Music

CD's & vinyls

Shift coordinate points

Static. Seven short electronic pulses. Then — out of thin air — a woman’s voice dictates: “…eins, zwei, fünf …eins, zwo, fünf… drei, vier, fünf…” Who are these voices, tirelessly reciting seemingly random series of numbers, phonems and words? And who are these cryptic messages meant for? The messages are irreversibly encrypted, their contents unintelligible to anyone but the designated receiver. In 1997, British maverick label Irdial-Discs collected a selection of so-called ‘numbers stations’ or ‘spy stations’ recordings under the title The Conet Project.This plays like a ‘best of’ of more than 30 years’ worth of secret radio and contains fragments of American, German, Swedish and Russian transmissions. Released on Entr’acte (2005)

The spiral staircase

The Spiral Staircase is a series of short electronic vignettes that constitute two vertical progressions. The pieces were composed during 2006–7 and consist of layered bodies of sound. Some of the source material was created on the EMS/Synthi 100 at the IPEM (Institute for Psycho-acoustics and Electronic Music) in Gent, Belgium. Cut by Rashad Becker at D&M, Berlin Thanks to Eric Olson at Process Type Foundry. Released on Entr’acte (2006)

Point Break

In 2010 electronic musician Esther Venrooy and drummer Lander Gyselinck were invited to collaborate with two Chinese musicians during the Shanghai World Expo. This event inspired
Venrooy and Gyselinck to start their own collaboration which resulted in the creation of Point Break. Fascinated by speech patterns, film dialogues and cut-up techniques they explore the interaction between acoustic drums, electronics and digital processing. Released on Entr’acte (2011)

Mock interiors

In collaboration with pianist Heleen Van Haegenborgh’s Esther explores the synergy of acoustic piano with electronics and digital sound processing. Their compositions aim to draw the listener into the inner workings of the piano. Employing a battery of microphones, resonating elements and tiny inaudible mechanical sounds are captured, manipulated and magnified through electronic means, resulting in fragile textures where the boundaries between electronic and acoustic sound become blurred. Released on Entr’acte (2008)

Vessel

“When I was young, at night, if the wind was blowing in the direction of our house I could hear the slow beating of the ships’ engines.” Vessel was conceived for and presented as a site-specific, multi-channel sound installation in Diapason Gallery, Brooklyn, in October 2008. The composition consists of recordings of cargo ships on the river Waal in the vicinity of Zaltbommel, a small town in the heart of
The Netherlands. Released on Entr’acte (2008)

HOUT

Esther Venrooy and Frederik Croene joined forces on a series of works that incorporates the piano as the primary sound source for electronic compositions. The pieces are subsequently recombined with the raw piano sound. Utilizing uncommon playing techniques such as prepared piano. The players/composers create a unique synergy between traditional instrumentation and contemporary electronica. Released on Robo Records (2005)

to shape volumes, repeat

Esther Venrooy resides in a constant snakepit of modular movements and sonic acupuncture. An imaginary. almost filmic world where gameboys morph into howling wherewolves. Ravening the shattered bits of saxophone sounds with vague buzzing and popping crackles. Anchored by the subtle use of harmony and dynamism. she opts for processed meditations in maze examples. combining more traditional electro-acoustic composer techniques with frigid. slightly harsher shots of deconstructed digital fuckery. She sure sharps some sonic pencils with swirling layers that are cut up. mangled and dragged into the present. Not your average run of the mill cocktail waitress becomes Hollywood coddle story but pretty goddamn addictive blackened ambience. Bathing in a selfconsciously dense atmosphere. loaded with contrasting metallic chunks of noise. She manipulates the rumbles with rich expression and acute arrangements that develop into a desolate electronic landscape. The balancing cord between audio and visual thundering she aspires towards. Her approach never wears out and diving into the realms of film fragments and striking field recordings. she pursues a journey where the source material is anything but traceable. All that megaton sonic alchemy weighs up and shows this is way more than an angry lady that turned her back on academic audio processing. the kind of sweaty dust that belongs in retirement homes. Next thing you know you are fragmented into a non-executable floorplan. The storm has spent itself. – Audiobot.