“[Harnetty] traces his winding artistic path in his remarkable new memoir.”

“Brian Harnetty’s warm, thoughtful, and inclusive narrative offers a window not only into the creative process but also into what it means to be a steward of archival sound. A compellingly personal, marvelously written evocation of art, place, and community.”

“A beautifully rendered mix of memoir, creative practice, deep listening, and social history… This book is a model for community-engaged humanistic scholarship.”

“A deeply personal rumination on how [Harnetty] listens empathetically and critically to diverse forms of recordings... Comparing musical analysis, a form of sonic ethnography, and composition to literary writing, he maintains that understanding requires concerted recognition of time and place... This is a challenging and rewarding work. ”

“Through a series of albums...Harnetty fused archival recordings with newly created musical accompaniments, opening portals between our contemporary world and the recent past. The music can be poignant sonic complements to the sampled voice, or sometimes dark, jazz-like, improvisations... His time spent creating music from these archives is detailed in his new book, Noisy Memory. Noisy Memory is about the process of listening to and engaging with these found sounds. It is also a memoir of sorts, detailing Harnetty’s work in these communities and his own personal story.”