Abigail Smith-Indochina Soundscraps; eh? Records #112, 2020

 

Chances are that if you live in the United States, and possibly Europe, you probably haven't been able to travel internationally for the last few months. We all know the reasons why, so no need to go into that here. 

Good news from eh? Records on that front, especially for fans of Musique Concrete and Southeast Asian culture, has come in the way of a cassette from New Mexico-based artist Abigail Smith! Indochina Soundscraps is a collection of field recordings made by Smith in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos in 2016. It features all kinds of great sounds from that region. Snippets of street level construction and commute noises, radio broadcasts, school sing alongs, and monastic chanting are blended in a fine, flowing, and very organic way that puts the listener smack dab among these various environments. Disaster Amnesiac has particularly enjoyed those latter sounds, with their booming drums and clattering resonant metal tones. As I've listened, my mind has been very satisfyingly transported to what I imagine those locales to be like, and in this time of forced immobility, Soundscraps is much appreciated for that. It would seem likely  that this cassette (with download) would appeal to both the peripatetic and the sedentary alike. For the former, under the current societal conditions it could serve as a reminder of travels planned or executed. To the latter, in could be an imaginary window into distant worlds. 

Either way, Disaster Amnesiac suspects that those who find Indochina Soundscraps, no matter their proclivities, will find this release refreshingly compelling. I sure have, especially in this period of little movement. This release makes me hopeful.