Pan sonic
Encyclopedia
Pan Sonic was a Finnish
experimental electronic music
duo consisting of Mika Vainio and Ilpo Väisänen.
acts like Throbbing Gristle
, Einstürzende Neubauten
and Suicide
to reggae
, hip-hop
and dub
. The late outsider rockabilly
artist Hasil Adkins
is also cited, as well as country music
star Johnny Cash
. Vainio often remarks that their music is a merger of these two schools of music, taking the harsh and pure sounds typical of industrial techno and spacing them out into longer, subdued soundscape
s familiar to instrumental reggae and dub.
Some of their equipment is made by third "extra" member Jari Lehtinen. These and other custom made instruments are responsible for creating the sounds typical to Pan Sonic's music. They also use samplers
and an MPC2000 sequencer
. Pan Sonic are great fans of experimentation and art performances and have done exhibitions and sound installations in museums. They have also made music for Rei Kawakubo
's fashion shows.
In a musical form in which sequencing
and recording
music using computers is standard, the group is known for recording everything live, straight to DAT
(Digital Audio Tape) using home-made and modified synthesizers and effect units.
In the late 1980s, as part of a "sound performance", the duo spent 10 hours in a garage, exposed to low-frequency (13 Hz
) noise at 125 decibels. They performed a gig in London's East End from an armoured car using a 5000 watt
sound system allegedly "similar" to the type used by the police to disorient riot
ers.
to escape the long Finnish winters. At the moment Mika Vainio lives in Berlin
, with Ilpo Väisänen having returned to Kuopio. Their first 12" was released on Finland's Sähkö Recordings
.
Originally, the band was called Panasonic
, but the corporation
of the same name threatened legal action unless it was changed. The conflict was resolved, and the duo removed the "a" from their name to become "Pan Sonic". The missing "a" lives on as the title of their 1999 album.
In December 2009 their split was announced on PhinnWeb - Mika and Ilpo will continue with their own solo projects, though further Vainio/Väisänen collaborations in the future can't be ruled out.
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
experimental electronic music
Electronic music
Electronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...
duo consisting of Mika Vainio and Ilpo Väisänen.
Music
Pan Sonic cite their main influences from the early 1980s, with industrialIndustrial music
Industrial music is a style of experimental music that draws on transgressive and provocative themes. The term was coined in the mid-1970s with the founding of Industrial Records by the band Throbbing Gristle, and the creation of the slogan "industrial music for industrial people". In general, the...
acts like Throbbing Gristle
Throbbing Gristle
Throbbing Gristle were an English industrial, avant-garde music and visual arts group that evolved from the performance art group COUM Transmissions...
, Einstürzende Neubauten
Einstürzende Neubauten
Einstürzende Neubauten is a German post-industrial band, originally from West Berlin, formed in 1980. The group currently comprises Blixa Bargeld , Alexander Hacke , N.U...
and Suicide
Suicide (band)
Suicide is an American electronic protopunk musical duo, intermittently active since 1970 and composed of vocalist Alan Vega and Martin Rev on synthesizers and drum machines. They are an early synthesizer/vocal musical duo....
to reggae
Reggae
Reggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...
, hip-hop
Hip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
and dub
Dub music
Dub is a genre of music which grew out of reggae music in the 1960s, and is commonly considered a subgenre, though it has developed to extend beyond the scope of reggae...
. The late outsider rockabilly
Rockabilly
Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music, dating to the early 1950s.The term rockabilly is a portmanteau of rock and hillbilly, the latter a reference to the country music that contributed strongly to the style's development...
artist Hasil Adkins
Hasil Adkins
Hasil Adkins was an Appalachian country, rock and roll, and blues musician, though he was frequently considered rockabilly and sometimes primitive jazz...
is also cited, as well as country music
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
star Johnny Cash
Johnny Cash
John R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...
. Vainio often remarks that their music is a merger of these two schools of music, taking the harsh and pure sounds typical of industrial techno and spacing them out into longer, subdued soundscape
Soundscape
A soundscape is a sound or combination of sounds that forms or arises from an immersive environment. The study of soundscape is the subject of acoustic ecology...
s familiar to instrumental reggae and dub.
Some of their equipment is made by third "extra" member Jari Lehtinen. These and other custom made instruments are responsible for creating the sounds typical to Pan Sonic's music. They also use samplers
Sampler (musical instrument)
A sampler is an electronic musical instrument similar in some respects to a synthesizer but, instead of generating sounds, it uses recordings of sounds that are loaded or recorded into it by the user and then played back by means of a keyboard, sequencer or other triggering device to perform or...
and an MPC2000 sequencer
Music sequencer
The music sequencer is a device or computer software to record, edit, play back the music, by handling note and performance information in several forms, typically :...
. Pan Sonic are great fans of experimentation and art performances and have done exhibitions and sound installations in museums. They have also made music for Rei Kawakubo
Rei Kawakubo
is a Japanese fashion designer, founder of Comme des Garçons.She is untrained as a fashion designer, but studied fine arts and literature at Keio University. After graduation, Kawakubo worked in a textile company and began working as a freelance stylist in 1967....
's fashion shows.
In a musical form in which sequencing
Music sequencer
The music sequencer is a device or computer software to record, edit, play back the music, by handling note and performance information in several forms, typically :...
and recording
Recording
Recording is the process of capturing data or translating information to a recording format stored on some storage medium, which is often referred to as a record or, if an auditory medium, a recording....
music using computers is standard, the group is known for recording everything live, straight to DAT
Digital Audio Tape
Digital Audio Tape is a signal recording and playback medium developed by Sony and introduced in 1987. In appearance it is similar to a compact audio cassette, using 4 mm magnetic tape enclosed in a protective shell, but is roughly half the size at 73 mm × 54 mm × 10.5 mm. As...
(Digital Audio Tape) using home-made and modified synthesizers and effect units.
In the late 1980s, as part of a "sound performance", the duo spent 10 hours in a garage, exposed to low-frequency (13 Hz
Hertz
The hertz is the SI unit of frequency defined as the number of cycles per second of a periodic phenomenon. One of its most common uses is the description of the sine wave, particularly those used in radio and audio applications....
) noise at 125 decibels. They performed a gig in London's East End from an armoured car using a 5000 watt
Watt
The watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...
sound system allegedly "similar" to the type used by the police to disorient riot
Riot
A riot is a form of civil disorder characterized often by what is thought of as disorganized groups lashing out in a sudden and intense rash of violence against authority, property or people. While individuals may attempt to lead or control a riot, riots are thought to be typically chaotic and...
ers.
History
Formed in 1993 as a techno group, with extra member Sami Salo (who later left the group), they moved to operate from a base in BarcelonaBarcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
to escape the long Finnish winters. At the moment Mika Vainio lives in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, with Ilpo Väisänen having returned to Kuopio. Their first 12" was released on Finland's Sähkö Recordings
Sähkö Recordings
Sähkö Recordings is a record label in Turku, Finland. Sähkö was founded by Tommi Grönlund in 1993. The label gained international acclaim by its minimalist electronic releases. Sähkö Recordings has also such sublabels as Puu, Keys of Life and Jazzpuu. On Sähkö and its sublabels have released...
.
Originally, the band was called Panasonic
Panasonic
Panasonic is an international brand name for Japanese electric products manufacturer Panasonic Corporation, which was formerly known as Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd...
, but the corporation
Corporation
A corporation is created under the laws of a state as a separate legal entity that has privileges and liabilities that are distinct from those of its members. There are many different forms of corporations, most of which are used to conduct business. Early corporations were established by charter...
of the same name threatened legal action unless it was changed. The conflict was resolved, and the duo removed the "a" from their name to become "Pan Sonic". The missing "a" lives on as the title of their 1999 album.
In December 2009 their split was announced on PhinnWeb - Mika and Ilpo will continue with their own solo projects, though further Vainio/Väisänen collaborations in the future can't be ruled out.
Albums
- Vakio (1995)
- Kulma (1997)
- Endless (1998) (under the name 'Vainio Väisänen Vega' with Alan VegaAlan VegaAlan Vega For several years other sources stated that he was born in 1948 – see 'Myth' section is an American vocalist, primarily known for his work with electronic protopunk duo, Suicide...
) - A (1999)
- Aaltopiiri (2001)
- V (2003) (with MerzbowMerzbowis 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...
) - Kesto (234.48:4) (2004)
- Resurrection River (2005) (with Alan Vega as Vega/Vainio/Väisänen)
- Nine Suggestions (2005) (with John DuncanJohn Duncan (artist)This page is about John Duncan the contemporary artist. For the Symbolist artist see John Duncan .John Duncan is an artist who has lived and worked in Los Angeles, Tokyo and Amsterdam, currently lives and works in Bologna...
as Duncan/Vainio/Väisänen) - Katodivaihe (2007)
- Shall I download a blackhole and offer it to you (2009) (live, with Haino Keiji)
- Gravitoni (2010)
EPs / Singles
- Panasonic EP (1994)
- Osasto EP (1996)
- Arctic Rangers 2 x7" (1998)
- Medal 12" (1998) (with Alan Vega)
- B (1999)
- Destria (Live) (1999)
- Motorlab #3 (2001) (with Barry AdamsonBarry AdamsonBarry Adamson is a British rock musician who has worked with rock bands such as Magazine, Visage, The Birthday Party, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, and the electronic musicians Pan sonic and Depeche Mode. Adamson created the seven-minute opus "Useless " remix for the latter band in 1997...
). The inside of the CD cover contains images of a brain scanNeuroimagingNeuroimaging includes the use of various techniques to either directly or indirectly image the structure, function/pharmacology of the brain...
of the IcelandIcelandIceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
ic composer Magnús Blöndal Jóhannsson, taken while he was listening to the CD. - Che (2009) (with Sunn O)))Sunn O)))Sunn O))) is an American doom metal band known for its synthesis of diverse genres including drone, ambient, noise, and black metal. Supported by a varying cast of collaborators, the band has two core members: Stephen O'Malley and Greg Anderson .-History:Sunn O))) is named after the Sunn...
)
DVD
- "Kuvaputki/Cathode Ray Tube/SET"KuvaputkiKuvaputki is a multi-angle DVD by Embryoroom produced and directed by Edward Quist and co-produced by Derek Gruen aka Del Marquis, with music by Pan Sonic, the Finnish experimental electronic music duo consisting of Mika Vainio and Ilpo Väisänen.The film is "a hyper-real multi-angle DVD environment...
(2008), an experimental documentary produced and directed by Edward Quist over the course of several years. Versions of the motion picture were screened at various film festivals, yet the DVD remained elusive until 2008, due possibly to EMI's purchase of MUTE.
External links
- Pan Sonic's page on pHinnWebPHinnpHinn of Tampere, Finland is the founder and Webmaster of pHinnWeb, a WWW site dedicated to Finnish electronic music, techno music, avantgarde, experimental music, rave culture and underground culture...
- Pan Sonic's page on Mute RecordsMute RecordsMute is an independent record label based in the UK. It was founded in 1978 by Daniel Miller and featured several prominent musical acts on its roster such as Goldfrapp, Depeche Mode, Yazoo, Erasure and Fad Gadget.-Beginnings:...
- Blast First Petite
- Kuvaputki DVD announcement (2008)
- Kuvaputki DVD page
- Interview (2001)
- Interview (1999)
- Interview (2006)
- Listen to Pan Sonic's "Mayhem II" at Acousmata music blog
- http://www.phinnweb.org/panasonic/news/Split announcement on 1/12/2009 pHinnWebPHinnpHinn of Tampere, Finland is the founder and Webmaster of pHinnWeb, a WWW site dedicated to Finnish electronic music, techno music, avantgarde, experimental music, rave culture and underground culture...