Spectacular "Ambient Walkman Symphony" and other tape-loop, circuit bent performances

#1

Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2018/07/17/spectacular-ambient-walkman.html

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#2

Wow - does he actually open the cassettes, remove the tape spools, thread in a 12" loop of tape, and reseal the cassette? That’s craftsmanship even without the music!

#3

As far as I know, Randall is still here in Portland, OR. At least he was when I saw him a few weeks ago.

#4

It’s easy to mistake Austin for Portland these days:

#5

It’s a bit fiddly, but you could totally do it! There are a few different ways to twist and orient the loops so that there’s different lengths of playtime, and those can be found with a bit of googling. You just have to look out for the tapes with the little screws in the corners and not the factory-glued ones.

It’s fun! I totally recommend giving it a shot sometime.

#6

I like the sound. A kind of Tycho-ish vibe mixed in with some Carbon Based Lifeforms, with Eno, standing in the doorway, making conductor-like motions with his hands.

#7

I did, in 7th grade, I patiently twisted an entire tape so it played backwards. I felt like John Lennon.

#8

Very cool.

#9

Oddly soothing. Nice.

closed #10

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