We’ve updated our Terms of Use to reflect our new entity name and address. You can review the changes here.
We’ve updated our Terms of Use. You can review the changes here.

Wisdom of the Ancients

by Telemachus

supported by
basidial
basidial thumbnail
Bacchi
Bacchi thumbnail
/

  • Streaming + Download

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    Purchasable with gift card

      £5 GBP  or more

     

1.
Paleolithic Emotions 05:12
buy track
2.
Medieval Institutions 05:51
buy track
3.
God-Like Technology 07:27
buy track

about

Volumes is a series and platform for artists to create audio responses to literature. For Vol. 05, prolific producer Telemachus has created an original soundtrack in the form of an EP for Neil Oliver’s 2020 book ‘Wisdom of the Ancients: Life Lessons from Our Distant Past’.

Statement from Telemachus:
I chose 'Wisdom of the Ancients' by Neil Oliver as it was such a soothing, moving and evocative read during this pandemic. I have increasingly been re-connecting with the natural world over the past decade and along with this book of lessons that we might take from our ancestors, I think I found the perfect balm to the 24 hour news cycles of death and disease. Neil Oliver is in fact a pretty divisive figure, particularly in his homeland of Scotland, and I am certain that we would not see eye to eye on many issues. However it is a testament to the success of this book that our seemingly conflicting political views do not seem to cause any friction at all and their significance just melts away when we are dealing with events that happened 10,000 years ago. It shows that there is often much common ground between humans who otherwise would hold opposing views and that finding the things that you can agree on is often of greater importance than those which you cant.

The book opens with this quote from American Socio-biologist Edward Wilson:

The real problem of humanity is the following: we have Paleolithic emotions, medieval institutions, and god-like technology.
Edward O. Wilson b.1929

This quote instantly spoke to me and I think that in its essence, describes the root causes of much of the malaise that we see today in western society. I therefore chose to base my musical compositions around this quote by splitting it into the three conflicting aspects and writing music that would accompany and evoke these concepts. As always with my work there is an element of surreal humour (see my illustration for the artwork) to go with the sociological ideas and hopefully this provides a listen which errs more on the pleasant side of thought provoking.

credits

released March 30, 2021

license

all rights reserved

tags

about

Volumes image

Volumes London, UK

Soundtracks for books.

Volumes is a series for artists to create a musical response to literature.

contact / help

Contact Volumes

Streaming and
Download help

Report this album or account

If you like Wisdom of the Ancients, you may also like:

Bandcamp Daily  your guide to the world of Bandcamp

On Bandcamp Radio

Featuring Riley Pinkerton (aka The Rat Queen) from the theatrical NYC rockers, Castle Rat.
listen now