For the slew of strong releases that come our way from Touched left, right, and center, it’s easy to forget that the label has its roots in the compilation and that it’s something they’re incredibly good at.
Another behemoth collection of artists both established and up-and-coming
Well it’s my birthday, the big “four-oh.” Grown-up time. This year I’ve been given a musical present to mark the occasion with, and apparently I have to share it with everybody else. Fine. I shall stomp my feet and eat all the ice cream myself then. As I am now mature, I’m celebrating this year by going record shopping in my favorite city—Tokyo. And what could be better than walking around on the hunt for music you wonder? Well I’ll tell you—it’s walking around on the hunt for music, listening to good music.
Last time this happened I had Skurken’s Dagur on repeat as I traversed the many nooks and crannies the world’s largest metropolis has to offer, and this time around it’s once again Touched Music to the rescue with the incredible third instalment in the Found Sound compilation series.
For the slew of strong releases that come our way from Touched left, right, and center, it’s easy to forget that the label has its roots in the compilation and that it’s something they’re incredibly good at. Behemoth collections of artists both established and up-and-coming, the guessing games of the Covert series with the mystery artists and Found Sound(s) 1 & 2 themselves—none of them have disappointed.
As last time Found Sound 3 once again kicks off with a track by Humanoid which I can only describe as a throwback to a time of ‘selected ambience’ if you will. Eerily familiar yet novel, it’s a lovely setup for the variety of noise that’s about to come my way. Drøn (who you might know as Signalform) throws down an immersive six minutes that’s also very classic-sounding. There’s something very new-age and meditative about it which makes it perfect for walking.
Only three tracks in I’m happy to discover a new artist in Andrey Orenstein—the supplied NDNL remix of “Gone From This Place” is full and rich that outros with a pleasant Zero-7 like plucking string. I already see this will be one of the strengths of the compilation as I start trawling Discogs and Bandcamp for back catalogues and new things to listen to.
There are many other targets of my web-based inquisition—DTACK, whose track “Dumb Isn’t It?” is anything but; gives me just the kind of cadences and sounds that solidified my early love for electronica. Acreationator’s “I Mustn’t Rush” is part Wisp, part breakcore, part Tom Jenkinson, but most importantly all good.
I am finally defeated in my quest for knowledge by the bare minimal net presence of Neon Disturbance, who have rather carelessly brought themselves to my attention with “Empty Vessels.” Although at first not the most obvious candidate for my liking, I quickly come to the realization that it’s actually a masterpiece, with tons of techniques and feelings that builds up into one of the most emotive yet simple sequences I’ve recently experienced. I find only a Bandcamp user-collection page, suspiciously filled with recognizable recent releases from artists that I like—you may win this time but mark my words I will find you again.
It’s not just the quality of the music, but also the curation and placement
As I board a bustling train to my next destination, what hits me is a rhythm that’s equally energetic and downright synaptic, matched perfectly to the throngs and waves of life in the place I’ve found myself in. I ease into the realization that it’s a Plaid remix, no wonder paired so well with my surroundings, my eyeballs dance around taking it all in and creating my own personal modern Koyaanisqatsi in my head. Of identical importance is who is being remixed, the pairing of John Tejada and The Bee providing sublime instrumentals and opulent material from which they can work.
With all compilations it’s not just the quality of the music they contain but also the curation and placement, both of which are well executed once again by those over at Touched. A perfect example of this for me is the pair of tracks by ISAN and Mrs. Jynx and µziq—”Deluge Skating” and “Opal Fruits,” respectively, are both two sides of the same jolly and frisky coin.
A very different coin is the subsequent appearance of exm who not only masters the release but offers up his own work. As exm, “uticall” opens bold and brassy like Torrence approaching the mountains—no clue what is in store for him up ahead. It’s foreboding as I reach the halfway point of the compilation, I also don’t know what’s up ahead but off the back of the recent Comp (Dyadik, 2022) release, and this track, I’m ready for anything.
For those of you planning to listen to this on CD, The Future Sound Of London will be starting the proceedings of the second disc for you. Please make sure you keep your arms inside the disc at all times, as although they’ve written something that may be relaxed in pace, I can’t help but move erratically to it. There’s something very braindance about it, and it’s very nice.
There are yet other treats—Luke Vibert basically engages party mode in “Computer Sounding Shit.” It’s sample filth and madness abound and it’s the side of Luke I love to see.
exm also appears once again as one half of Heogen (the other half being Touched’s founder Martin Boulton aka Min-Y-Llan) and what they’ve made together—”Acetone”—is really different. Remember that time in the 90s when any film soundtrack of note had to have an ersatz middle-eastern feel? Well that begins like this and it’s just incredibly fun. True to style, this manages to morph and weave beautifully through its six minutes.
The star of my show however has to be Yimino. New material from them is to be worshipped and praised at all times and “Serial” is no exception. Strong sample work is often hard to come by, but it’s right here folks—come and get some. The initial collapse of a phone call into what I can only describe as acoustic squalor; it’s like being trapped inside a sofa that’s trapped inside another sofa that’s underwater. It’s sublime beyond belief, and it makes me ache for more.
In true style, Grid Pattern knocks the design work for the release out of the park again, and this time it’s even more special with a moving dedication to Steve Brown, a much-loved Peel-esque hero in the community who sadly passed earlier in 2022. I think he would have loved this compilation, and it goes without saying that I think you will too—come and get it.
Found Sound 3 is available on Touched Music. [Bandcamp]
