Brian Eno Shares Remix Of Patti Smith & Soundwalk Collective’s “Peradam”

Brian Eno remixed Patti Smith’s ‘Peradam’ in new deluxe box set released November 25 via Bella Union. Included in Soundwalk Collective with Patti Smith’s new deluxe box set are reissuance of their three albums ‘Mummer Lover’, ‘Peradam’, and ‘The Peyote Dance’. According to Pitchfork, the box set will include a book featuring an interview with Patti Smith and Stephan Crasneanscki of Soundwalk Collective. Along with the box set, the deluxe box set will also contain drawings, photos, and a print signed by Patti Smith. 

The original ‘Perdam’ Patti Smith was inspired by the writings of poets Anton Aurid, Arthur Rimbaud, and René Daumal in creating the original albums. Smith’s inspiration from the poets didn’t stop with the words alone. Patti Smith made use of the soundscape that inspired the poets by traveling to locations  in her original version of Peradam, Soundwalk Collective with Patti Smith traveled to the Himalayan Summit of India in order to make use of the unique landscapes. Smith also traveled to Abyssinian, Ethiopia (Mummer Lover) and the Sierra Tarahumara in Mexico (The Peyote Dance) respectively. In utilizing the poem’s landscape, ‘Peradam’ becomes haunting through its hypnotic and unnerving sound.  The original ‘Peradam’ contains natural, soothing sounds such as spoken word, whispering, and a heartbeat creating an almost psychedelic feel. 

Brian Eno remixes Smith’s ‘Peradam’ by modernizing the original. While a remix, Eno made the song his own by cutting down on the original lyrics and changing the steady spoken voice and background tribal vocals to that of an electronic one.The technology used in the song is a change from the hypnotic, ritualistic sound Patti achieved in using more natural elements. The words become almost indecipherable in its new rhythmic pattern. Eno’s version of ‘Peradam’ is far more robotic than the natural original and in becoming more technological it loses that almost tribal feel. This modernization of the poem and taking the song away from the landscape it was originally recorded in takes away from the preternatural and unique touches of Patti’s song. 

Brian Eno joins artists Jim Jarmusch, Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith, and more in the new deluxe box set . Listen to Eno’s Remix  here.