Experimental music

Experimental music on vinyl: when listening becomes an adventure

The origins: From Musique Concrète to indeterminacy

Experimental music emerged at the crossroads of 20th-century avant-gardes. As early as 1948, Pierre Schaeffer laid the foundations of musique concrète with his Études de bruits, manipulating magnetic tape and everyday sounds at the RTF's Studio d'Essai. Across the Atlantic, John Cage redefined the very notion of a musical work with his prepared piano pieces and his iconic 4'33'', while Karlheinz Stockhausen explored nascent electronics in Gesang der Jünglinge (1956). Iannis Xenakis, both architect and composer, transposed mathematical concepts into striking works like Metastasis. These pioneers opened a breach through which generations of artists would pour, from the spectral school, Gérard Grisey, Tristan Murail, to contemporary explorers such as Éliane Radigue and her meditative electronic minimalism, or the digital collages of Oneohtrix Point Never.

Visionary labels, landmark albums and pressing advice

Collecting these works on vinyl also means journeying through the history of visionary labels. ECM provided a crystalline sonic setting for Steve Reich's repetitive compositions (Music for 18 Musicians) and Arvo Pärt's distilled works (Tabula Rasa). The Austrian label Mego, later Editions Mego, redefined avant-garde electronics with Fennesz (Endless Summer) and Oneohtrix Point Never (Replica). Sub Rosa has been carving out an unclassifiable path since the 1980s, somewhere between field recordings and electroacoustic exploration, while Touch publishes the enveloping drones of Oren Ambarchi and Chris Watson. When it comes to pressings, look for reissues supervised by the artists themselves, a common practice at Erased Tapes or PAN. Early Mego pressings from the 1990s-2000s are highly sought after but can reach steep prices. By comparing offers from partner merchants, Vinyles.com helps you track down these sonic treasures at the fairest price.