The large façade that houses the roller skating rink
at Oaks Park advertises “Healthful exercise, delightful pleasure,” a
slogan forever cementing the rink as a quaint reminder of what was.
Along with the vintage rink itself, the building is home to a Wurlitzer
Theater Organ, a piece of music machinery just as comforting as the
aforementioned slogan, and equally out of touch. But it was there, amid
the hypnotic scrape of plastic wheels upon the shimmering hardwood
floor that Ethan Rose took to making his latest record,
Oaks.
Before we tread any further, it should be noted that this is not a
gimmick. While there might be a hook somewhere in the tale of a
long-forgotten organ from the ’20s, a seen-better-days amusement park,
and a local artist trying to tie them all together, Rose’s infatuation
with utilizing the fruits of the ancient Wurlitzer is absolutely pure.
More an artist than your typical musician, Rose has been building, then
demolishing, quiet instrumental soundscapes for quite some time now.
His sculpted, gorgeous ambient structures are compiled with a
frustrating level of detail—this music is akin to a ship in a
bottle; you don’t know how it got there, but can appreciate its patient
assembly. Rose’s finest works are delicate in nature, and barely tip
the volume scales above a polite hum.
“I was always interested in songwriting as a craft, but I always
wanted to stretch it beyond the confines of a strictly songwriting
sensibility,” says Rose of his early expansion from performing in a
band to embarking on the uncharted waters of minimalist electronics. “I
still appreciate songwriting and rock ‘n’ roll, but for me, I’m not as
excited about that realm and those limitations. I can do an art
exhibition, I can collaborate with a designer, make an album, and do a
performance; at this point I’m just excited about stretching out as far
as I can reach.”
This reach spawned from dissecting small music boxes, to drawing
together the faint balance of organic instrumentation alongside
translucent layers of electronics. As for the Wurlitzer on Oaks,
the organ’s influence is incredibly subtle and masterfully restrained.
Rose worked alongside the performer and caretaker of the organ, Keith
Fortune, to better understand the intricate construction of the
instrument before incorporating it into the recording.
“I was happy to help with repairs. It’s constantly falling apart and
doing these repairs helped influence where the album went.” Rose adds,
“I like these instruments because I can understand them better. I work
with a computer but it’s like a magic box, I have no idea how it works.
I love older technologies, I love their tactile sonic nature, and also
being able to see how it works.”
Although Oaks‘ release show will be at the rink itself, with
Rose manning the organ while patrons skate (or watch from the
bleachers), this is hardly rollerskating music. “I hadn’t intended it
to be this grandiose rollerskating album, but I’m excited that that’s
what the [CD release] show is going to be.” He continues, “When else am
I going to perform and have skating? It’s a once-in-a-lifetime thing.”
That said, it’s only fitting that the most accurate way to describe the
artist behind the layered beauty of Oaks happens to be the same
advertising tag line as the Wurlitzer itself: “One-Man Orchestra.”