| Fantastic reissue of obscure Swedish sine-wave drone/electronics. Includes a previously unreleased half-speed version for 76 full minutes of sound, a harmonically pure minimalist classic of subtle shiftage and its infinite possibilities.
"First issued in 1970 by the German label Wergo, What?? (as we would call it here in America) was obscure even among the avant company it kept in; labelmates such as Stockhausen, Ligeti and Cage overshadowed Rabe from the start." Rabe: "About 85% of the material is made up of electronically generated tones, which however are never present in their static, original form. Each partial has been specifically treated in itself, which can at times yield a very rich result. What?? was created in the late summer of 1967, and was realized by me in the electronic studio of the Swedish Radio...the second What?? is the same as the first, but at half-speed, ie. one octave lower. This may seem a lousy way to fill up a CD, but in fact through the years I have been using both versions in performances. With the kind of sound material used in What??, it does not simply sound half-speed. In a way it becomes another piece of music -- mellower, and the single events of course easier to distinguish." |