[Concept 1, "10:96" label detail / 1996] Reduction The most obvious starting point in considering the Concept 1 and Studio 1 series is the limited amount of samples and instrumentation at play within these records. Individual elements shift very slowly, and the mix privileges exploration in the permutation of deceptively simple rhythmic events rather then distinct movements. This notion of simple syntax evokes Sol Lewitt’s statement for his first Serial Project in which extols the virtue of the familiar square and cube as: 'a more complex form would be too interesting in itself and obstruct the meaning of the whole. There is no need to invent new forms. The square and cube are efficient and symmetrical.'8 The Concept 1 and Studio 1 records are founded on the notion that house and techno, compositionally “simple” forms of music are fertile grounds for the experimentation with sound. They posit that much is to be gained from nuanced exploration of constituent elements (standard percussion, a basic tonal vocabulary, and lots of headroom for exploring effects). Ruscha, described his artist books as an attempt at “styleless” composition, but noted the paradox of his serial image production and cataloging: “I like the anonyminity of photographs,“ he says, “but you can never achieve it. Years from now people will know that they were done in the 1960s.9 Voigt and Hawtin’s projects may not have been about eliminating style, rather they reinvented it through stripping down established modes of composition. Materiality One of the reasons that it is interesting to initiate a discussion about the Hawtin and Voigt records right now is the present state of vinyl culture. Economies of exchange and means of distribution within electronic music have evolved rapidly in recent years, as has performance. Vinyl is no longer essential, and in many circles manipulating records has been reduced to a symbolic function (i.e. mapping digital files to analog turn tables). While vinyl was essential for distributing independent electronic music in the mid 1990’s this is no longer the case. The discourse surrounding artists books, like those produced by Ruscha can give us some clues in how to analyze these records. N. Katherine Hayles has stated that the study of texts is often kneecapped by focusing on narrative and ignoring materiality.10 If the paper stock, binding, typography, and cover are important in literary theory the same scrutiny is needed in thinking about records, as they are objects we not only listen to, but touch, see, and mix. The strategy of reductionism evident in the Studio 1 and Concept 1 recordings are equally at play in their packaging. The Concept 1 records have a comprehensive graphic strategy which involves two diagrams featured prominently on the packaging . Both of these visualizations act to further reinforce the projects connection with the passage of time. The first is three rows of four black circles which is displayed on the front of each record jacket. With each EP, the circle corresponding to the number of the release contains a small red circle. This is mirrored by a clock-like diagram on the back of each sleeve. Each EP contains two tracks, which are named after sequential hours of the day (i.e. EP 4 contains 7:00 and 8:00) which increase as the releases accumulate. The entire set registers the 12 months of 1996, and the 24 hours of a single day. The label of each record also contains this clock diagram around its perimeter and the only text on each release identifies the month and the year (i.e. 10:96). Each of the Studio 1 records is packaged in a generic sleeve, about 80% of which is the solid colour corresponding to the release. The remaining vertical white band on the right of each jacket provide space for the only text on the front which reads: Studio 1 (the back is essentially the same with a brief blurb referencing Profan as the parent label). For each release, the sleeve and the text are the colour of the EP. This colour matching carries through to the label artwork, which features a solid coloured circle covering the majority of the label and again the Studio 1 text. With both of these release, nothing is named, only “tagged.” The Concept 1 records have a definite order and collectively function as a calendar, marking when each record was released. When considered as a group the Studio 1 project seems to yield a range of colour, but instead of a colour wheel we find ourselves in the possession of a series of colour discs, a range of aurally perceptible spectrum. This idea of series as index, and packaging as notation challenges the notion of the recording as a commodity. In this universe “moving units” has more to due with modularity then commercial success. When Ruscha embraced self-publication, and used it to deliver dry serial photography it forced his audience to confront the conventions of publication in order to interface with the work. Importing the same tactics used in composition to the graphic realm helped reinforce the tone of the Concept 1 and Studio 1 releases and also foregrounded the conventions of naming and packaging music that often go unnoticed.
[Studio 1 "Green" sleeve detail] Recombination Aside from timing and formalism, the Concept and Studio 1 records have another connection in that both projects were remixed by German producer Thomas Brinkmann.11 In the mid 90’s the Cologne based producer had been experimenting with turntables, and like fellow artists Christian Marclay or Martin Tetrault he had developed a distinct relationship with vinyl as a medium. Brinkmann created a dual armed turntable, and used it to remix selections from Voigt’s Studio 1 project (Studio 1 – Variationen released in 1997) and then the Concept 1 records (Concept 1 – 96:VR released in 1998). These remixes treat their source material as territory to be explored rather then raw material to be reorganized. Brinkmann used the dual stylus’ to mix these tracks with themselves, often playing two moments from the same piece on beat but out of phase, yielded swirling soundscapes that seem to shift, sway, and hypnotize. It is not without irony that Brinkmann used two of the most excellent sets of DJ tools ever created to create these “phasescapes,” but the resulting work is a fascinating mediation on the original sound design, and means of distribution (their vinyl-ness) that completely resonates with the fetishization of permutation in Sol Lewitt’s work. ß In the same way that Lewitt is compelled to map out every possible variation in Incomplete Open Cubes, when listening to Concept 1 – 96:VR and Studio 1 – Variationen you can’t help but feel like the same rigor is being applied in exploring every nuance of the constitutent elements (individual tracks) that comprise these projects.12 Conclusion In many ways the Studio 1 and Concept 1 projects represent a high water moment in minimal electronic dance music, these series rank prominently in a body of work released throughout the mid 90s that helped develop an audience for sleeker iterations of house and techno. One of the interesting things about prototypes is they have the capacity to continue to radiate an aura of innovation even years after they have changed the environment into which they are introduced. This is certainly the case with these key Hawtin and Voigt releases, and these producers subsequent influence on the marketplace through their m_nus and Kompakt labels. Although the market has become saturated, and in many cases the “sound” has been reduced to banal product, it would be naïve to dismiss the possibilities offered by this mode of working as stagnant as sound design continues to evolve rapidly. In many ways, the project of minimalism in house and techno can be read as an apparatus attempting to render all possible permutations of the rhythms and structures associated with these styles. The same tracks are consistently re-written, re-released, remixed, and sometimes even remastered. Considering the volume of minimal electronic music being released at the moment, it would be interesting if the strategies employed in designing and composing sound could be applied to authoring more comprehensive projects as exemplified by the Concept 1 and Studio 1 series. -- Suggested Listening This is a list of releses pertaining to the discussion in this essay, it is not a complete but these are the records that I consider to be directly relevent to what I have written about. Active before/during 1996:
Discussed in this essay:
Also relevant: |
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