For a brief history of Basil Kirchin please click here.

This is the first time this divine madness has ever been heard. CD and very limited vinyl release.

Trunk Records is proud to present "Quantum" by Basil Kirchin, a journey through sound in two parts. You will never hear anything quite like it again. You may even change as a person after listening. And yes, I'm being quite serious. For a brief history of Basil Kirchin please click here.

After a brief introduction and some notes from Basil about "Quantum" we have a whole history of the great man. It's essential to realise we are issuing more unreleased Kirchin over the next year. Exciting or what.

Back to "Quantum: this is the first ever issue of this recording, and the first Basil Kirchin recording release for thirty years. It's a unique recording in every respect, afterall Basil is possibly the UK's most important composer than no one has heard of. This will soon change.

"Quantum" was spliced together by Basil using jazz, field recordings (animals, insects, trams), his wife and Autistic children. It's all based on Basil's theories of sound, and that when you slow down or speed up sound, you open up new doors, and new sound is revealed. Considering this recording was made circa 1973, one cannot underestimate the true genius and musical foresite of the man.

There are two LPs that Kirchin released in 1971 and 1973. Both called "Worlds Within Worlds" they explore the same theories as used here in "Quantum", and proved to be a major influence for artist such as Brian Eno, and the later industrial movements of the mid seventies. Yet neither Worlds LPs tread in as odd or experimental gardens. "Quantum" has to be the crowning glory of this mans musical explorations and unique theory. It has remained locked away for thirty years and has been released now for the first time ever. You have been warned.

I asked Basil for some sleeve notes - there is no point me changing them so here they are exactly as typed:

IF SOMEONE COMES AND ASKS YOU TO WRITE ABOUT A MANNED TRIP TO MARS, OUT OF THE ALMOST INFINITE AMOUNT OF DIFFERENT AREAS AND THEIR RAMIFICATIONS, HOW ON EARTH DOES ONE SORT OUT WHICH TO WRITE ABOUT...ANY ONE OF THEM WOULD NEED PAGES..."QUANTUM" PRESENTS THE SAME PROBLEM, BUT, I SUDDENLY CAUGHT MYSELF THINKING HOW NICE IT WOULD BE IF INSTEAD OF GETTING HUNG UP WITH THE "A C T U A L I T Y" OF EVERYTHING INVOLVED, I JUST REFLECTED WITH YOU ON SOME OF MY FONDEST "FEELINGS" BORN OF THE INDESCRIBABLE TRIP IT BECAME...MOMENTS THAT BRING ME A LITTLE "GLOW" AND WHICH WILL ALSO SERVE TO HELP THE UNDERSTANDING NEEDED FOR "QUANTUM" BECAUSE THEY WOULD BECOME LITTLE MOMENTS OF FAMILIARITY WITHIN THE "EN MASSE" AND ALL THE MOVEMENTS / PARTS OF THE DIFFERENT "LANDSCAPES" IN BETWEEN...SO, MY SIX PRETORIAN GUARD (MUSICIANS), IN PARTICULAR THE FOUR MINDS OF EVAN PARKER, GRAHAM LYONS, KENNY WHEELER AND DARRYL RUNSWICK...MOST OF WHAT THEY PLAY IS "NOT ON THE INSTRUMENT", BUT JUST FOR THE RECORD, SOPRANO SAX, BASSOON, FLUGEL HORN AND BASS...THE SOUNDS MADE BY ALL OUR ANIMALS, AMPLIFIED INSECTS, BIRDS, AND THE TRAM WHICH ON A RAINY DAY IN ZURICH WHEN TURNING A PARTICULAR CORNER WOULD BECOME A COMPLETE ORCHESTRA WITH SECTIONS WHEN "BROUGHT OUT"...THE BIRDS WHO SING "GOD SAVE THE QUEEN" (IN AMONG THE OTHERS) AT THE START OF PART ONE...THE KIDS OF SCHURMATT...SCHURMATT IS IN A VALLEY IN SWITZERLAND WHICH IS INHABITED ONLY BY AUTISTIC CHILDREN, THEIR CARERS, TEACHERS, AND CONTAINS THEIR FLATS, SCHOOLS, GYM, SWIMMING POOL, SHOP ETC AND BEFORE I MET HER, MY WIFE ESTHER HAD A CLASS OF NINE OF HER WON...SPREAD OVER THE NEXT TEN YEARS I SPENT AROUND A YEAR, IN AND OUT, RECORDING THE SOUNDS THESE CHILDREN MAKE WHEN TRYING TO COMMUNICATE...MUSIC IS SOUND AND AS SUCH IS TOTALLY SUBJECT TO THE LAWS OF QUANTUM PHYSICS...IF ONE GOES "DOWN AND DOWN" THROUGH THE MOLECULES ATOMS PROTONS NEUTRONS ELECTRONS TO THE TWO HUNDRED SUB-DIVISIONS OF QUARKS AND PHOTONS, PLUS ALL THEIR "ANTI'S", WHAT WAS WITHIN THE PARAMETERS OF THE HUMAN EAR HAS LONG SINCE DROPPED AWAY AND WHAT BEFORE WAS ABOVE THE LIMITS OF THE HUMAN EAR ARE NOW DRAWN DOWN TO THE LEVEL A HUMAN BEING CAN HEAR...SO, IN EFFECT ONE IS HEARING THINGS NO HUMAN EARS HAVE HEARD BEFORE...THEN THERE ARE SOME OF THE "DUET" PARTS...EVANS DUET WITH THE BIRD AT THE START OF PART TWO, PLUS THE DUET BETWEEN ANREAS (LEFT SPEAKER) AND GABY (RIGHT SPEAKER)...AGAIN, ANDREAS'S DUET WITH THE ROCK GUITARIST WHO IN ONE PLACE SOUNDS AS IF HE'S TRYING TO STRANGLE ANDREAS WHO AT THAT PRECISE MOMENT SOUNDS AS IF HE ACTUALLY WAS BEING STRANGLED...IN PART ONE IN CERTAIN PLACES THERE IS AN ENORMOUS ARCO TYPE BASS SECTION SOUND, IT'S JUST TWO HORNBILLS...THE INTERPLAY BETWEEN BASSOON AND GEESE WHERE ONE SIMPLY CAN NOT TELL WHICH IS WHICH AS THE GEESE FRAGMENT THEIR NOTES PRODUCING NORMAL HARMONICS AS WELL AS CHAIN REACTION HARMONICS TOO...THE INTERPLAY BETWEEN BASS, BASSOON AND ONE OF THE KIDS CALLED DORIS...SOME OF THE ACTUAL MELODY'S / PHRASES SHE INTONES ARE WORTHY OF COLTRANE AND ERIC DOLPHY...THE AMAZEMENT I STILL FEEL WHEN, HEARING HOW "FREE" IT SOUNDS (YET) KNOWING IT'S ACCURATE TO A TWENTY FOURTH OF A SECOND, EVERYTHING RECORDED TO CLICK TRACK AND ON FILM, NOT TAPE INITIALLY, AND IT ALL ACTUALLY STAYS TOGETHER!...THE BEGINNING OF PART SIC (NOT YET RELEASED) IS SIMPLY ONE BOY, ON HIS OWN NOTHING ADDED, AND WHAT GOES OFF IN THE HUMAN BODY WHEN WE TALK IS TRULY UNIMAGINABLE... BASIL KIRCHIN 2003

Update Winter 03
Since the little release of Basil Kirchin's 'Quantum' the avant garde world has gone even more bananas. Some are heralding this as a great lost recording, others (like Jim O'Rourke) has paid $1000 for the Kirchin 'Worlds' original. Just for you lot I have added some weird Kirchin records to the page - these are the rare and beautiful library recordings he made for De Wolfe, a compilation of which will be out in 2004. Also coming up in the new year is the super duper Charcoal Sketches and States of Mind Recordings. These are both odd and beautiful and more news will follow as and when I get my act together. The Wire magazine are promising 3,000 words on the great man, an article penned by Alan Licht, a well established Kirchin fan and member of the intriguing New York underground musical movement. He knows his onions. Also, if you now google Kirchin there are loads of things there where there never used to be before, which is great for Basil who is really enjoying the most attention he's ever had in his life, which was the whole reason behind issuing the Quantum LP in the first place. So well done Basil at last.