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ADSR Book One, a book for discovering new music on your smartphone

ADSR Book One book launch on January 27th at the Anza Club (3 W 8th Ave) at 8pm.

Chill out duo Snowday is one of the featured electronic groups in ADSR Book One. Photo by Curtiss Randolph.

In the digital age of interconnectivity we have access to all music, from any era, at our fingertips. No other time in history has information been so readily accessible. Smartphones and touch-screen devices in the last decade alone have changed how we consume music: if “video killed the radio star” and the CD toppled the cassette, the Internet diminished the CD, then the smartphone has definitely nearly erased the CD-Drive.

However, even with the hyper-connectivity there is a definite need – almost desire – to still have tangible objects; books, records, photographs. Although collecting undoubtedly does not happen at the same rate as before, there is that need for something one can touch to remind us that there is life outside of the screen. 

So what about a book that marries the two? The need for a tangible object but something you can still use to discover more about new music/artists with your smartphone.

That’s something the ADSR collective – a dedicated group of musicians, producers and DJs based out of Vancouver – decided to undertake. The collective was formed in 2014 with the intention of increasing electronic music appreciation, while contributing to an open and supportive local arts community. The group now encompasses an online blog, events, and soon to be record label. 

Their publication project: ADSR Book One explores 14 diverse artists from the world of underground electronic music, but “has something to offer just about any type of music fan”, featuring quick response (QR) codes, which the reader can scan with their phone and listen to exclusive music while reading in depth interviews, in print. The 14 different artists showcased in the book cover a wide range of genres, styles and sounds, all while staying true to ADSR’s focus on grassroots, underground and independent electronic music. The book is dedicated to “all those supporting independent music”, a mantra the collection aims to live up to themselves. 

The role of the listener and music fan has evolved to include participant. There is a symbiotic relationship now between artist and audience; one cannot exist without the other. Interactive publications, such as ADSR Book One welcome this evolution and highlight how important it is for grassroots artist communities to have this relationship. 

The book will be available in hard copy at their book launch event, January 27th at the Anza Club (3 W8th Ave) at 8pm. Artists from the collective will also be playing at the event.  It is also available through the ADSR website: adsrvancouver.tumblr.com

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