Available as two vinyl LPs or as this one CD these four solo guitar pieces range in length from around 16 to 20 minutes. On his favored Breedlove 12 string, Cam Deas plays guitar like ringing a (Tibetan) bell and with an intimate intensity that is by turns wild, meditative, melodic and transporting. Within an extended structure he rubs and thrashes the strings into an extraordinary, calm, deliberate, fluttering frenzy.

While the five distinct works that comprise this album have different constructs and varying sound sources, the still, subtle sounds and attention to detail is a constant throughout, weaving together into one consistent document.

With its "fuck you" attitude to any sort of musical or genre conventions and raw, broken four track analog aesthetic, this Ohio duo’s work recalls other artists, but sounds like no one else at all.

Peat Bog—surprisingly not a nom de plume—is a frequent Nurse with Wound contributor, playing with Stapleton's Inflatable Sideshow on Rock 'n Roll Station, An Awkward Pause and other NWW classics. On his own, Bog records as Earthmonkey. His third full-length (and first in four years) is a monstrous double album that finds him in top form, assured and comfortable in his own skin.

Marc Hellner's long-running synthpop/art ensemble is back from their lengthy hiatus and they have made some significant changes. For one, new vocalist Chanel Pease has joined the fold. Also, Hellner has chosen to largely or completely eschew software use, opting to whole-heartedly embrace the fabled and elusive analog sound that I hear so much about. Regardless of how it was made, Charade is Gold boasts some great singles that easily hold their own against the rest of current wave of synthpop devotees.

This is my first exposure to Rishaug's work, but he has maintained a somewhat high profile in Scandinavia though his work with the improv ensemble ARM. On this, his third solo album and first for Dekorder, he seems to draw a lot of his inspiration from the laptop-based drone/ambient of Mille Plateau/Rittornel's golden age. He's admittedly a bit late for that particular party, but he seems to be endearingly and stubbornly well-aware of that. Fortunately, I am quite fond of that particular period in recent music history, so these deep and thoughtfully constructed soundscapes frequently hit the mark for me, despite the fact that they don't bring anything particularly "new" to the form. Good music is good music.

"Molam Dub" unites the UK's Jah Wobble and friends with the European based Laotian group Molam Lao. Molam is the beloved traditional music of Laos, a competitive courtship ritual based on improvised singing and the khene (a bamboo mouthorgan similar to an accordian/harmonica). It surprised me at first just how well the Laotians complement and mesh with the old school deep dub groove of team Wobble. It sounds and feels completely natural as though the two were always meant to go together.

"Beach Fervour Spare" is the second installment of the deep bass journey begun last year with "Deep Space". This time around the band is minus Bill Laswell and Jaki Leibeziet and plus Mark Sanders - drums, Chris Cookson - guitar and production, Paul Schütze - atmospheres and Marc Angelo Lusardi - production and retains Clive Bell and Jean Pierre Rasle. I don't (yet) have the first album so I can't compare the two cds and bands, but there's no doubt that this unit has played together for some time.

Like a few releases recently, I had to take my time with this one for it to make sense to me. I had to figure out what made me like and dislike the album all at the same time. The reason that makes the most sense to me is this: the members of both the LPD and Download camps have become excellent writers while the execution of the recordings seem entirely too rushed and careless.

 Did you get the NEW Kid606 full-length CD yet? The eagerly anticipated follow-up to lastmonth's full-lengther, "P.S. I Love You" rounds up various songskicking around from out of print 10", 7" and unreleased songs. The moodthis time around is one step more bridging the gap between thebombastic noisey and the high pitched squealing sonics (or love songsas Kid seems to refer to them). For a single release, many artistsfocus more on an individual track than a 'concept' that would becarried out over the course of many many songs. In many ways singlescompilations can be perfect overviews of an artist's works. On thistasty CD it works! It sounds great and provides a great way to catch upwith your favorite wonder-boy electronica poster child without huntingdown all those old vinyl singles which are difficult to grab thesedays.

samples:

• Dandy
• Just Another Kool Kat Out Lookin for a Kitty
• When I Want A Gun, Yeah

Fans of Stars of the Lidand Labradford need not be surprised as this album truly sounds likewhat a collaboration between the two groups would sound like. AdamWiltze from Stars has provided his lush soundscapes of symphonicmajesty while Bobby Donne of Labradford brings to the table echoingresonant guitar melodies and even the rare subtle vocals. This discbrings into perspective that Labradford wouldn't be the same withoutall three elements. Mark Nelson's Pan American project coupled with thelive experience of seeing Carter trigger pulses and noises whileplaying the keyboards pretty much completes the puzzle (if you wouldconsdier it a puzzle to begin with!). Aix Em Kelmm is quiet but notwithout forward motion, and growing to be one of my more favoritealbums of the year. Like most music from either camp, it's a charminglisten late at night and a solid record that would easily be able tointroduce fans from either band to the other side.

samples:

• 3x2 (Exit)
• Sophteonal
• Prue Lewarne

The folks over at 4ADhave the weight of two-decade legacy to bear, and Magnétophone is oneof the first new acts to the 4AD roster in years. This Frenchelectronic duo seems to float at the surface in the sea ofelectronicians who merge beats with minimalistic motives. Their firstfew releases consist of a few tape-only's and some 7" singles throughEarworm. This disc here is their debut full-lengther for the 4AD, butit leaves me wondering what the label's motives are for a group likethis. Are enough people paying attention to 4AD these days to getexcited over something that 4AD has never ventured with? I ask thisquestion because in the 80s, people all over the world would pick upanything from 4AD. Another thing I wonder about is if electronic musiclike this is commercially viable enough to warrant 4AD's tendencies togo overboard with packaging and artwork? The CD itself is beautifullypackaged, including a thin scrap of metal, cut in the shape of aMagnetophone logo and a back which half exposes the CD itself. Overall,I'm impressed as the music refuses to get the least bit boring oroverly repetitive. The disc almost sneaks into the genre of the currentelectronic trendy scenester type stuff, but brings with it a muchgreater variety in sounds. There's truly a wealth of sources used inthe creation of this disc. Absent from this disc is the recent trendfrom many to include dub elements. The music is subdued enough to holdyour adoration and punchy enough in spots to keep you awake. In mostparts, it's somewhat improvisational sounding, leading me to believethat a well-practiced live show would be something special to see. Thesongs themselves are rather sophomoric in terms of structure andcomposition, haphazardly tossing in samples and gated effects, almostto avoid boredom - grooves start and diversions are tossed in to breakany sense of monotony. The sounds themselves are matured andwell-defined enough to make me interested in the group to wonder wherethey're going next.

samples:

• Oh Darlin'
• Machine Surrender
• So Much As Hold My Hand

You know how it is, when you experience something so wonderful andsublime, you just need to tell the world about it? Well, since I can't tellthe world, I can at least post it to a group of people who may get somethingout of it.
I've just picked up the newest CD by Nits, a group from the Netherlandswho—in my opinion—bear more than a passing relation to the LegendaryPink Dots. For over 20 years they've been releasing a steady stream ofalbums, each one different from the last, and each one worthwhile in its ownway. When you pick up a Nits album, you never know what you're going tohear. While some of the tracks are invariably throw-aways, most of themare brilliant, heart-wrenching, sweet and catchy.
Here's how I see it: if you take the curious poetry of Edward Ka-Spel andLeonard Cohen, the varied instrumentation of the Dots, pass it through asort of "Minimalism Filter," add the painful sincerity of The Red HousePainters, throw in influences from all over the world and a big heaping messof The Beatles and you get something approaching Nits.
Their newest album, "Wool," follows up "Alankomaat" as ashockingly melancholy and wistful CD. Most of the tracks are slow, jazzypieces (aided by the ZAPP! String Quartet and The Stylus Horns). HenkHofstede's lyrics are, as usual, oblique and observational, but—inkeeping with the recent trends in his music—almost crushingly sad anduncertain. A singer named Leona Philippo sings backup on most of the songs,and I hope that she becomes a permanent Nits member. She swings betweensoulful vocals and a kind of angelic, crystalline sadness. Arwen & Laetitiaare wonderful additions to the group, Arwen's bass helping the noir-jazzsound along.
There are moments of atypical Nits experimentation here as well: the odd,timestretched vocal bridge in "26 A (Clouds In The Sky)," the weird whisperypercussion of "The 'Darling' Stone," the analog "space" noises throughout"Seven Green Parrots," and the absolute croaky weirdness of "Frog," the onlyupbeat track on the CD (reminiscent of the earlier Nits track, "Orange,"which helped to defuse the sad loneliness of another album).
I'm not saying that everybody who likes the Pink Dots is going to likeNits—far from it, probably. But if you see "Wool" at a listening stationsomewhere, or you can convince your record store to play it for you, give"Clouds In The Sky," "Crime & Punishment" or "Strawberry Girl" achance...but beware. While buying up releases by Nits is not nearly soarduous as buying up LPDs, it's still quite a chore, and, in my opinion,equally necessary for my mental health.
And if you're flirted with Nits over the years and haven't decidedwhetherto buy this new one or not, I can't gush enough about how this is myfavourite Nits album so far (excluding the double-live "Urk," maybe).It's cohesive, perfectly &clearly produced, and every song is essential. Not to mention thepackagingis a work of art. Quite an accomplisment for a band known for theirpackaging. Nits website is at www.nits.nl. 

Recorded six years ago, but just released this year, this is a three way collaboration with some of the biggest names who inhabit that gray space between musique concret and harsh noise. The result is an all-too-brief work that covers the strengths of both scenes quite nicely.

I have not heard anything from this French duo since 2008's The World Upside-Down, but their gently roiling and shimmering guitar drone made a big impression on me.  On this, their first full-length vinyl release, Pierre Faure and Thierry Monnier caught me a bit off-guard by taking a much more minimal and much less overtly musical approach.  It definitely took me a while to warm to these changes, as their new arsenal of buzzes, hums, and whirs does not offer much in the way of immediacy, melody, or rhythm. However, there is still quite a lot to like here, as Sun Stabbed have made some significant creative progress over the last few years– it just takes some faith and patience to appreciate it.

Sonic Youth and the Opalio Brothers both share a definite propensity towards ambitious and fruitful international collaborations, so it was pretty much inevitable that they'd wind up occasionally intermingling.  In fact, this live Verona performance is actually the second time that these four musicians have shared a stage, having previously performed with Dead C's Michael Morley in 2008 as part of a French art exhibition.  In theory, the combination of Ranaldo's tumultuous guitar noise, Ponzini's Japanese percussion, and Roberto Opalio's weird sci-fi toys has the potential to be something quite spectacular.  The reality is a bit less than that, but this album definitely has its share of compelling moments.

In contrast to the way I felt about their last collaboration, Space Finale, Big Shadow Montana is a dynamic, ever changing composition that mixes random sounds, droning electronics, and even some actual, albeit odd, passages of music into a perfect soundtrack for a '60s exploitation flick that never existed.

After recently loving the Sun Splitter cassette on Land of Decay, I had high hopes going into this split and they most certainly came through. Their half here stands up proudly with that tape, which is no easy feat, and the Bridesmaid side is no slouch either.

The guys in Weedeater don't have a use for virtuosic solos, blastbeats, tormented wails, or any of traditional heavy metal's idiosyncrasies. Frankly, they sound far too zoned out to care—or at least, I imagine they'd like us to think so, given an album title that winks at opiate use and the tar-black, sludgy riffs that coat their follow-up to 2007's God Luck and Good Speed.

The three movements of Untitled #360 stand out distinctly in Francisco López’s recent body of work, largely due to their sheer sense of force and chaos. With scant information as far as source material goes, my best guess is that he plundered sound effects libraries, especially those aimed at action and horror film productions, to construct this lengthy composition. Rather than radically processing these sources, he instead focuses on layering and arranging them (with tasteful amounts of treatment) to create a tense, audio-only pseudo-narrative that is among the most aggressive and harsh that I have heard from him.