Wind & Water by Bobby Jewell
In ambient and new age music it's common to evoke imagery of the natural world: oceans, expansive landscapes, and the outdoors. And in this release for Katuktu Collective I wanted to tread a similar path, the title itself a nod to Robert Fripp & Brian Eno's seminal track "Wind on Water". But also as the music assembled here is directly taken from types of wind and water, namely flutes, singing bowls, and field recordings of the Ayrshire coast.
Yet in the context of the climate emergency, just referencing nature without that reflection feels empty as a gesture. The cover itself for Wind & Water is taken from Japanese artist Yukihisa Isobe's poster for the first Earth Day protest from 1970, now part of the public domain. The decades-old protest showing how long we have known about the damage being done to the planet by people, and unfortunately holding a mirror up to the lack of any meaningful climate action by the international community to stave off fatal global temperature rises and ecological disaster.
The cassette tapes themselves are inscribed with the text "We must listen", quoted from indigenous Brazilian climate activist Txai Surui in a stark reminder of systematic and urgent change needed: "We must listen to the stars, the moon, the wind, the animals, and the trees. We must listen to the Earth. She is speaking and her message is clear: we have no time to waste."
Credits
Music by Bobby Jewell
Mastered by Ryan Weber
Layout by Aaris K based on a design by Yukihisa Isobe
