Evolution Control Committee
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An experimental music band from Columbus, Ohio founded by Mark Gunderson in the 1980s, the Evolution Control Committee (ECC) typically uses uncleared and illegal samples from various sources as a form of protest against copyright law. They are one of the pioneers of the Mash-Up, where two or more songs are mixed together into a new track. The ECC also produces numerous audio experiments, often involving the disfiguring of compact discs, and has produced a few video works as well, ranging from re-edited 50's corporate shorts to a Teddy Ruxpin reciting the works of William S. Burroughs.
The ECC is probably best known for its song "Rocked by Rape", consisting of samples of Dan Rather's deadpan delivery describing various atrocities over looped riffs from AC/DC's "Back in Black". This work brought legal threats against the ECC by CBS, but by 2003, CBS appears to have let the issue go by. The song was even played at a roast for Rather, which was then broadcast on C-SPAN. Nearly as popular are the "Public Enemy/Whipped Cream Mixes", with Public Enemy's inflammatory raps over classic Herb Alpert Tijuana Brass.
Since 2000, Gunderson has performed his works on stage through an electronic instrument of his own invention: "The Thimbletron." It is made of a pair of gloves with ten thimbles attached at the ends of the fingers, which are then wired to a laptop computer. As the thimbles are touched together, the laptop in turn plays a different sound sample. Gunderson claims that the device uses "thimbletronium energy" and warns that "thimbletronic radiation can leak unexpected due to a mishap during a live performance. The audience is advised to attend Thimbletron performances at their own risk." Gunderson has also modified a bread toaster in a similar fashion, with each depression of a lever playing a sample.
Albums include
- Jesu Boy of Man's Desiring
- Buddha Bleach
- The Last Mall
- Big Wyoming
- Gunderphonic
- Double the Phat and Still Tasteless
- Plagiarhythm Nation
Related artists include Negativland, John Oswald, The Tape-beatles, The Bran Flakes, and People Like Us.
External links
- Evolution Controlled Creations website (http://evolution-control.com/)