Minidisc (Gescom minidisc)

Infobox Album
Name = Minidisc
Type = Studio album
Artist = Gescom


Released = 1998
Recorded =
Genre =
Length = 66:28
Label = OR ONLY 3
Producer =
Reviews =
Last album = "This"
(1998)
This album = "Minidisc"
(1998)
Next album = ""
(2003)

Minidisc is the only full-length release by Gescom. The album was originally only released in minidisc format, but was later pressed to CD. In addition, the album has been released on bleep.com in FLAC [http://www.bleep.com/current_item.php?selection=ONLY3CDF_DM] and MP3 [http://www.bleep.com/current_item.php?selection=ONLY3CD_DM] formats. The personnel for this album were Sean Booth, Rob Brown and Russell Haswell.

Background

"Minidisc" was the world's first ever MiniDisc-only release, and was designed to take advantage of the format's (then exclusive) zero seek time: "Minidisc" contains 45 pieces split into 88 tracks which are intended to be played in shuffle mode, creating a quasi-unique, aleatoric arrangement every time it is played. (a technique also used for the 1999 compact disc release "Masque" by the King Crimson-related ProjeKct Three.)

The tracks on this album reveal the influence of DSP techniques. Half of the album can be related to drone music or ambient music, the other half to acousmatic music or electroacoustic music.

One of the songs on Minidisc is entitled "Stroyer 2"; this could perhaps be a reference to the short lived punk/noise band Destroy 2.

Recreating the Experience

Gescom wanted to make use of the seamless shuffle play unique to the MD format and created this sequence of 88 short tracks to be played in any order at random. Most CD players cannot do seamless random playback because there is always a slight delay between tracks. People listening to digital versions will get the full MD experience as most music players now have gapless playback even in shuffle mode.

Track listing

#"Cut Begin" – 0:14
#"Cut Begin (part 2)" – 0:10
#"Cut Begin (part 3)" – 0:13
#"Cut Begin (part 4)" – 0:08
#"Cut Begin (part 5)" – 0:13
#"Cut Begin (part 6)" – 0:16
#"Cut Begin (part 7)" – 0:20
#"Amendment 84" – 1:05
#"Helix Shatterproof" – 1:06
#"A Newer Beginning" – 0:19
#"A Newer Beginning (part 2)" – 1:09
#"Polarized Beam Splitter" – 0:37
#"Polarized Beam Splitter (part 2)" – 0:09
#"Polarized Beam Splitter (part 3)" – 0:43
#"Polarized Beam Splitter (part 4)" – 1:20
#"Polarized Beam Splitter (part 5)" – 0:22
#"Inter" – 2:41
#"R M I Corporate ID 1" – 0:09
#"Pricks" – 0:23
#"Pricks (part 2)" – 3:56
#"Pricks (part 3)" – 0:23
#"Pricks (part 4)" – 0:06
#"Devil" – 0:30
#"Is We" – 3:08
#"Is We (part 2)" – 0:51
#"Dan Dan Dan" – 0:27
#"Dan Dan Dan (part 2)" – 0:14
#"Dan Dan Dan (part 3)" – 0:15
#"Dan Dan Dan (part 4)" – 0:16
#"Le Shark" – 0:05
#"Le Shark (part 2)" – 0:05
#"Le Shark (part 3)" – 0:06
#"Le Shark (part 4)" – 0:06
#"Le Shark (part 5)" – 0:12
#"Le Shark (part 6)" – 0:18
#"Le Shark (part 7)" – 0:15
#"1D Shapethrower" – 2:12
#"Shoegazer" – 4:12
#"Vermin" – 0:14
#"Vermin (part 2)" – 0:48
#"Vermin (part 3)" – 0:14
#"Hemiplegia 1" – 1:05
#"Mcdcc" – 1:02
#"Gortex" – 0:23
#"Alf Sprey" – 0:13
#"Interchangeable World" – 0:09
#"Interchangeable World (part 2)" – 0:33
#"Interchangeable World (part 3)" – 1:17
#"Cranusberg" – 0:48
#"Cranusberg (part 2)" – 4:15
#"Cranusberg (part 3)" – 2:55
#"Raindance" – 0:38
#"Horse" – 0:04
#"New Contact Lens" – 1:30
#"Of Our Time" – 1:47
#"Crepe" – 0:04
#"Crepe (part 2)" – 0:28
#"Crepe (part 3)" – 0:04
#"Crepe (part 4)" – 0:23
#"Wab Wat" – 0:50
#"'MC" – 0:14
#"Peel" – 1:03
#"I G E" – 0:08
#"Knutsford Services" – 0:57
#"Fully" – 2:24
#"Fully (part 2)" – 1:46
#"Squashed to Pureness" – 0:09
#"Squashed to Pureness (part 2)" – 0:15
#"Squashed to Pureness (part 3)" – 0:10
#"Squashed to Pureness (part 4)" – 0:49
#"Yo! DMX Crew" – 2:47
#"Go On" – 1:36
#"Stroyer 2" – 0:20
#"Stroyer 2 (part 2)" – 1:05
#"Stroyer 2 (part 3)" – 0:09
#"Shep" – 1:08
#"Langue" – 0:09
#"Poke" – 0:10
#"Poke (part 2)" – 0:15
#"Poke (part 3)" – 0:31
#"Poke (part 4)" – 0:14
#"Hemiplegia 2" – 0:17
#"Territory of Usage" – 0:17
#"Territory of Usage" – 0:37
#"Tomo" – 0:15
#"Tomo" – 0:17
#"R M I Corporate ID 2" – 0:07
#"PT/AE" – 0:07

References

* [http://www.discogs.com/release/795850 CD entry at Discogs]
*Minidisc entries at Discogs: [http://www.discogs.com/release/43153] [http://www.discogs.com/release/842183]