Soloman Tump 870 Posted January 16, 2020 Share Posted January 16, 2020 (edited) Quote On Zero Point, a new LP for Max Cooper’s Mesh imprint, Rob Clouth delves deep into themes of chance, chaos, coincidence and the ephemeral, using the zero-point energy from quantum mechanics as a unifying concept. Exploiting his skills as a software developer, Clouth has created a suite of tools that tap into data from the ANU Quantum Random Number Server (QRNS), an online service that publishes real-time measurements from the zero-point energy field. Zero Point is a love letter to noise, written with data sampled from the core of the universe. In quantum systems the energy of any point in space is always fluctuating, so even in a perfect vacuum the lowest possible energy can never be zero. This vanishingly small, perfectly random energy source is called the zero-point energy, and it exists in every part of the known universe. At the big bang, the universe was small enough to have been affected by fluctuations in the zero-point energy field. Some theorists think that matter itself may have emerged from this chaotic soup, like the black and white pixels of TV static aligning by chance to form a momentary image. If this is true, then all of existence could just be a great coincidence – a fleeting alignment of shifting probabilities that will eventually dissolve back into the static of the zero-point energy. Harnessing data from the QRNS, Clouth creates intricate, unpredictable compositions, washed in pulsing waves of quantum noise. To him, ‘pure noise is like a block of marble. It contains all possible sounds, you just need to figure out which parts to carve away'. The human brain is wired to find patterns and will often perceive order when there is none, a phenomenon called pareidolia. Clouth exploits this to reveal delicate forms in the random data. Like an image appearing in the static of a detuned TV, lilting chords seem to emerge from a dense cloud of noise on opening track ‘Dirac Sea Birth’. The title track and closer ‘Zero Point’ features a long, slow fade back into ambience. Between these two points Clouth touches on lurching, polyrhythmic beat science; sparse, hypnotic downtempo pieces; and crunching, mechanical dancefloor material. Stylistically, Zero Point explores the intersection between contemporary IDM, neo-classical and electronic dance music. Retreating from his home of Barcelona to a rustic farmhouse in Aineto, a remote town in northern Spain, Clouth created most of Zero Point in conditions of isolation and near complete silence. ‘The silence meant that I could hear every little detail in the music, and so I played a lot with dynamics, filling each moment with barely perceptible sounds. It's the subtlest music I've ever written.’ Clouth’s creativity is enhanced by his own expertise in software development. On ‘A Shiver Sequence’ you can hear the QRNS data used to stochastically trigger vocal snippets, drums and other layers, resulting in 100 unique versions of the track that will be available upon release. A piece of self-made software called the ‘Reconstructor’ chops sampled sounds into tiny pieces and rearranges them to replicate a target sound. This allowed Clouth to use and manipulate his own beatboxing, a technique used on ‘Into’ and ‘The Vacuum State’. At the piano, from which he had a view of the snow-capped Pyrenees, Clouth tempers the chaotic abstraction of random noise with subtle, hypnotic harmonic progressions. At once abstract and tender, Zero Point draws on a neo-classical influence to strike an improbable balance between conceptual rigor and catharsis. Combining warmth with chaos, Clouth brings human emotion into contact with the universe in all its beautiful ephemerality. https://r obclouth.bandcamp.com/album/zero-point Released 12th March 2020 EXCITED. I was a big fan of his Vaetxh output from last decade, very glitchy idm beats. Looking forward to this. The lead single The Vacuum State is available now:- https://robclouth.bandcamp.com/album/the-vacuum-state Edited January 16, 2020 by Soloman Tump 1 Link to post Share on other sites
sherkaner 75 Posted January 16, 2020 Share Posted January 16, 2020 Love his output both under his name and Vaetxh. Sample track sounding promising. See you in March. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
kichiguy 70 Posted January 17, 2020 Share Posted January 17, 2020 Psyched Link to post Share on other sites
eclipsis 213 Posted January 17, 2020 Share Posted January 17, 2020 Finally! Link to post Share on other sites
user303 60 Posted January 18, 2020 Share Posted January 18, 2020 I need wax Link to post Share on other sites
Soloman Tump 870 Posted January 20, 2020 Author Share Posted January 20, 2020 On 1/18/2020 at 5:17 PM, user303 said: I need wax Yeah I decided against it, sadly. Reckon it would be a great album on vinyl, but cash moneyz Link to post Share on other sites
Extralife 1166 Posted January 20, 2020 Share Posted January 20, 2020 Loving that preview track. March seems a long way away ? Link to post Share on other sites
ignatius 5915 Posted January 22, 2020 Share Posted January 22, 2020 Looking forward to this one. The single is nice. Link to post Share on other sites
Soloman Tump 870 Posted March 12, 2020 Author Share Posted March 12, 2020 This album is fucking glorious. My mind just exploded - headphones are a must. AOTY contender for sure. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Ivan Ooze 957 Posted March 12, 2020 Share Posted March 12, 2020 Wil check out Link to post Share on other sites
lawrenke 4 Posted March 12, 2020 Share Posted March 12, 2020 Gave this a spin three times today and it is absolutely outstanding, so many ideas and such a range between dense and delicate. Lots of wicked rhythmic stuff to keep you engaged, loads of lush melodies and ambience, and some of the best sound design I've heard in a long time. So excited to discover more with repeated listens. Agreed about early contender for AOTY. Link to post Share on other sites
kichiguy 70 Posted March 13, 2020 Share Posted March 13, 2020 (edited) Couldn't agree more! Wonderful music. Edit: Also looking forward to receiving my very own unique version of A Shiver Sequence. Quote Unfortunately the vinyl will be delayed for 3 weeks due to manufacturing delay. But to sweeten the deal, the first 100 buyers of the vinyl will get a unique version of the track 'A Shiver Sequence', which uses generative processes so that each export is different. Edited March 13, 2020 by kichiguy Link to post Share on other sites
eclipsis 213 Posted March 13, 2020 Share Posted March 13, 2020 1 hour ago, kichiguy said: Couldn't agree more! Wonderful music. Edit: Also looking forward to receiving my very own unique version of A Shiver Sequence. Shit, I didn't know about the delay. Oh well, I can wait I guess. Link to post Share on other sites
Ivan Ooze 957 Posted April 19, 2020 Share Posted April 19, 2020 yuuuge step forward for rob clouth, album bangs don't sleep on it Link to post Share on other sites
eclipsis 213 Posted April 19, 2020 Share Posted April 19, 2020 5 hours ago, Ivan Ooze said: yuuuge step forward for rob clouth, album bangs don't sleep on it Yeah, might be my AotY so far. Casimir is epic af. Link to post Share on other sites
Silent Member 1267 Posted April 19, 2020 Share Posted April 19, 2020 It's pretty good! Link to post Share on other sites
eclipsis 213 Posted April 19, 2020 Share Posted April 19, 2020 I love the little stories and process explanation behind each track: http://www.robclouth.com/zero-point Reading that makes you listen to it more closely. Rob is a genius, I don't understand how can he be so overlooked even within the scene. Link to post Share on other sites
kichiguy 70 Posted April 20, 2020 Share Posted April 20, 2020 anybody get their record? Link to post Share on other sites
danshoebridge 158 Posted April 20, 2020 Share Posted April 20, 2020 Mine arrived on Saturday (UK) Link to post Share on other sites
lawrenke 4 Posted April 28, 2020 Share Posted April 28, 2020 Mine's yet to arrive ? Link to post Share on other sites
eclipsis 213 Posted April 29, 2020 Share Posted April 29, 2020 Just picked up the record from the post office today. It was there since Friday but I didn't have the time to pick it up earlier. Very silent and dynamic pressing. Love it! Just the cover art sleeve came with a rather big tear in it ? (shrink wrap was not damaged nor anything inside so it doesn't seem like a shipping/packaging issue). Such things bug me more than is healthy so I've contacted Mesh if they'd be willing to send a replacement sleeve to ease my mind. Link to post Share on other sites
eclipsis 213 Posted April 30, 2020 Share Posted April 30, 2020 Btw anyone received the unique version of A Shiver Sequence? I haven't. "The final digital and vinyl versions of the track are just 2 of over 100 unique versions I exported. The rest are given to purchasers of the vinyl, so that each person has a unique variation." Link to post Share on other sites
sherkaner 75 Posted July 20, 2020 Share Posted July 20, 2020 The more I listen to this, the more I appreciate it, especially at highest practical volume and/or with headphones as suggested. It's way more of a "journey" album than his previous output, with so much satisfaction to be had. Link to post Share on other sites
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