1 – How are you and who are you?
I am well thank you! My name is Tim from Altamahaw, North Carolina in the United States Of America. I am responsible for the noise / ambient / sound collage project known as Animals Like Earthquakes.
2 – You seem to be into collage and mail art as well, can you give us more information regarding those activities?
In addition to my audio project I am also very involved in mail art. My collages are largely text-based, but in a purely visual (as opposed to literal) sense. I don`t think my work falls under poetry concrete, but people have made the comparison and I don`t know enough about it to debate them. Most of the elements I use in my work comes from scraps of paper, grocery lists or notes I find lying around at work. I like using deteriorated and imperfect things like fade letters, misprinted text and blurry stamped text and graphic like you find on fruit and vegetable boxes. Not for any deep or meaningful reason, I just find that sort of thing beautiful and charming to look at. Most of these collages end up as black and white photocopies that I send out on a pretty regular basis, others end up as the basis for ink drawings and some end up as large scale paintings that couldn`t realistically mail anywhere and are taking up far too much room in my house.
3 – Where does the name `Animals Like Earthquakes` come from? Do you define `ALE` as a solo project, a band, a duo, a collaboration, a collective?
Animals Like Earthquakes actually comes from the liner notes from the Talking heads album Stop Making Sense. I don`t know why that particular phrase stuck with me like it did and I can`t really remember the context in which it was used, but I just liked the sound of those three words together. I really don`t even too much of an affinity for the Talking Heads. Some of their stuff is o.k. Fear of music was a good record.
Animals Like Earthquakes is a solo effort in that it is just me doing the recording and performing, but since my work uses a lot of found recordings, answering machines specifically, I like to think of the people on the tapes and machines as collaborators in a way. I like thinking of it like that.
4 – Now, regarding your solo experimental noise project (if I could use such a term). What`s the sound of `Animals Like Earthquakes `sounds like?
I wouldn`t call Animals Like Earthquakes `music ` even though it has some musical elements, but I hesitate to call it `noise `also because it`s far too structured. `Sound Collage `seems to be the description I feel most comfortable with. Most pieces have a score, believe it or not. Some are rigid and some are not with many having huge room for improvisation in the structure. The track `if you`d like to make a call `for example has a general structure that stays constant from performance, but many of the other elements change each time, resulting at times in a total change in the feel of the piece. It`s a piece that I couldn`t possible perform the same way twice, which is a lot of fun. I think atmospheric would be a good description of my work. A lot of people find it dark and creepy, but I don`t see that at all. I am definitely not a dark or creepy person at all.
5 – When do you record music (early bird, day bird or night owl)?
I record exclusively at night after my children are asleep. Doing anything that involves any level of concentration while they are awake and running is an exercise in futility.
6 – What kind of gear / equipment are you using?
For recording I use of bunch of analog tape recorders and microcassette machines. I have a really nice microcassette transcriber that is great for pitch and speed control. For effects I use a Johnson J-Station and a Behringer Reverb Machine. I record onto a Tascam DP-02 Digital 4-track recorder and do editing and very minor manipulation on an increasingly unreliable computer that will barely run Audacity. I rig up other stuff like contact mics and such as needed. For live performances I usually only bring tape decks, answering machines and effects, but have started experimenting with heavily manipulated guitar as well, if for no other reason than to give me something to do while the answering machines and tapes play. Sometimes I don`t even use and amp, and even if I do I`m usually pretty quiet live, which I like because it forces people to sit very close to hear me. Very intimate.
7 – What inspires you and what are your influences?
What inspires me is the simple but cosmic beauty of everyday life and everyday situations and how precious both of these are. The people talking on my recordings are real people and these are genuine glimpses into their personal lives. I find their messages and conversations very poignant, and the fact that these completely utilitarian recordings have survived and exist to inspire me is pretty overwhelming at times and I feel a particular responsibility to share them all. For the record I always edit out telephone numbers, and usually surnames as well to protect the privacy of these people. I struggled with that decision, but ultimately found it made me feel more comfortable to do so. I am inspired by Godspeed You Black Emperor , although I sound nothing like them. Their work has really caused me to look at bits of samples or dialog as important elements of composition. As far as the distribution of my music I find Erik Disorder and Stan Boman to be insoirational as well. Those guys have stuck to their guns of mail only distribution and kept those values intact for multiple decades now. Every time I start to even consider setting up a Bandcamp page I think of Erik and Stan licking stamps for 20 years and I`m over it.
8 – Besides your mail art projects and `Animals Like Earthquakes `do you have any other music and / or artistic projects?
I write reviews and comments on papernet culture in Paper Trails, my contribution to Cuneiform, an A.P.A. that I participate in. I`m working on a standalone zine that`s coming along but moving slowly. I used to be pretty active in the zine community, and hope to get more involved in the future.
9 – Do you perform live?
I perform live some, but there aren`t many places to perform the type of material I do around here and I`m not particularly interested in traveling more than an hour or so to perform. My friends Zach and Denny Corsa from the amazing drone band, Lost Trail used to have shows at their home (side two of my first release was recorded there), but while we had some great times there, attendance was usually poor and they aren`t doing them much anymore. I do the odd opening spot and have opened for some great artists (T.J. Borden, Kevin Greenspon, Big Waves Of Pretty, Al Riggs and The Inconveniences, etc).
10 – How`s the noise scene in Altamahaw?
There is no noise scene in Altamahaw. It`s a very small farm (and mostly closed) textile mill town. There`s some experimental stuff going on in Greesboro about 30-40 minutes away and a good bit in the Raleigh / Durham / Chapel Hill area, but as far as I know Lost Trail and myself are the only folks doing experimental work in the county.
11 – What type of music are you into? What about movies, television, radio maybe?
I like all kinds of music, but rarely seek out new music on my own anymore. I prefer to listen to whatever my friends give me or stuff I get in trades. I like radio too. From pop and rock on FM, to talk religious, and sports broadcasting on AM,and all kinds of bizarre and interesting stuff on shortwave. I like Godspeed You Black Emperor, and related side projects well as stuff like Sigur Ros, Radiohead, Sonic Youth, etc. I like noise. Novasak, I Died, Sonic Disorder are all great. There`s a guy in Pennsylvania named Henry Rial who sent me a bunch of CD-R`s a while back that are some great noise. I love jazz and bossa nova. I think Thomas Dolby is one of the most underrated songwriters and musicians ever. I like a lot of ambient and electronic music like Boards Of Canada and Aphex Twin. I like primitive (20`s and 30`s) blues and country, western swing, 90`s alternative and elevator music. I even like some of the radio pop stuff my kids listen to. Not a music snob by any stretch and I have no guilty pleasures. Just whatever sounds good to me.
12 – Please give us some contact information?
You can contact me through my post office box:
Animals Like Earthquakes
P.O. BOX 72
Altamahaw
North Carolina
27202
USA
13 – What is your opinion concerning modern technology like computers, internet, cell phones or intelligent phones?
My opinion on techno culture in general would take another 10 pages so I will just discuss it in relation to my art for now. As far as technology applies to my music, I`m not interested in having my art or music online or distributed online. It`s just not the venue I feel is appropriate for what I do. To hear or see my work you either have to meet me in person, receive a flyer, get my info from a review or interview, or have a friend make you a copy (which I strongly encourage). In other words, you have to have a one-on-one experience with someone else. I am completely unreachable except for my post office box. I have no interest in the wider audience I am sure being on the internet would entail. I am only interested in sharing my work with adventurous people who get what I`m doing and aren`t afraid to take on putting a stamp in the mail. The distribution of my work is part of the aesthetic almost as much as the work itself, if that makes any sense. Getting an order or letter from a flyer I set out is so much more rewarding than just seeing one more mouse click. I think the internet and it`s unlimited choices for finding music tends to actually limit people`s exposure to some of the more challenging work happening because when you can always find what you`re looking for whenever you want it takes the element of chance out of growing your musical taste.
14 – Any closing comments?
I have gone too long already! Thanks you for finding my work worthwhile enough to interview me!
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