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ILLEGAL ART
http://illegalart.net/

PROPAGANDA
October 23, 2007

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REALISTIC
Perpetual Memory Loss
IA 114 CD
www.illegalart.net/realistic/perpetual_memory_loss.html

"Following the aesthetic of Negativland and John Oswald, Realistic borrows material from every possible source: classic rock, disco, self-improvement records, soap operas [and more]. Towning demonstrates a knack for unconventional looping, sonic accumulation, and a good joke." – All Music Guide

Realistic's third album, Perpetual Memory Loss, features sixteen tracks of intricate sample-based compositions -- a beautifully sophisticated celebration of found sound, recorded media, technology, and electronic composition. Slices of field recordings mesh with surreal electronic melodies, which creates enjoyably odd multi-layered musical fun. Realistic is the guise of sound collage artist James Towning, a musician and graphic designer originally from OhioIn 2003 he moved to Brooklyn, NY and currently works a full-time job as a motion-graphics designer in Manhattan.

A recurring source in Towning's compositions is the nostalgic sounds of 70's and 80's techno-pop and rock artists that were personally influential over the years. As well as using computer-based waveform editing and sampling, Towning carries a portable digital recorder to capture various audio environments on a daily basis. Whether the source samples are found around the house, on TV, on a busy Chinatown street, or a crackly sound effects record, Realistic's juxtaposition of head-spaces always creates something surreal and altogether new.

"There's such a rich texture of sound and visuals in New York. I'm constantly entertained with the sounds that I record," said Towning in a recent interview. An ever-increasing collection of thrift-store records and cassettes is another likely source of audio inspiration. "I love composing little sound pieces using whatever source material I choose. It's a cathartic, fun, and essential part of my life," said Towning.


With Perpetual Memory Loss, the Realistic sound has evolved into a tighter and more structured mesh of musical patterns and mangled beats. Tiny rhythmic patterns and subtle textural layers are revealed upon repeated listening. Sampled dialogue is used more sparingly than in previous Realistic releases allowing the musical voices to be heard more clearly. Each complex track is its own self-contained little world, with disjointed characters, funky grooves, and odd but familiar musical samples. Throughout the 45-minute album, expressionistic patterns of sound twist and fold into one another as the tracks evolve. At times the entire audio spectrum degrades and distorts in groovy syncopation. The tracks on Perpetual Memory Loss are more complex and refined, but what remains is the underlying sense of humor, rich production, and an offbeat composition style that is distinctively Realistic.

Regarding the album's artwork, Towning explains, "The CD art was designed by me. It consists of many thumbnails of snapshots I've taken over the past three years or so. That timeframe coincides with the production of the audio tracks, too. The snapshots represent memories in a very literal way. They vary in subject matter from pictures of my cats, still-lifes, industrial landscapes, detailed textures, and random found art. The inside artwork reveals more snapshot thumbnails in varying degrees of clarity." Towning further elaborates, "Beneath the CD, a collage of found images and photographs explodes and bleeds over into the snapshots. The technique of collaging with found and personal imagery reflects the style of the audio tracks too. The primary colors of red and green that I chose were inspired by and derived from a vintage Christmas card I received from a friend a few years ago. Again, a nostalgic reference."

As for the title Perpetual Memory Loss Towning says it "speaks to the process of growing older and the mind's ability to store, lose, and constantly distort memories. And how sometimes those memories are recalled in a random and overlapping order. As we get older, more and more memories are stored while others are buried deep or lost. The title also references the similarities between the ever expanding human mind and a computer's finite hard drive and its ability to retrieve random and corrupt data."

Two mp3s from Perpetual Memory Loss are freely downloadable from our site.
www.illegalart.net/realistic/perpetual_memory_loss.html

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DOWNLOAD CLUB:

The Illegal Art Download Club is up and running. We anticipate having the new Realistic album uploaded very soon (which is free if you buy the physical CD from the webshop), and there is already download-only content from DJ Pantshead & The Evolution Control Committee, Lecture on Nothing, and Yea Big. We anticipate adding more catalog items and download-only items in the upcoming months.
illegalart.net/downloads

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UPCOMING:

We are set to release material from Oh Astro (November 6th), Girl Talk (as soon as the new album is finished), and Steinski (February/March). Some of these you'll be able to receive well in advance of the release date by taking advantage of the special offer at illegalart.net/a/myspace.php. At that URL you will also find a free digital EP with tracks from Realistic, Oh Astro, Girl Talk, and Steinski.

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MAILING LIST INFO:

Go to illegalart.net/misc/propaganda.html to subscribe or unsubscribe to these propaganda mailings. We currently do not have any other mailing lists, but if you desire more frequent information about artists on Illegal Art, please visit philoblog.blogspot.com for news and other erratic postings.

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