Impositions by Evil Dick

'Impositions' is a bit unusual (at least for me) in that it’s one continuous suite, loosely inspired by Cage’s Sonatas and Interludes for prepared piano — though it sounds absolutely nothing like them. The idea was to build a sort of meta-instrument: one keyboard loaded with a wide range of artisan percussion sounds (e.g., pedal bin, ceramic sink, wine glass, kitchen hob, sellotape dispenser, loft ladder, coughs, burps and farts etc). I won’t get into all the drudgery that came with making the samples, but needless to say my Ludwig Black Beauty sounds very lovely indeed. Other samples, such as the violin, were already in existence having been created for older projects. The piano, timpani, bass drum and children's choir are the only sounds I didn't create myself. A synthesiser is used throughout for colouration and more fart noises.

The track titles come from a poem I wrote during my six week stay in hospital in 2022. I wish I'd been more productive during this period but most of my time was spent watching YouTube and Netflix on the laptop, while nurses stabbed me with needles and forced pills down my gullet.

Anyway, I thought it would be fun to get a serious academic to write some liner notes, but since that's never going to happen, I asked Prof. Andrew Ingram (CME, MMus, ARCM, SFHEA, ChatGPT) the infamously crusty, IMAGINARY, digital music academic you've never heard of, to write them. Take it away, Prof. A.I...

Evil's Impositions

"The term 'Imposition', as used in the context of this album by Evil Dick, refers to a distinctive compositional method in which each piece originates through improvisation and is subsequently refined through composition. Improvisation serves as the generative act—the primary impulse—while composition is the reflective, often meticulous process of shaping, selecting, and, at times, undoing. The final balance between improvisation and composition is fluid, though in most cases (according to Evil) a lot more time was spent "fiddling with the fucking notes, than playing them on the fucking keyboard in the first place".

The sonic environment of these 'impositions' is multifaceted. The predominant source material comprises recordings of quotidian domestic objects, recontextualized into musical instruments through the use of a sampler. Among the items employed are a bathroom sink, the resonant lids of pedal bins (which evoke the timbral qualities of gongs), the metallic chassis of a kitchen hob, and the satisfying clonk and spring twang of a loft ladder. These sounds, mundane in origin, become transformed into a palette of musical colour.

This bespoke instrument, affectionately nicknamed Smarties (in reference to the variety of sonic 'colours' it provides, akin to the UK confectionery), was carefully mapped across a keyboard. Each sound was spatially placed with independent panning, akin to a stereo-recorded piano wherein individual notes exist within their own spatial field. To further enrich the timbral diversity, selected samples were transposed both above and below their original pitch.

In addition to the Smarties instrument, 'Impositions' features contributions from ring-modulated piano, bass, violin, and vocal utterances, which are delicately woven in to provide melodic intrigue. A Nord Lead synthesiser interjects with squeaks and pops—bursts of colour that punctuate the sonic tapestry with capricious energy. The resulting composite is both uncategorisable and boldly original—an auditory landscape not heard with such radical inventiveness since the seismic unveiling of Stockhausen’s 'Gesang der Jünglinge' (ED: Never heard of it, Professor).

The result is a rich and texturally nuanced sonic fabric. However, the spatial detail inherent in the stereo imaging—particularly the lateral placement of individual notes—is optimally experienced through hi-fi speakers. Listeners are gently advised against using headphones, through which the spatiality collapses and the full dimensionality of the impositions may be lost."

Composer Evil Dick is a violent, abusive control freak. He is psychotic, given to totally contradicting himself. He is self-obsessed, which is not surprising because he is also incredibly dull (anyone heard his "coloured
dots" monologue?). He is prone to bouts of extreme grumpiness, especially in bed, when any kind of sound, including his own breathing sends him into a rage.