The Ghost Orchid - An Introduction to EVP
Ash International # PARC CD1 v.3 [originally issued in 1999]
77 Tracks: total length: 64:29
Bar Code: 5027803001121
Compact Disc - Jewel Case + 8pp Booklet
Release Date: January 2006 [stock expected late November 2005]
Standard CD dealer price
File under: X-Files

This is the third edition of this much sought-after CD... and has been unavailable since 2002...

The ParaPsychic Acoustic Research Cooperative [PARC], in association with Ash International, is proud to present the first ever fully comprehensive investigation into the paranormal phenomenon of EVP, otherwise known as Electronic Voice Phenomenon. Without doubt EVP falls into the catagory of the paranormal alongside other unexplained mysteries such as ufology, life after death & poltergeist activity. The listener is guided through a collection of strange and mysterious voices that have appeared without explanation onto the tapes of EVP researchers. Included with the CD is a 24 page booklet containing commissioned articles which cover the conflicting views surrounding the EVP. Actual voice samples are reproduced here for the first time on compact disc: Polyglot Voices, Public Service Broadcasting, Interruptions across the airwaves, Singing Voices, Instant Response Voices, and the extraordinary Alien Voices. The CD also includes a commentary by the artist Leif Elggren (in English), and recordings of the work of Raymond Cass, England’s leading EVP researcher, and original member of the Fortean Group, and the Latvian EVP researcher, Dr. Konstanin Raudive.
This CD release seeks to present the evidence; are the voices extraterrestrial, paranormal evidence of our telepathic powers or an elaborate hoax perpetrated by sinister and powerful groups to mislead us from their true aims...?

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Press reviews of the first edition [1999]:

The Wire:
Compiled, edited and produced by Justin Chatburn and Ash International's Mike Harding, this massive tape archive, property of an organisation called the Parapsychic Acoustic Research Cooperative, is designed to bring the curious up to speed on the weird and vexing issue of ghost voices, disembodied speech and alien verbal communication. Using a high frequency radio receiver, some simple recording equipment and enough patient determination, it is possible to get in touch with a plethora of mysterious entities who, in time, will not only speak directly to you but also offer oblique, sometimes threatening comments about your current circumstances. Whether benign or just plain evil, these beings have exercised the minds and patience of several researchers over the years, most notably Konstantin Raudive, whose 7" vinyl recording of spirit messages from the likes of Spanish philosopher Ortega Y Gasset and Soviet poet Vladimir Mayakovsky was originally released in 1971 and is now available here in digital form. Most of this amazing collection, however, is derived from the painstaking efforts of Raymond Cass, who has managed, over the years, to coax from the ether such dense spectral patter as "Put it on ice and I'll mend your feet" and "Elvis" and "Not enough there to copy". The polyglot word play as the mysterious voices switch from English to German, Latvian and Russian during a single utterance has a raw phonetic appeal, however puzzling their origins might be. Are they speaking from beyond the grave, the far reaches of the galaxy or some cosmic dimension as yet undiscovered on this fleshly plain? Who can say? But it sure is fun to listen to. [Ken Hollings]

Bizarre:
Ash International continues its important mission to give the world unique audio recordings with this fascinating co-operation with PARC - the Parapsychic Acoustic Research Cooperative. EVP stands for Electronic Voice Phenomena and refers to voices of unknown origin which are heard through electrical media such as TVs and telephones. The CD provides detailed introductions which describe the work of leading researchers in the early days of EVP, Swede Friedrich Jürgenson, who made the first recordings and presents research conducted by Raymond Cass, who is perhaps the most experienced and prolific recordist. In the reliable hands of Ash International, the subject is presented with many different types of voice archived. [Mark Blacklock]

The Fortean Times:
A comprehensive collection of Electronic Voice Phenomena (EVP) recordings, as detailed by Jürgen Heinzerling in FT 104. It features over 70 recordings, including the rare disc given away with Dr. Konstantin Raudive's seminal 1971 book, Breakthrough... This is a fantastic piece of work, guaranteed to give even the most sceptical listeners the shivers.

Aquarius:
THE GHOST ORCHID "An Introduction to EVP" (Ash International R.I.P.) 14.98 Essentially, The Conet Project From Beyond The Grave!! Huh? Peter Becker, who used to work for Asphodel (R.I.P.), has presented an interesting theory that The Conet Project (the awesome 4 cd documentation of shortwave radio "numbers stations") was nothing more than an elaborate hoax. While we think that he's mistaken and that plenty of evidence points to the validity of The Conet Project, here is a far more questionable recording, because you've got to believe in ghosts rather than a more corporeal conspiracy... The Ghost Orchid documents instances of something called "Electronic Voice Phenomenon", the paranormal appearance of strange voices (which at times sing and speak in multiple languages) on magnetic tape when there shouldn't be any voices there at all... Respected parapsychologists have postulated that these voices are those of dead people (i.e. ghosts) or possibly of extraterrestrial origin! Unlike The Conet Project, which cross referenced the audio tracks with written information, The Ghost Orchid presents these recordings with the audio commentary of one of several researchers (Nadia Fowler, Raymond Cass, and Leif Elggren - the Swedish performance/audio artist), explaining the findings. These recordings are the findings of a number of parapsychologists including Dr. Konstantin Raudive, Friedrich Jürgenson, and Raymond Cass. While there is something wholly terrifying about these recordings, there is an absurd question about these ghostly voices that we have to ask... Why are the majority of these recordings in Latvian? Our resident Latvian, Byram, is unable to answer this question... but perhaps we will hear from him in the afterlife...at any rate, The Ghost Orchid manages to be both spooky and silly, and is definitely a fascinating listen from a pure sound perspective regardless of how disturbing and/or amusing you might find the alleged sound source itself...you might laugh at the voice of "Winston Churchill", for instance, spouting nonsense from the netherworld, but it's still a gripping, dark sound document. A word of caution, Jim's copy of this cd disappeared from its case on the Aquarius counter-top at 6:35PM on 5/8/99 and reappeared in puddle of ectoplasmic goo at 3:20 PM on 5/9/99. Haunting.