Sounds from Innerspace

innerspaceboy · 03-25-2019, 09:13 PM

Ever-striving to improve upon the organizational standards of The Innerspace Labs library, I finally set myself to the task of creating custom genre-labeled PVC dividers for the genre sections of my collection.

I began by assessing the key genres which would most effectively and productively be represented with tabs and compiled a list of 21 primary genres. Next, I surveyed various marketplaces for materials and determined that Rochester, NY's classic Bags Unlimited collectors' supply store had the best supplies available and at the lowest price compared to eBay and Amazon. (A tip - phoning in your order to BU will expedite the shipment as they do not have to transfer the materials from their web system!)

While their site is well-organized, they did not specifically provide dimension information for the tab area of their dividers nor the character width of their standard 0.5" adhesive lettering. But with some simple importing and scaling in Gimp I was able to derive those dimensions and determine the maximum number of characters per 6" tab, (which is approximately 12-15). I then adjusted all my genre labels, simplifying them to twelve or fewer characters.

Counting the number of each letter per sheet I dumped my list into a web-based character frequency counter and determined that I would need 9 of the shop's sheets to complete the project. I ordered a pack of 10 to be safe. Shipping was free and they arrived in just 48 hours so I got right to work.

I had read on a scrapbooking site about the technique of using a flat acrylic ruler to aid in typesetting and in keeping the lettering centered and on a uniform baseline. Not having a typesetter's ruler handy, and seeing that all suppliers in my area were out of stock of them, I produced one myself using a spare heavy sheet of acetate I found and trimmed down in my workplace's mail room, added a few 1/2" incremental markings to aid in centering, and dove into the project.

It took just two hours from start to finish, and I photographed the results. Here are the completed set of 21 dividers just as I finished setting them.

I pre-measured my various storage systems to ensure that these standard dividers would fit and function in each space. They worked perfectly. Here they are in action. I think they add a touch of professionalism to my listening room and hope that years from now when I retire and bestow my library upon a foundation or organization of my choice that these will make the work of the recipient far easier to bear.
It was a fun accomplishment!

NOTE: As posts are limited to 10 images I’ll break here and post a second entry momentarily with the results of the other shelves. Stand by!

innerspaceboy · 03-25-2019, 09:14 PM

(continued from above)

(The box sets shelf seemed sufficient on its own so I didn't include a divider here.)

The whole project was very affordable and really enhances my library's organization. Highly recommended for anyone looking to spruce up their listening room!

innerspaceboy · 03-27-2019, 06:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mindfulness

nice album collection, looks really organized

Thanks! I try. And thanks for checking out my corner of the member journals.

innerspaceboy · 03-27-2019, 03:08 PM

A visit to the legendary Bop Shop in my old home town of Rochester, NY yielded two delightful surprise acquisitions. The first was one of the three of Harold Budd's 1970s and 80s classic output missing from my vinyl collection - Abandoned Cities. (I now need only The Pavilion of Dreams and The White Arcades to complete my collection.)

The other was an equally unexpected but similarly important work of early ambient music - a German import from Grönland Records combining two classic recordings of Can's co-founder, Holger Czukay with the great David Sylvian.

Plight & Premonition / Flux & Mutability is a double reissue and remaster of their late-80s collaborations experimenting with abstract ambient soundscapes which are sparse, sombre, and atmospheric. Pitchfork contributor Robert Ham remarked that these recordings laid "the groundwork for years of ambient music that would follow."

"Each feature two long instrumental works built around drones from a synthesizer or guitar interrupted by random shortwave-radio intrusions and occasionally disorienting tape edits."

The first disc, Plight & Premonition, originally released in March of 1988, comprises drones of harmonium, synthesizer, piano, and guitar. The second disc, Flux & Mutability followed in 1989. Allmusic describes its ambience as "deep, expansive atmospheres with eerie samples and vacuous walls of sound" and calls the album "an important selection for fans of electronic minimalism."

Both the Budd classic and this new remaster from Grönland are exquisite additions to my library of pioneering early ambient music. My next ambition is to secure a copy of the Editions EG 1981 reissue of Budd's debut on Eno's magnificent Obscure Records label in 1978. The Pavilion of Dreams is ethereal, holy, and exquisitely beautiful and has been a long-standing favorite recording of mine in the realm of the genre's origins.

rostasi · 03-27-2019, 04:04 PM

Even tho the kitty sitter was excited about the prospect of my seeing Budd this weekend,
I just couldn't bring myself to attend any of the performances he gave. Partially because he
would've interfered with seeing Code Girl, Alvin Lucier, Joan LaBarbara, Makaya Mc Craven,
Sons of Kemet, and The Art Ensemble of Chicago, but also that I find his work so incredibly
milquetoast with all of its soft pedaling of everything - even when it doesn't involve a piano.
Even if he were just down the street, I probably would've done some personal soft pedaling
down to the "Pharmacy" in the Square for a soft sundae instead.

innerspaceboy · 03-27-2019, 04:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rostasi

Even tho the kitty sitter was excited about the prospect of my seeing Budd this weekend,
I just couldn't bring myself to attend any of the performances he gave. Partially because he
would've interfered with seeing Code Girl, Alvin Lucier, Joan LaBarbara, Makaya Mc Craven,
Sons of Kemet, and The Art Ensemble of Chicago, but also that I find his work so incredibly
milquetoast with all of its soft pedaling of everything - even when it doesn't involve a piano.
Even if he were just down the street, I probably would've done some personal soft pedaling
down to the "Pharmacy" in the Square for a soft sundae instead.

You must be talking about Big Ears! I'd phoned the owner of the very shop at which I bought the records in advance of my trip and he told me he'd be traveling to TN for the show. He said, "you need to Google this line up immediately."

Jesus what a show! I'm envious!

rostasi · 03-27-2019, 04:45 PM

I met the Bop Shop guy last year in our hotel lobby and saw him off and on during the fest.
Not sure if I saw him this year, but we didn’t speak anyway. I mentioned the shows and the
fun I had with Frown in another thread. It’s become a regular thing for me.

innerspaceboy · 03-27-2019, 04:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rostasi

I met the Bop Shop guy last year in our hotel lobby and saw him off and on during the fest.
Not sure if I saw him this year, but we didn’t speak anyway. I mentioned the shows and the
fun I had with Frown in another thread. It’s become a regular thing for me.

Oh my god! Small world! Tom's a good guy.

innerspaceboy · 03-30-2019, 12:31 PM

A grail added to my collection today! A rare band-produced bootleg mentioned in my entry last month - Loads of New Content from Fred Deakin! has arrived at Innerspace Labs from the UK.

May I proudly present, “Soft”/”Rock” - Lemon Jelly’s 7″ blue vinyl single from 2001. The single is enclosed in a screenprinted modified denim sleeve constructed from pairs of jeans with a flavored condom in the pocket, (mine is chocolate!), and was limited to just 1,000 copies worldwide. 15 very special copies featured hand embroidery by Laura Lees. “Soft” and “Rock” contained uncleared samples by Chicago and Black Crowes, so the band semi-discreetly issued the single themselves, bearing their tell-tale Lemon Jelly typeface.

What made this specific copy particularly appealing was that the original owner had clipped an article about the single from England back in 2001 and saved it along with the disc for the last 18 years. (I love a bit of contextual history with my rare releases!)

Though the seller couldn’t recall the details of the publication he believed it was from The Guardian so I went to work and quickly located the original publication information for the write-up, courtesy of newspapers.com and found a full live text transcript in the Guardian website’s archives.

Here is a copy of the transcript:

Publication: The Guardian
Location: Greater London, England
Issue Date: Friday, September 21, 2001
Page: 42

Overheard: Chicago

You think the Strokes made fashion's favourite record of the year? Get back behind the velvet rope. Aside from Missy Elliot bootlegs, the most played song at the spring/summer shows has been an ultra-rare remix of a tune by Chicago (below). The track, which takes the vocals from If You Leave Me Now (No1 in 1976 - ask your parents) and puts them over a blissful beat, was mixed by London-based DJ-ing outfit Lemon Jelly. Called Soft Rock, the track was sent out to the select few earlier this year on blue vinyl 7", packaged in the back pocket of a pair of jeans. It has now been heard at Luella in New York (selected by Steve Mackie of Pulp, the boyfriend of stylist Katie Grand) and Margaret Howell in London among others. We love it, but we're worried.

Part of the tune's allure is the fact that it's so hard to come by (there's a copy on eBay at the moment going for £34). Designers obviously have it in their shows for the exclusivity, but if it's played any more, it'll become ubiquitous and spoil the fun for everyone who managed to get hold of an original. Our suggestion - go truly obtuse and play Atomic Kitten instead.

CP

Of course, in the nearly two decades since its publication copies of the single have commanded a much higher price, but I was delighted to secure a copy with both a near-mint jacket, original plastic sleeve, near-mint denim sleeve, and the article all at a fair price.

This will be displayed beside my copy of “Rolled”/”Oats”, the duo’s other infamous bootleg. As I mentioned in my previous feature, the single was spray painted gold and screenprinted once again with the classic Jelly font and housed in a hessian (burlap) sleeve. “Rolled” samples “Feel Like Making Love” by Bad Company and is based on “The Curse Of Ka’zar” from their Lost Horizons double LP. “Oats” uses elements of “Closer” with a sample of George Michael’s “Heal The Pain”.

These are wonderful treasures for any fan of cheerfully eclectic music and proud gems of my library!

innerspaceboy · 04-10-2019, 05:49 PM

It's an exciting day at Innerspace Labs! Our latest vintage amplifier upgrade provides clean and detailed sound and gorgeously complements our Denon DP-60L turntable as both units feature a rich rosewood finish, further mirrored by the liquid wood ear cups of our AudioQuest Nighthawk closed-back circumaural headphones and our pending order of ORA GrapheneQ wood ear cupped cans presently forecast for delivery later this year from Kickstarter.

Long-time readers may recall that our first receiver upgrade took place in 2009 when our beloved and trusty Yamaha CR-840 (1979-1981) Natural Sound Receiver was replaced with a McIntosh 4280.

Here is the Yamaha -

And the MAC 4280 -

Sadly, the amp had some issues and after 3 years of service attempts at McIntosh Labs headquarters it was declared dead.

In 2012 I was generously gifted a replacement MAC – a MAC C39 pre-amplifier paired with an Integra adm2.1 power amplifier. They made my Focal 814v Chorus series floor speakers sing beautifully.

Eventually, that MAC was retired as well, and I returned to my beloved Yamaha which, with only a single transistor replacement around 2006 and a Deoxit cleaning in 2019, it has served me faithfully for nearly two decades, and has been kicking since it was built 38 years ago in 1981.

But Sunday evening it occurred to me that I had one more component I'd never tried with my system. This is the Tandberg TR-2060, manufactured in Norway, which debuted in late 1977 and was introduced to US markets until about 1981. It originally retailed for $700 in 1977 ($2,919.85 in today's dollars.) Though fairly scarce, they are available on the used market at an affordable price and perform impressively well. I found it for a few dollars at a junk sale several years ago.

The amp has two sets of speaker outputs with a power output of 60 watts per channel into 8Ω (stereo). The only snag is that the inputs are DIN connectors. Thankfully, I remembered precisely where I'd stored a pair of DIN-to-RCA conversion cables which I'd ordered years back when I originally acquired the receiver.

I polished and connected it and was really pleased with its powerful sound. The classic Yamaha Natural Sound receivers of the same vintage are far more neutral, and there is really something to be said for the stunning rosewood cabinet of the Tandberg matching the finish of my Denon. (I am an unabashed fanatic for rosewood.)

It's always a thrill to incorporate new vintage gear into my setup, and I'll be curious to see what I think of the punchier, bolder sound this amp provides over the more transparent signature of the Yamaha, and to test various favorite recordings with both the speaker and headphone outputs. It will be a fun project for the spring!

03-27-2019, 04:04 PM	#705 (permalink)
rostasi . Join Date: Aug 2012 Posts: 4,008	Even tho the kitty sitter was excited about the prospect of my seeing Budd this weekend, I just couldn't bring myself to attend any of the performances he gave. Partially because he would've interfered with seeing Code Girl, Alvin Lucier, Joan LaBarbara, Makaya Mc Craven, Sons of Kemet, and The Art Ensemble of Chicago, but also that I find his work so incredibly milquetoast with all of its soft pedaling of everything - even when it doesn't involve a piano. Even if he were just down the street, I probably would've done some personal soft pedaling down to the "Pharmacy" in the Square for a soft sundae instead. Last edited by rostasi; 03-27-2019 at 04:20 PM.

03-27-2019, 04:45 PM	#707 (permalink)
rostasi . Join Date: Aug 2012 Posts: 4,008	I met the Bop Shop guy last year in our hotel lobby and saw him off and on during the fest. Not sure if I saw him this year, but we didn’t speak anyway. I mentioned the shows and the fun I had with Frown in another thread. It’s become a regular thing for me.