18 August 2002

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Albums and Singles

Kimchee
In recent years, forgive my unflattering opinion, it seems that womenin rock forgot how to, well, rock. Piano crap like Sarah McLachlan andFiona Apple can only spawn weaker alternatives, with other femaleartists doing soul rip-offs or beach rock retreads that do not nor cannot satisfy the hunger in our souls to hear a woman who can rock. Andhere, without any warning, comes Seana Carmody of Swirlies fame with agreat solo debut. Sure, she slides into familiar territory on some ofthese songs, and it doesn't necessarily rock you into oblivion, but itdoes a great job of creating a mood and keeping you there. And, on sometracks, most notably on 'Tailgate', the rock happens in a big way, andalmost as a kiss off to non-believers. For the most part, I suppose youcould call this shoegazer rock, as it does provoke that response onmost of these songs. But Carmody has a great voice, and gets so closeto the sound of others without parodying or copying that it comes outsounding completely original and unique. The double-tracking of thevocals allows for minor differences that punctuate some songs on abizarre note, and the saccharine quality that may annoy after a whilefrom some doesn't grate when Carmody expresses it. Mostly, this musicis full, raucous, and moving, with short jabs of loud aggression. Onthe eight-minute-plus closer 'Stay Awake', however, it excels to awhole new level of noise, meandering and crashing on top of itself withan interesting Mogwai-esque sustain, though it seems the noise'spurpose was to add time to this too-short disc. It's an accomplisheddebut of pretty good songs worth sampling, though.

 

samples:

• Mighty Bull
• Sidewalk
• Stay Awake

 

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18 August 2002

Administrator

Albums and Singles

Lo Recordings
The Chap are a new group formed by Karamasov guitarist Johannes vonWeizsaecker. If you heard Lo's _Fresh Fruit_ budget compilation from ayear or two back, this is the Johannes behind the stunning "My MyRock'n'Roll", a catchy guitar number evoking a feel of casualsophistication. The knowing hipness persists on this a 10" mini-albumof original and witty instrumental rock. Having named themselves afterthe modern gentleman's publication which offers advice on the semioticsof smoking and of facial hair, and which has a "sartorial agony" page,they're in no position to deny the accusation that they're pretentious,but frankly this is what I want in a band -- particularly when, as withThe Chap, the pretence is more of a wry smile than a sneering glance.
"Yes" puts a buzzing analogue synth riff over a tight motorik rhythm,but most tracks slow things down, allowing Johannes's cool and noodlinglead guitar work to take precedence. "Exalarm" reiterates the Krautrockinfluence. For an alternative rock group they're more than usuallysonically liberal: a vaguely musique concrete aesthetic comes throughin the choice of the samples that are scattered about, and there's anod to cinema soundtracking in the piano-led "The Creak". It's quite avaried set and a very promising debut.

 

samples:

• The Use
• Ex Alarm
• Yes

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18 August 2002

Administrator

Albums and Singles

Arena Rock Recording Co.
My record collection reads like many other music-obsessed mid-20s malecomputer geeks (let's be honest). I've got loads of laptop generatedmusic, a bunch of jazz (especially stuff on the 'fringe'), some goodol' Krautrock, not to mention the classics: Zeppelin, Floyd, etc, toname just a few of the genres represented on my shelf (but, I am proudto say, no Magnetic Fields or the like). But I'm lacking somethingintegral in my record collection: BLUEGRASS. I was brought up inAppalachia, with bluegrass and old-time music around me my entirechildhood. The lack of Louvin Brothers or Carter family records in myapartment is therefore appalling; I've always liked and appreciatedbluegrass and old-time, and a good banjo player always knocks my socksoff more than a flashy guitar player. So where are my Flatt &Scruggs LPs? It must be city life - how can I ever have "KnoxvilleGirl" in my head when I'm trying not to get hit by cabs as I speedwalkto the subway? All of this is leading up to the fact that I love thisCD by The Boggs, who live in the same city I do and somehow findthemselves inspired to pick up banjo, mandolin, etc and make somedamned fine downhome bluegrass. On the cover of the album, the bandlooks like deceivingly like any other NYC band, possibly one that wouldmake "dance music with a punk edge," but the Boggs couldn't be furtherfrom the typical NYC trend in bands. Though no one is going to confusethe Boggs with Doc Watson or Bill Monroe, this is straight upbluegrass, not 'alt country' or 'bluegrass-infused rock.' Usually, Imake progression a priority in the music I like; that is to say, I liketo use the argument, "Why listen to [new artist making music in an oldstyle] when I could just listen to [artist from 20-18 years ago]?", butI find myself unable to justify that argument with the Boggs. Maybe Ilike them so much because there aren't too many people up north makingmusic coming from an Appalachian influence (though I must admit I don'tknow the true roots of the members of the Boggs). In a city overflowingwith bands aping bands that ape 20 years ago, it's refreshing to hear agroup whose music isn't dictated by their surroundings.

 

samples:

• Whiskey and Rye
• On North Wood Ground
• Beside the Windowsill

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18 August 2002

Jesse Nieminen

Albums and Singles

Soleilmoon
Asmus Tietchens and Vidna Obmana have been collaborating on "recycling"projects since 1995, using each other's work to build uniquetransformations. For this 2 CD set, they have turned their attentionsto a third party. I've never heard Shifts, but I have enjoyed Frans deWaard's other minimalist ventures as Quest and as a member of Beequeen.For "The Shifts Recyclings," Tietchens and Obmana use de Waard'sambient guitar material, and lay out their interpretations across adisc apiece. The two have produced beautiful and strikingly differentresults - it's hard to imagine that these sounds came from the samesource. Tietchens cranks up his electron microscope and focuses oncrackling ice, eyeless subterranean creatures, and earth drones. Thereis a fantastic variety of organic sounds here that hold few hints ofthe source material or the method by which they were created.Tietchens' pieces really seem to occur naturally out of nowhere, andconjure up mental images of strange phenomena. Vidna Obmana's disc is arevelation for me. I don't remember hearing anything of Obmana'sbefore, and didn't know what to expect. While Tietchens' disc exploresthe caves, Obmana's wafts through the upper atmosphere. His first threepieces focus on sublime drones and dramatic crescendoes that build upmightily then subside into a metallic haze. I am somewhat reminded ofCristoph Heemann and Stuart Dempster, but this material seems to havemore of a foundation in classical archetypes. Epic themes seem to behinted, but get lost in the shimmering undulations of sound. The hazeevaporates during the last half of the disc, revealing mournful musicalpassages. The guitar has been forged into a baroque orchestra of brassand strings that strains out a beautiful dirge. "The Shifts Recyclings"is an excellent collaboration, and illuminates the strengths of allthree involved. I'd be interested to hear their interpretations ofless-ambient source material in future "recyclings."

 

samples:

• Asmus Tietchens - T2BS1 3
• Asmus Tietchens - T2BS1 5
• Vidna Obmana - I
• Vidna Obmana - III (reprise)

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18 August 2002

Administrator

Albums and Singles

Touch and Go
There's really a shortage of good prog rock these days, mostly becauseof the overwhelming need for the artists or critics to make each albuma concept record. Good ideas can rarely be carried that far, as NineInch Nails showed on "The Fragile". Really, has anyone accomplishedthis feat as well as Genesis on "The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway"? Sowhat if a band played surprisingly good prog rock but didn't make it aconcept album, and it moved the minds and souls of millions toaccomplish near-impossible feats? Well, The Standard have at leastlanded the first part on this, their second full-length. And I'm notsure I'd call them prog rock, but this album has that general feel allover it to me. The first track opens quietly enough on acoustic guitarand with soft vocals and keyboards, but then rips into loud guitars andkeyboard swells that would make Peter Gabriel blush. 'The Five-FactorModel' starts off stuttering and stopping, but then settles into a nicegroove that carries the wieght of the lyrics ("I could not sustain it","I could not explain it") well. And those keyboards again, ringing andbuzzing with bizarre fluidity and intensity. The album continues withsimilar themes and airy vocals, sounding at times like the best albumRush never made, others like the best moments on the Archers of Loaf'slast studio album which was the best they'd made in terms of structureand power. This is music from a band that will improve over time, buthave made a pretty damned fine start.

 

samples:

• The Five-Factor Model
• Bells to the Boxer
• Paper

 

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18 August 2002

Administrator

Albums and Singles

Redline
A highly anticipated return for this band with many faces. They're thefirst Pearl Jam side project - guitarist Stone Gossard was the first torecord a project without any of that band's members; they're afunk-rock project that Brits loved for their catchy single '20thCentury'; they're the band that named themselves after the guy whoowned the rights to the first band name they wanted, Shame; they're theband that gave Jeremy Toback a place on the alternative rock map sothat he could start his mildly successful solo career. Why so muchanticipation, you ask? Brad's first album in five years, "Welcome toDiscovery Park" is their first for Redline Entertainment, consumerconglomerate Best Buy's fledgling independent label - Prince is alsoone of their few signings. Their tours are always wildly successful,and their albums have sold moderately. And with lead singer ShawnSmith's other two projects, Satchel and Pigeonhed, gone seemingly forgood, Brad is all he's got, and fans want to hear more of him. It showson this release, which is one of its major weaknesses. Smith is theprimary songwriter and performer on most of these tracks, as he hasbeen in the past. However, something's changed. His writing is morepedestrian, more mellow than it has ever been. Gone are the pure funkmoments of earlier releases, and the slower material has nowhere nearthe power of 'Screen' or 'The Full Sentence', mainly because Smithseems afraid/ashamed of his falsetto on these songs, where he has usedit in the past to great success. Admirable touches are added byThaddeus Turner and Elizabeth Pupo-Walker, new to the Brad scene, buteven Gossard seems more subdued than ever or he's taking his cues fromSmith. Plus, Toback appears only on a few tracks, which weakens thealbum's appeal as a group project. This has the feeling of a Smith solorecord that he wanted Brad to be the backing band on, and it's notanywhere near as dynamic. They're not taking any chances. On theirfirst two records, we also got to hear Toback's voice, and Gossard's,on occasion. Not this time. And why not? It certainly couldn't havehurt the record any. I'll still listen, but with caution from now on.This is not the Brad I was used to, that much is crystal clear.

 

samples:

• Shinin'
• Revolution
• Arrakis

 

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11 August 2002

Administrator

Albums and Singles

Warp
The title track of this EP continues in the brutalising, complicatedstyle of 'Confield', which has caused such polarization in the Autechrefan base. Booth and Brown have earned the freedom at this point intheir career to lay down sheer digital noise if they want to, and tosee it consumed in numbers that must far exceed even flagship MEGOreleases. And, like their work on 'Confield', "Gantz_graf" is anauthoritative track that hammers and screams with pure digital flavours.
Those uncomfortable with the possibility that they're hearing "curated"generative work will be disappointed with the title track—but to ignorethis release would mean missing out on two much more traditional,structured tracks which will certainly appeal to fans of their earlierreleases. The high-speed "Dial." beats out constantly evasive drumpatterns, with myriad pads bleeping their way through their own equallybewildering sequences. A segue into "Cap.IV", and we're treated to morechunky percussive wizardry and a trademark Ae chord progression whichcontests, towards the track's end, with unintelligibly fast sequenceblurs. Fans will be happy.

Warp pulled out the stops by issuing a special version of the EPcontaining both the music CD, and a DVD, for approximately twice theprice of the CD. (Thankfully they opted to package it in a double-depthjewel case rather than in oversized DVD packaging.)
Alexander Rutterford's video for "Gantz_graf" synchronizes thehigh-speed mutations of an abstract, jagged, and, well, futuristic CGIobject with the music of the titular track. Very impressive. There'salso a slide show from the video—a nice addition since the images flashby so quickly. Chris Cunningham's famous "Second Bad Vilbel" video wasan early taste of the robotic imagery exploited in Bjork's "All Is FullOf Love", with an insectoid robot cavorting about in menacing fashion,seen through security camera visuals. It's had a nice facelift that hasadded more musical synchronization, and has got rid of the dodgy aliencreature which spoiled the original. The "Basscadet" video, which Ihadn't seen before, hasn't stood the test of time as well asCunningham's, using as it does the same CGI technology as all thosepo-faced X-Mix collections full of bad ambient techno videos thateveryone seemed to be buying in the early to mid nineties. It's not badgiven all that, and certainly avoids the hippy rubbish seen in mostvideos of that era.
In sum, no-one would be well advised to rush out to buy a DVD playerfor this, but if you have access to one, it's worthwhile—especially ifyou haven't seen Cunningham's excellent video before.

 

samples:

• Gantz_Graf
• Cap.IV
• Dial

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11 August 2002

Administrator

Albums and Singles

Elefant
Released last year, this double-CD compiles tracks recorded over anumber of years in tribute to one of the most influential bands of thelate 1980s. Whils I have always loved Galaxie 500, it's strange toconceive that the three members, pursuing useless post-graduate degreesin the most prestigious Ivy League school, probably hadn't evenimagined what sort of impact they would have on the rock community,subtly combining surrealistic post-VU art-rock into a melancholy mixthat was noisy enough for the indie rockers and dark enough for thedesperate goths looking for a way out. Following their almost legendaryunamicable split in 1990, a rash of shoegaze and slowcore acts seemedto emerge, further attempting to tie similar precious binds betweendivided scenesters. Coincidence? This set is rather atypical in thefact that most of the tracks seem to be culled over years ofrecordings, rather than curated and commissioned by a label boss whoreally wants to get their fave artists to do versions of some of theirfave songs. Thus, there's both a lot of repeats and a decent amout ofmusical variety, strangely enough almost mimicing various artistcompilations once released on Shimmy Disc (a label run by Galaxie 500producer, Kramer). It's similar in the fact that on a Shimmy Disc comp,it would be an almost inconsistent mess of people: some who only everseem to pop up on random compilations, some who I was fond of, some whoI've heard of but not from, and some who will never be heard fromagain. While there's almost no comparison to the feel of the tunes intheir original forms, a number of these groups do indeed do a sincerejob of paying homage. The music on disc one seems to drag towards themiddle, however, especially when Trains and Boats and Planes entertheir sixth minute of "Spook," leaving me to wonder that age-oldquestion about "why expend on the styles set forth on the original whenyou can easily put a far more original take on the songs?" Luckily disctwo has a wider variety of both electronics-based and guitar-based actsand, from track to track, holds my interest longer. Be warned, however,that Sugar Plant's version of "Sorry" was recorded way back in 1994,while ISAN's version of "Strange" has no date attached&$151;neithersound remotely like what each band sounds like today. Neither MusicalChairs nor The Pribata Idaho seem to do my fave G500 track, "Fourth ofJuly" good enough justice while Seely do a fine job with "PlasticBird," leaving me wondering what's the deal with them these days? (HasScott Herren become too big with Prefuse, Savath + Savalas, andDelarosa and Asora to be a part of a cool rock band any more?) One ofthe things I can't get over is that I find it rather odd to own atwo-CD tribute to a band who only recorded three albums. At thediscounted price, however, there's really enough good material to beworth it.

 

samples:

• Hefner - Oblivious
• Seely - Plastic Bird
• Portastatic - Tugboat

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11 August 2002

Administrator

Albums and Singles

Robot
For any NWW or Mirror fan who has yet to own anything from Organum, orcurious onlookers who saved their money from expensive eBay auctions ofthese two limited CDs the first time around, now's your chance tofinally get a piece of what made Organum so damned cool andcollectable. Both discs center around the material originally releasedby L.A.Y.L.A.H. and United Dairies from 1985 through 1987, where DavidJackman pretty much started releasing full albums'-worth pieces ofmusic as Organum. Long before software was making noise, Jackman (andpossible yet unnoted other members) would construct evil, abrasive, yetgorgeous noise symphonies from abusing objects and mis-playinginstruments, stretching vocal noises and crating a myriad of soundeffects, not entirely unlike a number of his contemporaries. Jackman,however, would weave the noises into a long, droning tapestry ratherthan shuffle through numbers of instruments like what the NWW camp wasdoing. Perhaps it is through this type of influence that Stapletonbegan to evolve from the choppy early cut ups and experiment more withlong soundscapes, as is heard on NWW's "A Missing Sense" (which was theother side of "Rasa", included here on Volume One).

 

Some of these lengthy pieces also unsurprisingly serves as an excellentprecursor to much of the non-new age drone music created by some of thevarious members involved. Jackman is joined by members of The NewBlockaders for the super-abrasive "Valley of Worms" from 'In Extremis',whose tracks straddle both releases while Andrew Chalk (Mirror, Ora,solo) teamed up with Jackman for the recording of the tame, hauntinglysubtle, yet no less intense "Horii" (on Volume Two). Appropriatelyconcluding the two-disc set is "Ich Reiste Weil,..." which, althoughfrom 1989, uses a number of similar elements as the earlierL.A.Y.L.A.H. recordings. The artwork is untampered from the 2000releases of these discs, however, at a basic black, none of theoriginal artwork from the 1980s remains, but hey, they're not going for$18 any more! Once again, however, these releases are limited, withoutany assurance of a re-press. Don't say I didn't warn you.

samples:

• Incarnate
• Rasa
• Horii

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11 August 2002

Administrator

Albums and Singles

Spiritualized mastermind Jason "Spaceman" Pierce was all too public about firing essentially all of his bandmates after the tour that produced the Live at Albert Hall album (he wisely kept Coil co-conspirator Thighpaulsandra, though). However, instead of letting it get them down too much, the crew struck back and reformed under the moniker of Lupine Howl. "Vaporizer," the latest single from their Carnivorous Lunar Activities album sounds more like a forced attempt to recreate the Britpop funk of Shaun Ryder's Black Grape than the beautiful noise of Spiritualized.Vinyl Hiss

While a bit too reminiscent of Ryder's kidney-swapping-for-crack anthem for my tastes, the single stays in your head just long enough to stick. Massive Attack's own 3D remixes the track without changing the flow of it all that much, which is disappointing considering the potential it could have had. The b-side "You Get Inside Me" is a muddy little hunk of garage band glitz, swapping cleaner atmospheric verses with dirgey choruses. I can't imagine myself listening to this single nearly as much as their cinematic work in Spiritualized, but they do deserve credit for not just trying to imitate Pierce's bizarre and unique vision. Rather than allowing themselves to fade into obscurity, Lupine Howl has settled for something a little better than mediocrity.

samples:

• Vaporizer
• Vaporizer - 3D Mix
• You Get Inside Me

 

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