Hooray for Tuesday's MP3: Olivia Tremor Control Quadrophenia

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Hooray for Tuesday's MP3: Olivia Tremor Control Quadrophenia

Published Tuesday, April 03, 2007 by Jeff | E-mail this post

In 1997 Blue Rose Records released the Olivia Tremor Control single "The Opera House," the first track from their then-new album Music from the Unrealized Film Script: Dusk at Cubist Castle. Released on both CD and vinyl, the Opera House single also came with two different track listings. The B-side of one version was "Black Swan Network (with Capillary Radar)." The other, "Black Swan Network (with Enveloping Bicycle Folds)." You could take your pick, and both were almost indistinguishable, expansive experimental soundscapes, in stark contrast to the straight rock of the A-side's track; in fact, the single was a perfect representation of the Olivia Tremor Control's sound, a mixture of pop and avant-garde. But the idea was that if you played both of the "Black Swan Network" tracks simultaneously, you would create a third, "quadrophonic" track. (Note to self: get on that some day.) Of course, "Black Swan Network" was also the name of the band's mysterious alter ego, of which those B-sides were a fair representation. The Olivia Tremor Control vs. Black Swan Network EP, released later that year, fused the two faces of the band into something even more interesting. More on that some other Tuesday. For now, here are the two B-sides to the Opera House single, so you can create your own quadrophonic experience.

The Olivia Tremor Control - Black Swan Network (with Capillary Radar)
The Olivia Tremor Control - Black Swan Network (with Enveloping Bicycle Folds)