“How I Got Into Creel Pone” By DJ Alfonso
I first heard of Creel Pone on Jonny Trunk’s OST Show when Broadcast’s Trish Keenan and James Cargill were guests on the program. This episode originally aired on London’s Resonance FM in December 2007, but was re-aired on January 15, 2011 — a day after Trish’s untimely death. I caught the rerun. Just before the 56 minute mark, George Engler’s ‘Ghostly Drumming’ (off the album, ‘The Inside of the Outside/Or The Outside of the Inside — Who Are They? Where Do They Come From? Why Are They Here?) hits the airwaves, immediately following ‘Quasars’ by The Feedback (a.k.a. Gruppo di Improvvisazione Nuova Consonanza). Following this set of cues, Jonny and James discuss Creel Pone (C.P.). At the time this show originally aired, it sounded like the outfit behind this CD-R bootleg label was completely shrouded in mystery. Were they based in the States? Europe? It was anyone’s guess. James went on to say that if it were not for a label like C.P., it would be terribly difficult to hear any of this music (keep in mind, this was 2007 — long before YouTube was loaded up with library rarities), as prices on some of these records were way out of range — something we can all relate to, I’m sure.
I listened intently to the rest of the show, and immediately jumped online to learn more about Creel Pone. It turns out, I discovered, the mysterious label was no longer cranking out product. All that was left were existing CD-Rs sitting in bins of small independent record stores around the world. After searching a bit more, I found a store with a small stash — Weirdo Records in Boston. They had about three or four titles in stock and I remember buying the lot. All blind buys, of course. After researching a bit, I knew Creel Pone dealt in mostly avant-garde and musique concrète type stuff, and that the label boasted about releasing only the best electronic music from 1952 through 1984, so how can I go wrong? And boy was I right. These handsomely packaged CD-Rs were my crash course introduction to sonic experiments in electronic sound. Now this is where my memory gets a little fuzzy. Shortly after clearing out Weirdo, I discovered Mimaroglu Music Sales in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and learned that the man behind this entire operation (both Mimaroglu AND Creel Pone) was electronic artist Keith Fullerton Whitman! Mimaroglu was a distributor for avant-electronic labels, including his own Creel Pone. That said, I ordered more copies direct from the man himself (but were they new copies or old stock? Regardless, Whitman eventually ceased operations at Mimaroglu, and that, along with Creel Pone, faded away into the abyss. Fast forward to early January of this year; my dear friend, Two Headed Ben, sent a text to fellow Rendezvous mate and myself, and I read the following words on my trusty old iPhone 8 Plus’s home screen:
Morning fellas… Keith Fullerton Whitman started up Creel Pone again
One can imagine the excitement I felt upon reading those words, which leads me to here and now. We’re fast approaching the one-year mark since we all went into lockdown, and I am sure your ears are eager and ready to embark on an auditory adventure. Give those tired old Spotify playlists a rest and pick up some Creel Pone titles here in the web shop. And don’t bother researching stuff and hunting down YouTube clips, Discogs info, and such. Be a real adventurer and buy blindly! Your ears (and brain) will thank you.
-DJ Alfonso
@djalfonso
djalfonso.com