black dog: music for photographers

"We've always worked apart. For us, it's nothing new. Large online servers have been in place for years but at some stage, we always meet up while working on an album to pour over the details, tone and running order. We create storyboards and write text to support and form the ideas. However, this process and the simple ability to sit in the same room just wasn't possible during the pandemic. This isn't necessarily a bad thing; on this project we believe that it has helped us to capture the isolation a photographer seeks with their subject. It's an attempt at slowing down and finding something internal. When the chatter stops, the creative intentions seep through. Music For Photographers was first created as a functional tool. For the last two years, we've been photographing our city and the brutal architecture that sits within the landscape. Throughout this process many mistakes had been made, resulting in many return visits to repeat work already undertaken. Rushing, aimlessly collecting and near misses are all common problems. Photography, just like any other artform, needs to be practiced and the skills need to be attained. Like music, it's a constant battle. Something was needed to aid the art being sought. We created Music For Photographers with two simple rules; to be void of human voices and that it should be played in full when visiting any location. Our approach to composing the music and visiting the locations evolved. It helped the whole process become a more fluid exchange of ideas and we repeated the process later while editing the photographs. The book Brutal Sheffield provided a full stop for the creative process, finding that perfect balance between function and form. Music For Photographers has now become a fully functioning sigil in our creative process. Rather than just invoking, it also evokes and goes beyond being a simple function. Listen carefully and you can hear the bréton brut!" Features Oliver Ho.