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“Rorschach Audio” on the best-seller list at The ICA

“The Clash” by Arturo Barea (“The Forging of a Rebel”) – “La Llama” / “La Forja de un Rebelde”

“Honour eternal is due to the brave and noble of people of Spain, worthy of better rulers and better fortune! And now that the jobs and intrigues of their juntas, the misconduct and incapacity of their generals, are sinking into the deserved obscurity of oblivion, the national resistance rises nobly out of the ridiculous details… The resistance was indeed wild, disorganised, undisciplined… but it held out to Europe an example…” – Richard Ford “Handbook for Travellers in Spain” 1845

Banned in Spain for over 30 years! See “Rorschach Audio” book page 52, and “Assigned to Listen” post below.

Pedro Almodóvar & Fabio McNamara “Monja, Jamón”

In a similar manner to the illusions produced by Diana Deutsch’s “High-Low” recording and the “DK Bose” song (described in earlier posts), the joke comes from a Spanish children’s game, in which, when the sound “Jamón” – “Ham”, is repeated over and over, listeners tend to perceive the illusion “Monja” – “Nun”. The song is a duet between film director Pedro Almodóvar and musician and painter Fabio McNamara. Related symbolism is alluded to in the movie “Jamón Jamón” (directed by Bigas Luna, starring Penélope Cruz, Javier Bardem and Jordi Mollà).

See “Rorschach Audio” book pages 29 to 31, 129, 140, 176

Rorschach Audio + Circuit Blasting – Northampton 5 March 2013 – Disinformation & Strange Attractor

Mark

The first “Rorschach Audio” presentation of 2013 is confirmed for Northampton’s (literally) Legendary Labour Club, evening of March 5th – come along for mind-scrambling audio-visual illusions and electromagnetic hauntology. After the audience’s perceptual software’s been suitably re-wired, the evening climaxes with Strange Attractor & Disinformation discharging 30kV shocks into anything, or anyone, that doesn’t make it to the Fire Exit fast enough… live “Circuit Blasting” (which is “a bit like Circuit Bending, but alot less subtle”). Bring your friends.

Legendary Labour Club
95 Charles Street
Northampton NN1 3BG
Doors 7pm, £2

http://legendarylabourclub.com/blank-stares-cricket-claps/
http://legendarylabourclub.com/where-to-find-us/

“… it seems unlikely that the Conservative Club on Whitworth Road will be promoting a visit from Bilge Pump, Gay Against You or Drum Eyes anytime soon”.

Jean Cocteau “Orphée” (Oxford University Press, 1933)

My dad’s copy of “Orphée” by Jean Cocteau – special thanks to Colin Banks

See every single published version of “Rorschach Audio”

E.H. Gombrich, “Assigned to Listen” & the BBC Monitoring Service

“Open your ears, for which of you will stop
The vent of hearing when loud Rumour speaks?
I, from the orient to the drooping west,
Making the wind my post-horse, still unfold
The acts commenced on this ball of earth.
Upon my tongues continual slanders ride,
The which in every language I pronounce,
Stuffing the ears of men with false reports.
I speak of peace while covert enmity
Under the smile of safety wounds the world…”

Henry IV, Part 2, c.1596

See “Rorschach Audio” book pages 23 to 26, 29, 49 to 51, 117 and 132 to 133

Les Misérables – Victor Hugo – Les Amis de l’ABC

Les Amis De L'ABC

Les Amis de l’A-bai-ssés (Abaissés, meaning, in effect, the Parisian under-class) – the sound also (according to critic Katherine Grossman) implies “The Abyss”

See “Rorschach Audio” book pages 125, 126 & 127

Nina Conti’s Monkey on Deconstruction…

Possibly the best sound artist ever? And, with regard to relationships between illusions of sound and emotional themes explored by “Rorschach Audio” and “Shadows in Dream Time” etc, check out Nina Conti’s extraordinary “Her Master’s Voice” DVD –

http://www.ninaconti.co.uk/store/

See “Rorschach Audio” book pages 103 to 104