region he came from, a shoe shiner was called a wikser. I have always found my grandfather a fascinating character. His wife taught him to read later in life (after all, she was Dutch and had been allowed to go to school until she was 10!) and when he was old (at least in my eyes, as he was already in his 80s when I was a kid) he read the newspaper every day. He could also tell great stories and he had that huge garden in which he was always busy with his bent back and from which, as a child, I got the tastiest vegetables, fresh from the ground. Despite all setbacks, he always remained that nice old man whose door was always open to everyone and where you could always go for a good story or nice lemonade. So WXR_JR is just a phonetic translation, as it were, of Wikser (WXR) Junior (JR), because I was the youngest grandson of the youngest son in the family. The capital letters and the underscore were an accident, the CapsLock key got stuck but I left it that way.
What is music?
Music, in my opinion, is about trying to convey emotions from one person to another. A form of expression through which many genres have emerged over time but all can be reduced to emotion: joy, sadness, fear, anger, amazement or disgust. Everyone tells their story in a different way and that is why we are also unique in this world. Emotions, I believe, guide us in our lives and bring us to our needs and desires but also push us to our limits. Very often, we find feelings or emotions difficult because in our society we have cultivated a mentality of ‘get on with it‘ and ‘don’t whine but do it‘. However, emotions are not tangible and we therefore sometimes experience them as awkward, difficult and complicated. Just as there is music that we find tricky, difficult or complicated. But that music is no less interesting for that.
Are you able to bring music back from your nocturnal dreams?
It happens that I wake up and have a (to my mind) great idea. Whether that is then a result of nighttime dreaming escapades I cannot always tell. But then the difficulty begins. I find it very difficult to translate some thoughts to sound. Sometimes it is also better not to translate those thoughts into sound, for instance when I have been dreaming so terribly because I still wanted to see that latest news flash with those most sickening images of absolutely inhuman cruelty to humans or animals, I am so horrified by it and sometimes those images just don’t seem to want to disappear from my mind. I would then want to have the gift of a collective like CRASS or Throbbing Gristle to channel my anger and disgust into sound.
What are some of the most interesting places you have made your music?
The final creation of the track always happens in my small space where I have given my hardware a place. I sometimes mockingly (but mostly self-deprecatingly) call it “my studio”. However, in the short time I have owned my field recorder, I have already made recordings in the craziest places and at the most diverse events. A carillon, an ocean, cycling races or other sporting events, goose riders (a very old folkloric custom dating back to the 17th century). Wooded areas are a favorite place (I can enjoy that pristine silence immensely) but wonderful sounds can also be recorded in the kitchen or utility room. And don’t forget that there is a lot of economic activity in our area now: chemical industry, train stations, shipping. On request, I also recorded their annual concert for a local brass band (and luckily for me they liked the result).
A note from Robin James :: I am experimenting with ways of writing reviews, or reporting about what the music might sound like. In this episode, I am keeping out of the story as much as I can, to see how that might work. I am always interested in how we communicate, music is the obvious medium, and speaking your ideas in another language is also interesting. I hope you find the responses by Tony Van Dorst to my email to be an interesting self-portrait of the artist WXR_JR. Now for the recordings themselves…
WXR_JR :: Excerpts From The Vault Vol. 1 — 10 tracks, 59:48 run time
“Wrecked The Blue Car” (4:38) — Inspired by the images of the unfortunate driver who ruined his beautiful blue car and left it completely worthless after the collision.
“Augusta State Airport” (8:08) — After listening to some random air traffic communications I decided to cut up the roughly recorded pieces without conversations and edited them. Wanted to add a sinister beat to it.
“Dead Flies Don’t Fly” (8:40) — All evening, a lone fly had been harassing me until a well-aimed blow with the fly swatter put a brutal end to it. Dead flies do not fly.
“The Fog” (5:38) — Inspired by the foghorns on the river Scheldt.
“Machines” (4:36) — Manipulations of some recorded sounds of equipment used in and around the house.
“Extensile” (6:38) — Is there really such a thing as a justified war? Created in the aftermath of a visit to the Menin Gate in Ypres.
“True Jubilissimo” (3:04) — Attempt to make a soundtrack to a reunion. The excitement of returning home is overshadowed by a loss.
“The Night Before” (3:54) — Remember what happened “The Day After”…?
“There’s No Discipline In The Distance” (11:24) — Manipulated short-wave receiver recordings
“All Quiet” (3:09) — Sometimes it’s better to keep quiet.
Igloo :: What have been your most important musical or artistic discoveries?
WXR_JR :: Especially all those independent artists who offer their work through these small non-profit labels. I’m thinking of labels like ToneBurst, Hream Recordings, Anticipating Nowhere Records, Rusted Tone Recordings, Adventurous Music, Wormhole World or Shimmering Moods Records, but there are countless others (including obviously the ones I haven’t discovered yet) that it’s hardly possible to mention them all.
Listening to the releases and looking at the originality of the artwork of the accompanying, often complementary packaging of these releases, it is really striking how much love and dedication has been put into these releases. Of course, I must not forget TQ-zine and its associated (sadly now defunct label) TQN-aut as a source of fantastic discoveries. What great releases have appeared on this label is vast unbelievable. I will mention just a few that immediately come to mind right now: Reynols, St James Infirmary, Claude and Ola Aldous (also check out her artwork for TQ-zine, at moments very beautiful and touching), Pinnel, SINNEN, Shunyata Improvisation Group,… there is only one common denominator and that is that quality always prevails over quantity. And to realize that almost all these releases are offered now as free downloads on the Bandcamp page! A few artists who inspired me even more were mainly those who stood out to me in terms of honesty. Their uncompromising approach, their attitude, their originality, but also their respect for people and society, their empathy for those who do not always have an easy time in society (think of all forms of mental health, poverty or victims of violence…). This group includes, among others, dogs vs. shadow, Simon McCorry, Darren j Holloway, and oh so many others who I do wrong by not mentioning them. One, however, deserves extra mention in my opinion. The New Emphatic (Jonas Geiger Ohlin), he is one of the few who touched me so much, so emotional, so real, so honest, so pure.
Expand your mind by not thinking in boxes. ~ WXR_JR
TUSK Festival was also a great discovery. Again not the usual programming but bold and original (Loula Yorke, Yol, Posset, Gaelynn Lea, Mariam Rezaei, William Parker or a Bill Orcutt or Blóm or ah again so many names again I should really mention, check TUSK TV channel on YouTube and you will understand what I mean). Countless non-Western influences to be discovered there. I learned to listen even more than I already did before, not just trying to understand everything. You don’t have to understand everything to find something beautiful and/or interesting. Expand your mind by not thinking in boxes.
WXR_JR :: Excerpts From The Vault Vol. 2 — 4 tracks, 20:20 run time
“Let’s Try Something Else” (3:46) — First experiments with new (software) synths.
“Driving Home Safely” (3:24) — Non-manipulated field recordings of some traffic with a beat. Early experiment with feld recording.
“Dance Motherfcker Dance” (5:58) — Another experiment with (software) synths.
“It’s Never That Easy” (7:12) — It’s never that easy not repeating yourself when you find a nice beat.
Igloo :: What advice would you give to someone starting on the music path?
WXR_JR :: I’m a novice myself but I would recommend them to follow your heart, be honest and don’t start it if you want to make a lot of money. Be open to the new, explore and push your boundaries. Learn from your mistakes, Rome was not built in a day after all. Learn to listen again, expand your mind with all kinds of sounds that are not always obvious. You don’t have to like everything to find it interesting or exciting. Try to grasp the pure intention of the independent artist, what are the backgrounds, why does this artist create the music or sounds he makes. Don’t take anything for granted, think for yourself, form yourself an opinion instead of accepting the pre-made junk. But above all, remember that honest criticism does not have to be negative to be fair, as long as it is constructive. But also always keep in mind: why do you make the music you do, what is your motivation? Be honest with yourself.
Some years ago, I visited some parts of the US and Canada with my wife. Living in a small country, in a region with a lot of industrial activity and almost no vast nature, no mountains, no forests or lakes nearby, we enjoyed this immensely. Enjoying that vastness, that beautiful uncontaminated nature that is definitely at the top of the list again. But there are also wonderful things to experience closer to home. In our own country or region, there are still so many beautiful places, buildings, artworks and so much more to discover and always there are new creative, honest artists who deserve our support and appreciation to discover… I actually dream, no matter where I go, that I get to enjoy the local beauty or hospitality unbiased.
WXR_JR :: Excerpts From The Vault Vol. 3 — 10 tracks 53:44 run time
“Aliens With Guitars” (3:50) — A guitar emulation did not turn out as expected. It looked like aliens were playing the guitar.
“Talking With The Air Above” (5:40) — Cut-up the conversations of random air control towers and put a monotonous beat under them.
“Affected Symmetry” (8:24) — Many people are at ease in a symmetrical environment, wanting everything neatly arranged. What happens if you break this symmetry?
“We Are All Lost” (2:20) — Manipulations of all kinds of messages that are broadcast worldwide to inform people.
“Getting Ready For The Weekend” (6:44) — Are you preparing for the weekend? Had a monotonous week again? Stay at home!
“Bouncing Balls” (12:55) — Experimenting with repetitive sounds mixed with some manipulated field recordings around a train station.
“My Brother J” (7:20) — Roughly based on the children’s song Brother John. “Are you sleeping, are you sleeping, Brother John, Brother John?”
“Countdown” (2:30) — Counting the time… another day inside… how much more to follow…
“For Beirut” (0:58) — Made the day after the explosion in the port of Beirut (contains a manipulated sample from a CNN broadcast of the disaster).
“Oh No No Disco” (3:02) — Started with the intention of making a huge disco hit. But then I thought: disco seemed so passé. So I experimented with recordings of the dishwasher and other household devices.
Igloo :: What would you like to try that you have not tried yet?
WXR_JR :: Pff, there is so much I haven’t tried yet, from different types of transport to dishes of world cuisine or discovering unknown destinations. The question actually overwhelms me a bit. A trip on a submarine or travel in space, everything seems to be possible these days, so it seems. But maybe there is one thing I would still like to try but which I know may never happen. I have always had this great respect for pilgrims who trek to Compostella from all corners of Europe, on foot. I think on this journey of over 1,800 km (if you start from where I live) you get to know yourself better and possibly return as a completely different, maybe even better person.
What is your most cherished accomplishment?
It may sound materialistic, and it has absolutely nothing to do with music, but I am immensely proud of the fact that together with my father I built the house we are living in right now. Only for the things we really couldn’t do ourselves or that required specialized knowledge did we call in help. But then, my father was a real craftsman.
What is next?
I really do not know. Who knows? And maybe it’s better not to know. I just hope it won’t be an unpleasant surprise. But I’m going to try to keep making music, if only because I can clear my head during the creative process. I really hope that one day I can make a song to celebrate the victory of Ukraine and the liberation of the Russian people. Or better yet, a song that celebrates the victory over all injustice.
The idea of the time machine is something that I think fascinates everyone. For instance, I would definitely like to use that time machine to visit my grandfather Wikser, who passed away when I was still a kid, or to meet his wife who passed away long before I was born and of whom I have heard only good things. Maybe I can use them to meet all those I miss terribly again and tell them that I miss them so much. But that time machine is a dangerous thought. Imagine if, before they could cause harm to humanity, you could seek out the biggest criminals, gangsters, politicians, or tyrants of any kind and have them eliminated. Whoah, scary because imagine for a moment that this time machine would fall into the wrong hands and we end up in a big unjust world ruled by the very people we don’t want to be ruled by. And now I thought for a moment that maybe that time machine is already into the wrong hands.
Excerpts From The Vault Vol. 1-3 is available on Adventurous Music. [Bandcamp | Site]
