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CD
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IDA 137CD
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In 1991, aged 75, Moondog was about to embrace his singular identity, somewhere between druid, mad scientist, and young child. Having left the beaten track well before, and broken down barriers between musical genres, the ancient moderne Moondog was about to push paradox and anachronism even further and create the cult concept-album Elpmas. Elpmas is at once a satire of technology, music that takes its pulse from Native American pow-wows and cleverly composed pop music. Made with state-of-the-art computers, it is a manifesto against the atrocities inflicted on indigenous people. It is also an ode to Nature and an invitation to travel, themes that are still as immensely popular today. In order to perform and revisit Elpmas, Ensemble 0 and their guests have had to explore the 247 pages of the record's score. The original was mostly recorded note by note, but here the musicians play their parts simultaneously, as one would any classical score. Every sound has been meticulously re-recorded and some of the parts have been rearranged so that they could be played by instruments, and avoid digital treatment, other than the final summing of the tracks. The cold digital feel of the original has been counterbalanced by the analog warmth we have wanted to breathe into it.
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