Dillon Anthony is a man of mystery. Just when you think you know Dillon Anthony, he pulls out another bottle of whisky and peels back another layer. You’ll find yourself in a ‘Most Interesting Man in the World’ situation – gazing dreamily into his beard as he tells you some tale of being held at gun point in a far off land. or perhaps his recent trek across Sørøya, a small arctic island off the coast of Norway during an artist residency.
Anthony may be best known as the multi-instrumentalist from Fredericton band Kill Chicago, or from performing with The Hypochondriacs, or even just ‘The New Brunswick Pedal Steel Guy‘. He’s also received attention lately for his career as a portrait and wilderness photographer. Now he’s dabbling in what John Lennon referred to as ‘messing with the tapes’ – that is producing music or otherwise soundscapes using organic noise and found audio.
During his stay in Sørøya, Anthony took time away from his photography excursion to produce a unique recording to mark his experiences.
‘Jörmungandr‘ translates from Old Norse as “Huge Monster”. Those Old Norse didn’t mess around, least of all with words. It’s a creature that looms large even by mythological standards. It is known as the World Serpent – one of Loki’s pets which Odin tossed into the sea, but the serpent grew so great it came to encircle all of Midgard, clenching its tail in its jaws. It is said that when Jörmungandr releases his tail it will signal the beginning of Ragnarök and will do battle with its nemesis, Thor.
Dillon Anthony’s ‘Jörmungandr‘ is equally monolithic. Inspired by a massive off shore oil platform name Goliat, it’s located far enough away from the town and its 70 inhabitants to remain invisible, but its presence can still be felt looming beyond the horizon.
The recording includes everything from sounds of the nearby shoreline, with the waves crashing against the rocks to the sound of the wind, to the clamour of fishing equipment and oil drums, all meant to represent the battle between man and beast. There are some eerie parallels that can be drawn between man’s dependancy on the hulking Goliat and the unravelling of our world.