Francisco Lopez & Lawrence English - HB

(Left) field recordings

At the peripheries of these four field recordings something quite disconcerting is happening. Choirs of birds chatter in high-end frequencies that seem to emit from combinations of wire and diode rather than feather and beak, while gusts of wind roar with a supernatural tremor and energy. Elsewhere, on Untitled # 175, insects gossip in mechanised tongues and open up a window to the industry that’s constantly occurring about our feet. All the time there is a perception that the listener is being misled, even betrayed, but it’s a deception that rewards further inspection with its documentation of natural details.

On HB sound artists Lopez and English have distorted the way we comprehend reality, toying with our recollection of everyday sounds, and created tapestries that are, at turns, disorientating and a catalyst for nostalgic meanderings. Here lies another world, one that rests between fact and fiction, between disfigurement and beauty. Engaging.

Baskaru | KARU 13

Reviewed by Spencer Grady
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