Silence (remix)

Whew!

It's been an exhausting day.

As soon as I read this post on As The Apple Turns, I knew that there was new ground to cover in the art of remixing (emphasis mine):

Yesterday we mentioned in passing that faithful viewer djsteve had purchased a track [at the iTunes Music Store] that cost him the "best 99 cents [he'd] ever spent." The joke, of course, was that it was the second track from The Whitey Album by Ciccone Youth, which consists of a minute and three seconds' worth of silence. To tell you the truth, while we're amused by the fact that Apple is charging 99 cents for a song full o' nothing, we're even more amused by the fact that said track contains the usual digital rights management code to prevent you from playing it on any unauthorized systems...

Well, as it turns out, the Ciccone Youth track is by no means the only all-silent untune for sale at the iTMS...

As The Apple Turns discovered that there were a total of nine completely silent songs available at the iTMS for 99 cents each.

Silence. Hmm... These songs, so similar in content and price, yet so different in serial number, seemed to be crying out for a mash-up style remix. A new frontier.

So I purchased and downloaded all nine songs from the iTunes Music Store.

Then I burned them to a CD and re-ripped them into my Mac, thus defeating the DRM protection scheme that Apple uses for the songs it sells at the iTMS.

With the silent songs freed, I threw them into Bias Deck, a multi-track audio app, and got down to some serious remixing. I even added in some Mike Batt and John Cage for good measure. After some intense experimentation, I managed to create a mash-up that used every single song.

If I do say so myself, I think my remix manages to capture the essence of each of the originals while adding a new statement that is more than the sum of its parts. I tried to be affectionate as well as ironic in my use of the source recordings, and I hope it comes off that way in the mix.

You may download my remix and listen to it if you wish. Please be advised, however, that this isn't one of those Creative Commie things, where you can just copy my intellectual property willy nilly like the digital slut you are. This remix is governed by a strict copyright. I would have put that Palladium DRM shit all up on it if I knew how to do that. In fact, the full title of the song is "Silence (remix) �2004 BRIAN FLEMMING. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED."

By downloading this song, you agree to the following license terms: You will not copy this song. You will listen to this song completely from beginning to end, without altering the experience in any way (thanks for the idea, DGA!). You will email me a nude picture of yourself.

Please, respect copyright.

FOLLOW-UP:

The New York Times interviews me about "Silence (remix)"

FOLLOW-UP:

I make an iMix