Reviews

Chain DLKIn the sprawling, unpredictable terrain of modern music, Erik Schoster, the enigmatic figure behind He Can Jog, emerges as a beacon of eclecticism and innovation. If Audiobulb is a garden of sonic delights, He Can Jog is the wildflower that inspired the gardener to plant it in the first place. With "Audiobulb Plays He Can Jog - Vol. 1 & 2" - both on the nostalgic format of tape - we are treated to a double album that is less a mere compilation of tracks and a more philosophical journey through the lush and varied landscape of contemporary sound.

Just some words on a few track of both volumes. The sonic odyssey begins by pressing play on tape of the first one, where by the opening act "Feel The Tubes Gliding Around You" by Neuro... No Neuro, we are immediately plunged into a world where glitch and ambient flirt in a dance of light and shadow. The title alone suggests a tactile intimacy, as if the music itself is a physical entity moving through your consciousness. The piece is both disorienting and soothing, a fitting paradox for an album that revels in such contrasts.

"Perfume Remix" by Nakamura Tomotsugu continues this journey, adding a delicate, almost olfactory layer to the experience. The remix breathes new life into its source material by a masterful sample of extreme rarefaction, where Nakamura managed to derive some crispy sounds by adding light distortions as if he were a masterclass chef who manages to make a gourmet dish by frying air! It gets counterbalanced by "Perfume Eater" by an amalgamation of pretty unknown (to me, at least) sound artists (Q7XL, YoungGettem and Dj Milkman), embodying an awesome hybridization between Nordic sonorities and hip hop in a track that sounds like an imaginary tune by Dj Krush, if he was born in Iceland. One of my favourite track of this first volume is "Aeroelastic" by Autistici, a track that continuously bends and stretches frequencies, reminiscent of elastic bands snapping back into place – a sonic metaphor for resilience and adaptation, as wellas the follwing one titled "It's/A/Burning/Hoot/To/Mix/A/Fire/And/Match/The/Distance" by Distant Fires Burning, a title that’s a mouthful and a half, echoing the playful complexity of its contents. The track is a fiery concoction of ambient textures and serpentine subtle beats, like a slow-burning bonfire that invites contemplation and trance in equal measure.

As we transition to Vol. 2, Bryan Teoh’s "We All Have Hot Chocolate Tummies and Frozen Faces (for 6 Bass Viols)" greets us with a title that evokes winter warmth juxtaposed with the bite of cold – a dichotomy perfectly captured in the melancholic yet rich timbre of the bass viols and their reshaped and colliding frequencies. It’s a track that feels like sipping hot cocoa while watching snowflakes fall, comforting yet isolating.

Two highlights of the second volume are the suites by Anura and Nomad Palace (Parts 4 and 3, respectively) as they sound more than mere compositions; they are sonic adventures. Anura’s guitar-driven piece is a tapestry of delicate strings and contemplative pauses, while Nomad Palace’s accordion and melodica create an atmosphere both nostalgic and eerily unfamiliar. Both tracks deconstruct and recompose their source material to such an extent that the original sounds are mere shadows in a new, complex whole.

"Burn" by Made of Oak brings a different flavor – an intensity that simmers beneath the surface. It’s a reminder of the raw emotional power that music can wield, a slow burn that eventually consumes you. Meanwhile, Ümlaut’s "Samsara" encapsulates the cyclical nature of existence with a meditative quality, a loop that feels both endless and transformative.

Finally, we have "Heartdive" by He Can Jog himself, a track that serves as a culmination and a reflection of the entire journey. It’s a deep dive into the heart, both metaphorically and musically, encapsulating the essence of the project: the fragility and potential of musical scraps and detritus, reimagined into something profoundly beautiful.

"Audiobulb Plays He Can Jog - Vol. 1 & 2" is not just an album; it’s an experience, a philosophical exploration of sound, and a testament to the artistry of Erik Schoster and his collaborators. It’s a musical mosaic that, while fragmented, forms a cohesive and compelling whole. The albums challenge the listener to embrace the scraps and detritus of sound, to find beauty in the seemingly insignificant, and to recognize the potential in every sonic fragment.

In a world where music is often consumed and discarded with alarming speed, He Can Jog’s work reminds us to pause, to listen deeply, and to appreciate the intricate tapestry of sound that surrounds us. This collection is for Louis, and for all of us who find solace and inspiration in the unexpected beauty of life's musical journey.

Original > HERE

African PaperAudiobulb are just releasing a large-scale homage to the American computer musician Erik Schoster aka He Can Jog in the form of a two-part compilation. The work is a celebration of a long creative friendship between Erik, the label and the musicians who contributed various remixes and reinterpretations and at the same time a comprehensive introduction to various genres of electronic music relevant to the label. Ümlaut, Nakamura Tomotsugu, Bryan Teoh, Neuro… No Neuro, Anura, Nomad Palace, Russ Young are just a few of the names represented, and He Can Jog himself can be heard alone on one track. In addition to the digital version, the release is also available on two limited tapes.

Original > HERE

FBi Radio

I've followed the music of Eric Schoster's He Can Jog here on Utility Fog for over 13 years. It's ranged from folktronica to drone to generative electronica, and thus the music on these two cassette volumes is similarly far-reaching. For the start of 2024, with the Audiobulb label Schoster has compiled Audiobulb Plays He Can Jog - Vol. 1 and Vol. 2, featuring remixes, reworkings and even covers of He Can Jog's music through many years. For a mere £3 each, it should be cinch for experimental electronic music fans to grab these. Tonight, two Milwaukee-based artists for some reason: Seakn gives us glitchy sounds, sparsely accreting into accelerated beats, while Q7XL unexpectedly takes the glitchy rhythms into hip-hop, with YoungGettem (maybe an alter-ego?) and DJ Milkman.

Original > HERE

Silence and Sound

Erik Schoster aka He Can Jog asked a host of friends and artists from the excellent Audiobulb Records label to compose new things with old personal tracks. And the result is there, simply astonishing in diversity and quality.

It is over two volumes that we can benefit from the phenomenal work carried out by the artists who participated in the adventure, restructuring or reinventing the music of the American composer. Between ambient beaches and more rhythmic structures, like the sublime Perfume Eater revisited by Q7XL with YoungGettem and DJ Milkman , for a hip hop trip with absorbing coolness.

The titles follow one another with sinuosity and virtuosity, plunging us into territories where electronica abstraction, electronic experiments, organic drum'n'bass and IDM variations catapult us into a colorful wonderland full of vibrant auditory pulsations. Stunning.

Original > HERE