Michael Allen Z PRIME
“Bioelectrical Music”

We have not had a physical release by composer and ecologist Michael Prime since the release of Borneo in 2007. This new 3CD set brings us up to date with a series of recordings from across the years. It also sees a new refinement in his working practice as well as a new extension to his original name. Bioelectrical Music by Michael Allen Z Prime consists of recordings that fall into 3 defined categories – Bioelectrical Compositions, Bioelectrical Field Recordings and Bioelectrical Installations. All three use the bioelectrical potentials generated by plants and fungi, although these sound sources are now no longer purely seen as raw material available for multi-tracking or further electronic processing of the signal path. Now, the bioactivity signals themselves form the basis of the music. Following a framework of self imposed rules that restrict the extent that the source sounds can be altered, such that the essential voice of the living sound sources remain identifiable. The development of this framework is a direction that Prime’s music has been moving towards for some years now, and this box set collects various recordings made between 1990 and 2019 that fall into the remit of this new development. The pieces included here range from short sound studies to lengthy compositions and installation recordings made at a wide variety of locations. The 3CDs are accompanied by a 44 page booklet with an essay by Prime outlining the history and development of our understanding of plant neurophysiology. There is also a short piece written by author and fungal enthusiast Merlin Sheldrake.