The Disintegration Loops
Encyclopedia
The Disintegration Loops is an album
by William Basinski
and was released in 2002. It is the first of the Disintegration Loops series, followed by II, III and IV.
, by transferring them into digital format; however, the tape had physically deteriorated to the point that, as it passed by the read/write head, the ferrite
detached from the plastic backing and fell off. Basinski has alleged that he finished the project the morning of the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center
in New York City
, and sat on the roof of his apartment building in Brooklyn
with friends listening to the project as the WTC towers collapsed. In 2011 Basinski corrected earlier reports where he described recording the last hour of daylight of 9/11 in NYC with a video camera focused on the smoke where the towers were from a neighbors roof, then set the first loop as the soundtrack to that footage. Stills from that video were used as the covers for the set of four CDs.
Pitchfork Media
placed The Disintegration Loops at number 30 on their list of top 50 albums of 2004 and at number 196 on their list of top 200 albums of the 2000s. It was also named the 86th best album of the decade by Resident Advisor
., and the 10th best of the 2000s by Tiny Mix Tapes.
On the afternoon of September 11th, 2011, Basinski's work was performed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City as a live orchestration to mark the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
by William Basinski
William Basinski
William Basinski is a United States avant-garde composer of ambient music via tape music and process music. Basinski is also a clarinetist, saxophonist, sound artist, and video artist...
and was released in 2002. It is the first of the Disintegration Loops series, followed by II, III and IV.
Content
Loops is based on Basinski's attempts to salvage earlier recordings made on magnetic tapeMagnetic tape
Magnetic tape is a medium for magnetic recording, made of a thin magnetizable coating on a long, narrow strip of plastic. It was developed in Germany, based on magnetic wire recording. Devices that record and play back audio and video using magnetic tape are tape recorders and video tape recorders...
, by transferring them into digital format; however, the tape had physically deteriorated to the point that, as it passed by the read/write head, the ferrite
Ferrite (magnet)
Ferrites are chemical compounds consisting of ceramic materials with iron oxide as their principal component. Many of them are magnetic materials and they are used to make permanent magnets, ferrite cores for transformers, and in various other applications.Many ferrites are spinels with the...
detached from the plastic backing and fell off. Basinski has alleged that he finished the project the morning of the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center
World Trade Center
The original World Trade Center was a complex with seven buildings featuring landmark twin towers in Lower Manhattan, New York City, United States. The complex opened on April 4, 1973, and was destroyed in 2001 during the September 11 attacks. The site is currently being rebuilt with five new...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, and sat on the roof of his apartment building in Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
with friends listening to the project as the WTC towers collapsed. In 2011 Basinski corrected earlier reports where he described recording the last hour of daylight of 9/11 in NYC with a video camera focused on the smoke where the towers were from a neighbors roof, then set the first loop as the soundtrack to that footage. Stills from that video were used as the covers for the set of four CDs.
Reception
The music review online magazineOnline magazine
An online magazine shares some features with a blog and also with online newspapers, but can usually be distinguished by its approach to editorial control...
Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media, usually known simply as Pitchfork or P4k, is a Chicago-based daily Internet publication established in 1995 that is devoted to music criticism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. Its focus is on underground and independent music, especially indie rock...
placed The Disintegration Loops at number 30 on their list of top 50 albums of 2004 and at number 196 on their list of top 200 albums of the 2000s. It was also named the 86th best album of the decade by Resident Advisor
Resident Advisor
Resident Advisor is an online electronic music magazine dedicated to the global dance music scene. The website won a People's Voice award in the 12th Annual Webby Awards in 2008.-Site History:...
., and the 10th best of the 2000s by Tiny Mix Tapes.
On the afternoon of September 11th, 2011, Basinski's work was performed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City as a live orchestration to mark the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.
External links
- Disintegration Loops at DiscogsDiscogsDiscogs, short for discographies, is a website and database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. The Discogs servers, currently hosted under the domain name discogs.com, are owned by Zink Media, Inc., and are...
- Disintegration Loops II at DiscogsDiscogsDiscogs, short for discographies, is a website and database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. The Discogs servers, currently hosted under the domain name discogs.com, are owned by Zink Media, Inc., and are...
- Disintegration Loops III at DiscogsDiscogsDiscogs, short for discographies, is a website and database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. The Discogs servers, currently hosted under the domain name discogs.com, are owned by Zink Media, Inc., and are...
- [ Disintegration Loops III] at Allmusic
- Disintegration Loops IV at DiscogsDiscogsDiscogs, short for discographies, is a website and database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. The Discogs servers, currently hosted under the domain name discogs.com, are owned by Zink Media, Inc., and are...