ESCAPE-ISM — RATED Z IN RESIDENCE

Photographs courtesy of Arnaud Maguet

Story by Konstance Kabbage

“Whew, that was a close call” ESCAPE-ISM — the rhythm box rock ’n’ roll group consisting of Ian Svenonius & Alexandra Cabral —said when I met them at their residency at Villa Arson this winter. 

The legendary French Art School in Cote D Azur had hosted them for a 10 day residency this winter and invited them to screen their film THE LOST RECORD and play a concert of songs from their new record RATED Z.  

“What did they mean?” I asked. 

“We almost thought we’d have to do something.” Svenonius said, “Which was anathema to our doctrine of  minimalism.”

***

Ah yes, Escape-ism are minimalists. I knew this. Which is why I suppose they were here lecturing at an art school.  But surely they were here to teach and make art too, right? 

They hesitated and then, a bit pained, tried to explain their remote philosophy. 

“Most know minimalism as an art movement, based around saving money on paint.” Cabral began. “But it’s really so much more.” 

Svenonius continued the thought … “Minimalism is a way of life. Escape-ism doesn’t just apply it to music but to everything. It’s based on doing as little as possible in every way, shape, or form. In everyday life it means speaking less, writing less, playing less. One chews less so one looks for less food; food that is less tough and requires less chewing. One wants to do fewer dishes which means dirtying fewer dishes. That’s minimalism in a nutshell. On the dance floor it means fewer moves which are meted out at conservative intervals. This done to music that comprises fewer beats, less singing, not too many notes, and minimal virtuosity. For this use, Escape-ism is the perfect music; a group with so few notes, beats, and words that it is almost not there. Basically a shadow. Beneath most people’s perception. Such music isn’t meant for common consumption.  Its only for those who are sensitive to such things. Similar to how only some can see ghosts and spirits or people’s auras.”

But don’t you have a new record out? Rated Z? Isn’t that something? 

Cabral: “In terms of production, our credo of minimal rock ’n’ roll  means making fewer records with almost nothing on the cover and almost no information etched into the record itself. Just a thump, a moan, and a note or two will do.”

Rated Z  was the new Escape-ism LP,  released in France on the Monotone Record label which had recently released  disques by Klitz, Electronicat, Razille Denudes, Belfast Gypsies, and XYZ. 

Escape-ism had just made a TV show based on it … “The Show No One is Allowed to See”. What was the idea behind it? 

Ian Svenonius: “Rated Z is named for the letter of the alphabet that was picked last and is almost forgotten. It lives in the twilight, at the bottom of the ABCs and is almost never used or called upon. Rated Z is a rating. Its beneath X, or triple X. Its so forbidden, no one is allowed to see it. fewer listeners is also psrt of outr commitment to minimalism. Only the elite.”

Why are you so intent on this barren ideology? What about adornment and decoration and baroque splendor? 

“The future is playing catch up to the past.” Svenonius explained. “All the secrets were revealed long ago but their instructional pamphlets have faded, been thrown away or are written in a now incomprehensible hieroglyph. Less is more. Do less. Make less. What you make, make it with as few things as possible. Beer is only water, yeast, and hops. Wine is grapes, water, and yeast. Concrete is just water, sand and a binding element such as lyme. Escape-ism is just a beat, a moan, and a single note. All the adornments around modern groups and bands and singers only serves to stymie communication. Which is precisely the point of the whole thing. Rock ’n’ roll, the primal language, the language that defies language, is by its nature minimalist communication. Its popularity stemmed from this primal aspect , that it eschewed skill or even competence. That is was accessible to the churl, the degenerate, the dull headed, the ugly and those not dignified with wealth, looks, or smarts. Rock ’n’ roll was the only hope for mankind. It’s a simple enough tool to be mastered by anyone, it has no rules or orthodoxy except excitement, though perversity and a wild spirit are certainly qualities that are rewarded. It’s minimal to the point that it rejected language itself, replaced it with nonsense; bop bop a shoo bop, etc.”

What will you teach at Villa Arson? 

“What’s past the alphabet. The letter Z and beyond”