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After a major wind-down in their release rate as Emeralds (and a collection of busy solo careers), a new full-length album out of the blue was a bit of a shock but a very welcome one. Never ones to continue to re-tread old ground, Just to Feel Anything continues from where I last encountered them: an exciting live performance over a year ago where they had left most traces of their significant recording career behind.
"Before Your Eyes" has all the trappings of the '80s nostalgia fests that seem to pop up amongst hipsters with alarming regularity but has a major difference: it actually carries some serious weight. A chunky bass line drives the piece as spectral synths create a neon haze around it. This is the sort of stuff that the first generation of Krautrockers attempted to do but never managed to pull off. Kraftwerk, the only ones who fully embraced the melodic and rhythmic capabilities of synthesisers in a way that has not become dated, are channelled in the chunky beats and intricate harmonic patterns of "Adrenochrome." However, Emeralds move beyond imitation through their deft use of layering to create a living cosmos in place of Kraftwerk’s simple, clockwork arrangements. Add some solar flares in the form of Mark McGuire’s guitar lines and this becomes some truly phenomenal stuff.
The three of them let rip on "Everything is Inverted," a storming piece of crystalline perfection. Here the main differences in aesthetic between old Emeralds and where they are now are amplified as they move from slurred, droning works which, although beautiful, felt nihilistic towards a futuristic, sharp and defined sound which screams with absolute ecstasy. Even when they slow down the proceedings with pieces like "Through and Through" and "The Loser Keeps America Clean," the mood is more along the lines of Luc Ferrari’s joyous experimentation with sound than Throbbing Gristle’s grimy assaults on the senses.
Just to Feel Anything closes with the tremendous and delicate "Search for Me in the Wasteland," where McGuire forms blankets of guitars (electric and acoustic) between which Steve Hauschildt and John Elliott weave threads of gossamer thin hums and drifting euphonic tones. Listening to this piece in particular, I feel the same thrill as I did the first time I listened to Solar Bridge or Does It Look Like I’m Here? as Emeralds capture the magic once again. Just to Feel Anything succeeds in not only transforming what it is Emeralds does but also in completely winning my affection all over again (even though it never waned).
 
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I do not know what I find more surprising, the fact that there is a new Fontanelle album at all or that it has been released by Southern Lord (who have been largely at sea barring the occasional good release these last few years). What does not surprise me is how good Vitamin F is. Had this come out ten years ago, it would have made total sense but the large interval between this and Fontanelle’s previous releases has not diminished this album’s impact. This is superb, essential, and every other word that I need to use in order to get people to listen NOW.
Melding Miles Davis circa Bitches Brew and Sun Ra’s best keyboard explorations, Vitamin F sounds utterly timeless as the group pull sounds from the ether like jazz wizards. "Watermelon Hands" slips in and out of a cool groove and a tight release of pressure via a terrific saxophone solo which seems to come out of the same head-splitting space as Bill Pullman’s sax solo during David Lynch’s Lost Highway. Five minutes in and this is shaping up to be one serious trip.
"The Adjacent Possible" swaggers around like it owns the place (and for its duration, it does). Part King Crimson, part Stevie Wonder, the rhythm section play a brooding, bruiser of a backing as electric piano, guitar and synthesiser strut out of the speakers like prized fighters spoiling for a victory. Elsewhere, Fontanelle sound like they are going to out-Sabbath Black Sabbath on "Traumaturge," creating a heaving monster of a track before unleashing a killer melody almost out of nowhere. Nearly 25 minutes in and I am in need of a stiff drink to calm my nerves.
The last half of Vitamin F keeps up this level of sheer brilliance as the music goes up another level. "Ataxia," despite its name, shows the group exerting perfect control over their playing. As it flows along with a jaunty lilt to it, the brass and guitars explode out of the speakers with a joyous energy. While they nod to hard bop and modal jazz, Fontanelle sound like they are forging an alternative route from these styles that went unexplored during the free jazz explosion of the ‘60s. This leads into the anti-gravitational push of "Reassimilated" which calms things down considerably to finish off the album; a much needed come down after the highs of the previous six pieces. By the time Fontanelle bring things to a gentle halt, I am ready to hit play on Vitamin F again and get lost for another while.
 
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JOHN WIESE 'Seven of Wands' (PAN 22)
As a composer, John Wiese is an elusive one. Employing a very healthy range of conceptual framework throughout his oevure, he's unmistakably recognizable, but rarely easy to predict. No matter what the sound, we find it always sounds like Wiese. Seven Of Wands contains a romanticism only hinted at previously. Comprised of pieces from a range of eras and sequenced into a narrative arc, this very unique album has a quality of being beautiful, listenable, immersive, and transportive all at once. He probably wouldn't like this, but I dare say "musical."
Let's look for a second at the development of Wiese's solo albums to date: Magical Crystal Blah (2003), Soft Punk (2002–2005), Dramatic Accessories (2007), Circle Snare (2008), Zombie (2009), and now Seven Of Wands (2004–2010). With the exception of Zombie's rigid conceptualism, what we can see is a development of a completely individual approach to cutting and stereo spectrum, with a constantly fluctuating degree of severity in choice of sounds. On this latest, we see this transposed to a longer-form, with more emphasis on beauty and musical qualities (well, don't get me wrong), employing strategies and techniques of musique concrète and electroacoustic music throughout, all the while further emphasizing the mixing desk as a true instrument.
Two of the albums central pieces were developed while touring the US, UK and Europe with Liars, No Age, and (in quadraphonic) Matmos, and feature source material contributed by Angus Andrew (voice, field recording) and Julian Gross (percussion) of Liars. This is Wiese's second release on PAN, following the vinyl edition of C-Section, his duo album with Evan Parker.
The CD is a limited edition of 1000 copies, and is packaged in a pro-press digisleeve jacket which itself is housed in a one-tone silk screened pvc sleeve with artwork by John Wiese and Bill Kouligas.
More information is available at the PAN website.
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ELI KESZLER 'Cold Pin' (PAN 21)
Over two years in the making, Cold Pin is the new full length record by Eli Keszler. Both a composition and stand alone installation, 14 strings ranging in length from 25 to 3 feet are strung across a 15 x 40 curved wall, with motors attacking the strings, connected by micro-controllers, pick-ups and rca cables. Recorded in Boston's historic Cyclorama, a massive dome built to house the Cyclorama of the Battle of Gettysburg painting in 1884. The b side features in addition, a 'dry' version of the installation with motor attacks on metal squares rather then strings, creating dense percussive clusters. Cold Pin works within the frame work of left to right time and vertical structure. The installation acts as the architecture of the music, surrounding and immersing the live instruments into incredible density and sharp angular mass shapes, and functions alone as the performers stops. Rather then an individual sound the sustained horns, strings, drums and metallic attacks function as a singular unit, and continue too when they stop alongside the installation. Cold Pin features Eli Keszler (drums, crotales installation and guitar), Geoff Mullen (guitar), Ashley Paul (clarinet, guitar, greenbox) Greg Kelley (trumpet), Reuben Son (bassoon) and Benjamin Nelson (cello).
Eli Keszler is a composer, artist and multi-instrumentalist based in New York City. In performance, he often plays drums, bowed crotales and guitar in conjunction with his installations. In his ensemble compositions, he uses extended strings, motors, crotales, horns and mechanical devices to create his sound, balancing intense harmonic formations with acoustic sustain, fast jarring rhythm, mechanical propulsion, dense textures and detailed visual presentations. Eli has toured extensively throughout Europe and the US, performing solo and in collaboration with artists such as Phill Niblock, Aki Onda, Joe Mcphee, Loren Connors, Jandek, Roscoe Mitchell, Anthony Coleman, Joe Morris, Steve Beresford, C Spencer Yeh, Greg Kelley (Nmperign), T Model Ford, Ran Blake, Ashley Paul and Steve Pyne. He has recorded solo releases for labels such as hiw own REL Records, ESP-DISK' and Type (Red Horse). His installations have appeared at the Boston Center for the Arts and Nuit Blanche NYC and the Shreveport MSPC New Music Festival. He has most recently won the Mata composers competition for the 2012 season. Eli Keszler is a graduate of the New England Conservatory in Boston where he studied with Anthony Coleman and Ran Blake.
The Lp is mastered and cut by Rashad Becker at D&M, in a limited edition of 500 copies, pressed on 140g vinyl and comes in a poly-lined inner sleeve. It is packaged in a pro-press color jacket which itself is housed in a silk screened pvc sleeve with artwork by Kathryn Politis & Bill Kouligas.
More information available at the PAN website.
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Out on Pickled-Egg from the UK, Volcano's first LP consists of 6 new songs by these growing and mind-expanding UK surrealists. On a whole, the release is filled with a bizarre emotion that leaves a sinking feeling in your stomach.
 
 
Pickled Egg
Side A ("Yak Folk") starts with the low-fi, reverb-drenched track, "Where Are the Bounds?," which is reminiscent in feel of the first track ("Planetary Bethlehem") from The Inhazer Decline. The second track is a short snippet of eerie noise, leading into "Nobody's Falling," which utilizes their eccentric—but extremely compelling—vocal work. With a very psychedelic-rock sound, they play horns, organs, and consistent high hats, which blend to conjure up a surrealist lounge. Side B ("Y'Are") has some beautiful, brilliant work—the best VtB I've yet heard. "Egg Knowledge" makes me feel as if I am in the presence of ghosts. The vocals are haunting and extremely bizarre (comparable only to a dying elderly), and combine with the tension-building noises and tribal-esque drums to leave a queasy, almost painful mindset. Next is "Oslo Top," made of twinkly noises with demonic vocals. And finally, "Hello Graham," the long ending track, tops the album with its usage of slurred vocals and beautifully simple acoustic guitar overlayed and interchanging, putting emotions out for grabs that are both frightening and captivating. The feeling for most of the LP is, in fact, a strange, ambiguous line between comforting and terrifying; but it is executed in such a manner that is purely hypnotic.
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While you may have heardother tracks from Ukuphambana on the Boston: Not London compilation onthe CFOM label, you most likely haven't. This debut release collectsvarious scraps of recordings kicking around in the vaults for thisproject, orchestrated by Chris Castiglione. Unlike many malicious youngDIY upstarts, Castiglione isn't afraid to play with distortion andpitch changes, tempo shifts and outside sound sources. The collectionranges from sounds and beats and styles making it a true album. To me,when an artist throws together a ton of songs that soundsimilar--style, instrumentation, subject--the end result resembles moreof a 12" single of versions as opposed to a true album in the grandscheme of things. "Gritware Composite" has both quantity and quality.While it can be a tough listen to get through 23 tracks at over 71minutes, it's tough love and well-worth investigating. If this is tobecome a professional release, however, something's got to be doneabout the artwork and CD-R manufacturing. This and the following discscan be obtained through Voidstar's website and probably not your local stores.
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