William Basinski

Derail · Post by **Derail** » Mon Dec 26, 2005 12:19 am

I can't really describe The Disintegration Loops with words so all I can say is listen for yourself. This is my soundtrack to heaven.

zander two · Post by **zander two** » Mon Dec 26, 2005 4:05 am

I've just read up on the Disintegration Loops and I have to say that this is the most intriguing idea in music I have heard of in a long time. I must have these!

unruhe · Post by **unruhe** » Mon Dec 26, 2005 12:36 pm

Totally agree with Derial, give his Melancholia release also a listen!

Cupz · Post by **Cupz** » Wed Dec 28, 2005 11:37 pm

Wow...this guy is brilliant....i must say

kaini · Post by **kaini** » Thu Dec 29, 2005 3:20 am

i find some of incredibly sad... the first track on disc 3 is just despair in song format.

it is incredibly moving, brilliant music, all of it, though

zander two · Post by **zander two** » Fri Dec 30, 2005 12:15 am

Yeah, I've been meaning to ask if anyone has any favorite tracks or recommendations. I was stunned to find that my local record store actually has three of the four volumes. I picked up vol. 2, and would like to know where to go next. Cheers.

Derail · Post by **Derail** » Fri Dec 30, 2005 3:11 am

My favorites are Disintigration Loops II and IV. Also check out his Melencholia cd, excelent!

An interesting side note; he listened to the loops on his rooftop while he watched the collapse of the World Trade Towers in NYC. That's pretty bone-chilling if you think about it, the music would be fitting for such a sad day.

Cupz · Post by **Cupz** » Thu Jan 05, 2006 1:12 pm

After I let my mother listen to Variations: A movement in chrome primitive,she said she could feel the
depression of the artist

chzi · Post by **chzi** » Fri Mar 10, 2006 12:00 am

Mr Basinski is performing live here in Sweden this sunday!

He's going to talk to some old swedish dude about music and art, show an ambient movie piece called 'particle showers' and then perform a brand new drone piece. And finally, if the organizer's reel to reel deck works hehe, spin some loops

I'll try to look around for tears.

kem1kal · Post by **kem1kal** » Fri Mar 10, 2006 5:00 am

Wow, this thread prompted me to find some stufff...

Truly amazingly gorgeous, I will be buying all of these

chzi · Post by **chzi** » Mon Mar 13, 2006 5:38 pm

Words can't describe how beautiful yesterday was! William Basinski live in Goteborg, Sweden.

He began with 'particle showers'. An abstract film made from evolving patterns of luminescent dots and a reoccuring oceanlike background. Just like his music, but in visual form.

It was accompanied by a quite loud monotonous ambient piece, which lasted for about 35 minutes and took the whole audience into another state of mind. Then, as the last moments of the piece faded out... he warmed up the tape deck machine and put on a little cut of black tape and played it over and over, and over... and over. But not again. He switched and played a few other of his characteristic loops (dj-style!

) instead of letting one of them loop forever.

The transition from the long rough ambient piece into the modest loops was... as you surely can imagine.... HEAVENLY!!!

Finally he offered a brand new, quite soft and boc-ish (like in; 'one very important thought', etc..), drone piece. And I must say... wow, this was easily the highlight of the evening. You would think that it couldn't get much better after the loops, but nooo.

I recorded all of it, but the quality is just terrible and way too distorted for an upload

I sat in the front row.. (next to Maja Ratkje, Kid606 and some other artists, heh).

Earlier during the day he got interviewed by Magnus Haglund. I didn't know much about William before and the uncounscious image I had built was quickly demolished. I had though of him as quite strict and elegant, macho-ish. Kind of like Jean Michel Jarre. God no. He showed up gay as a daisy in may! Laidback with a huge sense of humour. Like when he spoke about his early twenties "and yeahmmm there was this strange period, lots of pot and acid ... ..... .... ... ... ... the most memorable time actually." Yihaw.

Derail · Post by **Derail** » Mon Mar 13, 2006 6:33 pm

Sounds very cool, I'm jelous. So wait, he's gay or do you just mean happy?

chzi · Post by **chzi** » Wed Apr 26, 2006 5:02 pm

Derail wrote:Sounds very cool, I'm jelous. So wait, he's gay or do you just mean happy?

Uhm ..where did the 'both' alternative go?

DocteurOrlof · Post by **DocteurOrlof** » Wed Apr 26, 2006 8:13 pm

chzi wrote:I recorded all of it, but the quality is just terrible and way too distorted for an upload

As long as it's audible, it's a document...

And here is another "document", William Basinski live @ Horse Hospital, London 16-02-04

http://s52.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=2WGS ... LHIM0IRNWE

(it's a document, it's audible, and at least audience is respectful)

zander two · Post by **zander two** » Wed May 03, 2006 3:42 am

I just saw that bleep has added a bunch of Basinski stuff, including the 4 Disintegration Loops albums. Dope, if I do say so myself.

hexagon son · Post by **hexagon son** » Fri Jul 17, 2009 12:15 pm

i've really been getting into this guy over the past 9 months, for a while all i had was 'Disintegration Loops 1', but a couple of days ago i got 'Shortwavemusic' and '92982'. i cannot even begin to describe how awesome this artist is. as Derail said above (topic starter), you just gotta check him out for yourself. definitely on the ambient side of things, but sounds like no other ambient artist out there that i know.

you know, the more i hear from this guy, the more i think he could join the #1 spot of my all time fave artists along side BoC. unfortunately, this guy's stuff isnt the easist to get hold of. well worth the treasure hunt though.

would be happy to have a Basinski discussion with any one of you on here!

Timewarp · Post by **Timewarp** » Fri Jul 17, 2009 1:31 pm

I totaly agree!

hexagon son · Post by **hexagon son** » Fri Jul 17, 2009 2:37 pm

its amazing to think while listening to shortwavemusic that he actually did this in 1983! this guy is lightyears ahead of Steve Reich back then, and this album sounds so fresh now! goes to show you that our favorite artists arent even relying on computers at all to make their music.

Basepair · Post by **Basepair** » Fri Jul 17, 2009 4:37 pm

love William Basinski.

especially dlp 4 & dlp 6. makes time fly when i listen to it. great when on long plane journeys!

playbyletters · Post by **playbyletters** » Fri Jul 17, 2009 10:15 pm

have any of you heard El Camino Real, A Red Score In Tile and The Garden Of Brokeness?

those 3 are amazing. a shame A Red Score was so limited. 600 copies!?
looking for that record is a nightmare... you'll only get it for a nice price if the record is sliced in two and the cover has water damage and cat hair glued to it