13 December 2009

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Albums and Singles

This reissue of their sixth album (not including those done with Brian Eno) is a most welcome sight. Often overlooked in favor of their '70s output (understandably considering how good those albums are), Curiosum remains a curiosity in the Cluster back catalogue. It is quite different to their earlier works, less serious sounding than previous albums. However, the variation of styles and approaches on this album means it comes across as more of a compilation than a fully fleshed out album. Yet, I argue that its disparate nature is part of its charm.

 

Bureau B

Curiosum kicks off with “Oh Odessa,” which harks back to the playful sounds of Zuckerzeit but it does not repeat what Cluser have already done on that album. “Oh Odessa” instead sounds like the theme tune to a children’s TV show about science: that mix of wonder and joy that gets lost as we grow older captured forever in synthesiser. “Proantipro” goes in a completely different direction to the rest of the album, sounding like a Throbbing Gristle outtake. The trembling menace and queasy electronic pulses create feelings of paranoia and unease, squelching and whirring background sounds filling out the atmosphere brilliantly.

Changing mood dramatically yet again, “Helle Melange” has the air of an old folk song but as imagined by the inhabitants of some future society where only the scantest records of the past remain. Elsewhere, the wonky rhythms of “Tristan in Der Bar” might be that future society’s pop music; its somewhat alien structure is quite unlike anything in Cluster’s back catalogue and represents a strand of music that they unfortunately never returned to. The same can be said of “Seltsame Gegend” which pre-empts the sound of Autechre by a good decade. As if the world needed more proof that Cluster were far ahead of their time, here’s another prime example.

Curiosum is not the best Cluster album by any means but the fact that it remains an obscurity rather than the peculiar brother to their classic albums is a crime. Granted some of the pieces may sound like unfinished sketches but there is so much charm permeating the music on this album that it is impossible to not fall in love with it. In addition, the fact that none of the pieces seem to fit together pays testament to the creativity of Hans-Joachim Roedelius and Dieter Moebius. It always confused me as to how Cluster would remain inactive for so long after this album when the music here showed so much promise to redefine electronic music in the '80s like they had already done in the '70s. Curiosum now has the chance to be rediscovered and given its proper place along with Roedelius and Moebius’ other works.

samples:

• Proantipro
• Helle Melange
• Charlic

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13 December 2009

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Albums and Singles

While the artist roster reads like the authors of an academic journal, anyone who has had their nose in modern experimental/electronic music surely knows most, if not all of the participants listed.  While originally issued in the early parts of this decade, this massive collaboration of guitar innovation and laptop artistry predates many of these artists' best known works and it shows that even in these salad days, these guys were (and still are) at the top of their game.

 

Black Truffle

With Oren Ambarchi and AMM’s Keith Rowe handling the stringed instruments and Christian Fennesz, Peter Rehberg and Paul Gough (Pimmon) manning the Powerbooks, the collaborations here show just how the organic guitars and software can co-mingle in perfect improvisation.  The first two tracks, “Afternoon Tea,” parts one and two were originally issued together on CD in 2000, consisting of studio improvisations.  The material is expanded here, with “No Title,” originally from a compilation, and two “Live Tea” tracks that were never before issued, and recorded live.

“Afternoon Tea Part One” begins with the more overt sounds of subtle guitar string scrapes before the subtle intrusion of digital noise begins, at an extremely restrained volume level.  Eventually there arises electronic pings and phone dial tones that are simultaneously dissonant, yet have some semblance of conventional musicality to them.  The combination becomes that of shrill, shimmering squeals and bassy, dark textures with a bit of rhythmic interference.  By the end it is a swarm of buzzing and heavy burbling darkness, all of which is underscored by calm, relaxed guitar sounds underneath the mire.

The second part leans more heavily into noise and glitch territory, focusing on amplifier hums and unnatural chirps and burps that allow in a significant amount of digital interference and glitches.  Eventually it transitions into some overt guitar playing, but even that stays on the rawer side of sound.  The short “No Title” is more simplistic, with what is most likely field recordings and overdriven guitar scrapes matched with laptop ambience, the former the victor in this skirmish.

The two fully live tracks that are making their first appearance here sound no less realized than the studio improvisations, beginning with a warm digital organ drone and guitar skittering, with different but cohesive layers intermingling with one another.  While there are a lot of collage elements and wobbling cuts and tones in sound, the lighter, lush drone that sounds like it is the work of Fennesz dominates the track in the best possible way.  The second half puts more Eastern inspired guitar chaos over heavy, forceful electronics and matches the most conventional sounds of the album with the most unconventional:  percussive thumps and guitar playing met with chaotic laptop noise, all of which dissolves into organic gauzy textures and reversed sounds, ending the disc as strongly as it started.

Considering the pedigree of the artists, anything less than a stellar set of improvisations would be significantly out of place.  Even though it is nearly a decade old, the music could be recorded this year and it would be just as fresh, showing that, especially in the cases of Fennesz, Rehberg, and Gough, it is the operator, not the software (which is surely beyond obsolete by this point) that is responsible for the sound, rendering the argument that anyone with a laptop can make beautiful sounds a moot one.

samples:

• Afternoon Tea (Part 2)
• Live Tea 1
• Live Tea 2

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13 December 2009

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Albums and Singles

Working alone, Marchetti has solidly established himself as truly a shaman of sound.  His combination of worldwide field recordings and subtle treatments has created a world that is both alien and familiar, warm and harrowing.  Here working alongside Yôko Higashi, the two weave sound that goes from the industrial realm into the wilds of Africa, and then back again.

 

Musica Genera

The opening piece, "Pétrole 73," is Marchetti solo, composed in 2005.  Using only some rudimentary synthesizers, field recordings on the ship Stubnitz, and CB radio conversations, the sound is pure industrial isolation.  The track maintains a sense of disconnected tension through its entire duration, focusing on the hollow, bassy nautical clattering of the ship, with sustained car-horn like drones that never seem to relent, but instead grow in intensity throughout.  Whether this is truly happening or is just a psycho-acoustic reaction to the repetition, I can’t say for sure.  The sound only stops when the “trip” comes to its end, leaving only the hollow, rumbling ambience of the boat that somehow manages to be comforting, even through the sonic chaos.

The second piece, "Okrua," is that of Ms. Higashi alone.  In comparison, it is a longer piece focused more on traditional ambience at its onset.  The synthesizer based ambience eventually gives way to field recordings after a healthy amount of static and digital interference.  Like Marchetti, Higashi displays great skill in creating miniature dramas based on ambient recordings.  Beginning with birds and the sound of motion, the journey’s calm is interrupted by music in the distance, dogs barking, and a festival like atmosphere.  The music and voices of Mozambique are the warmest and most inviting part of the recording though, as things begin to take a turn for the worst with chaotic movements, ragged percussion, and disembodied radio communications before ceasing, leaving only the distant sound of music and birds.

The final piece, "Pétrole 42," is the collaborative track between the two artists, with Marchetti focusing on weaving dark and shimmering drones via synthesizer and tape, while Higashi provides vocals, the combination of which maintains the tension and isolation of the opening piece, but there is a greater since of levity here, where the tension does not feel as if it is going to end badly, just that the culmination will lead to a comfortable release.  The closing sound of what is likely the creaking Stubnitz ship ends the work in an eerie sense of calm.

While I usually find Lionel Marchetti’s work dark, it usually has more organic and spiritual creepiness to it.  For me, it conjures images of witch doctors, dark jungles, and movements seen from flickering fires.  Here it is a darkness that comes from mechanical isolation and a sense of dread due to the actions of man, not the supernatural.  It is a fascinating journey, though I think I still prefer Mr. Marchetti focusing on the supernatural more than the industrial.

samples:

• Pétrole 73
• Okura
• Pétrole 42

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02 December 2009

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Albums and Singles

Ici d'ailleurs reissues Matt Elliott's last 3 albums in "Songs", a deluxe box containing 7 vinyls including one with 7 unreleased Failed Songs.

 4 colors printed hard box containing
- 7 clear vinyl 12" in black printed brown cardboard sleeve
- a MP3 download ticket

The reissue is also available in a low price CD box set. And for those who already owns one of it, the vinyls and Failed Songs are or will be available separatly on our websites.

> preorders opened on our online shop
Matt Elliott "Live @ Le Grand Mix" DVD offered
The vinyl box will be signed by Matt Elliott!

Failed Songs
unreleased tracks from last 3 albums recording sessions
01. Mellow 02. Eulogy For Liam 03. Melange 04. South Canadian Sea 05. Song To Child 06. Lament 07. Wedding Song

Howling songs [Brainwashed review ]
01. The Kübler-Ross model 02. Something about ghosts 03. How much in blood ? 04. A broken flamenco 05. Berlin & Bisenthal 06. I name this ship the tragedy, bless her & all who sail with her 07. The howling song 08. Song for a failed relationship 09. Bomb the stock exchange

Failing songs [Brainwashed review ]
01. Our weight in oil 02. Chains 03. The seance 04. The failing song 05. Broken bones 06. Desamparado 07. Lone gunman required 08. Good pawn 09. Compassion fatigue 10. The ghost of Maria Callas 11. Gone 12. Planting seeds

Drinking songs [Brainwashed review ]
01. C. F. Bundy 02. Truying to explain 03. The guilty party 04. Whats wrong ? 05. The Kursk 06. What the fuck am I doing on this battlefield 07. A waste of blood 08. The maid we messed

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29 November 2009

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Albums and Singles

[BUY@BRAINWASHED]

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29 November 2009

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Albums and Singles

[BUY@BRAINWASHED]

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29 November 2009

Administrator

Albums and Singles

[BUY@BRAINWASHED]

but it's so

i can't tell you why it is like this
i don't know why time hasn't come
i can't tell you where it is going
i don't know why we've not become

but it's so
though i'm not sad today
yeah it's so
but it won't hurt today

won't you tell me it doesn't matter
make me believe worries can hide

but it's so
though i'm not sad today
yeah it's so
but it won't hurt today

yeah it's so

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29 November 2009

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Albums and Singles

Combining country, American surf music and the classic Ennio Morricone Spaghetti Western soundtracks, this album sounds like a lost gem from the '60s. However, this trio (supplemented by some seriously cool guest musicians) are not just an ersatz tribute to the past. This is a brilliant homage to these various styles of music that has buckets of enthusiasm and passion to make up for its lack of modernity.

 

Important

This band is tight but they are comfortable enough in each other’s playing to not sound formulaic or over-rehearsed. The music flows in a way that brings to mind the rougher side of surf music, leaving The Beach Boys out in the sun while unkempt youths play their guitars in the shade. The guitar playing of Dick Dale ghosts through this album as the ragged but precise fretwork from Alessandro Stefana provides a treat for the ears. “Epiphany” puts a film noir spin on their music, sounding like Fantômas’ mutilation of Morricone’s “Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion” (Stefana has worked with Mike Patton in the past).

The echoes of Morricone are more than just an influence, “El Divino” and “Bull Buster” feature the whistling talents of Alessandro Alessandroni who is responsible for those whistles in the Sergio Leone films. It is impossible not to think of these Guano Padano tracks as out-takes from the Spaghetti Western soundtracks as the group have created a very authentic sounding Morricone-tribute (“El Divino” may as well have a writing credit for Morricone beside it, so perfect does it sound). Another famous guest pops up on “A Country Concept,” namely Gary Lucas (formerly of The Magic Band and guitarist for countless other artists). Here Lucas plays a resonator guitar to add a more authentic Wild West feel to Guano Padano’s music; his bluesy ambience giving the impression that a gunfight is about to go down.

Yet another strand of influence runs through the album as Guano Padano appear to be as serious about American country music as they are about their other passions. A cover of Hank Williams’ “Rambling Man” makes an appearance later in the album, Guano Padano bringing fresh life to the song. Bobby Solo’s vocals are especially evocative; rich with years of experience, his vocals are like grit being blown against the corrugated steel roof of Stefana’s guitar. It is too bad that Solo only appears on this one song, an entire album like this would be something else.

Recently I have been getting more into surf music thanks to exposure to things like Neil Young’s early group The Squires and having a listen to an old tape copy of the Pulp Fiction soundtrack. However, this renewed interest aside, Guano Padano would have struck a chord with me in any case as they are fantastic on their own. Granted their music is not exactly original but it is refreshing in its whole-hearted embrace of styles usually picked apart by modern bands in search of something new hidden in their corpses.

samples:

• El Divino
• Del Rey
• Tromp Valley

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29 November 2009

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Albums and Singles

The world does not need another black metal band but the guys from Liturgy don’t care. This is fine by me as this is one of the best albums in the genre for a long time. Consolidating the ground won via their Immortal Life EP, the group has expanded in size and in scope. Instead of focussing on a scary aesthetic and not coming up with decent music, they have gone the opposite route of 99% of most modern black metal groups and actually made music worth listening to.

 

20 Buck Spin

Starting softly with a short untitled track, Liturgy lured me into a false sense of security and as such the shattering whirlwind of “Pagan Dawn” hit doubly hard. Hunter Hunt-Hendrix’s vocals are a pained howl, incoherent screams that sound more like the snarls of beast being devoured than anything. The inclusion of a drummer gives the music a more visceral edge, Greg Fox hits the skins like a force of nature. This orientates the music towards the more traditional ground of black metal but Hendrix’s off-kilter approach to the genre prevents Liturgy from becoming another forgettable addition to the genre’s ranks.

It is a bit of critical stereotype for me to compare the sound of the band to a winter wind but Liturgy do manage to make the temperature drop. The twin guitars of Hendrix and Bernard Gann are like the bracing gusts of frigid air that whip through the northern fringes of civilisation. Embodying this freezing mood is “Beyond the Magic Forest,” which may be a bit of a wimpy title but the music could never be described as such. The grinding drums going from a funereal pulse to a frenzied blast beat drive the music into the back of my skull.

Interspersed throughout the album are a number of brief untitled pieces (like the one that opens the album) where the group change tact completely and focus on more ambient sounds. These tracks are reminiscent of prison-era Burzum and Ulver’s experimentations outside of black metal. The long vocal drones with electronic accompaniment add a ritualistic air to Renihilation and provide a fitting contrast to the harsher black metal tracks, reinforcing their already formidable presence.

The final two tracks form a one-two punch that will send any listener down for the count; “Behind the Void” and the title track combined make some of the best black metal to cross my path recently. While Wolves in the Throne Room would be the closest point of reference for Liturgy, in this case the wolves found on Renihilation are feral and hungry. Liturgy are on to something special here, reinvigorating a sound that has been abused and gentrified over the last decade into something resembling its former glory.

samples:

• Pagan Dawn
• -
• Behind the Void

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29 November 2009

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Albums and Singles

Released a few months prior on cassette (continuing the underground’s fetishization of that unreliable magnetic media format), this live recording appears on the wider CD format, remastered to take better advantage of the digital media, and continues this new but prolific band’s trek into dense, heavy drone that somehow manages to keep lighter, airy ambient moments appearing in the otherwise gray mist.

 

Basses Frequences

Essentially a single, hour long track split into two parts (mimicking the cassette’s original A and B sides), Rain of Ashes brings in even more elements to the duo’s normally guitar/electronic sourced metal tinged drone/doom.  The introduction’s shimmering guitar feedback over a simple electronic bed is not far removed from the band’s earlier works, but the building complexity of guitar tone is extremely dynamic, alternating between melodic post-punk tones and shrill piercing feedback, all the while the frozen wall of electronic textures stay in place.  Eventually the noise shifts away to allow the subtle low end electronic sounds to move forward.

The most drastic change happens when the darker ambient electronics pull away and is replaced by a simple 8 bit digital melody and rapid guitar plucking that, at first, sounds gentle and nostalgic (but perhaps that’s just my childhood memories of playing Nintendo speaking).  This turns from nostalgic to sinister as soon as the digital ambience comes back, thrusting the lo-fi melody into some creepy rendition of John Carpenter’s Halloween theme.  This returns again towards the end of the entire piece, but first is quickly cut up by chugging metal drone guitar before falling apart into pure red-lined harsh noise.

Now, it is somewhat of a cop-out when the second half starts, as it is simply the first 30 minutes again, just now in reverse.  The nature of the sound, however, belies this fact.  Without careful study, it does just seem like structurally the track mirrors itself, but the individual tones and textures take on a different quality once played backwards.  The reversed guitar tones from the introduction (now at the conclusion) change the most distinctly, now resembling the best moments of The Cure playing doom metal.

Rain of Ashes once again demonstrates Locrian’s combination of metal drone and noise, but continues the infusion of more meditative ambience and a subtle hint of post-punk rock that isn’t usually referenced in the heavier stuff.  Personally I’d like to hear it become an even more dominant part of their sound, and their always evolving sound leads me to believe there could be a drone metal Echo and the Bunnymen cover someday.  Maybe.

samples:

• Excerpt 1
• Excerpt 2
• Excerpt 3

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