AIX EM KLEMM / KID 606 LIVE IN BELGIUM!
The debut live performance of Aix Em Klemm (project between Labradford's Bobby and Stars of the Lid's Adam) will take place at the Kraak-3 festival in Haselt, Belgium. The show takes place on Saturday March 3rd and will also feature Kid 606. Go to kraak.net and click on framework to find the complete list of performers and details.

YORKSHIRE HAM FOR EVERYBODY
The 1st edition of the Richard H. Kirk / Cabaret Voltaire fanzine "Yorkshire Ham" is now available. 48 A4 pages of news, reviews and articles gathered from a wide variety of sources. It includes part one of the Cabaret Voltaire story. The cost is £2 UK or $3.00 US. If anyone would like a copy, e-mail jean_marclawtonll@hotmail.com with your details.

CABARET VOLTAIRE'S DARK PAST
Unrelated to the book release, a funny glitch was spotted on the All Music Database. Doing a search for Cabaret Voltaire returns this bio:

"This West Coast group used two names for recording sessions. They called themselves "The Jacks" when doing dates for Modern and "The Cadets" on RPM. They began as a gospel group during the late '40s in Los Angeles. Ted Taylor, Aaron Collins, Lloyd McCraw, and Will Jones were the original lineup, and the Cadets were among the more popular bands doing R&B covers. The Cadets' lone hit was "Stranded in the Jungle," which they recorded for Modern as the Jacks in 1956. It peaked at number eight R&B and number 15 pop. Davis and Collins would later join the Flares in 1961, while Taylor would enjoy solo success as a blues, soul, and gospel vocalist. Jones joined the Coasters in 1958 and remained there for over a decade. Collins' sisters, Betty and Rose, also recorded for Modern/RPM as "The Teen Queens." -- Ron Wynn"

THE WALKER BROTHERS, "THE SINGLES+"
From a small label in Holland comes this amazingly priced double CD set, a singles compilation from Scott Engel, John Maus and Gary Leeds, who are most commonly known as Scott, John and Gary Walker. The collection grabs 45 A-sides and popular hits from the trio both together and in solo form, stretching from 1965 through 1981. The Brothers' own brand of kitchy love and anthemic pop has manifested into numerous timeless classics. Marc Almond, Magnetic Fields, Pizzicato Five and David Bowie all owe notable portions of their careers to the influence of the Walker Brothers. Cover tunes of their hits can also be heard from people as diverse as Donna Summer, Chris Connelly and Dead Can Dance's Brendan Perry. This compact collection serves as a great career retrospective and would make a great addition to any newbie or current fan's CD shelves as the artwork and liner notes also provide a global perspective of their international success. - Jon Whitney

samples:

• There Goes My Baby (the Walker Brothers)
• Jackie (Scott Walker)
• The Electrician (the Walker Brothers)

PAN AMERICAN, "EAST COAST BUGS"
The latest release from Labradford's Chicago resident, Mark Nelson takes the form of 12" vinyl from BSI Records of Portland, OR. This 12" (limited to 2000 copies) delivers 24 minutes with 2 exclusive tracks mastered by BSI's mix maven Sound Secretion. Unlike his superb full length albums on Kranky, Pan American singles (including the 10" on Kraak and 12" split on Fat-Cat) are truly solo efforts devoid of contributions from other players. Without a lead instrument (like a trumpet or voice on last year's '360 business/360 bypass') the sound resembles Chain Reaction-styled dub spaciousness, only more incredibly deep and emotionally fulfilling. "East Coast Bugs" churns like a locomotive through the backwoods ... a techno-dub bass throb is accompanied by another solid bass line, electronic twinkles and the slight murmur of an insect filled night. "Esso" is slower and more melodic, coupling subtle beatbox rhythm with massive low end. Both are simply gorgeous. If you don't plop down the $9 for this, there's something wrong with you ... - Mark Weddle (with Jon Whitney)

samples:

• East Coast Bugs
• Esso

PANACEA, "GERMAN ENGINEERING"
The latest full-length from Mathis Mootz as Panacea takes the progression under this moniker one step forward with two steps backwards. Older tunes like "Stormbringer" and "Motion Sickness" get a facelift while forceful new anthems like "The Creator" and the title track are destined to become crowd pleasers. Thankfully gone on this disc is the littering of rap all over "Phoenix Metabolism." What has remained however are the lengthy intros and short tracks in between songs - which isn't necessarily a bad thing. As the popularity of Panacea has grown, his albums are becoming more conceptual for fans while his dancefloor stuff is being limited to 12" singles and releases under names like Disorder. As an audio playback engineer, you're welcome to remove the inbetween tracks on your CD, leaving about nine songs totalling about an hour. My only real complaint is the damned dead space at the end of the last track before 2½ minutes of Mathis and friends having fun. "German Engineering" provides a souvenir of sounds for folks who have attended recent shows in the past year with Panacea mixing the music live as opposed to last year's DJ sets. - Jon Whitney

samples:

• Boo Yaah! (Unlock the Sound)
• The Return of Motion Sickness
• German Engineering

PAN(A)SONIC, "AALTOPIIRI"
Ilpo and Mika have come a long way from their beginnings as Panasonic. The music which at one point utilized a minimal amount of effects and sources, creating an aggressive and direct mixture has become a more resourceful blend with a deeper understanding of variety and reflection, sonority and permanence. Their fourth full-lengther together is once again rather chunky to swallow all at once. With 17 new tracks totalling over an hour's worth of music, I must admit I wasn't a big fan at first. Further listenings have unearthed what appears to be both organic and synthetic sounds, a production approach which is very matured in comparison to 1997's 'Kalma,' and a distinct identity between songs. Minimalism, this isn't. It's not all subtle and introspective, however. Unlike 'A,' this album does indeed reach a climax. Towards the end of the disc, the energy builds up to a monsterous roar, good for some wall-shaking needs, which leads me to believe they might be storing an arsenal of more beefy 808-kick tracks for another 12" release as stellar as 'B' was. - Jon Whitney

samples:

• Vaihtovirta
• Kone
• Kierto

MUSLIMGAUZE, "FEDAYEEN"
Bryn Jones passed away 2 years ago last week and his music lives on. Originally released free of charge as mp3s, "Fedayeen" returns as a proper limited edition on compact disc via Russian label Tantra Harmonies. It comes in 2 flavors, collectable and uber-collectable: 850 in color gatefold sleeve and 150, numbered, in lion logo green slip sleeve. Being around $20 and $25, respectively, and the fact that the mp3s are tucked away on many a hard drive and cd-r, this disc is essentially for the must have everything folks. Jones was at an unprecedented level of prolificness in 1998-9 with 35 or so releases. The 8 tracks here (most in the 10 to 12 minute range, 61 total) share the same repetitious characteristics: hand percussion and crunchy electronic loops, sample cut and paste (dialogue, bird calls, water), strings, etc. in a variety of styles: 'traditional', drum 'n bass, techno and overdriven glitch-hop. The length of these tracks makes them both hypnotic and tedious at times but, nonetheless, quality Muslimgauze. Of special note are "Mustafas Cassette Market Marrakesh", a blurred d 'n b blend, "Abu Salim, Tripoli", a slower techno journey, "Bharboo Of Pakistan Railways", an electro-bleep loop and "Old Arab Record Not On Compact Disc" which regurgitates bits from old slabs of scratchy arabic vinyl. And yes, this does sound better in cd rather than mp3 quality. "Melt", the sister mp3 release from 1998, will also be re-released as a 12" EP via BSI Records next month ... - Mark Weddle

SHIPPING NEWS, "VERY SOON, AND IN PLEASANT COMPANY"
Jason Noble and Jeff Mueller's musical collaborations first manifested on the only release from Rodan back in 1994. Following the split, Jason went to the Rachel's and Jeff to June of '44 but the two came together along in 1996 to record with for the PBS program "This American Life." Kyle Crabtree (from Eleven Eleven) joined in 1997 and a debut album, "Save Everything" was released. Four years later, a second album has arrived with help from Christina Files (Mary Timony, Victory at Sea) twiddling knobs. The song structure and instrumental makeup might be somewhat formulaic for matured slow indie rock, but the delivery is achingly sincere. Impressive on here are the changing dynamics from mathematic squealy guitar ditties to sweet, lush ballads accented with strings, vibes and outside sources. While Files has proved her competancy in role of producer already, she has truly taken a big step forward with this record. The mixture on this album between instrumets and environmental sounds is perfectly blended, enough to hear but never overbearing. The year is young but this very well may be voted one of the best rock albums of 2001. - Jon Whitney

samples:

• Quiet Victories
• Contents of a Landfill
• How to Draw Horses

TUESDAY
* Autechre - Peel Session 2 12"/CDEP (Warp, US)
Brokeback - Morse Code in the Modern Age: Across the Americas CD/LP (Thrill Jockey, US)
Chemlab - Suture CD [rarities collection] (Invisible, US)
Front Line Assembly & Friends - Cryogenic Studios Volume 2 CD (Cleopatra, US)
* Joi - We Are Three CD (Real World, US)
* Kinder Atom - MMM! 2xCD [reissue of original album with extra disc of remixes] (Cleopatra, US)
Kool Keith - Sex Styles CD and Sex Styles Instrumentals CD (Funky Ass, US)
Takako Minekawa - Maxion 12"/CDEP (Emperor Norton, US)
Tadd Mullinix - Winking Makes a Face CD (Ghostly International, US)
The Residents - Icky Flix DVD (East Side Digital, US)
* United Future Organization - Bon Voyage CD (Instinct, US)
Various - Geology: Subjective Study Of Planet E Vol 2 CD/LP (Planet E, US)
Various - Rarewerks CD [rare and unreleased tracks by Chemical Brothers, Fatboy Slim, Air, Photek, FSOL and more] (Astralwerks, US)

THURSDAY
Cenik - Secret 12" (Isophlux, US)
Iyunx Productions - How To Make A Explosive CD (Isophlux, US)
* Lexaunculpt - Oh Here's Some Noises 12" [repress on clear vinyl] (Isophlux, US)
L'Usine - Surface 12" (Isophlux, US)

FRIDAY
Burnt Friedman - Plays Love Songs CD (Nonplace, Germany)

This is simply this week's highlights from the NEW RELEASES provided by Greg and Feedback Monitor.
For a more detailed schedule stretching into the future, please check out the site,
since release dates can and will often change.

STATE AND MAIN
State and Main is the newest movie from David Mamet, writer/director whose film credits include "Glengarry Glen Ross," and "The Spanish Prisoner." An acclaimed playwrite, Mamet's distinct style of dialogue has made some of his movies jumpy and difficult to follow at points, making his drama (like "The Edge") somewhat unenjoyable to watch. However, this signature style adapts well to comedy, and is partially why this movie is uproariously hilarious. Fans of his comedy, "Wag the Dog" should enjoy this one as the styles are quite similar. His directing style is clean, direct and straight to-the-point, coloring the screen with the performances of the well-assembled cast members. Phillip Seymour Hoffman is great as usual as are William H. Macy and Sarah Jessica Parker. While I usually do not care for any of the Baldwins, especially Alec, his role as a pretentious movie star suits him quite well. Plotwise, the story is simple but works well: the cast and crew of a movie, "The Old Mill," for reasons unknown had to relocate the shooting of the film from a quaint New Hampshire town to an even more peculiar Vermont village. The rest is a combination of great comedic twists and irony. "State and Main" is a must see for comedy fans tired of unintelligent formulaic Hollywood Jim Carrey and Adam Sandler trash.

- Jon Daries

DICTATOR OR TV-SITCOM CHARACTER?
Pick any dictator or TV-sitcom character, think of yourself as being that character or dictator and then enter the website at www.smalltime.com/nowhere/dictator. The site will proceed to ask you questins about who you are. Answer truthfully and honestly and the program should eventually guess who you are.