HARDHOUND

Being – The Folkestone Lighthouse EP; loscil – City Hospital – Reissue (Wist Records)

Author: Colin | Published: 15/6/13
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Wist Rec.

Wist Rec.

Wist Rec.

Wist Rec.

Wist Rec.

Wist Rec.

Wist Rec.

Wist Rec.

Wist Rec.

Wist Rec.

Wist Rec.

Wist Rec.

Wist Rec.

Wist Rec.

Wist Rec.

Artist 1-9: Being; 10-15: loscil
Title 1-9: The Folkestone Lighthouse EP; 10-15: City Hospital
Label Wist Records
Year 2012/13
Design 1-9: Manfred Naescher; 10-15: Phantom & Son, Intl.
Music Ambient/electronic/field recordings
Notes There’s a small wealth of information secreted within each of these two releases. The envelopes are referred to by Gary Mentanko, label co-founder with designer Manfred Naescher, as a jackdaw folder. It’s not a term I’ve encountered before, but there’s a poetry to the term that I like.

Wist Records is a fascinating project for anyone interested in oblique approaches to liminal subjects such as, in these particular cases, lighthouses and long-lost hospitals.

The balance between the rich textual and visual material and the brief 3 inch CDs containing wisps of electronic music and field recordings is unusual. As Mentanko writes “we try to emphasise larger concepts in all of our releases, the passing of time, the degradation of the environment as well as community.”

The rest of Wist Records’ catalogue is also well worth investigating.

This is what the label has to say about itself:

We’re an environmentally friendly, independent label dealing in short form, handmade music. As the monetary predominance of music is lessened, the importance of DIY music has grown more & more essential in framing new ways of listening. Thematically, we chart ecology, topography, rural abandonment and education. We are devoted to quiet, scraggly, distant sounds, tactile paper grain and good home cookin’.

Please compare such poetic, beautifully researched and delightfully attractive artifacts to your next or most recent mp3 download.
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