Name: Back to the Woodlands and Where the Woods Begin
Brand: Ernest Hood

Bonus disc

Bonus disc: No

Catalogue number

FTS022cd

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Colour

Colour details

Discogs ID

Format multiplier

Download code

Download code: No

Rough Trade Exclusive

Rough Trade Exclusive: No

Extended format

Extended format: No

Format detail

Format Music US

Limited edition

Release date

2022-11-11

Signed copies

Signed copies: No

Supplier US

Secre­tly

Tax rate US

Sales:8.875

UPC / Barcode

747742390227

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Total Cap

2 / CD / Extended format: No / Rough Trade Exclusive: No / Signed copies: No

Artist

Ernest Hood

Genre US

Ambient

Label US

RVNG INTL.

Guitarist and zither player, Ernest Hood was born on June 2, 1923 in Charlotte, North Carolina. He made a name for himself as a jazz guitarist in the Portland, Oregon area during the 1940s before becoming a sought-after studio musician. Unfortunately, Hood's career took an unexpected turn when he contracted polio in the 1950s, leaving him wheelchair-bound for life. Despite this setback, he adapted by picking up the zither and went on to showcase his talent on several early albums of renowned saxophonist [a269594].
Ernest Hood's musical journey began as a skilled jazz guitarist in Portland during the vibrant era of the 1940s. Alongside his brother Bill Hood and acclaimed saxophonist [a269594], he captivated audiences with his melodic guitar playing.
In the face of adversity, Hood's determination remained unwavering. After being diagnosed with polio and confined to a wheelchair, he refused to let it hinder his passion for music. Unable to hold a guitar any longer due to physical limitations, he discovered solace in playing the zither instead.

RVNG Intl. is an independent record label based in Brooklyn, New York. Founded in 2003 by [founder's name], the label has gained recognition for its unique and diverse roster of artists. In January 2014, RVNG Intl. was selected as Resident Advisor's label of the month, solidifying its reputation as a leading force in the music industry. Additionally, Tiny Mix Tapes named RVNG Intl. among their favorite labels of 2015.
With a commitment to pushing boundaries and showcasing innovative sounds, RVNG Intl. has become known for releasing groundbreaking music across various genres including electronic, experimental, and ambient. The label prides itself on fostering creativity and supporting emerging artists who challenge conventional norms.
RVNG Intl.'s catalog features an impressive array of critically acclaimed releases that have garnered attention from both fans and critics alike. With a focus on quality over quantity, each release is carefully curated to offer listeners a truly immersive musical experience.

Rvng Intl

Written and recorded between 1972 and 1982 in Western Oregon, Back to the Woodlands is a previously unreleased, and nearly lost, album made by Ernest Hood during the same era as his near mythical album Neighborhoods. A visionary combination of field recordings, zithers, and synthesizers, Back to the Woodlands offers an unprecedented depth of access to this singular artistic mind. Born into a musical family, Ernest Hood began a promising career as a jazz guitarist during the 1940s, touring internationally with his brother Bill Hood and the saxophonist Charlie Barnet, before contracting polio in his late twenties. The disease left Ernest unable to play the guitar and confined him to a wheelchair for the rest of his life. It also forced him to adapt and innovate around his musical practices in the face of adversity; Hood’s value of sound matured with a remarkably democratic and nonhierarchical approach and application. Taking up the zither, a less physically-demanding stringed instrument to the guitar, embarking upon the unprecedented process of incorporating field recordings into his work as early as 1956, and eventually discovering the synthesizer, Hood’s music became imbued with optimism and subtle cultural critique. This ethos and technique - refined over the coming decades - would lay the groundwork for a sprawling body of radio work, mail order recordings for homebound listeners, and Neighborhoods, self-issued as a small vinyl edition in 1975. Where Neighborhoods, a nostalgic opus, drawing from a well of collective memory of the 1950s, is defined by traces of human activity, Back to the Woodlands leaves the modern world behind, delving into Hood’s love for nature. Only recently discovered in his archives, the album dramatically expands his concept of “musical cinematography,” imagistically triggering states of sensory memory from within its zither and synthesizer melodies, intertwined with field recordings made during Hood’s extensive travels throughout Oregon. If Neighborhoods is a retreat into the gauzy joys of a romanticized past, Back to the Woodlands is an immersion in the timeless sanctuary of the natural world.

A fascinating counterpoint to its predecessor, Back to the Woodlands brings us even closer to Hood’s belief in the transportive qualities of sound; that field recordings could serve as a vehicle for the imagination and liberation, particularly for those with similar mobile disabilities as his own. Across the album’s twelve compositions, the rippling instrumental harmonics - shifting between abstraction and playful melody - fold so seamlessly into the birdsong, bubbling brooks, and other environmental ambiences, that they often give the impression of having been recording within the landscapes toward which they whisper.

Falling somewhere between the immersive calm of healing music and New Age, the creative field recording practices of sound ecologists world building for Folkways, and the jazz infected ambiences during Obscure / Editions EG’s highest heights, Back to the Woodlands sculpts an singular proximity of music for its moment; a form of ambient sonic realism that draws the consciousness toward its surroundings as much as within.

Working closely with his estate to maintain his original vision, Freedom to Spend has restored and remastered this never before released, lost masterpiece by Ernest Hood from the original tapes. Ernest Hood’s Back to the Woodlands is issued on vinyl, as well as on CD in combination with its contemporary Where the Woods Begin, with new liner notes by Michael Klausman. On behalf of Ernest Hood and Freedom To Spend, a portion of the proceeds from this release will benefit Oregon Wild, an organization dedicated to protecting and restoring Oregon’s wildlands, wildlife, and waters as an enduring legacy for future generations.

Back to the Woodlands and Where the Woods Begin

Music US