This is one for all of you who’ve experimented with audio or been intrigued by the sounds of the world, the sounds we can engineer, and the possibilities that lie within all of that. At the same time, it’s a fascinating and strangely calming, dreamlike podcast, that’s absolutely worth exploring and experiencing at least once; whoever and wherever you may be.
Hagai Izenberg is the artist behind the show – a composer, musician and founding member of the electronic band Rendezvous. Allowing the show to emerge without so much as a spoken word introduction or hint at what’s to come, you’re immediately thrown into this world of electronic depth and consideration – an arena of moments and ideas, almost feeling like ambient music, but a little more intentional and difficult to ignore. It feels like there’s a story at play, and to tune out would be to miss something crucial.
In the case of Episode 19, things quickly move from light-hearted and retro to heavy and briefly intense, unsettling, before the onslaught of even more darkness and detail kicks in; at around the three-minute-forty mark.
You can let this play as you work, or you can share it with friends, settle into it at the end of a long day. The idea is to present listeners with a series of sounds that crop up on a daily basis in our lives, spontaneously, arbitrarily, throughout the modern world, the streets, nature and the radio. In one instance you can feel lost within the airwaves, surrounded by tech, and in the next you can feel as if you’re sitting by a lake in a park.
Everything is brief, but strong enough to have an effect. And this is the very strength of the whole show. It’s bizarrely captivating, and absolutely unlike anything else around right now – particularly in the podcast world. It has the power to make you notice more, as you go through your busy routine, to realise how many millions of intricacies cross our paths and are audible every single day; and how incredibly different they all are. Consider the meanings of these sounds, the historical context, the implication, and the changing stages.
Brilliant, and things get all the more interesting as the show goes on – seven minutes onward is superb, chaotic yet really well-thought out, and unexpectedly mesmerizing to listen to.
A monthly podcast, the show features raw materials from field recordings in every day life to TV and Radio samples, news clips and adverts. Well worth the time it takes to escape into.
Radio Concrete is broadcasted on the following radio stations: Resonance Extra (UK), WGXC (New York) and Halas AM (Israel).
Check out all episodes via iTunes, TuneIn or Soundcloud. Find & follow the show on Facebook or visit their Website.
