A few years ago, Francesco Fonassi visited the record collection of Gianfranco Baruchello, a notable Italian artist and filmmaker who turned 95 that year, at his farmhouse outside Rome. Among the 60 records that Francesco left with that day, a French record, Chez les Esquimaux from Canada’s Arctic, stood out. Later, he began reworking two chants—one male, one female—and a recording of howling sled dogs under the moonlight. The result was a primal rhythm, like a detuned guitar with subtle electronics, which he sent to Ear Explorer. Ear Explorers added speed-manipulated ichthyic sounds, locked grooves, a 1900s wind recording, broken records, and resonant percussion, crafting an immersive nautical journey. The result of this collaboration is Terre Rare, a sonic voyage through Arctic soundscapes—rain, wind, thunder, and sea—blending hypnotic rhythms, warbly tapes, synths, and submerged echoes.
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