JULIA BLOOP “Uncut Carrara” C76 (KMAN 92.5)

 

Hey, I like movies. Who doesn’t? Getting lost in the celluloid labyrinth is one of my favorite things to do, as one film always opens the door for the next two, whether stylistically or personnel-wise, and it just spirals out from there exponentially. Julia Bloop, aka Devin Johnson (aka also Sunset Diver), digs movies too, and here on Uncut Carrara he brings his plunderphonic ear to a massive full-length feature. That’s right, for an hour and sixteen minutes, a nice length for lean picture, Johnson splices together film soundtracks and dialogue, using nothing but a four-track and samplers, building an immersive world that can only be realized on the silver screen. And by the “silver screen” I obviously mean a cassette tape! The visuals are only in my mind…
 
Grainy stock and black-and-white Hollywood dreams seep into the atmosphere and noir up the joint, the air of melodrama and intrigue thickening as the tape progresses. It’s probably not a stretch to imagine this as a Golden Age motion picture equivalent to Leland Kirby’s daguerreotype turn-of-the-century recordings as the Caretaker, complete with dust and cobwebs to give it character. Truly, Uncut Carrara sounds like Johnson dug up a bunch of old film reels in a Hollywood Hills attic or downtown storage facility. Even when decidedly 1960s-esque guitar and exotica seep through, it remains distinctly of a place and time, a period steeped in nostalgia, nostalgia for history and the then-present, nostalgia for the recreation of that history now. It’s an incredible thing to listen to all the way through.
 
https://juliabloop.bandcamp.com/
 
https://kman925.bandcamp.com/
 
--Ryan