John Oswald – plexure ’24; plexures (Part 2)

by 5:4

i stressed before the primacy of Plexure within the context of these two new albums. Yet the extent to which Oswald has been irresisitably drawn back to this work suggests that the idea of a ‘definitive’ version is meaningless. Indeed, the extensiveness of the so-called “bonus tracks” (most of which are included on the appropriately-named plexures) is just as disorienting as the music itself. i’ll explore them via the descriptors i used in Part 1.

plexures

Prequels

As mentioned previously, and as its name suggests, prePlex is an earlier work that clearly points the way toward what would become Plexure. However, it has some significant differences that make it an entirely unique listening experience. The most obvious is that all of the clips – aside from one or two infinitesimal moments – are non-vocal; prePlex is all instrumental in focus. It also doesn’t exhibit the same sophistication of tension as in Plexure. That’s not to imply it’s inferior, only that it’s a more raw exploration of the sources, more gestural, more about extracting recognisable moments (never as miniscule as in Plexure) and stringing them together as a stupefying psychedelic torrent, rather than fashioning something concrete and well-defined from them. As such, the nature of the disjunct jump-cutting is akin to switching quickly between radio stations. That being said, there’s a nice stylistic thread running through the piece, like a nostalgic stream of consciousness. Another aspect that reduces the tension compared to Plexure is that, though there are subtle fluctuations, everything comes across as being in broadly the same tempo. Deviations are sufficiently minimal to maintain a sense of faux-continuity. It’s hardly dramatically inert, still less static, but it’s nonetheless at some remove from the intensity of Plexure – until, that is, its equally ramped-up ending.

Another prequel included is megaplundermorphonics-late’92 which, if the end of its name is to be trusted, is even closer to the time to when Plexure became a reality. It comes across as a work-in-progress of that piece, with several prominent sections missing. On the one hand, there are passages here that seem slightly arbitrary, neither going anywhere specific nor being structurally shaped, continuing for the sake of it. On the other hand, Oswald is such a master at this kind of thing that it never fails to impress, and in fact, one later section (prior to the ‘Mad Mod’ episode) is especially engaging as it’s allowed more extensive time to speak.


Remixes and revisions

This is where Oswald’s remark about Plexure suffering the most from his persistent “inclination to revise” becomes startlingly apparent. Aside from the original – designated plexure’93 here – there are no fewer than eight alternate versions of Plexure included across the two albums. For the sake of brevity (and, i think, sanity) i’ll summarise them briefly.

plexure

This is arguably the most interesting and successful of them all. Described by Oswald as a “new re-edit re-mix re-master …”, though slightly reduced in duration (by around 90 seconds) it stays entirely true to the spirit and structure of the original. What makes this so impressive is that it’s very obviously a redux, a wholesale re-creation of Plexure from the ground up, while several of the other versions, which remain closer to the original (more a product of tinkering) end up making less of an impact. Despite being shorter overall, there are nonetheless a couple of passages that feel over-extended, as if we’re getting too much of a good thing. Yet this is countered by – again paradoxically, considering the duration – Oswald allowing the less driven passages more time to speak. In particular, the ‘Mad Mod’ sequence here becomes much more ambient, making it a very nice contrast to everything around it. Other moments are more impactful too, such as the opening gesture – given huge extra weight here with the inclusion of a looming THX ident – and various textures that sound more variegated and intricate (which, for Oswald, is saying something). As a contemporary update of / homage to Plexure, this couldn’t be better.

plexure’01

Included on each album (for reasons that are unclear), at 20:45 this is the longest iteration (yet) of the piece, and the one that demonstrates strongest the sense that Oswald is plundering himself, partly drawing on the original Plexure, partly emulating it, partly reworking it. The basic structure is comparable, as is the tension of elements, though certain sequences (as in prePlex) incorporate longer, more tangible clips (although that tangibility could just be a result of sonic acclimatization). Noteworthy is the frenetic ending, which is here rendered absolutely crazy.

plexure’93 instrumental

Essentially Plexure with almost all of the vocal elements removed. It’s actually extremely interesting to listen to (particularly in light of prePlex, also instrumental-only), potentially providing insights into Oswald’s creative process. An interesting question that arises from this is whether it’s ultimately less engaging because it lacks the direct human element. It’s hard not to feel that something vital is missing, though how is that different from any other instrumental? Either way, the music definitely feels easier to deal with overall, with less sense of being swamped. Incidentally, considering how popular instrumentals were during the ’80s and ’90s period, from which Oswald derives his sources, there’s something poetically appropriate about him including an instrumental of Plexure.

plexure’93 vox dub

The opposite: essentially Plexure with almost all of the instrumental elements removed. What’s immediately apparent are all the lacunae, gaps in the music where voices are entirely absent, in contrast to the instrumental which has no gaps at all. This has a marked effect on the drama, most notably in the ‘Mad Mod’ passage, which no longer serves its original function as a lengthy contrast to the rapid jump-cuts. It also provides further insights into the creative process – if we superimposed the instrumental and the vox dub, would we get back to the original?* – but in many ways this is the most sonically remote from Plexure‘s quintessential character.

*i’ve just tried it, and the answer is yes and no, much closer to the original but lacking some elements and a lot of dynamic heft.

plexure’93 (’24mix)

It’s hard to know what to make of this. There’s certainly an impression of greatly improved clarity, with the clips sounding ultra-vivid compared to the original. But somehow, with everything now much clearer, and also what seem to be new clips replacing others (despite the title suggesting it’s the original), it all sounds distinctly much more ‘under control’, lacking the demented wildness which is one of the defining characteristics of the original.

plexure scrambled’96

A remix with much less emphasis on vocals and which, most curiously, sounds more microscopic, just chopping and changing, without the macroscopic structural sense of the original. i’ve spoken before of how Oswald’s plunderphonic work is “the ne plus ultra of music that can be described as being more than the sum of its parts”, but here it’s more like a sum that, in every sense, doesn’t add up, but exists simply as a sum: a+b+c+d+e+f+g+ … .

plexure’08

Now this is good; there are clear adjustments to the texture and its details, but essentially – structurally and dramatically – it’s the same. Some sequences occur a little earlier, while others have been subtly reworked. The early tussling between rapid and laid-back materials here forms the basis for an impressively-maintained plateau, and the beautiful kaleidoscopic fluttering section is made to float more prominently, now sounding (in the best sense) like treading water. This is another version with a madly overcranked conclusion. Aside from the redux discussed above, which re-creates rather than re-edits, of all the versions that stay closer to the original this is surely the best.

plexure’12

An example that seems more a product of passive tinkering than active improving. Certain passages (including some of its best) are omitted or simplified, to the extent that the work’s dramatic scope feels diminished.


Sequels

Originally included as the B-side on the 2010 prePlexure vinyl release, plexureconcentrate is included here (with even its title minutely concentrated) unchanged, though a quick comparison of the wavefiles appears to show an increase in dynamic punch in some sections. It obviously didn’t occur to me when originally released, but now, heard in the context of all the aforementioned remixes and revisions, plexureconcentrate is now revealed to be just another version of Plexure (both plexure’12 and the redux are shorter than the original, and could thus also be considered “concentrated” (and does that mean the longer versions are “diluted”?)). However, a key difference in this version is that the time period from which Oswald draws his sources is much wider, spanning from 1992 to 2009. The most prominent way in which the music sounds concentrated is in a loss of some of the contrasting slower material, placing the overall emphasis on the rapidity of the shape-shifting. It’s undeniably exciting, and some of the changes (such as introducing the THX ident into the introduction, subsequently carried over into several other versions) definitely crank up the power significantly.

plexureconcentrate vox + ghost instruments is another instrumental, this time of the above track, again with the issue of lacunae due to periods when voices don’t feature, though here that’s mitigated due to being “concentrated”. Though interesting, it’s debatable to what extent plexure’93 instrumental works as a satisfying listening experience, and the same’s true here; it’s easy to glaze over in both of these versions.


Outtakes and offcuts

If all of that wasn’t enough – and, personally, i’m minded to suggest that it is – Oswald has thrown in a trio of tiny additional tidbits saved from the cutting room floor. madMod denoument is an extended dive into the ‘Mad Mod’ sequence, rendered here as six minutes of drifty, stretchy, floaty ambient. It’s about as stark a contrast to the relentless shifting timbres and fibrillated tempo of Plexure as it’s possible to get, like being caught in the midst of just a single moment from the myriad, expanded out to infinity, suspended in time. Interestingly, it’s just as elusive-evocative as the ultra-short slivers, bringing to mind its source while keeping it at a distance.

extended riprap takes the first section of Plexure and expands it into a two-minute burst of rap-fuelled minutiae. Once again jumping tracks on each new downbeat, it’s an ultimate demo of the elasticated shape-shifting that’s at the heart of Plexure. (For the real Plexure completist, a 52-second “alternate version” of this ‘Rip’ sequence can be found as a bonus item on the RipRap single, released in 2020.)

jackovowels is mysterious, belying its title and taking what perhaps began life as one of Michael Jackson’s trademark whoops and transforming it into a semi-static ambient triad, initially cool before being warmed up in the lower registers. As a tiny curiosity it’s a fitting companion piece to madMod denoument.


Does it diminish the achievement of Plexure having all of these additional versions? Is this a motherlode – or just an overload? i’ve always felt that John Oswald did something akin to capturing lightning in a bottle in the original Plexure, so perhaps it’s inevitable that one ends up feeling that everything else is in some way lesser than it. Nonetheless, the vast panoply of material on plexure ’24 and plexures is a telling demonstration of Oswald’s absurd level of skill in creating works of such filigree detail. It also throws up endless questions, particularly about process and technique. i’ve continually found myself wondering to what extent Oswald shapes the material according to his preconceived concept / structure / design (like a mosaicist) or whether it’s the material that guides him towards the final form. Probably it’s a bit of both. i’m also caught, as i often am with Oswald’s plunderphonic work, between its twin attitudes of mischief and seriousness. No-one embarks on this many (re-)iterations of work with such tortuous complexity without some element of deep sincerity about their craft; no-one embarks on work displaying such gleeful irreverance without having a fundamentally impish outlook. Does one undermine the other? Are they in a weird kind of way complementary? And then there are the times when Plexure has caused me to reflect afresh on the inherently generic, formulaic nature of pop and rock, and wonder whether it’s in part a comment on such limited musical creativity: all that shape-shifting, but has anything fundamentally changed?. Yet there’s also a breadth of stylistic diversity that comes through loud and clear (albeit atomised), suggesting not criticism but celebration. The joy of plex.

How much Plexure do you need in your life? The answer is certainly to be found in the combination of plexure ’24 and plexures, five hours of the most potent sonic delirium you’re ever likely to experience. The albums are available in digital formats from the Plunderphonics Bandcamp site, in addition to a couple of vinyl limited editions of prePlexure.

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