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I will never understand why there was the feud between Loop and Spacemen 3. Other than they both mined their own approach to 1960s psychedelic rock, there was little resemblance in other ways: Spacemen 3 were more sparse and minimalist, with almost folk underpinnings, while Loop added a bit of Motorhead to their Hawkwind. The bass driven and angular noise guitar of opener "Black Sun" is much more aggressive and blistering than anything Jason Pierce & Sonic Boom ever put out.
While they still employ a lot of textural elements throughout, most of the songs are yet again driven by strong, melodic lead guitar work, with Hampson's vocals falling deeper and deeper into the mix. The exception is "A Vision Stain," which the lead melody is buried in wah compared to the rest of the album’s leads.
Loop’s greater focus to harder rock elements is most apparent on tracks like "This Is Where You End" and "Pulse," both of which appear in a more stripped down form on the second disc’s Peel Session tracks. The album closer "Got To Get It Over" is another example of this: reverb buried vocals under a steady beat and a repeating guitar sequence that never gets tiring, yet commands loud volumes.
It is only the long title track that is an overt antecedent to Heaven's End, with its slower pace and heavy tremolo on guitar and vocals that could almost be an outtake from those sessions. However, with its placement in the middle of the album, it makes for a more relaxed, pensive spot in an otherwise dense and dark album.
Again, the tracks added to the second disc here are mostly alternate mixes that do not differ too drastically from the album takes: the feedback version of "Black Sun" adds additional guitar feedback loops to the original track: the heavily reverbed stabs make a dark track even more aggressive. The original mixes of "Torched" and "Got To Get It Over" are also pretty similar to the album takes, just a bit rawer and less polished. As with Heaven's End, the Peel Session tracks here are just sparser, less layered recordings that actually benefit from the lack of treatment and effects.
Perhaps most interesting is the five tracks of guitar loops that were used as textural elements on the album, presented here in their original form. While simplistic, these mostly mournful sounding bits of repetitive guitar noise clearly show that Hampson was thinking more abstractly even with Loop, and experimenting with sounds that would eventually come to fruition as Main. Just like Heaven's End, the remastering job is excellent, bringing out details that were originally too muffled in the original issues, and the mini-gatefold LP sleeves are very well done.
My only real gripe with this release is a minor one: I miss the CD bonus tracks of Collision and their covers of "Thief of Fire" and "Mother Sky" that closed the first pressing of the disc. However, those are slated for inclusion on the upcoming three disc The World In Your Eyes singles collection, so I just have to be patient. I first tracked down this album around this time of year 10 years ago, and relistening to it after awhile was one of those warm and fuzzy nostalgic moments. In the 20 years since its release, it still is a timeless and fascinating listen.
samples:
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My first exposure to Loop was actually via Hampson's more esoteric experimentations as Main and his tenure in Godflesh, neither of which is similar to his early work with Loop. However, once tracking down their Wolf Flow Peel Sessions album, I was hooked. Originally issued in 1987, Loop’s first of three full-length albums channeled the 1960s psychedelia into a more conventional (and rock oriented) framework. The opening feedback and layered wah guitar of "Soundhead" begins the album with a blast that never really relents, a constant barrage of metronomic drums and fuzzed out guitar bliss. Interestingly enough, Robert Hampson’s vocals are the clearest and most up front they will ever be, as they slowly faded into the mix during the reset of Loop’s career and became near inaudible by the time Main was active.
The title track is perhaps the perfect encapsulation of the Loop ethos of the time: a wah and tremolo drenched field of guitar noise and hypnotic thumping drums wouldn’t have been out of place on the Apocalypse Now soundtrack, while the HAL 9000 samples from 2001 drop in to add a bit of futurism to the work.
One of the strongest elements of this layered and distorted din are the underlying melodies that make the songs much more memorable than other artists who worked in similar lands: the repetitive but catchy guitar melodies that underscore "Straight To Your Heart" and "Too Real to Feel" are some of the strongest assets. Even when the pace is slowed down for the more restrained "Forever" and "Carry Me," the latter sounding like a replaying of "Soundhead" on Quaaludes, the mix is thick and dense. While their songs may have a minimalist structure to them, the band had a maximalist approach to the dynamics and guitar sound.
The bonus material disc included here is nothing revelatory to Loop fans, but the more reverb drenched mix of "Soundhead" and the rawer run-through of "Head On" are interesting, as is their apocalyptic drum machine and two chords-only take on Suicide’s "Rocket USA."
More importantly to the neophytes, the disc also includes the first Peel Session the band recorded. Considering my first exposure to the band were the Peel Sessions, I tend to favor these versions personally, but the less polished and stripped down take of "Soundhead" puts the emphasis on the guitar melody, and the echoed, less processed take on "Rocket USA" is just as good. However, the real treat is the sprawling 10 minute performance "Straight To Your Heart" which, removed from the studio effects, loses none of its hypnotic power but grows in intensity.
As a first album, Heaven’s End was a more cohesive and fully realized work than most bands manage to put out. While it lacks clear diversity from track to track, it all adds into the hypnotic, repetitive vibe the band thrived on.
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Grimm’s music is as oddball (in a good way) as her description on the Young God Records website makes her out to be (brought up in a cult, tales of the Alaskan wastes, a shamaness and a vagabond lifestyle either make for a very interesting person or a highly contrived back story; Grimm seems genuine). There are no pretensions of weirdness here, just the feeling that she knows her own path but it does not necessarily cross with the main road. Label mates Fire On Fire play on the album, as do members of the Angels of Light, which makes for a familiar mood from the offset but that is not to say that Grimm’s music is overpowered by the distinctive styles of the many players here. Her personality and quirks shine through undiminished.
For an album full of energy and life, the opening song “They Were Wrong” paints a very different picture. It is a quiet and chilling song, Grimm intones “Who said to you you’re going to be all right/Well they were wrong, wrong, wrong/In my mind you’re already gone.” With this as my first exposure to Parplar, I was expecting a soul-wrenching descent into deeper and darker places. Yet almost immediately after “Ride That Cyclone” brings the album around full circle in mood (although lyrically it is still dark) and style. The lurching rhythm is like one of Michael Gira’s (who produces the album) but like a cyclone the music spins around the listener in a dizzying and breathtaking manner. Elsewhere on Parplar, cartoonish vocals and distinctly off-kilter lyrics make for a strange listening experience; songs like “Dominican Rum” and “Mina Minou” add a surreal vibe to the album and make Grimm’s musical persona as interesting as her biography sheet.
As refreshing as the odder moments on this album are, thankfully Grimm balances the weirdness with some exceptionally strong songs in a more “serious” style. “Anger in Your Liver” and “All the Pleasures” are a pair of brief but enjoyable songs in the middle of the album that show Grimm in a more traditional songwriting light. Both songs make it evident that Grimm does not have to hide behind some absurd mask, she has enough talent to let the songs speak for themselves when she wants them to.
It is hard to find any fault with Parplar. Granted, the freak folk scene has been flogged to death and whose corpse has been dragged through the streets in a macabre mockery of itself but like any style, there is always going to be someone who can pull something of worth from something that seems exhausted. Grimm fits this bill and I urge anyone with even a passing interest in good, honest music to go out and buy this.
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Things get off to a rough start with “Security,” which sounds a little like one of John Cage’s sonatas for prepared piano (minus the prepared bit) but is not as engaging by any stretch of the imagination. This fairly insipid opener does not reach out and grab me on the first encounter nor does it become any more appealing on returning. It nearly put me off pursuing this album fully as it does little justice to the pair’s talent and potential, especially when there are some gems peppered throughout the disc. Abrahams and Phillips can come together well to create beautifully haunting duets such as “The Afterwards” (which should have been moved forward by one track and opened the album). There are elements of Morton Feldman’s piano works seeping through and the music sounds like swirling water, the currents building up to create torrents before settling into a calm drift again.
Pedal never get as fired up as The Necks, the white heat that Abrahams can generate has been kept in check by Phillips’ more restrained approach to the ivories. That being said, the music never becomes so frigid as to put me off. There are times when the music does come close to being ignorable such as on “Herzog,” but for every dull moment on this album, there are at least another two which are fascinating. And for such a rocky start to an album, the final piece is as close to perfect as is humanly possible. “The Passenger” is only slightly less good than “The Afterwards” from earlier on in the album but these two pieces alone make the album worth trying.
It would be a shame if this was the only fruit stemming from this meeting of Phillips and Abrahams. Delicate and sombre, this album hints at the future of this project and how good Pedal can be.
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K-The-I??? offers the world "Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow" for the world's listening pleasure. K-The-I??? hopes that all that juicy, golden listening pleasure doesn't cause the world to explode out its ears as he rather likes the world and eats most of his meals there.
Check out the track "Decisions" from Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow here .
Mush Records is proud, like a father who just gave birth through his penis on purpose, to announce our second full-length from K-The-I???, Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow. The album will be in stores Nov. 7, 2008 which, by all human measurements of time, means that IT IS ALREADY OUT! Imagine that!
His debut, Broken Love Letter, garnered much critical acclaim (and some insignificant acclaim), including over 20 positive reviews and a handful of internet and print based features, including Urb's Next 100, and features in Boston's Weekly Dig and the Boston Phoenix, and more. Also, I put his poster on my bedroom ceiling so...
His latest album, produced is entirely by Thavius Beck, and featuring guest appearances from indie hip-hop luminaries like High Priest (of the newly reuinited Antipop Consortium), Busdriver, Subtitle and Chicago upstart Vyle as well as up-and-coming Los Angeles MCs Nocando (winner of the 2007 Scribble Jam) and Mestizo (projected winner of the yet-to-be-created 2015 Scrabble Jam). We believe this record will continue K-The-I???'s critical and commercial stature, and would like to pitch him for feature press as well as reviews.
To confirm any reviews or set up an interview, please email
Enjoy!
Here is the blurb from our website about sexy, sexy Kiki (K-The-I???)
Mush Records
About Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow
K-The-I??? marks a thunderous return to Mush with his latest full-length, Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow. Production on the album is handled entirely by Thavius Beck, his first project since he finished work on Saul Willaims' Niggy Tardust alongside Trent Reznor. Where his debut, Broken Love Letter, focused on past loves gone wrong, Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow is a collection of songs about the MC's cross country relocation, and trying to come to terms with how his life has changed from that. The result is a work of singular focus that catches K-The-I??? at his strongest, dropping ingenious lyrics over Blade Runner beats. The album features a stellar line-up of guest MCs as High Priest of a newly reunited Antipop Consortium, Busdriver, Subtitle, Scribble Jam winner Nocando, Vyle, and Mestizo all drop in. Thavius Beck even leaves the producer's desk and steps in front of the mic for a track. For fans looking for an album that ties hip-hop's past, present and future, K-The-I???'s Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow delivers.
About K-The-I???
Hailing from Cambridge, Mass., but a musical nomad of sorts, K-The-I??? has traversed the USA pushing sonic boundaries with his unique brand of densed-out boom-bap. Armed with a commanding voice and a gritty production aesthetic that recalls Bomb Squad-era Public Enemy and signature Def Jux recordings, he crafts tracks that swell and pulse with an immersive gravity. Making an appearance on Bigg Jus and Orko Eloheem's recent NMS album, Imperial Letters of Protection, K-The-I??? has earned the respect of many of indie hip-hop's elite, including Thavius Beck, who offered to produce his latest full-length. Whether writing epic love letters or harnessing bugged-out electric currents, K-The-I???'s music has a personality and urgency that demands your attention.
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Mush Records, KFM Records, and The Magnificents have struck a deal, creating The Scottish Legion Of Illuminated Magnificents, a label to release the Magnificents' music in the United States for the first time.
The first release will be the Magnificents' full-length, Year Of Explorers, on December 9, 2008. The coming months between now and Summer 2009 will see a deluge of Magnificents material, as we give proper American releases to their full-length The Magnificents, as well as EP releases Ring Ring Oo Oo, The Apollo Creed, Last Gasp Of Revenge, 4 Claws Of The Underground, and Kids Now.
The Magnificents have been much-lauded as the best live band - nay, the best band period - in Scotland. Yes... including all the more popular bands. We have collected much of their back press, including heaps of features and live reviews, and selected some bits about Year Of Explorers and the Magnificents'... well... magnificent live shows for this email.
If you have not recieved the album yet and would like to give it a listen, please click the album cover to download it. If you'd like to confirm a review or set up an interview with the Magnificents, please contact
Put simply, this is a f***ing brilliant follow-up to their eponymous debut. It might just be the best thing you hear all year. 5/5 - Reverb / Jaw-droppingly ace music. - NME / The Magnificents have no murky lines - they're just really f***ing good. - The Skinny / Could yet be huge - Scotland On Sunday / Instantly, gratifyingly catchy - The List / A record well capable of taking them above ground - The Big Issue / This is intelligent rock with punk's rebellious spirit still throbbing at its heart - Is This Music? / The Magnificents should never be allowed to slip through the fingers of those who matter - Drowned In Sound
click cover to download The Magnificents - Year Of Explorers
Year Of Explorers, the latest from daring Scottish band, The Magnificents, is an epic saga of stolen synths, left-handed guitars, trans-European expressways, covert product placement, and serious studio tomfoolery. Following months of touring, twiddling and general sonic invention, The Magnificents are finally ready to unleash their long-awaited second LP. Employing a bewildering array of dusty keyboards, wires, boxes and buttons, The Magnificents have meticulously crafted Year Of Explorers with a little help from esteemed producers Damian Taylor (Bjork, Unkle) and John Cummings (Mogwai). Whereas their eponymous debut was primarily fuelled by raw punk power and electrifying excess, the sophomore LP demonstrates a more measured method. Not to say the boys have mellowed with age... Year Of Explorers will still have the indie-disco young pretenders quaking in their Converse.
Only act to have ever toured with the Beta Band, plus previous tours with Mogwai, Stereolab, and Trans Am.
Produced by Damian Taylor (Bjork, Unkle) and John Cummings (Mogwai).
The Magnificents met at Edinburgh Art College near the turn of the century. Figuring that music would be the least degrading post-college career choice, they began work creating a legitimate band. By marrying differing performance techniques with the desire to make people dance, they have built a reputation as one of the most exciting and unpredictable live bands around. Tour partners have included Stereolab, Trans Am, The Beta Band (the only band ever to do so) and Mogwai. Following a year of experimentation, code breaking, alchemy and the continued search for enlightenment, they have taken to hiding under the streets of Edinburgh in the rat and fungi infested M-Bunker, where they have recorded their 4 EPs, and both of their full-lengths, including their latest, Year Of Explorers.
Watch the clip for "Ring Ring Oo Oo"
the lead single from Year Of Explorers
Magnificents are without question the best live act in Scotland - Daily Record / Make no mistake, the Magnificents are the best band in Scotland - Evening News / While they might never be as big as Mogwai or the Beta Band, they're still the best Scottish live band you'll see - The Scotsman / Theirs is a fully-fledged, no-holds-barred Event, a gloriously inspired happening - NME / The most exciting thing Edinburgh has produced in years - Evening Times / The most exciting and enthralling coming-of-age I've ever seen - Noise! / Savage, ear-splitting and more edgy than, well, something really f***ing edgy. If they don't break in a big way soon there's truly something wrong with music. - Is This Music? / Best live band in the country? Quite probably. - The List / One of the most riotously exciting groups on the Scottish live circuit - The Mail / This Edinburgh synth-punk quartet are boldly, gloriously extraordinary... the best band to storm a Scottish stage in many a year - Metro
<font size="12" face="Courier New">Mush Records, KFM Records, and <strong>The Magnificents</strong> have struck a deal, creating The Scottish Legion Of Illuminated Magnificents, a label to release The Magnificents' music in the United States for the first time.
The first release will be the Magnificents' full-length, Year Of Explorers, on December 9, 2008. The coming months between now and Summer 2009 will see a deluge of Magnificents material, as we give proper American releases to their full-length The Magnificents, as well as EP releases Ring Ring Oo Oo, The Apollo Creed, Last Gasp Of Revenge, 4 Claws Of The Underground, and Kids Now.
The Magnificents have been much-lauded as the best live band - nay, the best band period - in Scotland. Yes... including all the more popular bands. We have collected much of their back press, including heaps of features and live reviews, and selected some bits about Year Of Explorers and the Magnificents'... well... magnificent live shows for this email.
If you have not recieved the album yet and would like to give it a listen, or if you'd like to confirm a review or set up an interview with the Magnificents, please contact
<em>Put simply, this is a fucking brilliant follow-up to their eponymous debut. It might just be the best thing you hear all year.</em> 5/5 - Reverb / <em>Jaw-droppingly ace music.</em> - NME / <em>The Magnificents have no murky lines - they're just really fucking good.</em> - The Skinny / <em>Could yet be huge</em> - Scotland On Sunday / <em>Instantly, gratifyingly catchy</em> - The List / <em>A record well capable of taking them above ground</em> - The Big Issue / <em>This is intelligent rock with punk's rebellious spirit still throbbing at its hear</em>t - Is This Music? / <em><strong>The Magnificents should never be allowed to slip through the fingers of those who matter</em></strong> - Drowned In Sound
<font size="12" face="Courier New">Mush Records, KFM Records, and <strong>The Magnificents</strong> have struck a deal, creating The Scottish Legion Of Illuminated Magnificents, a label to release The Magnificents' music in the United States for the first time.
The first release will be the Magnificents' full-length, Year Of Explorers, on December 9, 2008. The coming months between now and Summer 2009 will see a deluge of Magnificents material, as we give proper American releases to their full-length The Magnificents, as well as EP releases Ring Ring Oo Oo, The Apollo Creed, Last Gasp Of Revenge, 4 Claws Of The Underground, and Kids Now.
The Magnificents have been much-lauded as the best live band - nay, the best band period - in Scotland. Yes... including all the more popular bands. We have collected much of their back press, including heaps of features and live reviews, and selected some bits about Year Of Explorers and the Magnificents'... well... magnificent live shows for this email.
If you have not recieved the album yet and would like to give it a listen, or if you'd like to confirm a review or set up an interview with the Magnificents, please contact
<em>Put simply, this is a fucking brilliant follow-up to their eponymous debut. It might just be the best thing you hear all year.</em> 5/5 - Reverb / <em>Jaw-droppingly ace music.</em> - NME / <em>The Magnificents have no murky lines - they're just really fucking good.</em> - The Skinny / <em>Could yet be huge</em> - Scotland On Sunday / <em>Instantly, gratifyingly catchy</em> - The List / <em>A record well capable of taking them above ground</em> - The Big Issue / <em>This is intelligent rock with punk's rebellious spirit still throbbing at its hear</em>t - Is This Music? / <em><strong>The Magnificents should never be allowed to slip through the fingers of those who matter</em></strong> - Drowned In Sound
Year Of Explorers, the latest from daring Scottish band, The Magnificents, is an epic saga of stolen synths, left-handed guitars, trans-European expressways, covert product placement, and serious studio tomfoolery. Following months of touring, twiddling and general sonic invention, The Magnificents are finally ready to unleash their long-awaited second LP. Employing a bewildering array of dusty keyboards, wires, boxes and buttons, The Magnificents have meticulously crafted Year Of Explorers with a little help from esteemed producers Damian Taylor (Bjork, Unkle) and John Cummings (Mogwai). Whereas their eponymous debut was primarily fuelled by raw punk power and electrifying excess, the sophomore LP demonstrates a more measured method. Not to say the boys have mellowed with age... Year Of Explorers will still have the indie-disco young pretenders quaking in their Converse.
Only act to have ever toured with the Beta Band, plus previous tours with Mogwai, Stereolab, and Trans Am.
Produced by Damian Taylor (Bjork, Unkle) and John Cummings (Mogwai).
The Magnificents met at Edinburgh Art College near the turn of the century. Figuring that music would be the least degrading post-college career choice, they began work creating a legitimate band. By marrying differing performance techniques with the desire to make people dance, they have built a reputation as one of the most exciting and unpredictable live bands around. Tour partners have included Stereolab, Trans Am, The Beta Band (the only band ever to do so) and Mogwai. Following a year of experimentation, code breaking, alchemy and the continued search for enlightenment, they have taken to hiding under the streets of Edinburgh in the rat and fungi infested M-Bunker, where they have recorded their 4 EPs, and both of their full-lengths, including their latest, Year Of Explorers.
Watch the clip for "Ring Ring Oo Oo"
the lead single from Year Of Explorers
Magnificents are without question the best live act in Scotland - Daily Record / Make no mistake, the Magnificents are the best band in Scotland - Evening News / While they might never be as big as Mogwai or the Beta Band, they're still the best Scottish live band you'll see - The Scotsman / Theirs is a fully-fledged, no-holds-barred Event, a gloriously inspired happening - NME / The most exciting thing Edinburgh has produced in years - Evening Times / The most exciting and enthralling coming-of-age I've ever seen - Noise! / Savage, ear-splitting and more edgy than, well, something really f***ing edgy. If they don't break in a big way soon there's truly something wrong with music. - Is This Music? / Best live band in the country? Quite probably. - The List / One of the most riotously exciting groups on the Scottish live circuit - The Mail / This Edinburgh synth-punk quartet are boldly, gloriously extraordinary... the best band to storm a Scottish stage in many a year - Metro </font>
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I can’t pretend to understand the details behind the theory of shape notes. It’s enough, though, that they make it easy for people who don’t read music to somehow, well, read music. The only allusion I can come up with is i.t.a. the much-maligned reading learning process which basically said it is foolish to insist that children learn correct spelling of words, instead let them write ennyway dey fink iz ryte. These are the Scrabble opponents I long to play! But I digress. There is an unbridled power to the voices on Awake, My Soul and the roots of their singing goes back beyond the Deep South to the plainsong of Northern Europe. Many of these songs begin with what seems to be a period of limbering up followed by a section which sounds more like a standard hymn. On wonderful pieces such as "Stratfield" the limbering up part is bracing, full of discordant power and a beguiling, organic, complexity.
Luckily, detail and intellect should be left at the door when approaching Sacred Harp or shape note singing, since it is less about understanding or analysis and more about instinct and full-hearted participation. The form also has the democratic appeal of devotional music without a separate choir of ‘good singers’ and, best of all, no cold organ obliterating the human voices. In that sense, Sacred Harp singing reinforces the notion that all are equal in the eyes, and ears, of God. Not that belief in God or in the existence of a soul is necessary for enjoyment. Far from it. Indeed, an appreciation of this music can rely totally on delight at these pure and visceral sounds; rather like hearing the shifting pulses of Steve Reich’s Music for 18 Musicians without being a Buddhist. In theory, taking part in the singing would feel better than listening, and singing when imbued with a conviction of faith might be even better. To put it in secular terms, The Kop singing “You’ll Never Walk Alone” is impressive, but being there and singing along must be more affecting. Furthermore, doing so with the conviction that Liverpool FC is the greatest team in England must top that. There are just some leaps of faith that agnostics (and Manchester United supporters) cannot (or will not) make!
The Hintons (as filmmakers and curators of the compilation) feel that the second disc of interpretations might hook a new audience for the real thing. Maybe, but the interpretations are very different; paler and less intense. At first, I found that Help Me to Sing seemed feeble compared to Awake, My Soul but eventually some of the power of the latter fell away and the gentle songs of the former acted as a healing balm. Perhaps it depends on mood. Ultimately, Sacred Harp singing has an effect that is beyond description: to quote Emily Dickinson:
The murmur of a bee
A witchcraft yieldeth me.
If any ask me why,
'Twere easier to die
Than tell.
Some people fail to question the pitifully crude stereotype that only black people make passionate music for the gut whereas whites compose intellectual music for the mind. Sacred Harp singing is yet another refutation of that nonsense. It has been largely a rural Southern pursuit but is practiced in some US cities (including Dallas) and also in England. It ranks as one of the most exhilarating, exuberant, life-affirming rackets known to human beings. If the walls of Jerico did indeed fall, well, we now know how. Whether this music is part of salvation and eternal life depends upon your point of view. In the here and now, research has shown that three group activities are particularly beneficial to a person’s health and well-being: camping, dancing and choral singing. Those researchers might not have been camping in the wet Cornish summer of 1974 or tried dancing in the booze-soaked environs of Stoke-on-Trent circa 1981, but pulling together and belonging is undeniably important and Sacred Harp singing fits right in. It has survived widespread disinterest until now and I’m sure it will flourish despite fifteen minutes in the spotlight of a superficial media who will gobble up the DVD and this set before moving swiftly on.
samples:
- China
- Norwich
- Stratfield
- Woven Hand - Consecration
- Doc Watson and Gaither Carlton - And Am I Born To Die? (Idumea)
- The Innocence Mission - Africa
- Richard Buckner - Windham
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Extreme
.
Klein's latest musical venture showcases an unevenness that was less evident on Compressor, released last year on Extreme. On that album, Terminal Sound System sounded like a project dedicated to giving rhythm and timbre their time in the sun. Though many of the songs featured no strong melody, themes and hooks were still developed through the smart use of texture and atmosphere. I liked that album despite its flaws: Klein was clearly looking to restructure drum 'n' bass and employ its strengths in new environments. It was also unremittingly dark and brooding and filled to the brim with rumbling and exaggerated beats. That coherency explains why Constructing Towers comes as such a shock to me. Klein's purpose isn't nearly as clear on this album and his modus operandi is frustratingly scattered. Seemingly at odds with himself, Klein utilizes both familiar and idiosyncratic techniques to form a patchwork album that features camp, aggression, and trepidation in equal doses.
"In Your Planet" is a barnburner of an introduction. With an epic organ part, a flurry of brushed percussion, and a massive low-end, the song boils and recedes in a succession of tense and meditative moments. Texture is still Klein's strong point, but melodies are more prominent on this record from the get go. Light pianos and bass pulses exchange melodic duties with reversed synthesizer effects and orchestral crescendos, all of which lend the album a strong immediacy. This immediacy continues throughout the record, but in wildly different ways. "Constructing Towers" features a muffled vocal performance and the kind of drum breaks you might remember from Luke Vibert's various releases or from the odd Venetian Snares' song. Not content to reproduce good drum 'n' bass, Klein inserts wah-wah pedals into "Year of the Pig" and tempers the whole thing with bright keyboards; the song is jumpy and unpredictable, but everything still feels tightly connected at this point. When "Alaska" comes on, I feel like the ground is pulled out from under my feet and the whole album is set adrift. Suddenly Angelo Badalamenti joins the band, rock 'n' roll guitars become part of Klein's vocabulary, and the mood developed over the first three tracks is eschewed in favor of something completely different.
Just like Compressor, much of Constructing Towers is haphazard; the first three songs sound like they belong on an EP together, "Alaska" belongs in a world all its own, and everything afterwards feels like a coherent statement, but from a project quite different than Terminal Sound System. The acid-tinged electronica and jazz-like influences showcased on the second half of the album feel far more cinematic than the first half and demonstrate Klein's ability to warp and bend familiar sounds and conventions. The second half of the record is also a far more relaxed affair than the first half thanks to the low, cool horns and vibraphones that dominate it. In trying to blend so many influences and ideas, Klein went a bit off the deep end and forgot where he was going once he started. He ends up in some interesting places and with beautiful results, but he does in a haphazard and confusing way. Constructing Towers is a dark, beautiful record with several moments of brilliance (the walking bass line on "Duchamp Falls" comes unexpectedly, but works perfectly), but it is uneven both conceptually and stylistically.
samples:
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The three long pieces that compose the first side are perfectly tinged tones, vibrating in the same hypnagogic blue color as the record cover. These tones hover and sway in an ionosphere swollen from lunar tides, while metallic chirps reverberate in the background. The sounds build up with an equipoised pressure as their drifting sonorities dance in stereo fields of microscopic static. Lost accordions transmigrate from a brighter astral plane and it begins to feel as if I am encased by a ringing halo of light... And time stands still.
When I flip the record over to its backside, what I have heard before I hear again, but in a different and recycled fashion. Nothing is wasted; the first few minutes sound ominous but soon morph into a transcendent joy, a stirring dirge recalling the vitality of the human spirit. The chirps echo in again, electronic crickets of possibly alien origin sound off and as I travel through the four songs of this second half of the album, Mr. Ayers moves me back into my physical body with free flowing guitar loops and buzzing inarticulate voices straining to communicate in a nonlinear language. Proceeding through a track of clinks and clanks I find myself billowed for a moment in the warmth of a feathered bed. Chiming sounds arrive again, swelling with a warm dissonance. These nightscapes spin me into action even as the detritus of dreams swarm around me. Listening to this album I feel as if my brain is cradled in the capable hands of an esoteric neurosurgeon, proving once again that Nocturnal Emissions will bring me to the edge of a spiritual climax and hold me there steadily. As if in by a primal tantra, meditating on his electric plainsong, I am coaxed back into a promised land of earthly delights.
Long after the album is over memories of beautiful sound swirl in the afterglow.
This LP was released in a limited edition of 555 numbered copies.
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Cuneiform
Hearing Keio Line for the first time engendered the same excitement in me that Sleeper Awakes on the Edge of the Abyss did. That album, co-authored with H.N.A.S. and Mirror veteran Christoph Heemann, witnessed Akita's onslaught of noise mayhem tempered by Heemann's less destructive tendencies. The result was a finely tuned album of abstract noise that revered moments of muted beauty as much as chaotic splendor. Pinhas and Akita have accomplished the same thing on this double-CD, albeit in a completely different manner.
Though not without its more damaged moments, Keio Line is a beautifully quiet and streamlined record boiling over with harmonic and melodic streams of noise. Pinhas' penchant for ambient composition and Fripp-esque guitar takes center stage throughout the record with heavily processed strings and analog synthesizers dominating a supporting cast of varied and mashed instruments. There is no doubt that Pinhas took the lead role on this album. At times the instrumentation is surprisingly naked; the typically wrecked sounds found in Merzbow's vocabulary are laid wide open and exposed for the listener to enjoy. Clear solos thus emerge from layers of confused drum machines and cascading feedback, providing a far more musical dimension than I am used to hearing on a Merzbow record. This added dimension is a boon and one that I hope Akita utilizes on more of his records. With melody and psychedelic bits of ruined machine music complimenting the junk-box destruction most associated with Merzbow, 26-minute songs become approachable entities that command repeated listening. All of Akita's more colorful tendencies emerge very clearly on Keio Line and sync up with Pinhas' aesthetic choices incredibly well. I don't mean to argue that the more typical Merzbow album doesn't require deep listening, but Keio Line is more welcoming and rewarding than the sometimes flat nature of Merzbow's pure noise assault.
There are moments of all-out war on Keio Line, too; this isn't anything like an ambient or less potent Merzbow. On the contrary, all the added dynamism provided by Richard Pinhas makes Merzbow seem more potent and exhilarating. "Fuck the Power (and Fuck Global Players)" is filled with hissing vitriol and rumbling low end, but it's tempered by a never ending ribbon of shuffling paper ruckus and undulating harmonic moans. The interaction of these elements is breathtaking at times. That interaction is also the reason this album has kept my attention for so long. By providing an extra layer of intrigue to the familiar and freeform aesthetic of noise, Pinhas and Merzbow have crafted a shining highlight in Merzbow's ever-growing catalog. It is a clear example of Pinhas' compositional and technical ability and, simply put, one of my favorite Merzbow-related records.
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In referring to this album, Weber writes:”This is an album about love. Everyone has known love, and everyone has known loss. Love is not just about warm fuzzy feelings, although that would be the part people say they like the best. And in any span of time, love changes and means different things to different people.” This album certainly captures the less savoury aspects of love (although track titles like “My Love,” “Forever” and “Champion” are misleading) and there is a palpable sense of anguish here and a bittersweet mood runs through the album’s ten songs. Windy & Carl are never anything if not sombre but Songs for the Broken Hearted is particularly solemn. Vocals feature prominently on this album but are always hushed and deferent to the feel of the songs. Each line is like an element of a dream, difficult to keep in mind after it has passed. Weber’s voice on “My Love” sounds like it is calling from the inner recesses of a memory long crumpled up into a ball and thrown into the farthest corner of the mind; distant yet familiar.
Like 2005’s Dedications to Flea, Windy & Carl tug at the heartstrings using the same approach to guitars that they also use to bring contentment. The sustained guitar notes that they are famed for swirl together to make a dirge for love, the guitar and bass coming together to sound like a mighty harmonium. The album’s highlight, “Snow Covers Everything,” takes all the usual Windy & Carl elements but it resonates even more powerfully than usual (both in acoustic and emotional senses of resonance). I tend to love everything I hear from these two but “Snow Covers Everything” is remarkable even by their standards. From the vocals right down to the twinkling bells, there is not an element in this song that does not sound perfect.
Songs for the Broken Hearted is a haunting addition to an already spectral back catalogue. Windy & Carl continue to impress and move me with their music (and I cannot see that changing in the future). The genuineness of their feelings and beliefs is always apparent in their music, something which separates them from other artists exploring the same tones and approaches to guitar craft. It is possible to connect with their sentiments on a real level when listening to their albums and this is true to a larger extent than normal on Songs for the Broken Hearted. I do not know if I can listen to this album often but I know it will leave a mark every time I hear it.
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