Craig Leon - Anthology of Interplanetary Folk Music Vol. 1: Nommos / Visiting '2014;2018

Tracks list

Craig Leon-approved reissue of his two solo albums Nommos and Visiting as a 2LP
set in gorgeous packaging with two essays by Leon and a download coupon.

Issued respectively by John Faheys Takoma label in 1980 and Leons Arbitor
private press in 1982, Nommos and Visiting were the twin brainchildren of studio
wizard Craig Leon. Leons production was pivotal in realising the debut
recordings by Ramones, Blondie, Richard Hell and Suicide. While those albums
broke ground in new worlds of sound, Leons own debut album was arguably, if not
literally, more alien. In 1973 , the Brooklyn Museum hosted a comprehensive
collection of sculptures by the Dogon of the Republic of Mali, a tribe whose
religion is based in reveries and recollections of a visit from an
extraterrestrial species they named Nommos. Years after experiencing the
exhibit, Leon remained fascinated by the idea of alien visitors sharing not just
stories of their home-planet, but musical traditions as well. For the
classically trained Leon, a puzzle was presented and a challenge in place: what
would music sound like if handed down from an ancient alien species? And how
best to imagine it? Upon meeting Fahey in the late 70s, Leon pitched the concept
as an opportune time to employ the latest and greatest synthesizer technology
available. An avant empathist and eternally free spirit, Fahey enthusiastically
green-lighted the project for his Takoma imprint. After a secluded week in an
Austin, Texas studio with his partner, wife and collaborator Cassell Webb, Leon
returned with a collection of incorporeal melodies generated by the Oberheim
OB-X, Roland JP-4 and Arp 2600 synthesizers propelled by primitive rhythms
programmed on a prototype of Roger Linns nascent drum-machine, the LM-1. Issued
by Fahey with zero expectation of the same radio airplay Leon accomplished with
his pop productions, Nommos now stands as an innovative example of cosmic-synth
composition that wasnt made for its time or any other. For this edition, Leon
has in fact re-animated Nommos by re-recording the exact audio signals as
preserved in the albums original studio notes. Every patch, tape-delay speed and
outboard setting was transcribed as first scored, materialising the best
possible audio from an album whose masters were lost in major label merger
milieu years ago. Additionally, the re-master of Visiting was supervised
firsthand by Leon. As its title suggests, Visiting materialised in 1982 as a
conceptual continuation of Nommos. The album is in equal measure more
improvisatory and constructed than its predecessor. Both albums were intended to
be listened to as a set in the first volume of Leons Anthology of Interplanetary
Folk Music (the title was an homage to Harry Smiths influential collection of
folk music issued two decades prior). A creative evolutionist, Leon made subtle
edits and compositional additions to both albums to enhance the connectivity and
encourage infinite interpretation. While reissues and bootlegs have appeared to
relieve the demand for these records, this collection will stand as the first
ever version authorised by Craig Leon himself.

01 - Ring with Three Concentric Discs
02 - Donkeys Bearing Cups
03 - Nommo
04 - Four Eyes to See the Afterlife
05 - She Wears a Hemispherical Skullcap
06 - One Hundred Steps
07 - Region of Fleeing Civilians
08 - Three Small Coins
09 - Visiting
10 - Details Suggest Fidelity to Fact
11 - The Customs of the Age Disturbed

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