John Hudak and Jason Lescalleet are two remarkable experimental sound
artists. Hudak is best known for his conceptual sound art, where he seeks to
manipulate sounds found “below the usual threshold of hearing, sounds that
are filtered out or considered non-musical.” On Figure 2 he is joined by
Boston improviser Jason Lescalleet. Lescalleet has worked extensively with
nmperign, a trio with Bhob Rainey and Greg Kelley (two of the most
innovative improvisers in America now) and collaborated with Hudak on a
limited edition 7″ prior.
Figure 2 was recorded in the Lindsay Chapel at the First Church of
Cambridge, Massachusetts during the first blizzard of the season. Hudak used
sounds native to the environment while Lescalleet manipulated old
reel-to-reel tape players to create this amazing array of sounds, which
range from deep rumbles to crackling electronics.
The duo concentrate on slowly evolving sound structures, with repeated
sounds gradually changing and moving in different patterns. Although the
music is improvised, it’s much more atmospheric than the vast majority of
free-improv out there. The closest reference I can think of would be
Organum, where deep textural sound is used as a bed for scrapes and
crunches.
The two cover a lot of ground; the mood ranges from deep and slow
moving, to harsh and scraping, towards clanging machine sounds reminiscent
of the classic material on Slaughter Productions (obscure death industrial –Stratvm Terror, Megaptera,
Murder Corporation Atrax Morgue and their ilk.)
Intransitive is one of a few labels in the US bringing us creative
improvised sounds, and this is quite an impressive release to add to their
already bountiful catalogue. Recommended.
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