03/06/2026
While Zoom and other online streaming platforms let us appear together online, the vast network infrastructure between us inevitably introduces delays, skips, and other temporal distortions. We usually try our best to ignore these shortcomings when we connect virtually, but Network Friction harnesses them to create unique rhythms.
The work originated in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, when three sound artists on three different continents attempted to share beats with one another online. Realizing that the “failures” of the network that connected them were themselves aesthetically interesting, Aries, House, and Zaes conceived of an installation for a virtual exhibition, streaming looping beats from custom lathe-cut records to a virtual listening space where they combined in unexpected ways.
In close collaboration with Editions Verde in New York and mixing/mastering engineer Benoît Piccand in Bern, the sonically rich rhythm piece made of locked vinyl grooves and temporal network artifacts is now released as EV017. It will be sold digitally and in a limited edition of 300 vinyl copies, emphasizing the sonic contrasts between analog media and digital distortions.
Produced, performed, and recorded by Annie Aries (anniearies.com (http://anniearies.com/)), Brian House (brianhouse.net (http://brianhouse.net/)), Marcel Zaes (marcelzaes.com (http://marcelzaes.com/)). Mixing and mastering by Benoît Piccand. Graphic Design by Sandra Schmid (schmiderei.com (http://schmiderei.com/)).
