This is surely one of the more stranger, more curious releases I heard in some time. I was aware of the work of Matteo Uggeri, who is a member of Hue, Sparkle In Grey and Der Einzige, but Bob Corn seems to me new, at least for me. The duties here are divided thus: Uggeri is responsible for 'binaural field recordings and steps', while Corn plays guitars, sings and also receives a credit for 'steps'. The two of them met up in 2009 and 2011 and walked together a bit, with Uggeri wearing his binaural microphones and Corn his guitar. The whole thing has the idea of them playing on the spot in which ever field they happen to be in, but perhaps its also a question of cleverly mixing these sources together.

It sounds like an intimate journey, in which we invade a dinner at a family's house, steps outside, birds, insects and such like. Like an audio diary of a journey, or a souvenir from ancient times. Corn's playing sound like a early thirties blues recording - I think, as these are matters I don't too much about. The field recordings of hot corn fields sound like dust from 78 rpm records. Timeless music perhaps. This is probably the odd ball of this week. (FdW)

http://www.vitalweekly.net/845.html

Ascoltare Bob Corn che scòr in dialèt e presenta alla madre gli Sparkle In Grey prima di "Call my name" è THE THING.

https://twitter.com/enverMusic/

This was a nice surprise. I was lucky enough to see Bob Corn play a very intimate house show, a few years back; and, despite normally taking a while to appreciate singer-songwriter material, I took to him immediately. He’s an incredibly charismatic performer, the kind of person who can tell you that the world is a beautiful place full of love - and for the duration of the performance, you believe it. This album comes very smartly packaged in a printed card sleeve, and consists of a collaboration between Bob Corn and Matteo Uggeri.

The cd cover proclaims: “A Binaural Sound Movie In San Martino Spino”, and thats exactly what it is. Halfway through my initial listen, I was quite unimpressed and confounded by what I was hearing; but soon after that, everything clicked into place for me. In the starkest terms, the album consists of Bob Corn performing songs; recorded by Uggeri binaurally and interspersed with sections of dialogue and field recordings (literally). Bob Corn sings simple, emotive songs, accompanied by his guitar; reminding me of Will Oldham - except with an Italian accent. Uggeri’s role here, is beautifully listed as: “binaural field recordings, steps”. For those not in the know, binaural recordings aim to replicate sounds in a stereo-field as heard by human ears - to the extent that sometimes mics are even attached to the ears of dummy heads, to create the most realistic stereo-field (it’s for this reason, that the inlay says “Please Listen With Headphones”). Thus, despite a few “straight” tracks of Bob Corn performing, the pieces which stand out are those where Uggeri’s role is felt. This is amply explored by the start of the album. After a minute or so of machine noises, we hear traffic crossing from speaker to speaker, the crunching of footsteps and Bob Corn’s approaching vocal. His unaccompanied voice spirals around the stereo field, as either Uggeri circles him, or vice versa; with the echo of his voice introduced for further spatial confusion. This is a trick repeated across the album, to varying degrees; though, as I said above, there are also “straighter” tracks, like “End Now”. The songs are mixed in with long sections of recorded dialogue, and ambient sound; creating a genuine sense of an “audio diary”, or indeed a “Sound Movie”. To my ears, the whole thing has a dream-like quality to it, so perhaps thats a better notion. Thus Uggeri’s role is something like a real-time processor, as well as a collagist and producer. This relationship between performer and recorder is often blurred across the album, but nowhere more beautifully than on “Call My Name”: here, Uggeri walks around Bob Corn as he plays; until your brain suddenly realises that his scuffing footsteps are providing a rhythmic accompaniment. Its incredibly clever and effective - it’s years beyond the average ‘folktronica” set-up.

This is a very special release, though its perhaps to be seen as an E.P. rather than album proper. For one thing, it is a little short (approximately twenty-four minutes); and for another, two of the five songs performed are covers, which, again, gives the feel of an E.P. (On top of this, the last of the five songs appears to be performed by a different project altogether: Comaneci.) Of these covers, the first is “A Minor Place” by Bonnie “Prince” Billy; indeed, its the first song we hear, which is a problematic start to the album in some ways. Given Bob Corn’s “Oldham-isms”, performing “A Minor Place” seems a tricky venture. He delivers it faithfully and well, to the extent that I feel fairly sure that if Will Oldham had an Italian twin, they would sound exactly like this. The faltering and articulate vocal is captured beautifully, with no real sense of affectation. However, coupled with the swirling “production” that I described in my second paragraph, there’s a very real danger of it being perceived as a “novelty” cover; somewhat wasting Uggeri’s techniques. This is a little ironic, given that Oldham’s career is littered with examples where he has used recording techniques or instrumentation to deliberately confound listeners; so in that sense, the version on “Fields Of Corn” is actually a very apt tribute that I’m sure Oldham would approve of. Uggeri’s obtrusive presence in the recordings, brilliantly questions the role of “producer”; especially in an area of music (the “singer-songwriter with guitar”…) where a notion of transparent authenticity is often presented. Here, by bringing the act of recording into plain view of the listener, Bob Corn and Uggeri very simply leapfrog such concerns. “Fields Of Corn” is an odd, unsettling listen; but also a very brave venture, with immense warmth and character. In simplistic terms, an application of creative field recording techniques to acoustic song; in more colourful terms, a warm daydream in rural Italy.

http://www.musiquemachine.com/reviews/reviews_template.php?id=4268

A sonic travelogue from the San Martino Spino parish of Mirandola, Italy, Fields Of Corn combines well-known songs like Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy’s ‘Minor Place’ with everyday conversation and street sounds to create a thoroughly absorbing, touching and thought-provoking album…

San Martino Spino was one of the worst hit areas in the May 2012 earthquakes that killed 17 people and injured a further 200. Although some of the music here was recorded as far back as 2009, the album’s release date was delayed by the tragedy and one can’t help but think of the voices presented here as ghosts from an abruptly interrupted past. The first time the album hit me as something special was when I was walking around my own local area – headphones on with cold hands deep in pockets – and outside sounds were creeping in. Rather than becoming a nuisance they seemed to merge perfectly and even enhance the listening experience; children playing outside the local nursery; men stood smoking outside the local bar; the rustle of polythene as people piled shopping bags into the backs of their cars and engines idled. Almost all of them echoed noises that were playing in my ears anyway and I got to thinking what it would be like if I were walking around the crumbled ruins of my estate and all of these things were gone… left with silence, the wind, the birds.

It’s easy, of course, to apply all this in hindsight, but there’s a lonely sadness to the songs sung by Bob Corn here that seems remarkably pertinent. He sings in a quavering voice, walking past traffic and playgrounds just as I did, sometimes drifting out of earshot and getting overwhelmed by the goings-on around him. There’s an innocence too, and one wonders whether he could ever be a part of the conversations that Matteo Uggeri builds up around him. The first one takes place between two people as what sounds like someone tap-dancing goes on in the background; there are more that take place in homes, punctuated by the clatter of cutlery, the telephone ringing and the TV chattering in the corner. Corn sings his own tender songs, the aforementioned ‘Minor Place’ and one by Italian indie rock band Sprinzi.

He’s forever stood outside windows looking in and never involved himself. He whistles in an empty tunnel as dry leaves kick up amongst his feet. On ‘Call Me My Name’ the crunch of rubble underfoot is particularly evocative – only wind in the trees can otherwise be heard and human life remains absent until Uggeri allows it to re-emerge from a sudden loud buzz. It’s the sound-artist’s most obvious contribution and it heralds the arrival of ‘Radiation’, a Comaneci song sung beautifully by an uncredited female voice – throat clearances and all – as bar sounds continue around her. Applause follows, and is conspicuous in that it never happened after any of Corn’s songs. He just keeps on walking, singing…

It might be that the word ‘binaural’ in the album’s title is a little too explicit. It is surely preferable to let the listener absorb these sounds without being made aware of technical caveats, but it does mean headphones are the only way to truly experience Fields Of Corn. The album is perfectly paced, immaculately balanced and it raises more questions than it answers. Are you looking in the window stood next to Corn, like a longing Scrooge on Death’s cold arm? Or are you sat in homes and bars surrounded by loved ones, enjoying drinks, food and conversation? I’ve been with the former, but it might be different for you.

http://www.fluid-radio.co.uk/

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Bob Corn e Matteo Uggeri sono partiti da punti diversi, che più diversi non si può, e se sono finiti a collaborare in questo “Fields of Corn” vuol dire che l’attitudine dei musicisti italiani, o almeno di alcuni di essi, non è poi così ristretta come ho pensato qualche volta.
Poco o nulla, infatti, sembrerebbe accomunare le origini post punk (Hüsker Dü, Nirvana, Fugazi…) di Tiziano Sgarbi con le radici dark-new wave-industrial di Hue. E ancor meno contatti sembrano esserci fra il folk americanofilo di Bob Corn e la sintesi concreto-elettroacustica di Matteo Uggeri. Eppure “Fields Of Corn” è qui nel mio stereo, cosa viva, a dimostrare il contrario. Nessun diniego è ammissibile.
Matteo Uggeri, munito di una ‘cinepresa per suoni’, realizza infatti quello che i francesi definirebbero come ‘cinema per le orecchie’, ovvero un ritratto sonoro di Tiziano Sgarbi attraverso la sua musica, le sue passioni, la sua famiglia, la sua gente, la sua terra e il festival “Musica nelle valli”, ormai da tempo un appuntamento fisso per gli appassionati di musica ‘altra’ organizzato dallo stesso Sgarbi. Sketch e canzoni che si alternano ad offrire un racconto di disarmante semplicità e nitida bellezza. Il pacchetto canzoni, cantate da Sgarbi con la solita voce confidenzialmente rotta, racchiude materiali ‘rubati’ al canzoniere di Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy e degli Sprinzi, due titoli tratti dall’ultimo disco targato Bob Corn (“The Watermelon Dream”), per finire con un cammeo dei cugini Comaneci (un pezzo che, come spiega Francesca Amati, proprio Bob Corn è solito reinterpretare). Ad alternarsi con le canzoni ‘appaiono’ voci, dialoghi e suoni ‘en plein air’.
Il tutto è cucito con il gusto derivante da una sensibilità musicale particolarmente raffinata e da una maturità artistica ormai indiscutibile.
E non pensiate a “Fields Of Corn” come a una semplice collaborazione fra Matteo Uggeri e Bob Corn, perché è qualcosa di diverso ed è molto molto di più…
È un disco che, almeno in Italia, ha i caratteri dell’unicità, e questo dovrebbe bastare per invogliarvi al suo ascolto.

http://www.sands-zine.com/recensioni.php

Premetto che, conoscendo personalmente sia Matteo che Tiziano, questo scritto sarà tutto meno che obiettivo e non sarà quindi da considerare come una recensione. Il dischetto in questione contiene delle canzoni (dei Comaneci, degli Sprinzi, di Bonnie Prince Billy, di Bob Corn), delle chiacchierate, dei momenti. Musica per paesaggi nel vero senso del termine, o, per meglio dire, fotografie audio. Piccoli momenti rubati e rimontati con eleganza, trasportandoci in un vero e proprio ambiente, quello del Barchessone e dello gnocco fritto. Chiudi gli occhi e sei lì, a bere lambrusco ed a sentire ottima musica…non penso sia un disco questo, ma risuona alle mie orecchie come una sicurezza ed un invito: la sicurezza di avere persone su cui contare e che ritroverai sempre in questi ambienti, l’invito a raggiungerli alla prossima occasione, sia essa a San Martino Spino, ad Arcore od a Locarno…passateci in queste occasioni, questo sì che ve lo consiglio.

http://www.unimeri.com/PsychotropicZone/

This 24-minute-long CD is sort of an audio documentary made out of field recordings. Matteo Uggeri (Hue, Sparkle in Grey, Der Einzige) wandered around Italian village San Martino Spino in 2009 and 2011 wearing his recorder and two binaural microphones and recorded everything he encountered. So there are for example sounds of footsteps, conversations in Italian during various encounters, laughter, birdsong and also Bob Corn’s folk songs in English that were recorded during these walks though the fields. At times there’s also some acoustic guitar. This record transmits a very pleasant, peaceful atmosphere and you feel like wandering in the Italian countryside. Too bad that I can’t speak any Italian and I don’t really understand the conversations. A folk duo Comaneci performs on the last piece and it sounds very nice. This is a pretty special, minimalistic, experimental but also surprisingly enjoyable little disc. You should listen to this with headphones on to maximize the binaural experience.

http://www.unimeri.com/PsychotropicZone/

Di Tiziano Sgarbi, il nome vero del progetto canatutoriale Bob Corn, vi abbiamo parlato più volte. Siamo di fronte ad uno dei migliori rappresentanti della scena folk italiana. Matteo Uggeri, multi-strumentista e artista di notevole fattura, è un nome meno noto ma anche di lui vi avevamo già parlato in occasione della collaborazione con Luca Mauri e Francesco Giannico.

Dalla loro unione artistica è nato Fields of Corn (registrato a San Martino Spino) tra 16 Luglio 2009 e il 28 e 29 Maggio 2011 (a Musica nelle Valli). L'uscita era prevista per fine maggio, ma il terremoto dell'Emilia ha fatto slittare la pubblicazione di qualche mese. Il disco è Mixato interamente da Matteo Uggeri e Masterizzato al Mafarka Box. La particolarità del disco sta nella tecnica di registrazione binaurale ovvero "un metodo di registrazione tridimensionale del suono che ha il fine di ottimizzare la registrazione per l'ascolto in cuffia della stessa, riproducendo il più fedelmente possibile le percezioni acustiche di un ascoltatore situato nell'ambiente originario di ripresa dell'evento sonoro, mantenendone le caratteristiche direzionali a 360° sferici".

La musica si porta ad un livello superiore e diventa fisicamente esperienziale: uno straordinario equilibrio fra trame acustiche, momenti solo voce, field recordings e fluttuazioni ambientali che si concretizzano in suoni reali, rumori e voci. Un'affascinante fusione che conferma il talento di questi due artisti nostrani.

Dopo il rumorismo "secco" di La Macchina Del Pane Pt. 1, è il momento di una interpretazione speciale di "A Minor Place" di Bonnie "Prince" Billy: è solenne quasi quanto l'originale ma è del tutto scarnificata dell'arrangiamento e c'è solo la voce di Bob Corn che appare e scompare fra i rumori delle auto e le voci dei bambini in lontananza. In "E' Grande La Francia/La Macchina Del Pane Pt. 2" le riflessioni sulle differenze culturali lasciano spazio nel finale ad un frastuono che riprende il tema iniziale in maniera più consistente.

E poi arriva "End Now" (scritta da Sprinzi): un pezzo acustico splendidamente interpretato da Bob Corn (con guest e che innalza il livello emozionale dell'album. Nel finale del pezzo una voce di donna (Una badante cercava me e poi anche in Enchantè) interrompe simpaticamente gli arpeggi di chitarra. Questa torna in "You the Rainbow" ma a differenza di End Now, l'arrangiamento viene impreziosito da leggerissime ma essenziali spigolature rumoristiche (che vengono rafforzate nel finale della ripresa).

La zampa di Uggeri si può sentire soprattutto in "Cocomeri/Grandi" che vive sul contrasto fra distorsioni e melodia e il cui intreccio sopravviverà in maniera impeccabile con l'arrivo delle voci. E questa è l'introduzione alla notevole "Call My Name", che gioca ancora su quel contrasto (con una maggiore deframmentazione del suono) sul quale si eleva la voce di Tiziano Sgarbi. Il momento più alto dell'album. Ciliegina sulla torta è la conclusione con "Radiation", scritta ed eseguita da Comaneci.

Un album insolito ma estremamente originale che riesce a dare un nuovo significato alla musica ed inserirla in un contesto naturale: gli arrangiamenti diventano dinamici e la strada, i luoghi chiusi, i dialoghi fra le persone ne diventano il completamento inevitabile e in alcuni casi si trasformano nello strumento principale.

https://sites.google.com/site/sonofmarketing1/

Manch spannende Veröffentlichung kreuzte unsere Wege, aber “Fields Of Corn (A Binaural Sound Movie in San Martino Spino)” der Herren Bob Corn & Matteo Uggeri stellt die Mehrheit in den Schatten, wo die Italiener Feldaufnahmen des Musica nelle Valli (Festival) in San Martino Spino, Modena, Italien auffahren, die zwischen Folk, Mafia Hörspiel & Festivalatmosphäre pendeln.

“Fields Of Corn (A Binaural Sound Movie in San Martino Spino)” erschien in einer 500ter CD Auflage über die Labels Fooltribe, Grey Sparkle, Boring Machines & Under My Bed, welche Bob Corn & Matteo Uggeri mit dem bedruckten Pappschuber einen schönen äußeren Rahmen schenkten.

Wo Bob Corn alias Tiziano Sgarbi die Öffentlichkeit sucht um seine Kunst zu präsentieren, zieht Matteo Uggeri die heimischen vier Wände vor, um seine Sounds zu kreieren, diese unterschiedlichen Ansätze vereinigten die Interpreten auf dem Musica nelle Valli (Festival), San Martino Spino, Modena, Italien. Alle Aufnahmen für “Fields Of Corn (A Binaural Sound Movie in San Martino Spino)” fanden in den Jahren 2009 & 2011 statt, das dem Konsumenten zu keinem Zeitpunkt der knapp 25 minütigen Spielzeit ins Ohr sticht, eher entsteht der Eindruck, sie/ er sitze verbringe ein entspanntes Wochenende auf einem Familienfestival, auf dem der Folkbarde Bob Corn alias Tiziano Sgarbi zwischenzeitlich zur Gitarre greift und übers Leben berichtet und Matteo Uggeri mit empfindlichen Mikrophonen aufnimmt, wobei am Schluss ein psychedelisches Hörspiel herauskommt, in dem italienische Leichtigkeit & Mafia den Kern bilden. Insgesamt eine beeindruckende Arbeit, deren Stimmungen direkt aufs Festivalgelände versetzen, welche nicht nur Besucher der Veranstaltungen ansprechen dürften.

Fazit:

Immer wenn meine Person glaubt sämtliche Facetten des Untergrunds im Ansatz zu kennen, tauchen Publikationen wie “Fields Of Corn (A Binaural Sound Movie in San Martino Spino)” von Bob Corn & Matteo Uggeri auf, die den Beweis antreten, dass noch Neuerungen abseits der normalen Wege im Untergrund existieren, welche absolut zu gefallen wissen und nicht nur in atonaler Stringenzlosigkeit ufern – meine absolute Empfehlung für dieses äußerst kurzweilige Hörspiel! PS: Beim Hören entsteht im Übrigen der Eindruck von einer Pilgerfahrt!

http://kulturterrorismus.de/rezensionen/bob-corn-matteo-uggeri-fields-of-corn.html

Nicola Catalano e Ghighi di Paola, Battiti - Radio 3

“Un disco fuori dal comune"
(trasmessa Call Me My Name, 10 Agosto 2012)

Tiziano Sgarbi (in arte Tizio/Bob Corn) e Matteo Uggeri (Hue, Sparkle In Grey, Der Einzige) sono i firmatari di questo Fields Of Corn, sorta di sound movie registrato in tecnica binaurale e realizzato in due differenti momenti [tra il 2009 e il 2011].

L'album, caratterizzato da una fortissima carica emotiva, si compone di rumori ambientali, brevi conversazioni e delicate canzoni.

L'apertura è affidata ai rustici rumori di La Macchina Del Pane Pt. 1 e alla delicatezza di una A Minor Place (Bonnie “Prince” Billy) suonata in mezzo al suono di automobili e bambini che giocano. E' Grande La Francia/La Macchina Del Pane Pt. 2 regala brevi considerazioni sui differenti stili di vita tra Italia e Francia, mentre il tepore di End Now cede il posto all'umorismo da ora di pranzo di Una Badante Che Cercava Me. You The Rainbow e You The Rainbow (Reprise) avvolgono con dolcezza gli incontri di Enchantè, lasciando Cocomeri/Granda a concentrarsi nuovamente su solari e spensierati discorsi da tavola. Il morbido scorrere di Call Me My Name, infine, introduce i rumori di Al Bar Del Paese e la conclusiva ed empatica Radiation (a suonare sono i Comaneci).

I due musicisti creano un disco che, nonostante sia composto da ben poche canzoni, riesce ad affascinare in ogni suo momento, in ogni sua parola, in ogni suo rumore. Un disco in grado di creare un soffice e delicato mondo da sogno, in cui la voglia di perdersi non si esaurisce mai. Un film sonoro decisamente riuscito.

http://www.iyezine.com/recensioni/1989-matteo-uggeri-and-bob-corn-fields-of-corn-a-binaural-sound-movie-in-san-martino-spino.htm