Emil Beaulieau
Encyclopedia
Emil Beaulieau, or more fully, “Emil Beaulieau: America’s Greatest Living Noise Artist” (born July 5, 1957) is the stage name of Ron Lessard, a prominent noise music
ian who primarily records for his own label: RRRecords
. He has collaborated and performed with many well-known noise artists, including Merzbow
, Pain Jerk
, Richard Ramirez
from Black Leather Jesus and Sonic Disorder. Beaulieau frequently performs with a custom-made four-armed turntable
named the Minutoli
after its creator, a friend of the artist. Dressed in his trademark pink dress shirt, tie, and grey cardigan, Emil Beaulieau acts out comical performances.
Emil Beaulieau is also believed to have been the first to have applied the LAYLAH Records term “anti-record
” to musical records which have been treated (melted, drilled, painted, etc.) so that they become noise records. While something like this had been done by experimental artists for several decades, it wasn’t until Emil’s release of a series of such records (Billboard Combat, Metastasis; Due Process, Do Nothing and many more) that these (anti-)art pieces were widely called anti-records.
Noise music
Noise music is a term used to describe varieties of avant-garde music and sound art that may use elements such as cacophony, dissonance, atonality, noise, indeterminacy, and repetition in their realization. Noise music can feature distortion, various types of acoustically or electronically...
ian who primarily records for his own label: RRRecords
RRRecords
RRRecords is a used and new record shop. RRRecords is distinguished as being the first American record label to specifically publish underground noise music in the early 1980s, and published the first American vinyl by Merzbow, Masonna, The Hanatarash, Violent Onsen Geisha, and many more artists...
. He has collaborated and performed with many well-known noise artists, including Merzbow
Merzbow
is the main recording name of the Japanese noise musician , born in 1956. Since 1979 he has released in excess of 350 recordings.The name "Merzbow" comes from German artist Kurt Schwitters' artwork, "Merzbau”. This was chosen to reflect Akita's dada influence and junk art aesthetic...
, Pain Jerk
Pain Jerk
Pain Jerk is a noise music unit run by Japanese musician Kohei Gomi . Gomi started home-recording in the 1980s as private works. PAIN JERK was one of the more prolific and influential noise artists of the 1990s, and is one of the leading figures in the "dynamic" style of Japanese noise...
, Richard Ramirez
Richard Ramirez (musician)
Richard Ramirez is an American noise music artist from Houston, Texas, recording and performing both as a solo artist and as part of several groups and Houston Noise Bands, including Black Leather Jesus, Priest in Shit, An Innocent Young Throat-Cutter, Oasis of Fear and the "static noise" solo...
from Black Leather Jesus and Sonic Disorder. Beaulieau frequently performs with a custom-made four-armed turntable
Phonograph
The phonograph record player, or gramophone is a device introduced in 1877 that has had continued common use for reproducing sound recordings, although when first developed, the phonograph was used to both record and reproduce sounds...
named the Minutoli
Minutoli
A Minutoli is a phonograph turntable modified to support multiple tone arms. The tone arms may be used independently and/or in combinations at the operator's discretion. The result is generally a unique performance, due to the random positions available. The device is mostly associated with Noise...
after its creator, a friend of the artist. Dressed in his trademark pink dress shirt, tie, and grey cardigan, Emil Beaulieau acts out comical performances.
Emil Beaulieau is also believed to have been the first to have applied the LAYLAH Records term “anti-record
Anti-record
An anti-record is a musical vinyl record which has been treated so that it becomes a noise record. While this term was first used by LAYLAH Records on conventional vinyl releases by Current 93, Nurse With Wound and others, Ron Lessard of RRRecords applied the term to a series of physically altered...
” to musical records which have been treated (melted, drilled, painted, etc.) so that they become noise records. While something like this had been done by experimental artists for several decades, it wasn’t until Emil’s release of a series of such records (Billboard Combat, Metastasis; Due Process, Do Nothing and many more) that these (anti-)art pieces were widely called anti-records.