Mikael Jorgensen (of Wilco) joins art historian James Merle Thomas as Quindar. Hip Mobility, the duo's first full-length LP, is built upon deep research into the audio archives of NASA's golden era, the 1960s and 70s. These Space Age recordings – and specifically the tiny, iconic communication beeps known as Quindar Tones – form the basis for Hip Mobility's electronic compositions. Quindar manipulates these archival recordings beyond recognition, samples and plays them as unique instruments, blends them with Jorgensen's vintage analog synths, and sometimes simply plays them back verbatim.
The result is an LP that is part historical document, part sonic pastiche, and always expansive and danceable beat-based music. Hip Mobility is available here as a deluxe 12" 180g single disc gatefold package that includes a laser cutout front jacket with visible gloss color inner sleeve. The lush artwork by Lawrence Azerred of LAD Design (Wilco, REM, Beach Boys, Miles Davis) is accompanied by a fascinating essay by James Merle Thomas that highlights the artistic and theoretical underpinnings of Hip Mobility specifically, and Quindar more generally.