{"id":437127,"date":"2022-08-10T11:36:16","date_gmt":"2022-08-10T15:36:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/?p=437127"},"modified":"2023-09-21T19:56:14","modified_gmt":"2023-09-21T23:56:14","slug":"victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/","title":{"rendered":"Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen): The Landfill of Meaning"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/1_lUmqGsWW0?si=xPYtrLkkp4ldC55b\" title=\"YouTube video player\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Beyonc\u00e9&#8217;s latest album <em>Renaissance<\/em> made international headlines last week when Australian disability advocate <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2022\/08\/04\/opinions\/lizzo-beyonce-music-lyrics-ableism-disability-diviney\/index.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Hannah Diviney<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2022\/08\/04\/opinions\/lizzo-beyonce-music-lyrics-ableism-disability-diviney\/index.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">called out<\/a> one of the album&#8217;s songs, &#8220;Heated,&#8221; for using an ableist slur in the lyrics and Beyonc\u00e9 subsequently agreed to re-record the song without that word and replace the track. Earlier this summer, the electronic music community was <a href=\"https:\/\/boingboing.net\/2022\/07\/08\/beyonces-team-admits-swiping-san-francisco-experimental-musician-evicshens-fingernail-turntable-needles-idea.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">up in arms<\/a> when an advance <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=jVBt4_PjJ6E\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">promotional video for that album made for British <em>Vogue<\/em><\/a> showed the pop icon scratching an LP with her fingernails. It turns out that it is a performance technique created by San Francisco-based experimental artist Victoria Shen, who performs under the moniker Evicshen, and she was not credited. But soon after the outcry, the appropriation was acknowledged and Shen was offered an apology. Both of these stories show that even if Beyonc\u00e9&#8217;s creative team is not always completely careful choosing all the details, they are paying very close attention to how people are reacting to her work on social media. And in Shen&#8217;s case, it actually gave her a new level of notoriety.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_439917\" style=\"width: 1012px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-439917\" class=\"size-full wp-image-439917\" src=\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/CarolineRoseMoore_02.jpg\" alt=\"Victoria Shen's needle nails\" width=\"1002\" height=\"1512\" srcset=\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/CarolineRoseMoore_02.jpg 1002w, https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/CarolineRoseMoore_02-199x300.jpg 199w, https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/CarolineRoseMoore_02-679x1024.jpg 679w, https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/CarolineRoseMoore_02-768x1159.jpg 768w, https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/CarolineRoseMoore_02-915x1381.jpg 915w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1002px) 100vw, 1002px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-439917\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen) and her needle nails. (Photo by Caroline Rose Moore, courtesy Victoria Shen.)<\/p><\/div>\n<p>&#8220;The fact that my work was able to reach a much broader audience than I would have been ever able to have, even if it wasn\u2019t credited at first, I think, is kind of amazing,&#8221; Shen said when I spoke with her over Zoom a few weeks ago during her residency at Wave Farm. She also pointed out that the concept, while visually startling and aurally fascinating, is perhaps not the most radical idea. &#8220;It\u2019s just kind of like a natural thing. I also used to do nails, so this is a kind of thing where you think somebody would have done this already. It\u2019s sort of low hanging fruit. But of course it takes both someone who used to do nails professionally and does electronics that had to make the bridge.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>As I would soon learn upon digging deeper into Shen&#8217;s creative output after she was first mentioned to me by my New Music USA colleague Ami Dang, who also creates electronic music and is a huge fan of Shen&#8217;s work, the needle nails technique is just one of many new approaches to making sounds that Shen has used in her performances and sound installations. After hearing and watching a segment of her extraordinary <em>Zero Player Piano<\/em>, in which disembodied piano strings and hammers are positioned along an ascending staircase and triggered remotely, I knew I had to talk with her.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;That was the gateway into more physical, electro-acoustic things I\u2019m interested in now,&#8221; Shen explained. &#8220;To me, it was definitely a Modernist strategy \u2026 Something that\u2019s self-reflexive. Something that is medium-specific. Like: what is a piano? How far can you push it to its logical conclusion while still maintaining we\u2019re still arguing that it is within the medium of piano?&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Although some of her work can sound quite austere at times, Shen is ultimately suspicious of Modernist aesthetics. &#8220;I do like the Modernist kind of mission,&#8221; she admits, &#8220;but I know that it ultimately fails because all value divides contextually, arbitrarily. It could go in one eye and go out another, or it could be worth something based on some arbitrary factor which is like some institution assigns value to it. Or some kind of cultural capital gets ascribed to it. That\u2019s bullshit. And we all know that, so how can we use things that are hyper, or super full of meaning, I call it the landfill of meaning. I use that in some recognized tactical way. I think I try and create this interface between non-meaning, that which is noise, and that which is over filled with meaning, and then take that interface, that line, and mine that for different conclusions as to how we derive our sense of value.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Shen is also ambivalent about whether or not she is a composer, even though all the sounds she makes are completely her own, often including all the devices she uses to make them.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I\u2019m not a composer, I think mainly due to the fact that I don\u2019t work with other people. I think composers really shine when they\u2019re able to provide a set of instructions for other people to execute their work. \u2026 I think I\u2019m much more of an improviser than a composer. I think part of composition, at least traditionally, is all about having a pre-packaged work being shipped out and executed, realized anywhere. And so for that, you want to control expression of your piece. You want to control the space in which it takes place. And it\u2019s all about control, control, control. To me, it\u2019s sort of the McDonald\u2019s of sound.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>As for Beyonc\u00e9, Shen remains a fan though she doesn&#8217;t imagine that the two of them will ever collaborate.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>I really doubt that she even knows I exist. I think her PR person knows I exist, but that\u2019s as high as it goes. &#8230; I would just love to play at her mansion, to play a pool party or something with needle nails, it would be great.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<div id=\"attachment_439918\" style=\"width: 2570px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-439918\" class=\"size-full wp-image-439918\" src=\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/evicshen_02_23_2022_Matt_Miramontes-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"Victoria Shen carefully scratching a home made record with audio playback styluses affixed to her fingernails during a performance.\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1709\" srcset=\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/evicshen_02_23_2022_Matt_Miramontes-scaled.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/evicshen_02_23_2022_Matt_Miramontes-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/evicshen_02_23_2022_Matt_Miramontes-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/evicshen_02_23_2022_Matt_Miramontes-768x513.jpg 768w, https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/evicshen_02_23_2022_Matt_Miramontes-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/evicshen_02_23_2022_Matt_Miramontes-2048x1367.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/evicshen_02_23_2022_Matt_Miramontes-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/evicshen_02_23_2022_Matt_Miramontes-915x611.jpg 915w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-439918\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen) during a performance on February 23, 2022. (Photo by Matt Miramontes, courtesy Victoria Shen.)<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"owl-carousel owl-theme\">\t<div class=\"pullquotes-wrapper pullquote-slide item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3>I just like being able to put in different sounds together at the same time. So Chinese opera, ltalian opera, swing music.<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"attribution-wrapper\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/VictoriaShen-Square-200x200.jpg\" alt=\"Victoria Shen (Evicshen)\" class=\"attribution-headshot\" \/><h5 class=\"attribution-text\">Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen)<\/h5>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\t<div class=\"pullquotes-wrapper pullquote-slide item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3>I\u2019m a very technical person, but everything I do is by feel and not by the interest in pure math or manipulation in numbers or anything like that.<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"attribution-wrapper\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/VictoriaShen-Square-200x200.jpg\" alt=\"Victoria Shen (Evicshen)\" class=\"attribution-headshot\" \/><h5 class=\"attribution-text\">Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen)<\/h5>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\t<div class=\"pullquotes-wrapper pullquote-slide item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3>My identity is something that is completely inescapable. I do like the Modernist kind of mission, but I know that it ultimately fails because all value divides contextually, arbitrarily. It could go in one eye and go out another, or it could be worth something based on some arbitrary factor which is like some institution assigns value to it. Or some kind of cultural capital gets ascribed to it. That\u2019s bullshit. And we all know that.<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"attribution-wrapper\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/VictoriaShen-Square-200x200.jpg\" alt=\"Victoria Shen (Evicshen)\" class=\"attribution-headshot\" \/><h5 class=\"attribution-text\">Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen)<\/h5>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\t<div class=\"pullquotes-wrapper pullquote-slide item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3>I think I try and create this interface between non-meaning, that which is noise, and that which is over filled with meaning, and then take that interface, that line, and mine that for different conclusions as to how we derive our sense of value.<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"attribution-wrapper\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/VictoriaShen-Square-200x200.jpg\" alt=\"Victoria Shen (Evicshen)\" class=\"attribution-headshot\" \/><h5 class=\"attribution-text\">Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen)<\/h5>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\t<div class=\"pullquotes-wrapper pullquote-slide item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3>The rules of music are also arbitrary. So anything that exists outside of these rules is considered experimental or noise. But that\u2019s the freeing thing; there are no rules here. <\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"attribution-wrapper\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/VictoriaShen-Square-200x200.jpg\" alt=\"Victoria Shen (Evicshen)\" class=\"attribution-headshot\" \/><h5 class=\"attribution-text\">Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen)<\/h5>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\t<div class=\"pullquotes-wrapper pullquote-slide item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3>In anything that I\u2019ve released on vinyl, on tape, on Bandcamp, digital, I think I\u2019m playing the role of composer with those pieces. But otherwise, I\u2019m not a composer, I think mainly due to the fact that I don\u2019t work with other people. <\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"attribution-wrapper\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/VictoriaShen-Square-200x200.jpg\" alt=\"Victoria Shen (Evicshen)\" class=\"attribution-headshot\" \/><h5 class=\"attribution-text\">Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen)<\/h5>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\t<div class=\"pullquotes-wrapper pullquote-slide item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3>Part of composition, at least traditionally, is all about having a pre-packaged work being shipped out and executed, realized anywhere. And so for that, you want to control expression of your piece. You want to control the space in which it takes place. And it\u2019s all about control, control, control. To me, it\u2019s sort of the McDonald\u2019s of sound.<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"attribution-wrapper\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/VictoriaShen-Square-200x200.jpg\" alt=\"Victoria Shen (Evicshen)\" class=\"attribution-headshot\" \/><h5 class=\"attribution-text\">Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen)<\/h5>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\t<div class=\"pullquotes-wrapper pullquote-slide item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3>I always loved experimental music. I was listening to a lot of noise rock and IDM and even psych-folk stuff in high school. But harsh noise was something that was cracked open for me by Jessica Rylan.<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"attribution-wrapper\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/VictoriaShen-Square-200x200.jpg\" alt=\"Victoria Shen (Evicshen)\" class=\"attribution-headshot\" \/><h5 class=\"attribution-text\">Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen)<\/h5>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\t<div class=\"pullquotes-wrapper pullquote-slide item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3>I like to dance a lot. I don\u2019t necessarily consider what I do in my performances as dance, but it could be considered movement.<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"attribution-wrapper\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/VictoriaShen-Square-200x200.jpg\" alt=\"Victoria Shen (Evicshen)\" class=\"attribution-headshot\" \/><h5 class=\"attribution-text\">Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen)<\/h5>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\t<div class=\"pullquotes-wrapper pullquote-slide item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3>For me there has to be some kind of grounded-ness, some kind of gold standard. And the gold standard I think for us is always going to be the human body. <\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"attribution-wrapper\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/VictoriaShen-Square-200x200.jpg\" alt=\"Victoria Shen (Evicshen)\" class=\"attribution-headshot\" \/><h5 class=\"attribution-text\">Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen)<\/h5>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\t<div class=\"pullquotes-wrapper pullquote-slide item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3>This is why I think improvisation is so good. It\u2019s because you\u2019re risking it all. With composition you can feel really safe because you have an expectation and that expectation is met. If it\u2019s not met, if it\u2019s underwhelming, then oh well who cares, right? But risk and the position of possible failure I think is very important. ... Failure happens all the time! I\u2019m like, oh I have an idea, it\u2019s spur of the moment improvisation. Let me try this out. Uh, will it fail? Sometimes. Is it embarrassing? Maybe. Move on. You know, but I think that is a point that is compelling for people.<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"attribution-wrapper\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/VictoriaShen-Square-200x200.jpg\" alt=\"Victoria Shen (Evicshen)\" class=\"attribution-headshot\" \/><h5 class=\"attribution-text\">Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen)<\/h5>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\t<div class=\"pullquotes-wrapper pullquote-slide item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3>I did not grow up with records. My earliest memory is listening to Peking Opera on a cassette tape with my mom and we were splitting the ear buds. I wasn\u2019t around records. I had some records, but never really messed with them.<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"attribution-wrapper\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/VictoriaShen-Square-200x200.jpg\" alt=\"Victoria Shen (Evicshen)\" class=\"attribution-headshot\" \/><h5 class=\"attribution-text\">Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen)<\/h5>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\t<div class=\"pullquotes-wrapper pullquote-slide item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"pullquote-text\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3>I would just love to play at her [Beyonc\u00e9's] mansion, to play a pool party or something with needle nails, it would be great.<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"attribution-wrapper\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/VictoriaShen-Square-200x200.jpg\" alt=\"Victoria Shen (Evicshen)\" class=\"attribution-headshot\" \/><h5 class=\"attribution-text\">Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen)<\/h5>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div><\/div><script>\n\t\t\t\t\t\tjQuery(document).ready(function(){\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tjQuery(\".owl-carousel\").owlCarousel({\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\titems:1,\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tmargin:10,\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tautoHeight:true\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t});\n\t\t\t\t\t\t});\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/script>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/w.soundcloud.com\/player\/?url=https%3A\/\/api.soundcloud.com\/tracks\/1321584121&amp;color=%23ff5500&amp;auto_play=false&amp;hide_related=false&amp;show_comments=true&amp;show_user=true&amp;show_reposts=false&amp;show_teaser=true\" width=\"100%\" height=\"166\" frameborder=\"no\" scrolling=\"no\"><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><\/iframe><\/p>\n<div style=\"font-size: 10px; color: #cccccc; line-break: anywhere; word-break: normal; overflow: hidden; white-space: nowrap; text-overflow: ellipsis; font-family: Interstate,Lucida Grande,Lucida Sans Unicode,Lucida Sans,Garuda,Verdana,Tahoma,sans-serif; font-weight: 100;\"><a style=\"color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;\" title=\"SoundLives #17 - Victoria Shen(Evicshen): The Landfill Of Meaning\" href=\"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/new-music-usa\/soundlives-17-victoria-shenevicshen-the-landfill-of-meaning\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><br \/>\nVictoria Shen in conversation with Frank J. Oteri<br \/>\nVia Zoom on Tuesday, July 19, 2022 at 4:45 p.m.<br \/>\nTranscribed by Julia Lu and Frank J. Oteri.<br \/>\nIntroductions by Bridget Pierce. Audio production by Anthony Nieves.<\/a><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Victoria Shen&#8217;s needle nails technique, which was appropriated earlier this summer in a Beyonc\u00e9 video, is just one of many new approaches to making sounds that Shen (who performs under the moniker Evicshen) uses in her provocative performances and installations.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":522,"featured_media":437301,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[33,4,952],"tags":[82,2698,35,1553,817,485,39,2697],"nmb_categories":[955],"how_to_category":[],"nmb_tags":[],"internal_taxonomy":[],"class_list":["post-437127","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-conversations","category-interviews","category-soundlives","tag-composer-performer","tag-djing","tag-electronic-music","tag-noise","tag-performance-art","tag-sound-art","tag-sound-installations","tag-turntablism","nmb_categories-soundlives"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen): The Landfill of Meaning - New Music USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen): The Landfill of Meaning - New Music USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Victoria Shen&#039;s needle nails technique, which was appropriated earlier this summer in a Beyonc\u00e9 video, is just one of many new approaches to making sounds that Shen (who performs under the moniker Evicshen) uses in her provocative performances and installations.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"New Music USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/NewMusicUSA\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-08-10T15:36:16+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-09-21T23:56:14+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Victoria-Shen-Horizontal-1024x576.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"576\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Frank J. Oteri\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@newmusicusa\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@newmusicusa\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Frank J. Oteri\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Frank J. Oteri\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/#\/schema\/person\/3bb87f57ad6d6bcc8338d98cdba33b7c\"},\"headline\":\"Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen): The Landfill of Meaning\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-08-10T15:36:16+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-09-21T23:56:14+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/\"},\"wordCount\":951,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Victoria-Shen-Horizontal.png\",\"keywords\":[\"composer-performer\",\"DJing\",\"electronic music\",\"noise\",\"performance art\",\"sound art\",\"sound installations\",\"turntablism\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Conversations\",\"Interviews\",\"SoundLives\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/\",\"name\":\"Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen): The Landfill of Meaning - New Music USA\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Victoria-Shen-Horizontal.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-08-10T15:36:16+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-09-21T23:56:14+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Victoria-Shen-Horizontal.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Victoria-Shen-Horizontal.png\",\"width\":1920,\"height\":1080,\"caption\":\"Victoria Shen NMBx SoundLives Banner\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen): The Landfill of Meaning\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/\",\"name\":\"New Music USA\",\"description\":\"Supporting the sounds of tomorrow. We envision a thriving, connected, and equitable ecosystem for new music across the United States.\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/#organization\",\"name\":\"New Music USA\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/NMUSA-logo-social-2.jpeg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/NMUSA-logo-social-2.jpeg\",\"width\":1500,\"height\":826,\"caption\":\"New Music USA\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/NewMusicUSA\/\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/newmusicusa\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/#\/schema\/person\/3bb87f57ad6d6bcc8338d98cdba33b7c\",\"name\":\"Frank J. Oteri\",\"description\":\"Frank J. Oteri is an ASCAP-award winning composer and music journalist. Among his compositions are Already Yesterday or Still Tomorrow for orchestra, the \\\"performance oratorio\\\" MACHUNAS, the 1\/4-tone sax quartet Fair and Balanced?, and the 1\/6-tone rock band suite Imagined Overtures. His compositions are represented by Black Tea Music. Oteri is the Vice President of the International Society for Contemporary Music (ISCM) and is Composer Advocate at New Music USA where he has been the Editor of its web magazine, NewMusicBox.org, since its founding in 1999.\",\"sameAs\":[\"http:\/\/www.fjoteri.com\",\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Frank_J._Oteri\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/author\/fjo\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen): The Landfill of Meaning - New Music USA","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen): The Landfill of Meaning - New Music USA","og_description":"Victoria Shen's needle nails technique, which was appropriated earlier this summer in a Beyonc\u00e9 video, is just one of many new approaches to making sounds that Shen (who performs under the moniker Evicshen) uses in her provocative performances and installations.","og_url":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/","og_site_name":"New Music USA","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/NewMusicUSA\/","article_published_time":"2022-08-10T15:36:16+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-09-21T23:56:14+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1024,"height":576,"url":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Victoria-Shen-Horizontal-1024x576.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"Frank J. Oteri","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@newmusicusa","twitter_site":"@newmusicusa","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Frank J. Oteri","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/"},"author":{"name":"Frank J. Oteri","@id":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/#\/schema\/person\/3bb87f57ad6d6bcc8338d98cdba33b7c"},"headline":"Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen): The Landfill of Meaning","datePublished":"2022-08-10T15:36:16+00:00","dateModified":"2023-09-21T23:56:14+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/"},"wordCount":951,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Victoria-Shen-Horizontal.png","keywords":["composer-performer","DJing","electronic music","noise","performance art","sound art","sound installations","turntablism"],"articleSection":["Conversations","Interviews","SoundLives"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/","url":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/","name":"Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen): The Landfill of Meaning - New Music USA","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Victoria-Shen-Horizontal.png","datePublished":"2022-08-10T15:36:16+00:00","dateModified":"2023-09-21T23:56:14+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Victoria-Shen-Horizontal.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Victoria-Shen-Horizontal.png","width":1920,"height":1080,"caption":"Victoria Shen NMBx SoundLives Banner"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/victoria-shen-the-landfill-of-meaning\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Victoria Shen (a.k.a. Evicshen): The Landfill of Meaning"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/#website","url":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/","name":"New Music USA","description":"Supporting the sounds of tomorrow. We envision a thriving, connected, and equitable ecosystem for new music across the United States.","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/#organization","name":"New Music USA","url":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/NMUSA-logo-social-2.jpeg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/NMUSA-logo-social-2.jpeg","width":1500,"height":826,"caption":"New Music USA"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/NewMusicUSA\/","https:\/\/x.com\/newmusicusa"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/#\/schema\/person\/3bb87f57ad6d6bcc8338d98cdba33b7c","name":"Frank J. Oteri","description":"Frank J. Oteri is an ASCAP-award winning composer and music journalist. Among his compositions are Already Yesterday or Still Tomorrow for orchestra, the \"performance oratorio\" MACHUNAS, the 1\/4-tone sax quartet Fair and Balanced?, and the 1\/6-tone rock band suite Imagined Overtures. His compositions are represented by Black Tea Music. Oteri is the Vice President of the International Society for Contemporary Music (ISCM) and is Composer Advocate at New Music USA where he has been the Editor of its web magazine, NewMusicBox.org, since its founding in 1999.","sameAs":["http:\/\/www.fjoteri.com","https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Frank_J._Oteri"],"url":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/nmbx\/author\/fjo\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/437127","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/522"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=437127"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/437127\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":443317,"href":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/437127\/revisions\/443317"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/437301"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=437127"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=437127"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=437127"},{"taxonomy":"nmb_categories","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/nmb_categories?post=437127"},{"taxonomy":"how_to_category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/how_to_category?post=437127"},{"taxonomy":"nmb_tags","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/nmb_tags?post=437127"},{"taxonomy":"internal_taxonomy","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newmusicusa.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/internal_taxonomy?post=437127"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}