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In the late Winter of 2021, John McCowen was recording demos in his basement studio. He was aiming to record each part in one circular-breathed take. This turned out to be virtually impossible to achieve. This was due to a constant onslaught of earthquakes.These were earthquakes preceding the Fagradalsfjall volcanic eruption of March 2021 near his home in Reykjavík, Iceland. For weeks leading up to the eruption, there was a persistent pulse of earthquakes - sometimes only minutes apart. The sensation of these earthquakes were incredible. At first, from silence, there would appear an incredibly low, sine-like tone. As this tone began to crescendo, it would be accompanied by an ever-increasing vibration. These vibrations would then become visceral as the building shook (there are a slew of outtakes where this is audible as well as the accompanying “goddamnit”). With the epicenter located a 30 minute drive from Reykjavík, one could visualize the initial grinding of tectonic plates and the subsequent, earth-rattling waves emanating from the volcanic center. For John, feeling these rolling vibrations unconsciously shaped the music of Mundanas VII-XI.

The “house band” for sfSound’s West Oakland Sound Series, the oakland reductionist orchestra is a supergroup of local musicians with a predilection for lowercase/fricative/reductionist acoustic improvisation that often sounds more electronic than acoustic.