Pan
2004 album by Wendyhouse, released on CD by Wiggley Tapes (catalogue number WT/CD006). Ridiculously, the CD is actually composed of two completely different mono albums that were recorded separately by EE Monk and Mr Pudding. The two decided on song titles and lengths, then worked separately from there. The listener needs to use their stereo's balance control to pan (geddit??) to the left for EE Monk's album, or to the right for Mr Pudding's. The notes that accompanied review copies of Pan invited those without balance control - and thus no ability to separate the recordings from each other - to "suffer or enjoy".
Cover
Adding to the punny fun of an album called Pan which requires panning from L to R, the cover is a picture of Pan using a pan to pan for gold.
The CD's back cover is reversible. Each side has twelve small blue and white pictures, one for each track. The images include the track name and duration. Supposedly one can flip the back cover around depending on whether you want to see info about "right/Mr Pudding" or "left/EE monk", but of course the information is the same (although the illustrations differ). An explanatory paragraph about the "blind collision" of the album's unique creative process is repeated on both sides.
Tracklisting
- Demo
- I Was Organic
- Window Seat
- Trotting Products
- Remember, There's Always Someone More Fortunate Than Yourself
- ZZZombies
- Blue Orderly, Webbed Hand
- One Bored In Heaven, Two Bored In Hell
- Bad Acid
- Why Do Straight Men Like Girl-On-Girl Action?
- File Under: Died Trying
- Skull & Crossphones
Review release
An explanatory note accompanied Pan when CDs were mailed to music reviewers (or to the student press, at least). It said (in part):
...At first spin, this album might sound to you like a bunch of crazy nonsense (depending on your bent), but take note:
THIS DISC ACTUALLY CONTAINS TWO MONO ALBUMS THAT RUN SIMULTANEOUSLY IN THE LEFT & RIGHT CHANNELS OF YOUR STEREO.
...Track listings for the two albums are identical...The song titles and lengths were decided upon before song writing began, the titles providing a point of response, thus there is/was the opportunity for thematic collisions of mood and/or lyrical content. If one has a balance control, there is obviously the opportunity to listen to the albums separately. If not, suffer or enjoy.
