1. roger delgado
2. m4
3. i was the fly
4. wat tyler
5. the majesty of steam
6. verfremdungseffekt
7. mlle. de poitiers
8. nachahmung oder plagiat
calculus for goats represents the first phase of a radical work-in-progress curated by c-391.
c-391 consists of NYC-based digital craftswoman christöphilax (itch and christöphilax as formative of the function of the I) and fellow cultural workers 391, the recently exhumed Dadaist quintet from Scunthorpe (UK). First active in the early '80s as part of the Deleted Records axis of DIY artists, 391 are best remembered for The Child's Dilemma and No Easy Way Out.
For this project 391 sportingly furnished christöphilax with five completed pieces of work. christöphilax sampled fragments from each one and then proceeded to construct a new track around and on top of each fragment, with the original sounds ultimately disappearing into the quagmire and remaining only an absent-presence -- at once marginal and foundationally essential.
The following notes have been prepared by christöphilax. They reflect only her experience of the creative process. Interested auditors may wish to visit the official 391 website.
1. roger delgado
the second installment in a cycle (initiated with "cornelius cardew crosses the road" on christöphilax as formative of the function of the I) devoted to cultural workers who have met with vehicle-related misfortune. here christ�philax imagines the final moments of Roger Delgado, a versatile thespian with as many names as Brian Eno, who met with vehicular catastrophe near Nevsehir in Central Turkey on June 18th, 1973.
2. m4
inspired by the eponymous British motorway, this is christöphilax's first tentative dromological intervention. a modest attempt to reconcile the seminal propositions of Paul Virilio and Ian "Lemmy" Kilmister, two fellow cultural workers concerned with the aesthetics and politics of speed.
3. i was the fly
christöphilax forsees the passing of the last of the insect pests. on that not-too-distant day when genetic modification of crops and other misguided manifestations of scientific imperialism have eliminated forever the inhabitants of the irritant range of the genetic spectrum, will we miss them? an understated apocalyptic vision.
4. wat tyler
christöphilax brings the sounds and smells of the middle ages into your living room. this admittedly ambitious piece forays into early music, salutes the leader of the peasants' revolt and offers a probing analysis of medieval hygiene. gardez l'eau!
5. the majesty of steam
christöphilax fondly remembers the golden age of the locomotive, with specific reference to the Mallard, the Wolf of Badenoch, the Silver Fox, the Tudor Minstrel and, of course, the Sir Nigel Gresley. trainspotting is the new rock & roll.
6. verfremdungseffekt
in her second meditation on sports and leisure (cf. "dwyle flonker" from christöphilax as formative of the function of the I) christöphilax celebrates the monumental events of nov. 22 2003. antipodean cultural workers may level charges of neo-colonialism, but it's only a game, isn't it? perhaps radical critics will be willing to join in this celebration of the popular appropriation of what was once the exclusive province of public schoolboys and university students.
7. mlle. de poitiers
the first in an occasional series in which christöphilax provides definitive solutions �- in profoundly coded musical form �- to various conundra that have foxed the great minds of our time. here the riddle of Hanging Rock is solved once and for all.
8. nachahmung oder plagiat
michael karoli, R.I.P.
