I shall start with the image of a snarl of cables,
wrapped around themselves and apparently inextricably tangled. They snake
across the floor of a windowless room, connecting unknown pieces of equipment
to each other in an arcane pattern. The air hums with a net of electromagnetism
and audio feedback
I shall add a second image to this: a glass ball, or
sealed bottle containing a labyrinth of red string and shreds of metallic foil,
buried under the threshold of a dwelling, or standing sentinel at a window. The connection between
The first image is a recording studio, the second a charm
that was known as a “witch trap”.
The spectral, understood as a liminal
state of being (un-dead), is an integral part of our electronic ecosystem. Recording
and sound manipulation technology gives rise to the existence of ghosts; or
maybe it is more accurate to say that these technologies have provided the
spectral with an hospitable environment. There are obvious examples such as EVP(electric voice phenomenon), Some people believe that the voices of the dead sometimes
manifest on magnetic tapes and more latterly digital media, this is known as
Electronic Voice Phenomenon (EVP). The website of the EVP Research Association
UK advises that “You will find that
analogue recordings contain a high level of background hiss, which is where
many of the voices can be found during analysis”. As far as digital recorders
go, they say that they are “[…]most effective for capturing EVP when used on
the lowest quality settings. These settings appear to generate a higher degree
of background hiss […]” (http://www.evpuk.com/evp_equipment.html
Accessed 17/01/12) The spectral manifests itself in noise.
There is also the spectral powers the technology itself.
There is also the spectral powers the technology itself.
A paranormal and ghost hunters’ site expresses some excitement at predictions of
solar storms: "Solar Flare
activity and Geomagnetic Field activity seems to affect the amount of ghost
activity [...]Spirits often tap into normal electrical sources such are
electrical appliances and batteries to get this energy." (emphasis mine). There is, interestingly, another site that describes a piece of technology similar to the witch trap described above -
"The sprite trap is created from a blackthorn stave and copper wire that has never carried electricity. During a ritual process, the copper wire is bound to the stave with red thread and the stave is marked with a Dag (or D) rune.[...] After the sprite trap has captured a spirit, it is removed from the location and the red thread is cut with a consecrated knife; the thread is then placed into a prepared witch bottle." One wonders why the copper wire should never have carried electricity if it is to be efficacious. Perhaps once it has been a conduit for the lumeniferous ether, it remains forever open to it and the sprite can simply slip away.
Which brings me back to my linked images of the spirit catching charms and the recording studio.
"The sprite trap is created from a blackthorn stave and copper wire that has never carried electricity. During a ritual process, the copper wire is bound to the stave with red thread and the stave is marked with a Dag (or D) rune.[...] After the sprite trap has captured a spirit, it is removed from the location and the red thread is cut with a consecrated knife; the thread is then placed into a prepared witch bottle." One wonders why the copper wire should never have carried electricity if it is to be efficacious. Perhaps once it has been a conduit for the lumeniferous ether, it remains forever open to it and the sprite can simply slip away.
Which brings me back to my linked images of the spirit catching charms and the recording studio.
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