20 April 2008

Morton Subotnick - 1968 - The Wild Bull

Quality: 5 out of 5
Trip O Meter: 5 out of 5

A year after "Silver Apples Of The Moon," Morton Subotnick and his trusty Buchla synthesizer returned with "The Wild Bull." Really, to completely understand this stuff, it may be best to get a view of the Buchla:




















Although the same set of sonic tools are at work on this album, the aural picture is very different.

Bringing the sound down to earth, Subotnick focuses less on the seemingly random pings and bleeps that formed the backbone of "Silver Apples." Side A of "The Wild Bull" builds on roaring background oscillators, until the bull finally begins to rise. Here, we find Subotnick focusing more on melody as the bull gets a sort of melodic theme from a fuzzed-out oscillator.

Side B sounds even more progressive with the bleating Buchla forming what could almost be mistaken for a modern IDM rhythm as the ominous, synthesized tones of the bullring wail in the background. The fight ensues as the bulls theme returns, violently rolling around with the rhythm, and finally the bullring returns with its own roar. It's amazing that such a colorful story could emanate from such a primitive machine. I suppose that's a big part of Subotnick's genius.

"Silver Apples" is the electronic breakthrough, but "The Wild Bull" refines and even perfects the alien tones of the Buchla. It's a very listenable piece for what it is and is sure to take your mind on an interesting sonic journey.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

http://rapidshare.com/files/108752579/Morton_Subotnick_-_1968_-_The_Wild_Bull.rar

The Bomber said...

what a fuc%&&$"XX!!| ! ! are the links already deleted ? ? ? i cant make them work... perhaps my mistake ... mmm ...

Anonymous said...

The link should be fine. Give it one more try.

Unknown said...

hi the link appears incomplete ,eg: http://rapidshare.com/files/108752579/Morton_Subotnick_-_1968_-_The_Wild_

and i cant download it...thanks, the same occurs with other albums...

Anonymous said...

You have to scroll past the window for the complete link or open the comments in a new window. Everything is there.

Mirco said...

Thank you very much indeed!
I invite everyone to enjoy this site created by Subotnick: http://www.creatingmusic.com/

Bye from Italy

avantgarterbelt said...

A friend of mine from 30 years past, turned me on to this album after a day of consuming some really fine head medicine. It scared the hell out of me... BTW- love the things you do to my ears :)

Michael said...

Thanks a lot!
Very Nice blog!