AIRWAVES FROM TAN-----PSYCH2: HOLY GHOST PEOPLE

These little sound pastiches are a side project of mine that I'm not really sure what to do with. A kind friend used to play them on her radio show when she wanted to take long cigarette breaks, but the rate at which they're getting weirder isn't directly correlating with my technical skill and little rough patches glare harder through the airwaves, I've been told.  So here's a recent one for just you.

I usually work from a film or a story that interests me. This one comes out of a strong interest I've had recently in Appalachian culture and extreme spiritual practices. The spoken portions are moments from the startling 1967 documentary Holy Ghost People, which reveals the world of a West Virginia Pentecostal community that practiced faith healing and snake handling. It's been called "one of the best ethnographic films ever made."

Later on you'll hear Lonnie Mackley speaking in tongues (I'm forgetting what track it's paired with, but I'll get back to you). Off the top of my head there's also some Brian Eno, a moment from the original Wicker Man, "Yellow" by Miles Davis from Aura, a cut of Vic Chesnutt introducing himself, "Murdergong" by Jib Kidder, a bit from MRC051, and Joe Meek - "I Hear a New World," which appears in the original film, and no doubt confirms the sense of humor of the directors. Last up are a few lines from "Bright Morning Stars," an old Appalachian folk song about death.

Most of the music I've known of for a long time, but it's really nice the way that a familiar song will take on surprising meaning when it fits easily into a new context or narrative.

I hope you enjoy it.