Pulsa Rimba by Wu Cloud

Back in the days when isolation was just for hermits & convicted psychopathic criminals, Wu Cloud was ahead of the game, waved goodbye to his life in Melbourne &, with the intention of recording his debut album, boarded a flight to Sumatra for some Wu time. With just some factor 50 sun cream, an iPad, Korg Monotron space delay & duo, an Electroharmonix 720 Loop pedal, a Zoom h2n portable recorder & a locally brought Angklung he started experimenting.


On his aimless travels he would park his moped & wander into dense, wildlife rich jungle at sunrise or sunset, hunker down becoming one with his surroundings & record the noise of nature's rich tapestry. An alien language, lush jungle, bustling markets, rainbow coloured birds, traffic chaos, unfeasibly large insects & chance encounters all became sound sources & inspiration. At night he learnt the ways of his new stripped down, rucksack friendly studio. Tweaking, testing, experimenting until overcome by tiredness or palm liquor.


With his minimal equipment freeing him from computer based production dogma & the tyranny of choice he developed a new, free flowing music production style based on instinct & feel rather than painstaking programming & over thinking. No app notifications, dishes to wash, work commitments or fixed itinerary fuelled his imagination & allowed his mind to tune into the vibrations of this volcanic island, its ancient flora, myriad fauna & human life force.


‘Studio’ locations included an old writing desk in a bamboo hut, a hammock over the water, bumpy bus rides in Kerinci National Park, a stark, tiled cabin on stilts beside a raging river and numerous balmy, noisy city hotel dens with fluoro lights, ceiling fans and buzzing mosquitos in places called Kerinci, Jambi, Padang, Sungai Penuh, Medan, Bukit Lawang, Kersik Tuo, Aceh, Pulau Weh, Nias, Sorake, Iboih, Long Beach and Sumur Tiga.


Five weeks later, relaxed, wiser & newly self schooled in minimal music production, Wu returned to civilisation with 16 hours of  loops, jams, jungle noises & recordings of Indonesian life. Back in the studio, making sure to retain the improvised & naturally occurring essence of his recordings, he did some light trimming & fading to produce what you hear before you.


Hit play on this carefree, solar powered, hammock friendly, psychedelic suite of electronic exotica and let your mind wander like Wu.

Reviews:

Densidad 20.25 - https://www.densidad2025.com/resena/pulsa-rimba-english-version (English)
Densidad 20.25 - https://www.densidad2025.com/resena/pulsa-rimba-spanish-version (Spanish)

Disorderly digging in an algorithmic world. Lesser known, independent & alternative artists. Lazy & hazy vibes.

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