- Administrator
- Albums and Singles
Some of the nicer sections include the untitled opener, with its hauntingly spacious vibes, as well as the eerie lengthy instrumental beginning “Magic Yam Part 2.” I also enjoy the bursts of dissonant rock that often show up unexpectedly on songs like “Pirate” and “Ciabatta,” and I wish those moments were more frequent.
Much of the album has a slow pace, which isn’t a bad thing in itself, but many of the songs have too many dramatic pauses and gaps, as if the group is playing under the weight of some transcendental state that unfortunately doesn’t translate well to this recording. There are places where the instruments are playing in different time signatures, making the moments when they hit together that much more meaningful, like on “Puppies,” but often these sections drag on after the catharsis has passed, diluting their impact. And some of the songs, particularly “1234,” just seem to plod on far too long.
I appreciate the group’s unconventional song structures and the chances they take with such unusual dynamics, but I couldn’t help but feel that the results are a little disappointing.
samples:
Read More
- Administrator
- Albums and Singles
Jagjaguwar
I get absolutely no images, no rush out of this album unless the band is slowly plodding through ground I've already heard covered. I hate to say it, but despite the bluesy riffs and the rather country swagger that plays out behind the band's guitars, there's nothing that really attracts me to this band. On a couple of songs, Ladyhawk sound like an inspired band that's yet to bloom. On the rest of the album, they sound like band that wants to relive the favorite parts of their youth through the wail of feedback and the thump of swinging drums. Part of my dissatisfaction comes with how unbound the record is, being divided into several distinct parts. The first third is a visitation by ghosts of the grunge revolution: all distortion and pop structures rethought, the first few songs belong to the early 90s. The next two thirds are variations on country rock music and the lineage of the Byrds or The Flying Burrito Brothers. The songs just aren't powerful enough to carry that theme and in the end the album falls apart because the band is unsure of which direction to head in. Even worse, there are times when the two almost merge and those moments are outright embarrassing.
"The Dugout" sounds like my radio did when I was in junior high school. A chorus is followed by a verse ad infinitum with a bridge tossed in for good measure, just so the audience doesn't fall asleep from the repetition. My attitude towards this song doesn't stem from a dislike for good pop or rock music, it's just a result of hearing too much of the same thing for too long, most of it done with less skill, talent, or power than the original performances. Though I haven't had the inclination to give the lyrics a whole lot of my attention, their delivery reminds me of all the songs I heard around that time that dealt with the usual in the most usual of ways: heartbreak, loss, loneliness, depression, and all the usual suspects portrayed as the result of youthful ignorance or devious loved ones. I could be wrong and all these lyrics could be wonderfully written bits of poetry, but what does it matter when they're dragged through the same old sludge of woe and histrionics?
When the band slows their music down they're slightly more tolerable. In these relaxed moments they portray their intent more skillfully, showing a proclivity for epic songwriting and intensity through gentle progression instead of speed or volume. "Long 'Til the Morning" is an outstanding song, the only outstanding song on the album.
While this makes listening to the album more than once a bit easier, it does nothing to save it from its hero worship. If I wanted to listen to any of the music Ladyhawk plays, I could easily go to my collection and pick something out that not only acts as the origin of Ladyhawk's sound in some way, but is far more entertaining and worthwhile. There's no need for another record of music we've heard before, especially when this record has been released before, in several versions, over a course of 30 years, to much better effect.
samples:
Read More
- Administrator
- Albums and Singles
This self-titled release is better than I was expecting. The best way to describe it is elemental. The single track starts off sounding like a distant avalanche that progressively gets closer and closer. Gary Morrison, the man behind Papercut, shows a lot of patience, not going for the money shot too soon. Instead he slowly builds up peaks of noise before setting up a bass heavy lull. He repeats this over the thirty minutes using different textures. As it goes on there are sounds like icy winds roaring through the speakers. These sounds dissipate and low growls and squeals of feedback come to the forefront. The music is constantly changing, Morrison stops himself from getting stuck in a routine.
The last four or five minutes of the CD is seriously heavy. Pops and farts of fuzzy noise bubble over an intense roaring rhythm. It rounds off the track nicely, the preceding 25 minutes teased me along and this blast of power at the end provides the aforementioned money shot. The structure of the piece indicates that this wasn’t a random composition of odds and ends of tape but that there was some sort of outline that Morrison was following, giving a stronger piece overall.
As I expected from the name of the label, this release is heavily indebted to everything that was ever released on American Tapes, right down to the painted CD-R. I think it’s great that this sort of music is having an effect on artists but at the same time Morrison hasn’t really pushed the genre in any direction. It sounds great but at the end of the day there is little to separate this from the likes of Hive Mind or Wolf Eyes (when they’re having a good day). There are flashes of inspiration during the CD so I cling to the hopes that future releases will reveal more character and innovation.
samples:
Read More
- Administrator
- Albums and Singles
This remix collection assembles an improbable group of producers and musicians to deconstruct and rearrange songs from the Knut back catalog. Justin Broadrick, Dälek, Mick Harris, and Oren Ambarchi are among those who are along for the ride.
Being entirely unfamiliar with the source material for a remix project is often for the better. Remixes tend to have the weight of expectations to deal with and often I find that the most interesting combinations on paper turn out to be the least interesting coming from the speakers. The fact that I know virtually nothing about Knut made Alter work for me in a way that it's not liable to for fans of the band, but that's probably for the best.
The remixes on Alter span a wide range of styles from noisy cut ups of the original tracks to versions that take just a few samples and create something altogether new, to versions that make Knut sound like a guest artist on someone else's record. I like this approach, but it can seem a little schizophrenic when listening to the whole record at once, and obviously some takes are going to work better than others.
Dälek and Justin Broadrick turn in mixes that sound as though they could easily be Dälek or Godflesh songs with someone else singing, which is fine with me and allows producers with a well-established sound to stamp their mark. The Spectre mix is a surprisingly sloppy piece that kills any potential with electronic drums that are stiff and out of time, but more experimental takes on the source material from Francisco Lopez and KK Null work pretty well. Lad + Andres submit a mix that makes me nostalgic for the slickly produced techno metal of late '90s Fear Factory, while the remainder of the tracks all offer something worth a listen.
A project like this is destined to have highs and lows and to have some issues with the tracks flowing like a regular album, but in the end Knut's remix project has made me interested in checking out the original material that inspired it so that feels like a mission accomplished to me.
samples:
- Spectre - Psychopathic Engine
- Ad's - Repressed Babylon
- JK Broadrick - h/armless
Read More
- Administrator
- Albums and Singles
Common to all three is not only the warmth of Carter’s pieces, but also the way he fills the space with whatever instrument he’s playing. Carter uses a steel string acoustic guitar on “Glyph 1” to make simple statements augmented with inspired flourishes. He makes it easy to imagine a languid summer’s day both rich in the freedom it provides and yet stifling in its oppression, paradoxically providing impetus for action yet making only the most deliberate actions practical. He goes slower with a lap steel guitar on “Glyph 2,” which is by far the longest song on the album. Here he pursues resonance and drones, conjuring shimmering textures that are the musical equivalents of a heat mirage. As the song progresses, he frequently treats the guitar like a percussive instrument, culminating in a passage that sounds like he’s beating its surface in addition to the strings. “Glyph 3” features a nylon string acoustic guitar this time, a brief song that almost sounds like some sort of gypsy raga. The busiest track of the three, perhaps it reflects the energy and anxiety that goes along with moving to a new city.
Glyph is the perfect accompaniment to sitting in the shade on a hot summer’s day with a cold drink and all the time in the world before me.
samples:
Read More
- Administrator
- Albums and Singles
The first disc reveals the group's rattling, rusted electronic underbelly. "Montana Morning" sounds like a mechanic working on some of the instruments until a flute or a saxophone arises, accompanied by high-pitched pulses and muted drums. Supersonic beeping and feedback start "Isopropyl Ocean" with minute variations until a clattering cymbal propels the song forward. At over half an hour, this song doesn't come alive for me until the convulsions of the latter third or so. The last track on the first disc is mainly composed of a percussive drone and metallic percussion that could be a dead cymbal, underpinned by some blistering electronics that appear only too briefly and a saxophone that never really makes enough of a statement to make its influence felt.
If the first disc comes across as a warm-up session, the second disc finds the group firing on all cylinders. A hypnotic electronic pulse with subtle machine-like washes underneath begins "Cosmos," which after a few minutes is joined by a weird distorted line that elevates the song to a fantastic new level of otherworldliness until some disruptive static domineers the track until its close. "John the Baptist" is the rhythmic centerpiece of the second disc, if not the entire album. Starting with squeals and whistles, drums enter before long and provide a primitive rhythm that anchors the song, leaving screeches, various electronics, and static to enter and leave the mix as desired. The rhythmic changes are subtle but ultimately provide the most movement on which to focus attention. "Seven Spaces of Empty Place" sounds like a gurgling steamship about to sink, even ending with what could be an underwater S.O.S. bubbling to the surface.
At times the recording quality leaves a little to be desired, including occasional thumps against the microphone, and I wish that some of the noisier parts could have been balanced more evenly in the mix, especially on "John the Baptist," but overall such considerations didn't significantly affect my enjoyment of the songs. The album is a valuable document, and the second disc in particular is a stunning achievement.
samples:
Read More
- Administrator
- Albums and Singles
This album is no accident, as Kid 606 even provides the BPMs on the back sleeve for all the DJs and wanna-be DJs of the world, keeping most of the eight songs around the 120-130 range. Additionally, 606 makes 909 and 303 sounds work for their supper, using the classic handclap sounds, bass kicks, and snappy snare. ADHD sufferer fans be warned: if there's one thing that separates this from his early albums is that he's exploiting themes and keeping them consistent through the entirety of the tracks instead of changing his mind continuously after a few measures.
After an engaging opening, "Let It Rock," "Chickenfight" stakes its claim as a dancefloor smash. Clocking in just over eight and half minutes, its usage of a steady pulse, sonic reverb, and electro rim shots are powerful enough to woo any Bpitch fan. The tweaked bassline makes it sexy and the party chant samples makes it human. "Boomin'" is the ultimate dancefloor stomp with a relentless bass kick. Here's where some sung vocals come into the picture, continuing through the following "Meet Me at the Bottom," and later "T.Y.T.R.," both with vocals distorted and raw enough to be something that DFA fans would eat up in an instant. "Comeuppance," on the other hand, with its steady beat and chopped up vocals is the sound the Chemical Brothers could have had if they didn't keep getting worse over the years following their second album.
The album concludes with the downtempo "Oakland Highsiding," which isn't quiet by any means, incorporating a swaying dub influenced beat infected, with plenty of echo, viral 303 acid sounds, and funky guitar samples. My only complaint is that at 4 minutes, it's about three times too short. There is something to be said for brevity, however, as 43+ minutes seems short enough to allow endless looping until each of the eight songs are memorized. If I ever make it to the beach again this year I know Pretty Girls Make Raves will be a prime candidate for the slow drives around town with the windows down low.
samples:
Read More
- Administrator
- Albums and Singles
Pohlitz is multifaceted but not convoluted. The complexity of the music is down to the amount of detail packed into each piece. Strønen pushes the percussion not to a hideous level where only another percussionist could appreciate it but far enough to impress.It sounds like each track was recorded and worked on meticulously in the studio afterwards but this is not the case. The entire recording was performed live with no pre-programming and with no overdubs so what is on the CD is exactly what Strønen played in the studio.
“Ingenious Pursuits” is a storm of delicate sounds, like a pair of marimbas making love. A solid rhythm flows through the piece with chaotic but controlled percussion and various electronic squawks and blips dancing around it. This essentially describes the entire album but it’s not as repetitive as it sounds. Each piece has its own identity and Strønen seems adept enough not to play the same sort of beats all the time. He allows himself to try different techniques. The beautiful “E… Quilibrium” is frantic but gentle. It is quite stripped back compared to the rest of the album, there are no electronics or instruments other than what sounds like a collection of glassware and pots. The sounds nearly form a melody and the experience is almost trancelike. It fades out unnoticeably into “Mutti” which continues the frenetic rhythm before crashing to a halt and morphing into a metallic pulse. The shift in tone caught me off guard. This playfulness adds another quality of enjoyment to Pohlitz.
The closing piece, “Natural History of Creation,” is nearly nine minutes long and is the highlight of the album. Strønen slowly builds it up from a simple beat, adding more notes and fills to the beat as goes along. Before long it sounds like there’s a percussion ensemble playing as phrases are looped. When the song gets into full swing the music is hypnotic. There are so many elements to concentrate on that each time I listen to it I find a different path to follow. It is a stunning finish to a fascinating album.
samples:
Read More
- Administrator
- Albums and Singles
Deathbomb Arc
Drootin's whimsical approach to electronic music is fun, a mix and mash of science fiction and b-movies, maybe with a little comic book flair for good flavor, but Dinosaur Dinosaur sounded a little too typical at points to really emphasize and utilize the creativity Drootin labored so hard for. Throw Down Your Laptops is a bit simpler, a little slower, and all the better for it. Drootin economizes on this record, saving crazy moments for just the right time, pacing himself towards groovy, bass heavy outros and capitalizing on the power of simplicity. This early on, Drootin had this idea of "beatpunk" in his head and it makes more sense on this record than it does on Dinosaur Dinosaur. For one, Drootin actually sings on this release, screaming sometimes, and he sounds like a punk right out of the late 70's. When cast against the background of his thumping beats and shifting melodies, there's little doubt about where the punk in this music is.
Portions of this record sound a little off, a little out of sync in terms of musicianship, despite the fact that Drootin uses almost nothing but machines to make his records. A good example of this is "Hey Typical," a track that is almost all drum 'n' bass flavored percussion mixed with a flurry of keyboards and hi hat skips that sound like they're just a little off time, a little behind the rest of the music. It's a strange effect, giving the record a live feel when all the rest of its qualities suggest careful organization. The album is contrived, but is just left of center enough to sound completely sporadic. At moments the music will be solid, a consistent blend of dark drums and organ synthesizers, and the next it will be a claustrophobic explosion of ping pong balls and loose bolts. Despite its robotic themes and sci-fi elements, the album is easy to get into, less influenced by experimental electronic music and more directly related to the chill out music made popular by The Orb. Only this stuff is driving, it's beauty coming in how simple it is, how easy it is to pick out every note Drootin programmed. Drootin hits hard on this record and gets a big thumbs up out of me for it. His directness and love for pounding beats shows more on Throw Down Your Laptops; that makes it more fun to listen to. Drootin sounds best when his talent can keep up with his whacked up imagination.
samples:
Read More
- Administrator
- Albums and Singles
The first side is contained between two brief instrumental pieces. The bluesy fingerpicked guitar of "Torn By Wolves" at the beginning and "Wolves' Pup" at the end are each based on the same melodic theme, with the intro version prominently exhibiting drums and percussion by fellow Comets on Fire cohort Noel von Harmonson. In complete contrast to Chris Corsano's drums on last year's School of the Flower, Noel's drums sound more comfortable and collaborative, as if there's an actual band named Six Organs of Admittance this time around, and it's not simply a vessel for Ben Chasny. This isn't an isolated incident, as Noel goes on to appear on nearly all the other songs on The Sun Awakens, often joined by John Connell on Persian wind instruments the daf and ney, and Tim Green on tone generators. Lyrical vocals are spare but when they appear, they're not the crisp and clear, springy vocals we're used to hearing from Chasny, but lower and more treated on the mellow "Bless Your Blood," and higher and more sinister on "Black Wall." The ensemble are a powerful force on these four inner songs, providing both a pulse and drone to Chasny's acoustic virtuosity and distorted electric mayhem. The sound is rounded out with organ (unlisted I think) on "Desert Circle" and a punchy rhythm on the climax of "Attar."
Side two is filled with the nearly 24-minute "River of Transfiguration," described as being inspired by Hermann Nitsch, but I find it much more rewarding and less abstract. The complete ensemble is collected here, joined by a few extra vocalists, and over the course of the song patiently build a both poweful and sad aural monument. Perhaps it's the visual cues like the images on the front, back, and inside or the Persian wind instruments but its sound and feel reminds me of the Iranian scenes in the Exorcist where evil was unearthed from the desert. The guitars are heavy with effects, the drones are low and rumbling, the vocal melody is sad and steady, while the drums stagger like the gunfire of a battle. When the drums end it's as if the battle is over and the landscape is filled with nothing but dead bodies and wind: the vocals hum and the wind instruments play faint as they slowly fade to silence.
I don't find myself singing along with as many songs as I have in the past from Six Organs. When The Sun Awakens is finished, the effect is nearly the opposite: I'm left almost completely speechless and need to remain in silent reflection for a bit. This is a truly brilliant record.
samples:
Read More
- Administrator
- Albums and Singles
Tom Johnson summed up Niblock with “No melodies, no harmonies, no rhythm, no bullshit” and Touch Three lives up to this great statement. On all three discs there is contempt for anything resembling traditional music yet it is nonetheless entirely musical. It’s hard to describe but that’s what I’m here for. Each track hovers around the 20 minute mark and all have one thing in common: they feel like something huge is going to break but they never deliver. Instead the music is like eating a piece of chocolate very slowly, allowing it to melt without chewing it. In the end it is far more satisfying and rewarding than the easy hit.
Each piece is composed of several recordings of a single instrument edited together to create a constant roar. The pieces utilising stringed instruments like “Harm” and “Valence” are the easiest to get into. This is probably because I’m used to hearing cellos, violas and guitars looped into drones. “Sethwork” adds an unusual twist in acoustic guitar playing with the utilisation of an ebow, a device more commonly associated with the electric guitar. On an acoustic guitar it lacks its distinctive tone and takes on a more resonant quality. It is not just the sound of the sustained notes that are used: the sounds of the ebow hitting off the vibrating strings give a creaking effect that is unsettling.
One instrument which I never thought I’d hear used to create a powerful, droning force is the recorder. This instrument brings back memories of learning how to play nursery rhymes in primary school. This clashes with the recorders on “Lucid Sea” which are as far away from those nursery rhymes as possible. Here they are layered to form a hulking mass, far denser than I expected. The recorders sound more like a pipe organ. I’m always impressed by pieces like this that make me re-evaluate my feelings about certain instruments, especially ones that I normally dislike.
The pieces incorporating saxophones are tougher to digest. “Alto Tune” at first seems thinner than the other pieces on Touch Three. It still holds the distinctive Niblock uncompromising fullness but it takes time to get going. As more and more layers are introduced, the piece becomes gentler even though it is louder. The different tones add up to what sounds like an accordion orchestra. The other two saxophone pieces, “Zrost” and “Sax Mix,” are both slow burners (relatively speaking, Niblock seems to measure time in eras, not minutes) but build up to give similar results to “Alto Tune.” “Sax Mix” in particular sounds impressive as Ulrich Krieger plays alto, tenor and baritone sax which provides a wider palette for Niblock to use.
Three discs of drones could easily end up being unnecessary and tedious but this album is a monument to what a great drone should be. Niblock has constructed solid and richly textured slabs of sound that get better with volume. Turning up the volume knob reveals more of the fine detail of music, the little effects that are the result of the sound waves interacting in the room. Touch Three is a very strong release and shows that Niblock is still far from past it.
samples:
Read More