In A Box Coffret

Description

"When I recorded the first two Trickfinger albums, I had just discovered that you could create electronic music in a room with several synchronized machines, record it on a CD burner, and end up with a finished track. I heard that this process was called 'overdubbing in the air.' It was as exciting for me as my first 4-track at 14. I wasn't trying to be good or original. I was simply thrilled that music could be made this way; I felt like a group of musicians playing together… or jamming with my doubles. It's actually a very common method of creating electronic music since the 80s, especially in pioneering genres like Chicago acid and Detroit techno, but I only discovered it in 2006. In 2007, I started using it myself, which gave birth to Trickfinger and Trickfinger II. I had just returned from tour and was still deep into recording The Empyrean. A few years later, I began composing by layering tracks on a computer, but using the same machines. I was looking to create music that sounded like nothing else. I had found a way to combine progressive rock and synthpop, a novel approach. I was blending my compositions and guitar playing with these old machines in a way that I was convinced was unique. I had reached a point where originality took precedence over quality, whatever the definition of 'quality' might be. Some tracks were never released and are compiled here on the High Low vinyl. I believe I have never invested myself in music as much as I did during that time. It’s the complete opposite of the two Trickfinger albums, where I made no effort. Both mindsets have their advantages. When you’re in one, the other seems impossible. I really pushed myself for High Low. In retrospect, it was as if I had an inner audience, pushing me to go beyond my limits, while completely ignoring the existence of an outside audience. It was one of those periods in life where everything aligns in a way that feels natural at the time, but strange in hindsight. I felt like I was going to die if I didn’t do something musically different. The fourth record in this box set, 'Rotation,' is a live stereo recording, the first I made with a new mixing console. This record is entirely composed of unreleased tracks. These songs are more in the 'effortless' category, since we’re talking about it. I had just come back from tour and was simply thrilled to be in the studio with my gear." John Frusciante 2026 Acid Test is releasing a box set to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the release of "Trickfinger" with a homemade cover.