The End of Silence: Life stripped bare until just sound remains
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Two years ago, the photojournalist Sebastian Meyer emailed a recording of a bomb being dropped on the Libyan city of Ras Lanuf to the electronic music pioneer Matthew Herbert. Herbert subsequently deconstructed and reassembled the recording for The End of Silence, a stark and disturbing album that bridges the gap between music and conceptual art.
“I wanted to make a record with one noise,” Herbert explains. “It's like putting the world on pause and trying to make sense of this one sound.”
In 2001 Herbert released Bodily Functions, an album containing samples from sounds made by the human body; 10 years later he made an LP based on the lifecycle of a pig. Last year he became the creative director of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop, the sound-effects lab founded in 1958, while later this month he will debut The Hush, a part-play, part-installation about the emotions and politics of sound.
'The End of Silence' is out now on Accidental. 'The Hush', The Shed, London SE1 (theshed.nationaltheatre.org.uk) 17 July to 3 August
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments