Janek Schaefer / Pan American

Split #3

Janek Schaefer vs Pan American was the third release in FatCat's split 12" series. Curated by Dave Howell of Obsessive Eye, with aid from Dave Cawley and Alex Knight, this collection will run in parallel with Fat Cat's (ir)regular output, opening out a series of strange combinations/fusions, introducing unknown/up-and-coming artists, and charting a more diverse, abstract terrain for the label.

JANEK SCHAEFER

Janek is a practising architect and former student at the RCA. This split 12" marked his first full-scale release to date. Performed totally live in a collage technique, vinyl source material is processed through Schaefer's custom-built 'tri-phonic' turntable (a bi-directional, ultra vari-speed, three tone-arm record deck), and simultaneously manipulated through cheap repetition machines and black box filters. 'Wash Bag Cut', meanwhile, was generated entirely through a live exploration of the phono jack.

PAN-AMERICAN

Pan American exists as a solo project for Mark Nelson, guitarist / singer for US post-rock pioneers Labradford. This single, long track comprises a sequenced collage. Mixing electronic instrumentation (the central Rhodes piano motif; sine-wave bass; drum machine), with effects, and concrete-style samples (a metal pipe rolling on a wooden floor; clanking saucepan lids, etc.), its effect is langorous and hypnotic, revealing a slowly-unfolding tapestry of entwining beats and simple, sumptuous melodies.