Skip to main content

John Oswald - Plexure

 

Author: Julia Ranft

B.A. American Studies (HF), English Studies (NF)

Email: s0173273@stud.uni-frankfurt.de

Matrikelnummer: 7485864

The Future of (American) Music

Prof. Dr. Bernd Herzogenrath

Listening Report 10

John Oswald - Plexure

            "Plexure" is a unique piece of experimental music created by Canadian composer and sound artist John Oswald. Released in 1993, the song is a collage of various sound samples that were collected from a wide range of sources, including popular music, radio broadcasts, spoken word recordings, and even animal sounds. Oswald's intention was to create a dense and complex tapestry of sounds that would challenge the listener's expectations and understanding of what music can be.

            The song opens with a disorienting series of electronic blips and beeps, which soon give way to a jarring mashup of voices, instruments, and sound effects. The different elements of the collage are layered on top of each other, sometimes fading in and out of focus, sometimes overlapping in a chaotic and unpredictable way. The effect is both exhilarating and overwhelming, like being bombarded with information from all directions at once.

            One of the most striking features of "Plexure" is the way Oswald juxtaposes different sounds and genres against each other. For example, at one point in the song, he seamlessly blends together snippets of classical music, jazz, hip-hop, and rock. The result is a kind of sonic collage that reflects the dizzying diversity of musical styles and influences that have shaped our culture.

            At the same time, Oswald's use of sampling and remixing also raises important questions about the nature of creativity and originality in the age of digital technology. By taking pre-existing sound recordings and re-contextualizing them in new and unexpected ways, Oswald challenges traditional notions of authorship and ownership in music. In many ways, "Plexure" can be seen as a kind of sonic manifesto for the postmodern era, in which cultural products are constantly being recycled and repurposed in new and innovative ways.

            Of course, "Plexure" is not for everyone. Its dense and chaotic soundscapes can be difficult to penetrate, and some listeners may find the lack of traditional musical structure and melody off-putting. However, for those who are willing to engage with the song on its own terms, "Plexure" offers a unique and thought-provoking listening experience that challenges us to think differently about the nature of music, creativity, and culture.

            In conclusion, "Plexure" is a remarkable piece of experimental music that pushes the boundaries of what we traditionally think of as music. By creating a dense and complex collage of sound samples, John Oswald challenges our expectations and understanding of what music can be, while also raising important questions about creativity, authorship, and ownership in the digital age. Whether you love it or hate it, "Plexure" is a work of art that demands our attention and respect.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

William Basinski – The Disintegration Loops III

  The Disintegration Loops is a quartet of albums published in 2002 and 2003 by American avant-garde composer William Basinski. The pieces are made up of tape loop recordings that were played over time, with noise and crackles rising as the tape deteriorated. Basinski noticed this effect when attempting to convert his older recordings to digital format. The completion of the recordings coincided with the September 11, 2001 events, which Basinski witnessed and adds a deeper meaning to the composition. The composition is fascinating in many ways and makes the listener lose track of time. The tape loop recording had a very calming effect on me and put me in a trance-like state when I listened to it in its entirety. The tape loop is really soothing, so much so that I didn't even notice the loss of quality when I first listened to it. It makes you forget about time and allows you to really get into the piece capturing the calmness it exudes. You forget or don't really notice how i...
Post a Comment
Read more

Pierre Schaeffer - Étude pathétique

  Pierre Schaefer begins the piece with sounds produced by drums and similar percussion instruments. One hears the sound of an object spinning and then coming to a stop. I assume it is a circular object, like a cymbal or hi-hat of a drum kit, that spins until it comes to a stop. Sounds of a locomotive follow, continuing with a mixture of drums and spinning objects as well as voices. There are slight parallels here with another piece by Schaeffer, "etude aux chemins de fer," in which he has the musical piece consist of sounds of trains and locomotives. I also recognize an accordion and a violin playing rapidly, accompanied by human sounds that are not really decipherable. By combining all these background sounds and using human voices, Schaeffer creates an exciting atmosphere while listening to the piece, and the listener's auditory senses are constantly challenged to decipher all the details of the sounds. At times one could be reminded of a scene from a scary movie, at l...
Post a Comment
Read more

Listening Report on John Oswald: Plexure

 Sarah Kumar Dr. Bernd Herzogenrath The Future of (American) Music 06 Mar. 2023 Listening Report on John Oswald: Plexure According to John Oswald, “[a] plunderphone is a recognizable sonic quote, using the actual sound of something familiar which has already been recorded” (Lecture Slides 18). However, only if the source stays recognizable can it be called plunderphonics. In his album Plexure , several songs are played back and mixed together, thus creating a new sound. This is interesting because while the excerpts of songs that are used are recognizable or at least sound familiar to some degree, played backwards and mashed up as they are in Plexure , they create a new sound. Like on the cover of the album, on which a collage making up a man can be seen, the mixing of different songs played backwards gives a new feeling to something known. The way the songs are mixed makes them unintelligible. The meaning of the words of the original recordings are not able to be compr...
Post a Comment
Read more