Gen Ken – Beyond My Ken [LP] (1989, Discos Esplendor Geometrico)

 

Gen Ken Montgomery is an American sound artist, composer, and mail-artist born in 1957. He is regarded as a pioneer of the cassette-culture movement and of experimental, noise, and musique concrète practices. Although he did not receive formal musical training, his curiosity and hands-on exploration led him to develop a distinctive style that incorporates cheap synthesizers and everyday objects such as refrigerators, laminators, and aquarium pumps to create unique and immersive soundscapes. 

In 1989 he founded Generator Sound Art in New York City, considered the first sound-art gallery in the city and an important platform for the underground experimental scene. He also co-founded the label Generations Unlimited, which helped support the independent cassette-based experimental music movement. Montgomery began recording in 1981 under the name Gen Ken & The Equipment, producing homemade tapes, experimental albums, and sound-art projects, often released in very limited editions. In the mid-1990s he adopted the alias Egnekn for projects that were more playful or conceptual, including his well-known lamination rituals. 

His artistic practice focuses on recontextualizing everyday sounds. He works with domestic appliances, ambient noise, environmental recordings, and common objects, transforming them into dense and often disorienting sonic compositions through collage, tape manipulation, electronics, and improvisation. His performances are often multichannel and immersive, sometimes presented in total darkness, inviting audiences to experience sound in a radically different and heightened way. Montgomery’s approach embraces a philosophy of anti-virtuosity, valuing spontaneity, chance, improvisation, and the direct relationship between sound, object, and listener rather than technical mastery. 

In 1989 he released the album 'Beyond My Ken', issued on vinyl. This work is noted as his last major stereo release from that period and reflects his experimental ethos. The album combines field recordings, domestic sounds, electronics, and abstract noise, continuing his interest in transforming familiar auditory environments into highly unconventional and exploratory sound pieces. 

His broader discography includes numerous cassette works from the early 1980s, later experimental releases, and compilations that document decades of sonic experimentation. Among these, 'Pondfloorsample' stands out as an extensive compilation covering a wide span of his work. 

Beyond music, Montgomery has worked in collage, visual art, mail-art, and the creation of unique sound-object editions, always maintaining a strong DIY aesthetic. His artistic philosophy consistently challenges traditional ideas of musicality, encouraging listeners to rethink their relationship to sound, environment, and the everyday. 

 

Label: Discos Esplendor Geometrico – EGD 017 

Format: Vinyl, LP, Limited Edition 

Country: Spain 

Released: 1989 

Style: Experimental, Musique Concrète

 

 

Tracklist: 

A New Age Machines 19:56 

B1 Up The Backwards Treppe Avanti 2:22 

B2 A Question Of Arrival 2:13 

B3 Forced Hesitation 2:21 

B4 Testing Without Hypothesis 2:06 

B5 Monkey In The Window 2:17 

B6 Rolling On A Whisper 2:35 

B7 The Missing Half Of The Langensheid Bridge 2:18 

B8 Stepping On The Red Wire Undertow 2:16 

B9 Fallout On Lietzensee 2:24 

 

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