The Foghorn's Lament: The Disappearing Music of the Coast

by Jennifer Lucy Allan

'A truly unusual and strangely revealing lens through which to view music and history and the dark life of the sea' Brian Eno

' As memorable, pleasurable and irrational as all the highest quests' John Higgs

'A perfect example of the power and beauty of industrial music' Cosey Fanni Tutti

What does the foghorn sound like?

It sounds huge. It rattles. It rattles you. It is a booming, lonely sound echoing into the vastness of the sea. When Jennifer Lucy Allan hears the foghorn's colossal bellow for the first time, it marks the beginning of an obsession and a journey deep into the history of a sound that has carved out the identity and the landscape of coastlines around the world, from Scotland to San Francisco.

Within its sound is a maritime history of shipwrecks and lighthouse keepers, the story and science of our industrial past, and urban myths relaying tales of foghorns in speaker stacks, blasting out for coastal raves.

An odyssey told through the people who battled the sea and the sound, who lived with it and loathed it, and one woman's intrepid voyage through the howling loneliness of nature.

Genres: Nonfiction, Music, History, Nature, Travel, Ebooks

304 pages, Paperback

First published May 13, 2021

Reviews

[Stephen · Rating 3 out of 5]

was such an interesting book to read

[Stuart Fleet · Rating 4 out of 5]

In a perfect reading year I would always have a book or two like this. Some slightly quirky non-fiction that enlightens me on a subject which I had never thought of spending time considering. As such, The Foghorn’s Lament is a perfect Christmas present for me. Thank you again Odin, Tom and Ruth. Jennifer Lucy Allen’s mildly obsessive enthusiasm about all things foghorn is incredibly infectious. The mournful bellows of these navigational aids are unusually anchored in the memory of anyone over a certain age who’s spent time near the coast. (Calming? Terrifying?) This book’s a fantastic history lesson, but it's also a beautifully written obituary to part of our coastal soundscape that is (almost) lost forever. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it.

[Katie Keeshen · Rating 4 out of 5]

really interesting read - kept thinking about hearing point Bonita’s mostly silent foghorn for the first time while reading and the boom of the golden gate’s foghorns and the bell off of the coast by where I lived in the headlands and the power of sound in defining a landscape and defining the human lives around that landscape.

[Todd Kirk · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love foghorns!

[Joanna · Rating 2 out of 5]

A difficult one, partly because it's such a niche topic that anyone I try to explain this to will say "Yes, Joanna, of course it's divisive, it's a 300+ page book about foghorns, what did you expect", and mostly because there's an obvious and inherent paradox in trying to write a book about the love of a very particular sound with an inability for the reader to ever actually experience it. It could be argued that this is a point made by the book itself, that 'sound' as an intangible phenomenon makes it extremely difficult to know how to fully and accurately preserve it, and here Allan does her best to describe the way sounds, well, sound, as much as she can using the imperfect medium of writing.

I think you would be unable to come away from this book thinking that the research was lazy, sloppy, or incomplete, because it's very much far from that. This is a woman on a mission, and she will not stop until she discovers everything there is to possibly know about foghorns. She says 'fog' and 'foghorns' so much I had to put the book down for a few weeks because I started to get irritated. Knowing that Allan is a journalist I couldn't help but feel this would have worked much better as a long-form article, as the book felt bloated and repetitive at times which, given that again I am unable to hear the sounds these machines are making, became incredibly frustrating. The writing itself sat oddly with me, perhaps because of the book's length, and the style wasn't bad but felt slightly toothless and overwrought - it's clear that the passion really is there, but nothing ever seemed to quite connect.

The parts I enjoyed were more about how ambient sound becomes interwoven with feelings and memories, how others have tried to capture these sensations in the past (the idea of "soundmarks", the audio version of a landmark, is a very cool idea), and the use of sound as a way of internalising and navigating the world around us. I appreciate that there are books like The Foghorn's Lament dedicated to trying to understand these.

There is one paragraph that I do think beautifully describes what it must be like to experience the gradual extinction of a certain sound, in which the author attempts to ring through to a 'live audio feed' of San Franciscan foghorns, a hotline originally set up for emigrants suffering from homesickness:

The feed then hiccupped, clicked through a split second of music, like catching a pirate radio station, and latched on to a feed that was mainly static. The distorted sound is like human gasping. I held my breath, strained my ears over the digital connection, and realised that what I was hearing was not the shush and crackle of a bad line, but the sound of waves hitting the base of the tower in low bit rate, but in real time. I heard no horns, and as my credit ticked down, I hung up. The next time I called, the number was dead.

I can't quite say what it is about this, but I just love it. Disquietingly haunting.

Anyway, I wish I loved anything as much as Jennifer Lucy Allan loves foghorns.

[Cambridge Spinecrackers · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s difficult not to share Allan’s enthusiasm for the sonic nostalgia evident in this book.

Normally, I might not have read a book about foghorns, but trusting the author as a well-respected music journalist made me more inclined to try this. I’m glad I did; her writing is as captivating as her incredibly broad music taste (proved by her Late Junction playlists and Quietus picks).

I relate to the author’s distant admiration of this sound. I too grew up in a landlocked county, and am also young enough to have missed the foghorn’s heyday. I enjoyed seeing her obsession with the subject unfold, and hearing the confusion and disbelief of some people that she encountered on her travels.

It’s an incredibly niche area that must’ve been difficult to find specialists for, but Allan’s research of it, and dedication to it, is so apparent. That PhD is well-deserved!

[Gemma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lying in bed back in the darkness of January, I heard the Falmouth foghorn. It made me feel both a sense of security and a tender sadness. I remembered the book and borrowed it from the library and it was a beloved companion in February this year. Reflections on industry and its death, memory and loss, empire and change. I cannot recommend it highly enough.
Here’s to books and public libraries and care for others and human curiosity and to the sounds of the coast.

[G · Rating 3 out of 5]

Any subject can be a good read if the author is knowledgeable and passionate.

Aye, a book about fog horns sounds funny or quirky at first but why should it? I read about flags, maps, instruments, genre histories, and drug infused space worm tyrants all the time why are Foghorns wierd?

I did enjoy learning about the history, mythology, and romance from their invention through their decline. And I was surprised to discover what some people do with original and decommissioned horns today.

The authors journalism experience probably helps the book read like an article in places so it isn't too dry like some niche non fiction books ive read, that's a plus.

Now, wheres my sou'wester...

[Kristen]

lovely book on the historical, cultural, and social importance of foghorns, with some digressions into general maritime life-saving history. very readable, and very enjoyable. gave a few great avenues of pursuit for my own exploration of maritime history.

[Alex Sarll]

Laser-targeted at fans of the artists formerly known as British Sea Power, a history, or maybe more a memoir, of a sound which feels like a thing from deep time, but really was only current for a little over a century, and of debatable use even then. The slippery slope argument transposed from drugs to experimental music, where working for The Wire leads Allan to seek out harder and harder stuff until only foghorns will scratch the itch. An exploration of the subjectivity of sound, where the great horns can sound lonely or reassuring, romantic or life-ruining, according to the context and frequency of an individual's encounters. Digressions into everything from mythical bulls to HAARP conspiracists, most of which do convince as belonging here, although the attempts to reckon with colonialism, while undoubtedly well-intentioned, seldom feel altogether integrated. The register is often poetic, and successfully so, but I suspect my favourite bit may nevertheless have been where the oft-retailed story of the foghorn's origin turns out to be exactly the same flavour of bullshit as the scene in every music biopic where they write the hit. But then amusing scenes like that, or San Francisco being recalcitrantly and uncharacteristically fog-free when Allan visits, run up against the sheer spookiness of the horns' sounds, or a startling series of synchronicities (Dungeness lighthouse; the Chevrolet Nova; writer and arse Gertrude Atherton - all had popped up in entirely unconnected contexts over the last few days, and here they were again). Probably the best metric on which to judge this strand of non-fiction is how well the author's obsession rubs off on the reader, and certainly by the end of this I found myself wanting to attend one of the grand, ridiculous site-specific musical performances including foghorns which top and tail the book.

[Jack Bates · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this for my mum for Christmas, having seen people talking about it on Twitter. I think Amy Liptrot reviewed it somewhere but I don't know if I read the review - I didn't feel like I needed to once I'd read the blurb. Anyway Jimmy knows Jen(nifer) which isn't much of a surprise really.

Mum loved it although, as she said, 'I'd never heard of any of the bands she talks about,' which isn't really surprising either.

It's a fascinating exploration of the history and impact - social, maritime and sonic - of the foghorn, a piece of industrial infrastructure now passing out of its moment in time/history. Allan visits various lighthouses to look at and in some cases hear their foghorns, from Shetland to The Lizard, as well as going to Golden Gate Bridge to see (if not hear) the last remaining San Francisco horns. There's a lot of technical and historical information arranged in a very straightforward, easily graspable way, but it's the more intangible elements of the whole concept of fog warnings and the impact of sound on a land or seascape that are of most interest to the author and she combines nature writing with writing about sound - always a tricky thing however easy music writers may make it look - in a really interesting way. Sometimes when a book is based on a thesis as this is it's really easy to see the academic bones poking through but here it's barely noticable.

I loved it.

[Sven · Rating 5 out of 5]

Grandios faszinierendes Buch über Nebelhörner. Jennifer Lucy Allan nimmt einen Stück für Stück auf kleine Forschungsreisen mit. Dabei geht es zum einen um Entstehung und Geschichte von Nebelhörnern. Auf den ersten Blick mag das wie ein schrulliges Spezialthema wirken. Doch Allan kommt immer wieder auf Fragen zurück, die nicht nur für Nebelhornspezialisten interessant sind:

Wie werden aus Tönen Klänge mit einer persönlichen Bedeutung? Wie und unter welchen Voraussetzungen kommt so etwas wie Musik überhaupt zustande und was zeichnet die Hörbiografie von Menschen aus? Auf welche Industrie und was für eine Welt weisen die Nebelhörner und das Grunzen der Maschinen zum Zeitpunkt ihres Verschwindens zurück, welche Musik greift ihre Töne auf und was bringt sie damit zum Ausdruck?

Gefallen hat mir am Buch, dass es voll von Anekdoten ist, aber trotzdem stets einem klaren roten Faden folgt. Die Nutzung des Nebelhorns in der Avantgardemusik hat die Autorin ebenso im Blick wie bei bekannteren Leuten wie Van Morrison (der Nebelhörner liebt). Die Begeisterung für das Nebelhorn schwappt beim Lesen über und man ahnt, wie viel Arbeit in diesem Buch steckt. Eine Videoaufzeichnung des im Buch erwähnten Foghorn Requiems ist im Internet leicht zu finden. Der Originaltitel der englischen Ausgabe (Foghorn's Lament: The Disappearing Music of The Coast) scheint mir besser gewählt. Aber dafür gebe ich hier keinen Abzug. Satte 5 Sterne!

[Chris Tyson · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you want to learn more about foghorns from a historical and social viewpoint, then this is the book for you. But that sentence does this work a disservice. The author travels through the history of foghorns, and the lighthouses they accompanied, and in so doing shines a light onto the societies they served for so many years.

[Simon J Alvey · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a spectacular book this is. Through a subject as seemingly esoteric as the history and cultural place of foghorns are intertwined social history, engineering, and reflections on memory and heritage that sound represents and is lost. All of this told in a beautiful writing style, that also - quite self consciously - tracks the author's obsession with these unlikely objects.

[Charles Sheard · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book's strength is the deep dive into the history of foghorns, but unfortunately the author seems to run out of material, and steam, to offer a thoroughly substantive work. Instead, there are many attempts to tie the subject into the framework of modern (especially experimental) music analysis, or at least the author's involvement with same and her personal experiences, and to overload with flimsy claims and appeals to "meaning" and "emotion", which are unfortunately the crutches of certain experimental art itself that cannot stand alone without dragging out the artist's intent and explanations as a plea to "understanding". I think I would have preferred the same subject from an author coming at it from a purely maritime or historical background, or along the lines of a nature writer focusing on sense of place, and how the foghorns held such an important role in creating that sense, but are now long gone. That's definitely the eventual thrust of her thesis, but her telling of that story doesn't echo as strongly as I think it deserved.

The author's writing also gets in the way quite often. It shifts from a very casual vernacular at times ("tripping out" at concerts, "recce" for reconnaissance, etc.) to passages in overwrought academic style (probably lifted straight from her PhD thesis), which do not blend well in their attempt to impute significance and universality to her subject. She also repeats statements and concepts and ideas far too often, especially in the latter third as she runs out of material and needs to pad her prose.

As I read this book, it certainly resonated with me as to the subject matter, hearing the shipyard's early morning and afternoon horns directly behind my window, no doubt signaling the work day; the bell calling out the hours from the Ballard Bell Tower across from my favorite tea shop (that had been silent for decades until restored to daily life in 2011); the calls of gulls, ospreys, crows; the slap of seals and sea lions; the boat engines and signals and other ambient sounds of the waterfront; and wondering how they all might be reduced over the coming decades of new development. The fact is that I would probably enjoy talking to the author one on one about all of this, or accompanying her in her research or visits chasing down foghorns. I'm just afraid the book itself did not live up to its subject matter for me.

[Snoakes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jennifer Lucy Allan is a self-confessed foghorn obsessive. Her book, The Foghorn's Lament covers the history of the foghorn from the earliest record of a fog signal in 1771 to the present day, where they are all but extinct.

Her enthusiasm for her subject is infectious, making it a surprisingly fascinating read. She meets other foghorn fans, among them engineers, lighthouse keepers and musicians. All have their own connections to these huge industrial horns, and their own stories to tell. Some meticulous research in a wide variety of libraries, museums and personal collections reveal how their arrival and removal affected the rural communities where they were installed.

I've been lucky enough to have lived within earshot of two different foghorns. Having moved inland many years ago I was only vaguely aware that they have now largely disappeared from our coastline soundscape. Reading The Foghorn's Lament has made me notice the absence of their comforting lowing when the fog rolls in from the sea. Highly recommended for anyone who likes a bit of history with a quirky theme.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

I went into this book expecting a story about foghorns. Then from the first few chapters I got the sinking feeling it was going to be a dry history of foghorns as she explored patents and engine designs. However, this actually turned out to be a philosophical exploration of sound and how humans interact with it. The author asked herself questions like what the difference between sound and music was, how soundmarks affect people and their relationship to place, and how people react to changes in sounds in their everyday life. She also looked at whether it was worth the cost to maintain old, outdated sounds due to nostalgia. It was good. Minus one star because she’d sometimes go off on tangents that were a little hard for me to follow.

[beef · Rating 3 out of 5]

HOOOOONNNKKKKKK!!!!!!!

an interesting book and will put my hands up to say I do not often think about foghorns but now I will a bit more

Interesting, worth a paroozle but felt like it became a bit meandering and waffly towards the end

I liked this quote tho: “the topography of the sea comes to us in sound waves and the topography of the land comes through light and sight. This land sea binary works in a sensory yin and Yang of seeing and hearing, earth and water, and the fog horn becomes a theatrical, industrial counterpart to these inversions, where sound replaces sight in fog.”

Anywayyyysss worth a little read but started to lose me towards the end

Emoji review: 🌊😕🪿🎺👂

[Will McGee · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first by Jennifer Lucy Allan. My friends got me this book for my birthday. It combines a few different things that I like - history (especially British history), music (especially unconventional kinds of music), and a sort of witty, well-read travelogue that I enjoy. Tonally it reminded me at times of like a Werner Herzog documentary, in its mordant humor and frequent inclusion of off-beat characters who have chosen an odd pursuit for their life. I think once in a while Allan does tend to repeat some of the themes of her work, but overall I thought it was a well-written and thorough exploration of a romantic and evocative piece of bygone history.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this on & off for 3 months (though sometimes it felt like 3 years! It's a bit of a hard read--not a lot to keep one's attention.) But it is an interesting, albeit quirky, read. I did learn some things ("lightships" with no engines that were anchored out in the ocean where they couldn't build a lighthouse--and they had crews!) and it had me looking up & listening to some foghorn recordings she talks about. It's good to know that there are foghorn enthusiasts out there so they won't completely disappear!

[Mark Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another single-topic history, that exceeds expectations - it had me rushing to YouTube to listen to the performance of the Foghorn Requiem at Southward Point in South Shields in 2013 https://youtu.be/CjqY3cNUPO8?si=UzaKn...

This is a lovely meditation on the history of foghorns and their haunting sound, and their place (who knew?) in musical culture,and their connection to landscape and people around them- now replaced by GPS, and even self-piloting container ships FFS!

[Tom]

Reread (because the paperback edition was published last week). It has quickly become a treasured ‘comfort read’. Do you know the meme, using a manga panel by Junji Ito, that shows a guy climbing into a human-shaped hole in a cliff face and shouting ‘IT WAS MADE FOR ME’? Well that’s how I feel about this book.

[Tharu]

a passion project which makes it wonderful, and some good writing in here.

But it’s way too long! So much repetition of themes/ideas/every anecdote resulted in the same musings. And I didn’t like that every chapter ended with a cliff hanger. Deep in the book we were still being convinced that this project was worthwhile. I don’t really understand the high ratings on here

[M · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hands down best book I’ve read all year. Yes it’s about foghorns but it’s lyrical and poetic - history told at its best.
If you like ships, lighthouses, or oceans, read this. If you are interested in the Industrial Revolution or outmoded technology, read this. If you like music or are interested in soundscape, read this.

[David Moorman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting and enjoyable read by a student of sound and a big fan of foghorns. History and practice of foghorning plus thinking about the nature of sound and how it fits into our lives. Note that a good foghorn blast is one that rattles your rib cage! Jennifer Lucy Allan has a PhD in foghorns and co-hosts the BBC 3 podcast, Late Junction. Interesting life and ideas!

[Chris Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

Leaning more towards a 3.5 I think but that’s more because my personal level of interest in the topic is fairly limited. But that of course is no fault of the author, whose enthusiasm shone through on every page. So I’m rounding up to four stars in the interest of fairness.

[Peter Milne · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quite extraordinary book. Part social history, part travelogue, part music journalism, part chronicle of a burgeoning obsession—and well written, with enough detachment and self-awareness that there's humour in it too.

[Tele_well · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well written travelogue and history of a coastal sound. Without being too dense and theory-laden, it leads you through the history by referencing archival material, stories of the inventors, sound art and music.

[CHAD HADEN · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely brilliant, Ms Allan is a tremendous talent and this is the best book I've read in ages.

[Josh Preston · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating beautifully written account of a vanishing sound, a travelogue across the coastal landscape taking in some intriguing sights along the way.