***NOW AVAILABLE ON VINYL!!! Guitarist KEN CAMDEN returns for his third solo album, continuing his explorations to seek out new techniques and sounds from the electric guitar. By utilizing both a steel slide and e-bow technique, Camden has moved into micro-tonal territory to bridge the textural gap between guitar and synthesizer while examining their inherent differences. The palette is further broadened by introducing an organic vocal sampling machine described as a Vocaltron. Much like a Mellotron, vocal samples (contributed by EMILY ELHAJ and ANGEL OLSEN) are chromatically organized in half steps from the lowest note to the highest possible. Each set is specific to the contributor's range and each note is unedited to keep all original characteristics of that particular individual's voice. This organized organic information adds a contrast to the electric guitar and synthesizer arrangements on the album. The development of all of these systems gives Dream Memory a diversity throughout it's tracks while maintaining an atmospheric bond that weaves the ideas into a thematic whole.
LP $19.00
06/16/2015
CD $14.00
06/16/2015
***Space travel is the dream of many and the reality of few. Since Yuri Gagarin first shed the bonds of earth gravity in 1961, only about 500 humans have made the trip beyond the atmosphere. KEN CAMDEN travels to space while still grounded on terra firma. His vessel of choice is a guitar and some effects with which he journeys on fantastical expeditions and surveys the biggest territory of all, the one between your ears. The glimmering sound fields he forms could be a soundtrack to an epic ‘60s science-fiction film, or a long forgotten grade school educational film strip explaining how humans would be living on Mars early in the 21st century. Camdenʼs narrative rejects the dominant dystopian view of the future and posits that there are great voyages yet to be made in inner and outer space. The album forms a gravity-free environment in which the listener is suspended, enhancing an aural excursion to the outer reaches of the musical Kosmos. (STREET DATE - 7/30/2013)
LP $19.00
07/30/2013
CD $14.00
07/30/2013
***“KEN CAMDEN plays guitar. While those four words might imply something extremely limiting, Ken's playing and execution are anything but. His work seamlessly melds elements of modern composition, kosmische musik, eastern modal themes and academic electronic works; in other words, a good amount of the things we love here at kranky. All of the pieces were recorded in real time with no overdubs, with the exception of Jupiter which was designed and recorded as a duet for two guitars. While this process may not result in the technical perfection that many strive for, it leaves in the idiosyncrasies that give sound recordings their life and their soul, that make them unique to the individual and the moment. Each final mix was chosen from multiple versions of each composition for the qualities inherent in the specific selected take. What results are six intoxicating, structured atmospheres perfect for headphones and a deep recline into an enveloping chair.” (STREET DATE - 3/30/2010)
LP $19.00
03/30/2010