In February 2017 Moving Furniture Records released "1", the first LP by Radboud Mens and Matthijs Kouw. The album consists of two long drone tracks that make you forget music is a time-based art. Music that immerses you in a warm bath of frequencies that are evolving slowly around you, revealing you all sides and details of a sonic sculpture.
With this second release, which is simply titled "2", Mens and Kouw continue their exploration of long-form drone. By using precisely tuned analogue synthesis, Mens and Kouw create a rich tapestry of drones and slowly changing environments. To the careless listener, nothing much seems to happen. However, an attentive ear will reveal a rich variety of resonances and sonic artefacts. Starting as a deep and warm drone music both pieces gradually develop into a collage of textures and frequencies that are carefully moving in and out of the drone. This record is the second of a two-part album that was recorded live in the studio in December 2014, released in an edition of 300 LPs that are packaged in reversed sleeves and are provided with a digital download.
Matthijs Kouw is a sound artist exploring the relation between movement and stasis. Using a wide variety of source material that includes field recordings, amplified objects, software synthesis, and analog synthesis, Matthijs has worked on music for theatre, dance, and film, as well as sound installations. He has released music via various outlets, including IO Sound, erstwhile tape-label Grel and Moving Furniture Records. Matthijs lives in Utrecht (Netherlands), where he is slowly working on a new solo work.
Radboud Mens is a sound-artist, composer and sound designer who is working with sound since 1982. He started creating noise-machines in 1988. In the early 90’s he attached contact-microphones to dog’s brushes that he used to destroy vinyl records by scratch-playing them, boosting the signal through broken cassette- decks and recording the results. Currently, like for example for his album Cycle (2015), he builds his own acoustic instruments and sound-installations. These instruments and installations are played live through a computer for real-time processing and then recorded. The recordings are used in new compositions. Radboud Mens has worked with a broad variety of sound artists and composers, including Stephan Mathieu, Janek Schaefer and Timeblind, voice-artist Jaap Blonk, guitarist Dan Armstrong (as Fitness Landscape), Michel Banabila, Mark Poysden (as Alignment), Craig Ward (ex-Deus), and Matthijs Kouw. His music has been released by Staalplaat, Mutek_Rec, AudioNL, ERS, Bake Records, Noise Museum, Takashi Mobile, Tapu Records and Touch. In live situations he collaborated with video-artists such as Marco Douma, Remco Schuurbiers, Bas van Koolwijk and Jpech.