Laurence Bond Miller

EMPOOL

BAND HISTORY  (1976 thru 1977)

EMPOOL was an experimental existential psychedelic noise band Laurence Miller put together.  The band was formed to accompany the creation of it's Ann Arbor Arts Rag couterpart, EMPOOL III, one which he was largely responsible for.
NOTE: Another name for the band considered was WETT DREAMS, later being used as the name for one of their pieces.

Long Story Short: The band continued in various battered forms with a mix of schooled and not-so-schooled musicians, until fall 1977 when it finally melted into Ann Arbor's Art-Punk band, DESTROY ALL MONSTERS.

The band began in August 1976 as a fixed trio: two musicians and a "light man".
Miller had been introduced to a musician named Andre Cynkin. With rock-jazz fusion, free-form improvisation, and general psychedelia -- the two hit it off right away, forming the central hub of the group. Mat Smith played the lights, hammering on his homemade color organ light system, keyboard operated. The three rehearsed together to improvise thoughtfully over prerecorded background tracks which Miller would create, using cheap sound on sound analog recording equipment.  These multitrack collage soundscapes were an integral part of each improvisation.  A good deal of the taped sounds were "found", using novelty records such as the 1950's children's record  Bozo the Clown at the Bottom of the Sea  and the 1960's story-theatre record,  Famous Monsters Speak.  Miller also used  Radio Shack SFX  records, and  educational materials, as well as his own music. Some of the original material he used was guitar feedback, while more obscure sounds were created for example by rubbing a wet rag over a window pane producing horrendous screeching sounds. Many of these backing tracks were often treated during the recording process with the same analog foot pedal FX that EMPOOL members performed with. 

Miller mapped out working guidleines to the various improvisations for the three to feed off of. Mat's "aurora borealis" enhanced Miller and Andre's musical performance as they all improvised together, always (for better or worse) under the influence. This cacophony proved to be an impressive sight & sound experience for a garage band at that time. Plans of an actual flexi-disc single were on the back burner, sadly never brought to fruition.

Before the beginning of the new year, 1977, EMPOOL had again launched it's way back into psychedelic free-form group improvisations against prerecorded soundscapes. Andre Cynkin was brought back, though Mat Smith was no longer involved. This return focus was partly due to the work it would have taken in order to pull off a well organized band, which Miller may not have been able to do, what with the on going presence and progressive use of recreational drugs.

Actual band mates came and went through EMPOOL'S carefree revolving door, with Andre and Miller always holding the fort.  This collective was playing at higher volumes now, improvising with little or no attention paid to any mapped guidelines. Drums and bass were employed time to time, though rarely acting as
a traditional "time/tonal based" rhythm section.  EMPOOL's sound was a densely layered wall-to-wall cacophony, self described as a "3D atmospheric collage happening".

NOTE: Some members had no trouble whatsoever drifting off into that no-man's land, exploring the unknown with complete disregard, while others at times suffered the anchor of theory and it's conventional tedium.

Spring 1977
April brought about the long awaited publishing of local literary arts rag EMPOOL III, as well as the band's demise. Empool had an in-house performance to celebrate the publication -- the band's 2nd gig. Andre recalls playing organ, Miller on guitar, very possibly with Mat Smith back on the "lights", and possibly with Ben Miller as well.  Ben doesn't recall a thing, and as for Laurence Miller, it's a peripheral blur at best.

DESTROY ALL MONSTERS Arrive...
Around that time, Cary Loren and Niagara (the nucleus of another local outfit from Ann Arbor, DESTROY ALL MONSTERS) began dropping in unexpectedly during EMPOOL'S jamb sessions. Though some of  EMPOOL'S members had jambed with Cary & Niagara on occasion in 1976, this was the official meeting of the minds as it were.  For whatever number of reasons and explanations affordable, in a very short time, EMPOOL was now improvising over tunes written by Cary & Niagara, exclusively. Though far more linear and conventional by all standards, EMPOOL enjoyed the distraction as Cary & Niagara afforded them full-freedom to interpret their songs however they chose. With the rumor that Ron Asheton would join ranks, soon followed by MC5's Michael Davis and talks of financing a vinyl 45 rpm single, EMPOOL and DESTROY ALL MONSTERS soon became one band -- a brand new incarnation of DESTROY ALL MONSTERS. (Note: Both D.A.M. and EMPOOL were "reasonably ignorant" of the other, and yet each had their own counterpart art magazine.)  EMPOOL enjoyed a couple nice final sessions over the course of the summer and into the fall of 1977. 

ANTIDOTES: Some of the wildest sounds they came up with were from the oscillations produced by hot wiring the main lines off a gutted-out Webcor reel to reel taperecorder.  An accidental discovery.  Also favored were the effects of snipping scissors, marbles dropped into a bowl, rags ripped and paper torn. Once, in the middle of a full blown session at Feltch St., Laurence noticed his brother Roger on the floor, huddled very close to the recording microphone, muttering something under his breath for the longest time.  It wasn't until Laurence later heard the playback that he fully appreciated Roger's manifestation.

 "...what?.... what? ... what? ... what? ... what? ... what? ... what? ..."

"Could anything possibly top that?", Miller thought.

Folks were only then beginning to show up.  All the better for that anti-pop, existential mentality Miller supported at that time.  The band continued.  Miller lost interest and grabbed another beer.

Roger Miller  "... I always considered Empool to be WAY ahead of it's time: in plunderphonics, in noise music, etc.  EMPOOL was doing what is now called "noise music" years before that name was coined. I consider that in some ways Empool predated Byrne and Eno's MY LIFE IN THE BUSH OF GHOSTS, due to Empool's reuse of material.  And it was active the same time as, say, The Residents were starting up ..."

Ben Miller  "... Empool had a significant influence on my musical sensibility ..."
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THE END of EMPOOL
EMPOOL fizzled out altogether as 1977 passed on into the world of punk rock music, gigs, studio work, and 24/7 pardy-hardy. The rest is D.A.M. history.

In closing, EMPOOL did not amount to much in the real world, with only three house party performances. Those days didn't offer coffee shops and art hangouts where one could freely perform such music, as in the case of today's alternative scenes.  Thankfully, EMPOOL recorded 95% of their sessions, if not on home gear, and was certainly ahead of it's time in the use of found sound and open ended free form improvisation, and full of innocent naivete.

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PHOTO GALLERY

 EMPOOL "live" New Years Eve performance at 
 OLIVIA HOUSE campus party,  Dec 31 1976. 

Cary Loren and Niagara of Destroy All Monsters managed to merge with the band later, as the night
grew on, along with other friends.  Seen here in this first picture, we have EMPOOL in the
opening bars of their first number, OPAQUE MYSTERY.
(Check the MP3 of this tune below)

EMPOOL seen here as a duo, along with a prerecorded soundscape, performing  their piece called DADA DATA
Ben Miller on guitar                                   Laurence Miller on guitar

Andre Cynkin and Ben Miller, proudly displaying a freshly broken bass string...

Ben Miller and Andre Cynkin sharing a thought, with drummer Eric, back in the shadows, setting up.

Rick Scott (later of BIRDS OF THE MESOZOIC fame) checking the reel to reel tape recorder,
while Andre Cynkin sets up his Farfisa...

Laurence Miller with cigarette and beer, clearly prepared...

And again seen here, staking an "Emplic Salute".

Andre Cynkin carrying gear down stairs while Laurence is seen behind, hiding in the furnace room for a lark.

Laurence's gear: An Epiphone 335, Echoplex and other MXR, Electro Harmonix, Dan Armstrong FX pedals
not in view, as well as his chain of bass amps - the Kustom 200 & Gibson 100.

From another angle in B&W.  Dig that "thing" in the back.
Miller's modified Stray Ray Star Trek guitar.

Laurence Miller: Guitar and prerecorded soundscape (highspeed pianos)
Andre Cynkin: Organ

IMPROV UNTITLED 2 ~ 1977
Group improvisation

The major players in EMPOOL (Laurence Miller, Ben Miller, Roger Miller, Andre Cynkin, Rick Scott and special guest Linc Yaco sitting in on lead vocals),
recorded two songs in 1994.  OPAQUE MYSTERY and AT GAME WITH THE LOGO (MP3's below). These were to be released as a single sandwiched into the 2nd publication of the EMPOOL arts magazine.  Though this publication never truly came to pass, hope is for these songs to be released on EMPOOL's first Cd.

SIDE A:  "STUDIO 1994" AT GAME WITH THE LOGO {Version A}
Written by Laurence Miller

Dr. Zero: Vocals
Laurence Miller: Drums, drum machine, castinets, bass, guitar(s), engineering production
ORDER OF SOLOS
Ben: Alto saxophone
Rick Scott: Keyboard
Roger Miller: Keyboard sampler
Laurence Miller: Guitar
Andre Cynkin: Keyboard and Guitar

SIDE A: "STUDIO 1994" AT GAME WITH THE LOGO {Version B}
Written by Laurence Miller

Dr. Zero: Vocals
Laurence Miller: Drum machine, bass, guitar(s), engineering production
ORDER OF SOLOS
Ben: Alto saxophone
Rick Scott: Keyboard
Roger Miller: Keyboard sampler
Laurence Miller: Guitar
Andre Cynkin: Keyboard and Guitar

AT GAME WITH THE LOGO
Ben Miller blows his brains out on his C-Tenor saxophone solo
1994

SIDE B: "STUDIO 1994" OPAQUE MYSTERY
Written by Laurence Miller

Laurence Miller: Drum machine, bass, keyboard, guitars, lead mosquito, and vocals

Original cover art for EMPOOL's single, which again, never came into fruition.
(Artwork taken from an early painting of Laurence's called SUNKEN GARDENS)

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EMPOOL III
Ann Arbor Local Arts Rag Counterpart

Last but not least, something only just read about on the Internet
while googling the word, EMPOOL.  How fitting ...

EMPOOL (The Water Treatment Works) WATER INDUSTRY ACT 1991: SECTION 19(1)(b)  THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR ENVIRONMENT, FOOD, AND RURAL AFFAIRS: is satisfied that Wessex Water Services Ltd "the Company" is supplying water from the Empool water treatment works which may be at risk of exceeding the standard for the prescribed concentration of nitrate. This means that the Company  is likely to contravene its duty in respect of supplying water which meets the  Regulations under Section 68(1)(a) of the Water Industry Act 1991and meets the  requirement set in regulation 4(2)(c) of the Water Supply (Water Quality)  Regulations 2000.