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ALTO STRATUS / HISTORY
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Alan Freeman, Steve Freeman |
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The duo of Alan and Steve Freeman (owners of Ultima
Thule, etc.), we spent much of our spare time during the early 80's
experimenting with synthesizers, sound collage, etc., and during that period
we recorded some 30 odd cassettes as Alto Stratus (and under other guises: as
Vrije, Q.S.O., Electric Junk), also as soloists, and the trio with sound
artist Nigel Harris in ZBB. The "Auricle
Music Archive" releases amount to a history of early
Alto Stratus, tracing the roots from Industrial and avant-garde explorations
to a more cohesively musical style. For instance: The "Region 5" CD
collates the choice material from Alto Stratus cassette releases originally
issued under the guise of Region 5. Why Region 5? Well, the initial
inspiration came from the Stockhausen opus "Hymnen" of which
"Region 4" was the most inspiring of all. In mixing and layering
various forms of music at different speeds we also found a new way of
creating music, a technique nowadays often labelled
"plunderphonics". The sources were records from our own collections,
sound effects and library records, and a little instrumental work of our own.
Region 5, although Alto Stratus incognito, became accepted as another
mysterious project on our roster, and it seems that no one guessed for years.
Curiously, we sold more in Italy than anywhere else. Until recently, no one
guessed or commented on what any of the source music was, that was until Jim
Tetlow purchased the "Dietro il Silenzio" cassette and pointed out
quite rightly that the track "Death Zone" liberally plundered a
certain Brian Eno track. When compiling this CD release I deliberately
avoided any tracks that involved use of anything obvious. This
"plunderphonic" technique is in wide use today, although I don't
think many others have used it so subtly as we did. The "Adhara"
release documents the three Adhara cassettes. The concept behind Adhara was
to tell a science fiction story in music. We were encouraged to do this by
friends who would say "this would make a great film soundtrack",
and naturally with our passion for space movies we attempted to do a grand
trilogy. Core influences in this music included the soundtrack work of John
Carpenter and Tangerine Dream, although the chief factor was to be able to
tell the story with sound. The lost album "Alchemy" is some of the earliest
cohesive Alto Stratus, and the roots of an electronic/experimental music that
draws influences from European rock, the avant-garde, industrial and synth
musics. Most Alto Stratus releases feature unique use of analogue
synthesizers, echo guitars, loops, voices and much tape collage.
"Tension!" is an ode to the psychedelic era, partly the free-form
space-rock of Guru Guru and early Heldon, meeting Kluster styled use of
echoes and loops. "Svet Ozveny" contains notable Stockhausen, Can,
early Kraftwerk and Tangerine Dream influences. "The Ritual"
(recorded some time later) has been acclaimed by many as our greatest
triumph, being a more carefully crafted blend of melodic electronics and
experimentation, featuring sound sampling, and a wide range of synthesizers
and keyboards. "Tachyon" was one the most fanciful and conceptual
recordings from the early 80s, an era of intensive home studio work,
experimentation, and honing skills as electronic artists. Our
"studio" consisted of 3 cassette decks, a 6 channel keyboard mixer,
and a few effects. Back in 1984, the "Tachyon" was thought to be
"a theoretical particle, capable of travelling faster than the speed of
light", whereas today scientists claim to have proved its existence.
Such an idea amounted to a fascinating concept for an album.
"Tachyon" is intriguing for us today, with references and
influences of: Conrad Schnitzler, Teddy Lasry, Cluster, Dome, Heldon, The
Residents, Stockhausen, Throbbing Gristle, etc. Being non-musicians, the way
we put all this together is more from the viewpoint of sound-artists, relying
more on colour and texture than normal melodic composition, yet it's
surprisingly melodic! The resulting potpourri of all this is incredibly
diverse, and still surprisingly fresh 15 years on. Digitally transferred by
Colin Potter, with an obscure bonus track, this is some of the finest Alto
Stratus, with infinitely superior sound and clarity. Now, on CD, it should
last forever! "Catharsis" was the first release from
Alto Stratus in over a decade, but was not so much a reformation - more a
continuation - working on ideas hinted at on older releases and the current
project Endgame.
It's partly the result of works in the Newt
Hounds project, and an attempt to recapture the feel of Biomechanoid. The side-long
"Necronomicon Suite" involves a 45 minute improvisation that
amasses a wide range of styles (Dadaism and collage, through to cosmic synths
and psychedelic rock) and is full of surprises, as are the three tracks that
cover the second side. 90 minutes of unique Alto Stratus invention. Since
then, sporadically, Alto Stratus has continued on, with 8 further releases to
date, each a unique step along our own musical avenue! You can read more
about those on the release pages. Alto Stratus also took the bold step of
playing live too, and have featured at a variety of events, most
prestigiously at the Church Of Sound in Nottingham as documented on the
release "Altered States". |
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Discography... as Vrije as Alto Stratus Auricle Archive series... plus
many other releases under the guises: Alto Stratus live recordings on Endgame discs... original Alto Stratus tracks on other releases... |
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