Intuitive Music

Boards of Canada

Formed in Scotland in 1996 by Mike Sandison and Marcus Eoin, Boards of Canada are one of the most successful electronic music bands from the 90’s, with references to hip hop, electro, downtempo, and ambient. The name of the band comes from the influence of the socio-ecological documentaries of the National Film Board of Canada. The duo has also often used samples from TV comercials, jingles and folk artists from the late 60’s and early 70’s in the way of subliminal messages. Boards of Canada produce their music in a refurbished nuclear bunker located in Pentland Hills (Scotland). The music of Boards of Canada has achieved to create a curious vintage feeling of nostalgia for the generation of children from the 70’s.

Sandison and Eoin are childhood friends who grown up together and, at the early age of 10, started experimenting with different instruments and home devices like tape machines. By 1987 the proyect started becoming solid when they started getting involved with other local musicians such as members of the “Hexagon Sun” collective.

The first Boards of Canada refference “Twoism” was self-released in 1995. That same year they established their new Hexagon Sun studio in Edinburgh. The following self-release “Boc Maxima” was also distributed in the underground market but it got to call the attention of Autechre’s Sean Booth and Skam Records, releasing their first proffesionally distributed album “Hi Scores” in 1996.

Boards of Canada became one of the main references of the Skam label and they got a deal with Warp records to release their acclaimed “Music Has the Right to Children” in 1998. The album was followed by a tour supporting electronic music bands like Plaid and Autechre.

In November 2000, Boards of Canda released the four track EP “In A Beautiful Place Out in the Country”, which was followed in 2002 by the dark and complex album “Geogaddi”. Boards of Canada have also remixed for Meat Beat Manifesto and Bubbah’s Tum.