COIL, "Winter Solstice 2001" Special Edition CD-R

After months of agonized waiting and much hand wringing, Coil hasmailed out all 300 copies of the special edition of "Moon's Milk (InFour Phases)" double CD set with a bonus, exclusive CD-R of brand newmaterial. This bonus disc was recorded last Winter Solstice - December21, 2001 ev. The special sets were supposed to be burned over thatweekend and shipped out before X-Mas, however, all of us that orderedhave had to show the ultimate patience to wait until early March to seethe package. One begins to feel a tad pathetic, looking forlornly atthe mailbox every day waiting for the treasure to arrive. The sinkingfeeling sets in that perhaps the music will not have been worth all ofthe build-up and anticipation; what if it's totally worthless andanticlimactic? Can you justify having paid $85 for this stupid CD-R?Have you become obsessively insane?


Then, all at once, the package arrives, like an enormously belatedX-Mas present. You hold your breath as you tear open the package withthe trademark Threshold House stamp affixed to it. Inside: a plasticsleeve housing the white cardboard slipcase the CD-R is housed in. Onthe outside of the package, thick mottled paint forms abstractpatterns. Bright colored splotches and dark, veiny paint traces coverits surface. Each sleeve is an original artwork created by Coil. Insideeach sleeve is a poloroid taken during Coil's Winter Solstice musickritual. Yours probably contains a sunrise, a plastic reindeer, a churchsteeple, electrical high-wires, or maybe even a UFO...who knows? Eachcopy has a different name; mine is called 'It Dries Up Everything ItComes Across." Maybe yours is called "Harry Potter's First Dose of LSD"or "Marrakech Mouthfuls." So far, so good...
The CD-R is completely blank, no art or track names printed; justtranslucent iridescent plastic. Track one begins: your fear and anguishimmediately subside with the rise of warm, attenuated bell tones. Thissixteen-minute ambient track sounds like wind chimes slowed down amodulated for maximum pleasurable drone. Then suddenly, Jhon Balancedarkly intones: "You look on it with a sense of dread." His voiceshifts positions and replies: "Gazing upon it with a sense of dread."Then the bell tones are drawn out for an eternity, it seems, whileBalance weaves his beautiful and disarming monologue about ediblebirds. The second track begins with profoundly haunting orchestralsynthesizer drones overlapping as Balance dramatically interprets amystical/existential poem by Angus MacLise. Incredibly haunting. Trackthree is all instrumental, with some playfully cosmic vintage synthmelodies, reminiscent of Kraftwerk's "Spacelab." This track develops ina complex, kaleidoscopic way towards its ghostly conclusion.
Bottom line: Coil has not disappointed in the slightest with thisrelease. They continue to reward their devoted listeners with some ofthe most innovative and inspiring electronic experimental music beingmade today. This CD-R is worth the money and the wait. Coil is veryaware that the total exclusivity of projects such as these adds anextra, "occult" esotericism to the experience that makes the musickthat much more amazing. Bravo.

samples:

• Copal
• The Coppice Meat
• Ü pel (Insense Offering)

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