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Listening report Sebastian Ermer John Oswald: Plexure

 

John Oswald´s “Plexure” is a remarkably unique piece of music that plays with traditional ideas of structure and musical composition. The album and its songs consist of a collage of various sound recordings, which Oswald has manipulated and recontextualized to create a dense, yet multifaceted soundscape.

One of the most striking aspects of “Plexure” is the sheer amount of different samples Oswald incorporates into the album. Throughout its roughly 25-minute runtime, one can hear snippets ranging from jazz and classical music, all the way to news broadcasts or television advertisements. These conflicting elements are woven together by Oswald in order to create a musical performance that is in equal parts surprising and jarring.

Oswald's approach to sound collage is both playful and sophisticated. He has a keen sense for unusual connections and interplay between different sounds. For example, he might take a snippet of a classical piano piece and splice it together with a burst of white noise, creating a sudden change in soundscape and mood. He also plays with motives, such as repetition and fragmentation, isolating short snippets of sound and looping them endlessly, or cutting them into tiny excerpts that almost seem to dance across the soundscape Oswald creates.

Despite its fragmented structure, Plexure is a surprisingly cohesive piece of music. Oswald uses recurring motifs and sounds to create a sense of unity and continuity throughout the album. While the songs might sound unpleasant or almost painful at the beginning, they come together after listening for a short time in order to create a whole new experience.

Overall, John Oswald's Plexure is an intriguing and challenging work of art that rewards close listening. It's a testament to the power of sound collage as a creative tool, and a reminder that there are always new ways to approach the act of musical composition.

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