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We’ve updated our Terms of Use. You can review the changes here.

Comfort Noise

by Anode

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1.
Keepalive 01:13:32

about

Digital voice-over-IP (VOIP) phones inject a small amount of background hiss, called comfort noise, because when no voice packets are being transmitted the caller hears nothing but pure silence and it sounds like the call has been disconnected.

Similarly, during Remembrance Sundays in the UK, the BBC broadcasts recordings of London street noise to assure listeners they're still on the air. During the blockade of Leningrad (WWII), a metronome was broadcast between programs for the same reason.
www.avwsu.org/leningrad-metronome/

Those of us who grew up in the analog audio era were used to various hums and hisses, which assured us that our stereos were on and allowed us to gauge the playback volume before the music started. I can't tell you how many times I've started a CD only to be jolted out of my skin because the volume was set too high. Sometimes I miss comfort noise....

In addition to a lot of processed white noise and sub-sonic sine waves, this track was built on a backbone of AUSS5.
auss.bandcamp.com/album/urban-soundscape-5-ballard-locks
Also you may have noticed the track "A Passing Phase" weaves in and out here. That's because it was too good not to reuse.
anode1.bandcamp.com/track/a-passing-phase

I enjoy putting this album on, closing my eyes, and being carried away by the thousand-and-one things in there, and the nothing-at-all in there. The overall effect—after it's been on for a while—is to make silence feel really oppressive when the track ends. Goal achieved.

credits

released June 9, 2023

Thanks to Cisco for a year's worth of CCSI certification I never used.

Caution: FOC (first octave content, 16-32Hz.) It is recommended that you listen to this album on good headphones or FOC-compliant speakers. Some of the elements will overwhelm lesser playback options.

license

all rights reserved

tags

about

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Anode Seattle, Washington

I've recorded under the name Anode since 1972, in much the same way that Winnie the Pooh lives under the name Sanders.

What I've recorded may not be 'music' to everyone's ears, since it includes "organized sound" and soundscapes, both real and imagined. I make no apologies; my skill set is limited.

My authentic soundscapes can be found over here:
auss.bandcamp.com ... more

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