Free light, free heat

Nobody had heard anything like White Light/White Heat when the Velvet Underground released it in 1967. And none of the ensuing punk or grunge records it inspired have come close to matching its raw, physical sound. So why would some British guy named Ergo Phizmiz decide to redo this album and release it on the Internet?

“I knew I wanted to completely reinvent a real ‘classic’ of rock, something that has become almost sacred and therefore untouchable,” Phizmiz, 24, said in a recent email interview. “It was either Pet Sounds (Beach Boys), Forever Changes (Love) or White Light/White Heat. I love these albums, all three of them, but what swayed me towards White Light/White Heat was how defined the musical style of it is, and of course the sonic extremity of it. I was attracted to completely reinventing this music using acoustic instrumentation.”

The idea came to him while riding the bus. “I was on the Isle of Wight, a really beautiful island off the coast of Southern England. I wrote the plan for the entire album on the back of a bus ticket going between Sandown and Ventnor. I still have the bus ticket too!” said Phizmiz, who has been composing music since he was 8. “Ultimately, what led me to definitely choose this album was the sudden formation of the whole album in my head on a bus journey.”

So far, more than 3,000 people have downloaded the album at www.ergophizmiz.com. What they’ve heard is a respectfully warped take on the VU’s drug-and-sex-crazed jams. As with the original album, “Here She Comes Now” – the shortest and most digestible pop song – stands out as its strongest. Phizmiz’s vocals are clear and lovely and the instrumentation (banjo and violin) is subtle and pretty. This is a far cry from the over-modulated-but-sill enjoyable karaoke screaming on Phizmiz’s version of the title song or the insane Donald Duck voice telling the tragic tale of Waldo Jeffers mailing himself to his far-away girlfriend on “The Gift.”

Every song is a blast to listen to repeatedly – another trademark of the original. Much of the fun comes from Phizmiz and his “orchestra” using an array of instruments, including: banjo, ruler, music box, toy piano, accordion, squeezebox, euphonium, ukulele, kazoo, xylophone, pixiphone, uumskither, mbira, pod, delay, and turntable.

Phizmiz’s White Light/White Heat will remain free on the web until somebody comes along and wants to release it on CD or vinyl. “This has really showed me the potential of the Internet as a promotional tool for experimental composers,” Phizmiz said. “(This album) has been heard by far more people than usually get to hear my music.”