MUSlC IN THE STREETS (Recorded by T. Schwartz) (1957)

Subtitled "A fascinating collection of music and musicians recorded on the streets of New York," this album resurrects the seemingly long-lost sounds of public gathering: sociability, conviviality, hubbub and exchange. And of course performance. 

Does anyone remember this? When's the last time you've heard a busker? Seen a mall-choir? Watched a parade? These documented sonic rituals of the mundane are coming in as a restorative tonic today. NY, sure. But also anywhere. 

Folkways rarely lets us down. 

H0AHIO - HAPPY MAlL (1997)

This super group was initiated by the chanteuse/sonic polymath Haco, and for this debut recording, included sine-wave sampler-savant Sachiko M and jazz-koto player Michiyo Yagi. The work lulls the mind with churning minimalist repetitions, plucky folksy, scrambling improvisations, and well-placed moments of anthemic rock progressions and gentle digressions. Delicious, quixotic, lovely, confusing: all the sonic elements of dreamstate standing loud and proud. 

Dream it here...

DJ OL1VE - SLEEP (2001)

Future illbient hall-of-famer, G. Asch aka Olive aka The Audio Janitor, released this 13-track dream-salve in 2001 as a limited hand-crafted gift for friends who had trouble sleeping. Emerging from his time in the late 90s DJing for NY sleep-parties, this is the first installment of his sonic sleep medicines which has since yielded several albums and installations. The tones are warm, textured, graceful and suitably numbing. 

The project comes with instructions: "This is a sleeping pill. Please listen to it quietly."

OWOD MIX #03 - ONE DREAMER, ONCE DREAMING

A snapshot from our random playlist shuffle: music-box exotica, barrel organ cacophony, uncanny nostalgia & retro-tinged madness:

1) Dutch Band Organ - Did You See a Dream Walk? 2) F. Karlin - The Dream 3) K. Nordine - Thousand Dreams 4) Li De La Russe - Delia's Reverie 5) J. Plotkin - Mosquito Dream 6) A. Lane - Stories of Your Dream 7) Mapstation - TV Dream 8) Tuxedomoon - Dream Flight 9) F. Atkinson - Visnaga 10) Shock Exchange - Just a Dream 11)  Esquivel - Street of Dreams 12) E. Lurie - Possible Love 13) Broadcast - Aphid Sleeps 14) J. Gurascier - Sueno Otonal 15) C. Reimer - Carson Dial 16) K. Overall - Sleeping on the Train 17) R. Scott - Memories 18) W. Mertens - Bresque 19) W. Schumann - Pearl's Dream 20) Children's Ensemble - Piece vii 21) Shannon & the Clams - Into a Dream 22) D. Shore - My Isle of Golden Dreams 23) B. Lew - Aveugle Depuis 24) Paillard Music Box - La Sonnambula 25) M. Ribot - Dream of the Other 26) J. Miyake/ D. Byrne - A Dream Is a Wish  27) F. Durand - Hora de dormir 28) J. Derome - Reverie 29) C. Watson - Waiting 30) Regina Music Box - Garden of Dreams

0RUÃ - R0MA (20I9)

Just a total incendiary, throbbing, fuzzed-out pleasure today. Music for strutting, tripping, head-banging and perhaps dry-humping. We can't get enough of these enigmatic gents from Brazil and, it would seem, often Boise, Idaho.


Meltdown rock n' roll for lovers and dreamers.

B0RN OUT OF DREAMS (1985)

OWOD has previously mentioned a special, personal fascination with the year 1985 and even posted Wang Chung. Today, we have three more. The dreamstate is openly referenced and evoked in all. 

1985 a random date with only sentimental fixations that are too uninteresting to share. I'll say this: in the small island west-coast town where I grew up, you had to go elsewhere for your epic dream-sounds. A friend in the city had this industrial/noise taste-changer: NWW, Muslimgauze, P16.D4, Enrico Piva...wonderful!

Dream it here...

 

S0UNDS FROM THE MUS1C INTERI0R (MUSIC INTER1OR SAMPLER) (1985)

In mid 80s Canada, Attic Records was big into the weightless sounding adult instrumental scene. This record could sometimes be seen in your local bookstore or new-age boutique of the era, usually with Windham Hill or Heart-Music Sri Chinmoy cassettes. I didn't own it, but easily could have. I didn't know much about the new age, or architectural music, but I knew a girl who played ethereal flute through a Mr. Microphone and almost killed me with beauty. 

With Seigen Ono, Ichiko Hashimoto, Masahide Sukama, Yoshio Suzuki

Dream It...

SLEEPERS (1985)

This 1985 collection of "lull music," compositions and sounds from many of the now legendary sonic artists who found themselves in NY during the 80s. Whether this album of not-quite-soothing, dissonant timbres can fairly qualify as a "sleep aid" is debatable, but we'll take them at their word and label it so. Some people can sleep through anything. And I'm sure those were crazy days, where drifting off to this made sense. Thanks to P.E. for this, and many others. 

P. Oliveros, A. Lockwood, I. Mimaroglu, T. Johnson, A. Knowles, etc.

For you dedicated sleepers, you...

FRANC1S BEBEY - P1ÈCES P0UR GU1TARE SEULE (1965)

Bebey's sprawling sonic vision--and prodigious, polymathic talents--are on full display here...two early compositions for solo guitar. Gorgeous, spacious phrasing. Mesmerizing pluckery. A smart, soulful deep-dive into the quandaries/quagmires of genre, the musicology of empire. (Check his essay "La radiodiffusion en Afrique Noire", 1963)

(We previously posted on his album of sanza work (1982-84) here.)

Dream it here...

D10N MCGREG0R - THE FURTHER S0MNILOQU1ES OF D10N MCGREG0R (2004)

In the spirit of book-keeping here at OWOD, we must now present the long promised 3rd collection of Mr. McGregor's nocturnal transmissions from the other side of consciousness. As you may recall, this fellow dreams out loud, delivering an unequaled, often narrative, first-person reportage directly from the depths of slumberland. I recently learned there is a fourth volume of these 1960s recordings that has been released.

Hear the inside of the dreaming brain here...

MOT0HIRO N4KASH1MA - AND I WENT TO SLEEP (2004)

It has been hard to sleep. Some years now, some seasons. And yet dreams permeate the waking hours. I can't sleep so I sleepwalk while awake. Patience is a virtue. I thank anyone who still possesses any. Or at least dreams about it. Love, happiness, and blissful bewilderment to you all. 

Mr. Nakashima is from Osaka. These spacious pieces are as warm & cuddly as they are downtempo chill.

Dream it here...