FPG Sounds: Frazer Merrick, ’Hidden Sounds of Play’

Focal Point Gallery is pleased to announce the fifth commission as part of ‘FPG Sounds’, an online project to support the development of new sound works by artists from or based in Southend-on-Sea.

For this commission, artist Frazer Merrick has created an electromagnetic soundscape of Southend, ‘The Hidden Sounds of Play’. The track is composed of electromagnetic recordings of the arcades, rides and illuminations of Southend. The carnivalesque spaces along the seaside promenade lure you in with their vibrant bright lighting displays and obnoxiously loud machines. Like a siren pulling you towards the rocks, waiting to absorb your money in return for interactive experiences and ephemeral fun.

But beneath the surface is an array of electronics making it all possible. High voltage systems powering arrays of animated LEDs and neon displays, all of which spew electromagnetic noise into the ether. Using an array of microphones that convert Electro-Magnetic Fields (EMF) into audible sound, Merrick has captured the hidden rhythms, textures and timbres of this electronic infrastructure and composed the ‘Hidden Sounds of Play’.

Electro-Magnetic Fields are a combination of invisible electric and magnetic fields of force. They are generated by natural phenomena like the Earth's magnetic field but also by human activities, mainly through the use of electricity.

Credits:

Composition and field recordings - Frazer Merrick

Drums - Ben Hunt

Frazer Merrick is a sound artist who uses electromagnetic field recording, circuit bending and instrument building to create carnivalesque sonic experiences. Frazer's work is curious, interactive, and collaborative. He has performed a gig underwater for Essex Book Festival, recorded an award-winning binaural soundscape of Walton pier for BBC Radio 3, and was selected as one of Sound and Music’s New Voices for 2020. Frazer is currently developing the Photon Smasher, a range of instruments which turn light into sound.

Hidden Sounds of Play | Focal Point Gallery (fpg.org.uk)