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Gyroscope

Gyroscope
Running time 3:35
Appears on Geogaddi


Comments[edit]

Samples / Lyrics[edit]

  • The drum loop passes quickly between the right and left channel. When wearing headphones, it sounds like it's spinning around your head. When reversed, it spins the other direction.
  • Samples a recording of a "number station" found on the shortwave radio spectrum, which are used by the world's intelligence agencies to send secret messages to agents in the field.[1] This starts at about 48 seconds into the song.
    • The recording was gifted by Sean Booth of Autechre before the Conet Project was released.[2]
    • The recording is rumoured to be of E05 or "The Counting Station" operated by the CIA.[3] The numbers in the recording match the sequence of E05 with a 3-digit ID thrice "099" followed by counting "1234567890".[4]
    • The numbers are in the following sequence:
      1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0
      0 9 9 0 9 9 0 9 9
      1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0
      0 9 9 0
      1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0
      0 9 9 0 9 9 0 9
      1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0
      0 9 9 0 9 9 0 9 9
      1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0
      0
      1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0
      0 9 9 0 9 9 0 9 9
      1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0
      0 9 9 0 9
    • Mike and Marcus have admitted to having an interest in shortwave radios in their formative years, and stated that some of their really early (i.e. pre-BoC) music was made by chopping up recorded shortwave transmissions. They have never explicitly mentioned these so-called "numbers stations", but those who have heard such transmissions can testify to similar qualities in some of their music: grainy synthetic transmissions that swing between perky, simple tunes, mysterious noises, children's voices, or even sheer aural terror.
  • There is also some reversed guitar parts that swirl into the mix near the end of the track, which some have said may be from a 12-string.
  • At 3:10, during the last reading of the number station sequence, it seems like a a female voice resembling the one from "One Very Important Thought" and "Aquarius" says “8” starting just before the number station voice says it. This is very quiet in the mix.

Trivia[edit]

"Yeah, for me it would be the track "Gyroscope". I dreamed the sound of it, and although I've recreated dreamt songs before, I managed to do that one so quickly that the end result was 99% like my dream. It spooks me to listen to it now."

Videos[edit]

External links[edit]

References[edit]

  1. http://www.irdial.com/conet.htm
  2. https://www.twoism.org/forum/viewtopic.php?p=254145#p254145
  3. https://www.numbers-stations.com/ns/english/e05/
  4. http://priyom.org/number-stations/english/e05
  5. HMV Interview