MFT: The Band - The Title - The Tracklist As a Poem

More often than not, the tracklist contains more than just a list of songs in a particular order. Sometimes it tells a story of its own. Other times it evokes a stream of images of its own that just ebb and flow independently from the music they designate.  

There are also those rare instances when every element of the equation clicks in a different way - when the name of the band, the title of an album and the tracklist form a thing in itself, a poem of sorts. 

Today i've stumbled upon one of such.

"SHULULULU" is an album by an industrial techno band SHXCXCHCXSH.  The name of the band is intentionally barely pronounceable semi-nonsensical semi-onomatopoeiac blare - not unlike the one that is the name of the band "!!!" (aka "tck-tck-tck"). The name of the band mirrors the abstractness and open-endedness of their music - there are no defined boundaries of what you hear, you just can't know for sure what it is - you need to follow your instincts in order to come somewhere and every time the journey is unique. There is also a built-in shout-out to Charli XCX because pareidolia reigns. 

These folks are known for being intentionally unintelligible. Check their interview excerpt on Juno. It is equally majestic. While it is definitely a piece of gibberish, it was also encrypted so that it would look even more pointless. Isn't it cute? 

“Shshsc cksdkd lcjlklks shh shdxx xhjxjs xkkhxs skskhc xksssghshs xgsgsgxh hsjjs shx shxhjhs jhhxx jxx sjxkkls xls slxklx sxkxklls lxll s xlxks mmmmx sxsnns xkls x dcsxv sdll xlcc ss xx zzx sxx xxxxxs x sxxhxsxxhz zzxx sxsxhx xhxhx shxx hx sh sxch sxxls kksx skx xksl s stgtgts xxs s sgts sgsss zxsccs sxs sxs sxxx s x sx ssst sgggsts sss s shhstgtsss s zz s z sx szszszs szxs x stxggts shhhhh s shkkk skkkks sxss s x xhhx xsx s s xxxx shx x shxxss shs zzzz x zzzzz xzzzzz zzzzz zxzzzxxxzzz zzzzz zz zzxzzzz zz zzzzzzzz z zzzzzz”

Combined together - it is one of the most inspiring examples of the "Band Name, Album Title, Tracklist as a Poem" phenomenon. As it is, the title of an album "SHULULULU" is masked as mere multi-purpose ululating, widely used template for scat singing and sound poetry. The tracklist follows the same route. Basically, it is all variations - only one letter is changed each time. 

Here's how it goes:

SHXCXCHCXSH 

SHULULULU

SHULULULU 

SHUDUDUDU 

SHUMUMUMU 

SHUBUBUBU 

SHUNUNUNU

While it is undoubtedly done on purpose, there is noticeable spontaneity to it as if it was just thrown together. The dynamics of this text goes like this: it starts rough with the band's name - no vowels just shushing sussurating soughs of consonants and then it breaks out and spouts blasts voweled vocalizes. If you think about it for a moment, it might occur to you that this is a reminescence of a dawn of man - sounds starting to go beyond and mean something. It is not yet there, but it is in the process of getting there. It is fascinating.

The other releases of the band while having a similar aesthetic approach doesn't always hit the mark as effectively. For example, their 2013 album "STRGTHS" and its remix companion "STRGTHS RCNSTRCTNS" are just basic all-absorbing words with the vowels excised in order to make monstrous looking albeit ineffectual intimidating titles. As such it seems a bit prententious and doesn't really add anything to the experience.

On the other hand, their 2012 release "RRRRGRRGRRR EP" is an exquisite example of an accidental sound poem. It is something of a beastial incantation of the man who reduced himself to the barest of the minimum at the lowest realm of existence. It is something Edward Jessup would've uttered during one of his later psychonautic exploits. Here's how it goes:

RRRRGRRGRRR

XXZCCCZXXXX

KMMMMMMMMMM

SSTSTSSTSST

FFFNNFNNNFN

The same can be said about other 2012 release "NMHNMHNMNMH". It is less hard-edged and more muttered variation on a aforementioned state. It can also be an attempt to speak with your mouth being aggressively shut. It works either way.

NMHNMHNMNMH

SWSWWWSSWSW

HHHHHHHGGKS

"RJRJRFFRJRJ EP" is different as it is more of letters thrown together into a block than anything that. It is something one would type when he needs to name an object somehow but doesn't have much time to figure out an adequate title or really bothers to do so. It is cute though.

RJRJRFFRJRJ

MDDDSSLLKRR

ZZNNZNZNNZN

OOOVVVDDDDD

"VVVLLLLVVV" uses similar approach to "RJRJRFFRJRJ" but there is more sonic smoothness to the titles. The titles still appear to be thrown together, but their sound point out at what they where probably supposed to be at some point before being typed.

VVVLLLLVVV

MRRRWRRRDS

MRRRCHNNNN

Finally, there is 2016 release "SsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSs" the tracklist of which consists of a continuous sequence of a letter "S" that expands into more and more "S"'s with each successive track. It is classic piece of conceptual writing that uses "snowball" technique. It is dumb and effective. 

Ss

SsSs

SsSsSs

SsSsSsSs

SsSsSsSsSs

SsSsSsSsSsSs

SsSsSsSsSsSsSs

SsSsSsSsSsSsSsSs

SsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSs

SsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSs

SsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSs

SsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSs

SsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSs

SsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSs

SsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSsSs

***

Packaging music in a particular format is a challenge. So many things at play - the pace, conceptual integrity, personal preferences, etc. It is extremely hard to compile a set of songs into a smooth sequence, especially if there is no throughline concept/storyline to navigate. But that is just a part of the story. 

There is another thing that happens in the same time and it is usually not so intentional. There is this weird conceptual twist hidden deep inside of every tracklist. And it is always fun to uncover it.