"Housing Survey"

based on research by François Girard-Meunier and Alina Lupu on the living
situation of art students in Amsterdam under a massive housing shortage in
a deregulated rent market

Voice: Alina Lupu
Music: Jörn Nettingsmeier

The text is a verbatim reproduction of the survey results filled in by the
study participants, with minimal re-ordering.

This production developed from Alina's original intent to just record the
participants' comments verbatim. Since the questions suggested a certain
vocabulary to be used in the answers, the result was comically repetitive,
but otherwise boring. It seemed to suggest some sort of electronic music
treatment.
We then explored the idea of setting it to vaporwave-like music.

I decided to be very disciplined in the musical process, so as to not allow
myself very many dead-end tryouts. The goal was to work towards the final
result in a linear way, discarding as little material as possible, almost as
if working live, and to just live with what came up.
The guitar music fragments were created in single improvisation session over
the programmed drum patterns, with more than 80% of the recorded material
used. All effects were applied in post-production.
Clichés were embraced wholeheartedly as they materialized.

As to the overall vibe, I guess the height of the COVID-19 lockdown is
clearly audible. Trying to capture the melancholy and insecurity of young
art students trying to find their place in art and life under precarious
economic conditions, with a good dose of musical corniness for what are after
all very first-world problems. But hopefully sufficiently poetic to respect
the struggle and make the issues heard.

Produced exclusively with free and open source software on Linux, with a
pre-lease version of Ardour6, the Hydrogen drum sequencer, and a selection
of freely available drum samples.
Acoustic guitar recorded with two NoHype LRM-2b/Lundahl ribbon microphones,
voice and glockenspiel recorded with a BPM CR-95 large double diaphragm
microphone, all into RME micstasy preamps. 
Guitar effects courtesy of guitarix. The voice uses a selection of free and
open-source reverbs and Robin Gareus' lv2 port of Fons Adriaensen's zita-at1.

Jörn Nettingsmeier, May 2020