This Week in Sound: Medievalism, Bacteria, Intercoms

These following sound-studies highlights originally appeared in the May 13, 2026, issue of my Disquiet.com weekly email newsletter, This Week in Sound. This Week in Sound is the best way I’ve found to process material I come across. Reader support provides resources and encouragement. Most issues are free. An occasional annotated mixtape is for paid subscribers. Thanks. ▰ Head Trip: “A new study by Britton Elliott Brooks argues that medieval religious images were never truly ‘silent.’ Instead, they could evoke imagined soundscapes in the minds of viewers, creating immersive experiences that blended sight, memory, and sound. The research focuses on the Harley Roll, a medieval English scroll depicting the life of Saint Guthlac, and suggests that pilgrims and worshippers may have mentally ‘heard’ winds, hammering, animal cries, and demonic noises while viewing its images.” Brooks received a PhD at Oxford in English and is an associate professor at Kyushu University in Japan. ▰ Bio Drone:…