plume by Nate Scheible

‘plume’ is the latest in a series of cassette releases Nate Scheible made following his acclaimed album ‘Fairfax’ (2017), following ‘indices’ on Never Anything Records (2019) and ‘prions and scrapie’ on Unifactor (2020).

The sounds on ‘plume’ date back to around 2021 when Scheible received a small grant from Rhizome in Washington, DC to produce work for a new Community Supported Art initiative. His contribution to the program included recordings of over 100 miniature pieces which were distributed across 50 unique cassette releases.

‘plume’ draws on many of these tracks, as well as related outtakes, source material, samples and other surplus audio snippets, recontextualised into a more cohesive whole. The result is a record where Scheible’s pieces retain their trademark spectral atmosphere, but more than ever before depict a restlessness, instability, and constant movement. Just like Kanchan Balsé’s artwork, Scheible’s work reflects an ability to scour his surroundings and arrange what others might dismiss as lacking potential into a striking assemblage.

Percussive passages make way for eerie drones; field recordings overlap with tape experiments; grainy textures are embellished with graceful tones; hushed voices whisper unintelligibly, only to be soon replaced with blasts of noise… This is music with a strange timelessness, work which is mysterious yet approachable, generous yet modest.