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Song Score
Distinct from Evaporated Music 1's employment of sound design to surface invisible layers of sono-cellular activity in video clip imagery, Evaporated Music 2 employs musical compositions to invert the visual terrain and uncover a netherworld of 'other-song' residing in the gleaming nothingness of televisual pop.
A performed song from a TV show is overlaid with a click-track to match the tempo and structure of the existing song. (Thanks to Jojo Petrina for pre-production work here.) A new song in the general prog-metal idiom (complex time signatures, atonal riffs, faux-symphonic climaxes, etc.) is then 'over-composed', leaving space around the vocal parts but framing them with dense rhythmic/atonal passages and incidents. This process is done without watching the visuals, and involves compositional techniques in order to complete a viable song which can then be 're-imported' into the visual domain of the TV show's screen performance. Once the composition is basically complete. the music is the checked against the visuals for any glaring inconsistencies. For example, the video might feature a close-up of the drummer doing a fill or the bass player running up the fretboard. At such moments, the composition is altered to accomodate such moments, in order to fuse the new composition with the existing visual performance. Ironically - as most of the performers are badly miming at playing their instruments - a double duplicity is performed: the new composition fakes the music that the screen performers are faking in the first place.
The mix of the song hysterically exploits the surround-sound space, jettisoning drum elements widely across the space, and splaying shredded guitars and slabs of fuzz into front and rear spatial spectra. The sensations sought by Evaporated Music 2's compositions and mixes are the heady, oppressive omnipotence unleashed in the controlled chaos of the gorwing hybrids of Death/Nu-Metal plus some of the more rock-granular exponents of metal. Each track is based around sampled textures and micro-fragments of a single band, so as to imbue each track with a 'band identity'. Additionally, extra drums, guitars and bass are overlaid to flesh out the final compositon. The bands referenced are (in order of the pieces) Decapitated, Korn, Opeth, Sepultura, Tool, Meshuggah. The concept with the mix is to extend the Scandinavian and Eastern European sonic deconstruction of Metal that has developed in the last decade into the assaultive possibilities of the Dolby Digital 5.1 spatial matrix.
Many of the shows selected feature backing vocalists, so vocal lines and harmony parts are composed to match the on-screen performances. This is a major factor in allowing the resulting compositions to veer toward the prog end of metal. Various vocal techniques are employed by Philip who sings all the parts, Extensive post-production is employed to transform the vocal textures, correct pitch, and tightly synchronize the overdubs. Recording engineering for the vocals was handled by Que Huong Thi Nguyen. The main vocal line is mixed into the centre speaker of the 5.1 matrix, with the vocal harmonies routed to various spatial congigurations throughout the surround sound space.
Phono-labial Charts
The lyrics for each song are derived from matching labials to the existing song's words. This involves composing words that visually match, and then testing them for 'labial confluence'. This involves a bizarre process of playing the original TV song, then silently mouthing the new lyrics in-synch while watching one's mouth in a mirror. Modifications are required at this stage to fine-tune the precision of the vocal match, and can take as long as it takes to compose the new song. Once the phono-labial charts are complete, melodic lines are written for the parts. Careful attention is paid to the range of singers visible on screen. As the screen performances of these fake bands are highly pop in their arrangement and hence heavily weigthed to harmonised lines with back-up singers, the new labials are broken down into corresponding harmonised parts. Here lies the core clash of the resulting music: atonal multi-part harmonies accompanying guttural growling and complex-time atonal riffs.
Part A - California Dreams (My Song Growls Wasted Air)
Original lyric There are places to go I haven't been yet Terror's baseless. The Gods lie. Every being's dead. And faces they tell I still haven't met And times in my life I’ll never forget And times immortal? Fuck it and forget. I’ll always remember you as the very best And when I think about you now and all we shared I wanna thing aboundless now – all our wishes. I smile and know I’m just glad I was there A spiral hole. Humongous lower death. I’m so-o glad I was there My song growls wasted air. There can never be another time or place That will ever be quite the same If I could I’d take you with me everywhere I go Every cooking taste you wish; every way a whore This dream is the one thing I will always know
Part B - Pugwall (Lap Dance Choking Whore)
Original lyric We know where we want to go Uptown Tokyo Lap dance choking whore That’s where we want to go Uptown Tokyo By boat or aeroplane Bible-torn era of pain To us it’s all the same You ask this whore, Satan We’d swim but it’s too slow Weird wins - bastards duo To Uptown Tokyo The lap-dance choking whore Anywhere with you is allright with me Head in where his Jewish doll race will be (All right) All rise! Hand in hand we’ll see all the sights Hating Hell will seal older sighs (All right) All rise! In a rickshaw built for two Inner resourced – peer-fucked too I’d imagine me and you Hide a magic piano and Together in Uptown Tokyo So sorry if you please Must learn some Japanese Bust her dumb jar pennies We’ll need it when we go Windy dear wind, we’re cold To Uptown Tokyo The lap-dance choking whore
Part C - Full House (Heave Until Balled-Up)
Original lyric Sometimes you lose your place And all you’re searching after is right before your face Hang all your hurting avarice: I’ll befall your fate Riding on your high horse Believing your own lies – don’t you know that Everyone is leaning Hairy ones are leering All the same size Hold the saints’ eyes Just a little more love is all we’re hoping for Drunk until my dove leads on – we’re up all fours Just a little more peace is all we need Drunk until my beast hears all we did Take away the colours – don’t you understand it Hack away to gut us - down-under dancing All breaks down to the heart of the man (In) hombre town to the heart of the bad Oh wow – think how strong we’d be (-) thick and strung whipped heel If you and me – give a little more love A view of me – heave until balled-up (at end) Break it down! (-) Be in hell! Take away the colours – don’t you understand it Hack away to gut us - down-under dancing All breaks down (spoken) It all breaks down to the heart child oooh (pause) heart of the child oh-oh >>>> Ooh! Ow-wow – think how strong we’d be (-) thick and strung whipped heel If you and me – give a little more love A view of me – heave until balled-up It ain’t that tough to give a little more love A view of me – heave until balled-up Take away the colours – don’t you understand how Hack away to gut us - down-under dancing
Part D - The Heights (Hard Chew Your Dog To The Ancients)
Original lyric I hear a voice in my mind I know her face by heart An hour phased pious heaven and earth are moving in my soul I don't know where to start tell me, tell me, the words to define Tape me, tape me, the world to defile the way I feel about someone so fine The swaying field; dumb ones on fire how do you talk to an angel Hard chew your dog to the ancients how do you hold her close to where you are Hand to an older ghost the way too hard how do you talk to an angel Hard chew your dog to the ancients it's like trying to catch a falling star His last drained look at a vaudville slut at night i dream that she is there Annihilate the sheerest stare and I can feel her in the air Annihilate her cursed hair tell me, tell me, the words to define Tape me, tape me, the world to defile the way I feel about someone so fine The swaying field; dumb ones on fire
Part E - Kids Incoporated (Diamonds On A Scar)
Original lyric Chuggah – chuggah – chuggah When I hear the distant thunder Wetter ears her tear-stained anger Well you know it makes me wonder About the world out there so exciting To me it’s so inviting No weed here so he fucked her People give us rules and regulations Baby if arseholes are rear-agents Fill our minds with crazy explanations Fear mind regressive bomb a nation Put us in a care without a key now Buddah’s in a cave: we’re anarchy now Waiting for that every woman free now Weighing forth the heavy womb in fear now Cos time is on our side Cos diamonds on a scar Time is on our side Diamonds on a scar And before too much more is gone Happy fortune must bore his gun We’ll be moving on (we’ll be moving on) Quick! P.M.U. feed-hog (P.M.U. feed-hog) Cos time is on our side Cos diamonds on a scar We’ll not be denied And baby our sun will never set There’s nothing to reget Desire he’s too wicked Cos time is on our side Cos diamonds on a scar Cos time is on our side yeah Cos diamonds on a scar yeah Chuggah – chuggah – chuggah Chuck it – chuck it – chuck it In the grip of powerful emotions He’d agree I’d bow if all he motioned The beating of my heart is an explosion Had been of my artisan exposure A lot of brand new feelings inside of me Harlot, I brand you fearing sodomy I’m gonna try what ever’s been denied me I’m god! I dry-wall heaven spears inside me You’re gonna find me anywhere Yoga and fire my ending way And I’ll be taking every day And I’m free-basing if we take Just try to stop me Degrade and stalk me I don’t care Idol hair! I don’t care Idol hair!
Part F - Saved By The Bell (Fateful River)
Original lyric We’ll be friends forever Til the end of time Tear the hateful dark Friends forever We’ll be friends With you everywhere Weather heavy air Talkin’ bout friends Chocolate bar French Friends forever Fateful river They’ll always be there Dead hallways beef ends Always will be there Oh waste we be dead Yeah yeah friends Dead air fate Friends forever Fateful river Always be friends Hallways beef ends With you everywhere Weather heavy air We’ll be friends together Where be fateful river Friends forever Yes we will, Yes we will Always will be there Oh waste we be dead We met some time ago Woman – some tarmac whore When we were so young Weary work so hard We've been through thick and thin Wave be thralled – hand it then We've lost, we've tied, we've won With lust we’ve died – recline! If you're down, I'll pick you up If entirely piqued Europe I'll never let you fall Hard day for dead ducco If you ever need someone He viewed heavy dicks up bum I'm waiting for your call I’m praying – fuck your god Through it all, hangin' tough Threw that whore her dangling love We'll stay side by side Wasted sly bastard We'll be friends forever Where be fateful river Til' the end of time Tear the hateful dark
Complete contents of this page © Philip Brophy