During December 2000 several significant storm fronts developed across the North Sea and Scandinavia. Benny remarked to me that he had recorded some of these on the Baltic coast and proposed a collaborative CD project based around our mutual interests in the rhythms and music created when the elements combine over land and out to sea. We spent the next few years gathering recordings on our respective coastlines and islands during the very active weather windows during the autumnal equinox and winter solstice. This was focused around our following one particular cyclonic system, which veered over Snipe Point on Lindisfarne to the Isle of May in the Firth of Forth, and finally descended upon Öland and Gotland, where Benny listened in with a favorite pair of Sennheiser omni-directional microphones.

1. Chris Watson: No Man’s Land

Late October on the strands of Budle Bay where dense layers of transient alien voices are swamped by a full-moon tide creeping across the island’s silver causeway.

2. B. J. Nilsen & Chris Watson: SIGWX

Viking, Forties; cyclonic north-east gale 8, backing north later 3 to 4.Thundery rain, moderate to good.

3. B. J. Nilsen: Austrvegr

Recorded on the south-east coast of the islands of Gotland and Öland, Sweden, during December 2003 and July 2004. Locations used included cottages, sheds, barns, fields and the coast.

B. J. Nilsen (SE), born in 1975. He has been active with experimental music and sound since the early 1990s with various constellations. Since 1999 he has been releasing records as Hazard on the UK labels Ash International and Touch, making music and sound for documentary film, television and commercials.

Chris Watson (UK). A sound recordist with a particular and passionate interest in recording the wildlife sounds of animals, habitats and atmospheres from around the world. As a freelance recordist for film, TV and radio, Chris Watson specializes in natural history and documentary location sound together with track assembly and sound design in post production.