BLK w/BEAR

BLK w/BEAR is a harsh beast from Washington D.C.  Originally the vehicle for J.S. Adams, his reputation is a legacy of crushing aural organisms and organisations via manipulation and destruction.  BLK w/BEAR has since grown and extended into a three piece experiment with the additions of Doug Poplin and PD Sexton to the ranks.

NP: Hello.  Who are you, where are you and how would you describe your music?

BLK w/BEAR (read: black with bear)_Washington DC USA.

Ambient_drone_experimental_modern classical.

BLK w/BEAR is a full-band effort of JS Adams (loops + prepared vinyl), Doug Poplin (cello + effects) and PD Sexton (bass + effects)…since recording the LDWR tracks the band now includes Renee Shaw as full creative partner and who has often augmented performances with live video mix as VJ Poppins.

BLK w/BEAR advocates a communications aesthetic wherein audio/visuals are distilled to key base components through image pixilation and sound/time manipulation.  We celebrate the physical manifestation of misfired communications, broken language and broadcast interference.  We champion delay and decay.  We champion audio bleed, field recordings and the deconstructed surface noise of altered vinyl recordings.  We herald cyclical repetitions and misappropriated realignments, intentional over-processing, signal saturation and digital malfeasance, audio pranksterism.  Through aggressive enlargement and recontextualization of the mundane and every-day we hope to usher listeners and viewers into a deeper introspective relationship with previously familiar – now unstable – environs.

NP: How did you get involved in the Long Division With Remainders project?

BLK w/BEAR: Prior associations with Justin Watson via Bad Hand Films (http://www.myspace.com/badhandfilm).

NP: What approach did you take to remixing the tracks?

BLK w/BEAR: As one of the first versions, we mixed the original LDWR source materials to backing tracks and structures for supplementing by our recording sessions.

NP: How creative is the art of the remix?

BLK w/BEAR: The remix should exhibit and champion a truly new and collaborative product between the original constructs up and above simple audio window dressing and embellishments; either taking a totally new direction not unlike wherein Richard D. James reportedly submitted wholly original material for a NIN remix request; or – the route we took for our LDWR versions – the recontextualization found in “9 Beet Stretch” and pure sound manipulation of source materials as wonderfully expressed in Ekkehard Ehlers’ “Plays” series.

NP: What do you think you brought to the compositions?

BLK w/BEAR: I believe that we brought our personal “stamp” and flavour to our version – more so a reconstruction and recontextualization version rather than a remix – that reflects a distinct BLK w/BEAR recourse.

NP: What is the best time, state and/or mindset for the listener to hear your work?

BLK w/BEAR: I would hope that listeners shed preconceived notions and audio logistics, freely and openly accepting audio bleed and signal processing glitches as compositional tools and structures.

NP: How long did it take you to do your remixes?

BLK w/BEAR: Approximately 3 months between first remixes and final studio versions.

NP: Which instruments/equipment did you use?

JS Adams – loops and prepared vinyl.

Doug Poplin – cello and effects

PD Sexton – bass and effects

Long Division With Remainders – source materials

Pink Noise Studios, Takoma Park Maryland USA

Richard Morel – sound engineer

NP: What is your all time favourite remix?

BLK w/BEAR: Coil “The Anal Staircase (A Dionysian Remix)

NP: What other music projects (past and present) are you involved in?

JS Adams collaborates with Jeff Surak (Violet) in VLT_BLK, a deconstructive turntablism duo.  Previous collaboration (“Wish For A World Without Hurt” album) with Mark L. Beazley (Rothko, Rome Pays Off).  BLK w/BEAR was originally Adam’s solo project.

Doug Poplin is a member of Bach Sinfonia.

PD Sexton regularly deejays in Atlanta and also performs as a solo artist.

NP: Where are things heading?

BLK w/BEAR: Forward with equally pleasant and challenging variant diversions and retrograde missteps.

BLK W/BEAR

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