Local music collective Resonance have collaborated with the Essex Record Office to release an album made using sounds from the Record Office’s archives.

Recreating the Record showcases 11 local musicians who sampled sounds from the archives to create a diverse range of electronic music, ranging from ephemeral ambience to beat-driven industrial noise.

With a focus on the future of Essex, Recreating the Record combines the technology of the past with the present. Many of the sound archives are fragile and at-risk – having been initially captured decades ago on reel-to-reel tape or other obsolete recording methods. The heritage of Essex’s sound archives is continually preserved through modern digital methods to ensure they aren’t lost or destroyed. This combination of historic analogue and present digital technology is the focus of the album.

The artists were free to manipulate the original recordings as much as they wanted to create their compositions, using audio processing tools to effect, stretch and warp them into completely different (and often unrecognisable!) sounds. Many of the musicians use analogue electronic synthesizers based on designs from the 1960 and 1970s, and integrate these with digital audio workstations and computer programming to create their music.

The result is a journey that moves between dark, minimal compositions and uplifting passages that highlight the mixed history of Essex. Nostalgic sounds merge with machinery noises reminiscing of Chelmsford’s scientific and industrial heritage. Field recordings capture the Essex countryside and Southend Seafront, combined with introspective electronic melodies. The ambience of Colchester and its famous Zoo blend with trains and sampled orchestral TV programmes – inviting memories of days out around Essex and the journeys these archives capture.

All proceeds are going to the Friends of Historic Essex charity, who work closely with many heritage organisations to preserve Essex’s history.

For more information on the archives, visit www.essexrecordoffice.co.uk. For a closer look at the archive of sounds then the Essex Record Office have a site at www.essexsounds.org.uk with an interactive map where each sound was recorded.

Recreating The Record

Nick Smith - Through The Double Fence

Resonance is a cultural collective with a focus on collaboration between audio, visual and performance artists in Essex. Based around regular workshops of the same name, Resonance’s main aim is to foster a comfortable atmosphere for artists to develop their skills in live performance and installation environments. Whether it’s through the use of workshops, meetups or events, we encourage a diverse membership of budding and experienced artists to create alternative music and art