One of the most exciting pieces of music news last week was published on Pantsfork and then completely ignored by the rest of the blogosphere (we guess with today's revelation that Kevin Shields intends to make another My Bloody Valentine record, now no one will pay attention). Tucked into this news item about the forthcoming seventh record from legendary indie pop act The Sea And Cake is word that bandleader Sam Prekop "hopes" to make an electronic record that would be largely influenced by Nuno Canavarro's exquisite and singular 1988 recording Plux Quba. Mr. Canavarro hails from Cascais, Portugal, and his set was originally issued on a label called Ama Romanta, according to this Drag City page. Plux Quba came to our attention when it was re-issued as the first release on Jim O'Rourke's Moikai label in 1998. Mr. Prekop told Pfork he considers Canavarro's record "the high-water mark, in my opinion, of electronic music...It's a really delicate, beautiful, and really weird record." An airy mixture of electronics, melodica and pre-recorded tapes, the set contains 15 tracks, only seven of which carry titles. You can read more about Plux Quba, O'Rourke's quest to reissue it and what Canavarro is up to nowadays here. Finally, below we've posted one of the untitled tracks from the record. It is the most melodic, and the incomprehensible vocals seem devastatingly poignant, although for all we know the vocalist (perhaps the reclusive Canavarro himself) could be mumbling a list of groceries. In a 2002 Sound Collector review that seems to be the most definitive statement on Plux Quba, Mark Richardson wrote "Track 5 sounds like a transcription of a psychotherapy session braided with a fourth-generation master of Brian Eno's Music for Airports; there's something almost voyeuristic about it, and I'd feel guilty listening in if the vocalizations weren't processed beyond recognition."
Nuno Canavarro --
[just click]
Buy Plux Quba from Moikai here.
Nuno Canavarro: InterWeb |
Great find. Thank you for sharing. I find the lack of anything reaching out and grabbing you attention is quite strong and adds the the subtleness of the song.
ReplyDeleteCheers.
Dustin Senos