Sonic Assailants: The Art of Noise at 40
In June of 1984 an album came out that seemed to turn music on its head. It was by a fairly anonymous trio called The Art of Noise. That name came from the 1918 Futurist Manifesto by Luigi Russolo, “The Art of Noises.” They were among the first to employ the Fairlight CMI synthesizer which also included one of the first samplers and that last invention is what created their sound. Programmer J. J. Jeczalik, engineer Gary Langan and keyboard player and arranger Anne Dudley were part of Trevor Horn’s production team. They were responsible for the sound design on albums by Frankie Goes to Hollywood, ABC, Malcom McLaren and most presciently, “Owner of a Lonely Heart” by Yes. In June of 1984 they released their debut album, Who’s Afraid of the Art of Noise. Today on Echoes we celebrate the 40th anniversary of this highly influential release.
We’ll also hear two singers on the edge. We’ll hear from KÁRYYN with a song remixed by Cosey Fanni Tutti of Throbbing Gristle, and Sheenah Ko from her album, Transformation. It’s an art music take on pop.