29 December 2002

Administrator

Albums and Singles

Staubgold
F.S. Blumm begins his second full-length album with measured, confidentguitar strumming and fretboard squeaks in a decidedly jazzy numbercalled "Folge." Despite the confidence, the song ends up feeling alittle hollow by the end, as if it never really reached the point whereit had intended to go, a disorientation which is symptomatic of thewhole album. Frank Schultge's polyinstrumental improvisations tend tomeander, sometimes aimlessly. The mood of 'Ankern' is largelyimprovisational, not directional or determined. F.S. Blumm createscompositions which rely on repeated melodic statements that change andflow into other statements. The repetitions between these statementsare like the sips of coffee between bites of morning toast (whole wheatwith the strawberry jam): moderately enjoyable and somewhat necessaryto drench the palette, but once the coffee sits around for awhile, itneeds refreshing. Blumm's music feels lighter on this release than onhis debut 'Mondkuchen.' It hops and it skips without ever reallyplanting its feet firmly in the ground to take a stand. The songs withthe most substance to them, like "Sprung," "Tal," and "Fehlsprung," allshare a cello which gives them some body, some voice, some resonance.These three songs get better with each listen, whereas most of theother songs have a tendency to be too playful and less focused and theyeventually evanesce like vapor. Of the more playful songs, "Abgebildet"is the most memorable with its brilliant guitar lines unapologeticallyending with a sudden cessation. The most delightful sound I heard onthe album was in the background of "Fehlsprung" towards the end, where,if you listen closely enough, you can hear what sounds like thecroakings of a castrated bull frog whose bellows skim across the pondlike a skipping stone. Despite the title, 'Ankern" does not feelanchored enough to hold much ground against Blumm's previous strongwork.

samples:

• Abgebildet
• Fehlsprung
• Sprung

29 December 2002

Administrator

Albums and Singles

Eskaton / Black Sun Productions
'The Plastic Spider Thing' is the name given to a sexual/ritualperformance art piece performed by Black Sun Productions. Black Sunappears to be primarily the duo of Massimo and Pierce—two pierced,tattooed fetish models, avid Coil fans and ex-rentboys. I have neverseen a performance of 'Spider Thing' in person, but from the extensivephotos and video clips on the Black Sun Productions site, it looks likequite a decadent form of theater—live gay sex and bloodletting occursin a room filled with taut plastic webbing. The sex act is turned intoa sadomasochistic, predatory dance of sorts. It looks fascinating, andmore than a little arousing. Massimo and Pierce have also done someon-stage interpretive nude dancing during many of Coil's recentEuropean live shows. Now comes this new release on Threshold House, a"soundtrack" for the performance piece, constructed by Black Sunassociate DraZen and consisting entirely of remixes and mutations ofCoil's recorded output. I would like to report that this CD is asadventurous and perverse as its performance counterpart. However,listening to this release several times, I feel that I may be missingsomething. Working from a palette of colors as vivid and diverse asCoil's, I really feel that something more interesting should haveresulted from a remix project such as this. The 15 tracks herecompletely remove rhythm and structure from Coil, and focus on longambient, droney material. A lot of cheap "Wave Studio" effects areapplied to the music, such as excessive echo, reverb, backwardsmasking, etc. In short, I don't think these remixes were very hard tomake, and I don't think much time or care went into this. DraZen hasslowed down and extended a lot of his "pet sounds" from the Coilarchives, and in the process the songs have completely lost theiroriginal meaning and genius. There are some extraneous heavily delayedvoices added into the mix that just seem rather annoying in thiscontext. The best moments are when Coil's music reaches us relativelyuntouched, as with the "Bee Stings" sample on track six. This releaseis somewhat useless for Coil fans. It doesn't really work as a "partymix", and it doesn't really serve to underscore any new facets ofCoil's original works. Separated from its performance context, itdoesn't work at all, except as a mediocre dark ambient release that youwill listen to once and then shelve.

samples:

• The Spider has to paralyze the Victim
• When the Victim is undressed, the Spider sets him in the desired position
• Hello Victim! Awake! The Victim gets back his freedom

29 December 2002

Administrator

Albums and Singles

Mantra
I became intrigued with the idea of hearing Dot Allison's new recordwhen I read a quote from her citing Psychic TV as a band she reallyenjoys. I already owned her debut solo album, 'Afterglow,' which Ifound to be a guilty pleasure of a sultry, yet simple, pop record. So,the notion that she takes influence from PTV left the impression on methat 'We Are Science' might bear a reflection of the cult legend. Well,I didn't really notice such an influence, but I can report thatAllison's new record is a step away from the mainstream, radio-friendlyleanings of her last album. It kicks off with "We're Only Science,"full of low, throbbing beats, exotic synth-y touches and sexy vocals,and based on this, I was actually expecting a lot from the remainingtracks. While not a complete let down, the rest of the album is not aswell-developed as the opening cut. "Substance," which seems likesomewhat of an attempt to cash in on the current "electroclash" trend,is nonetheless catchy. "You Can Be Replaced" and "Strung Out" embracesome of the same straightforward pop aesthetic found on 'Afterglow,'and remain enjoyable, but unfortunately, the six other tracks arelargely forgettable. They're either slow and sappy or just plainboring. The US version of the album comes with two remixes, one of"Substance" by Felix da Housecat and one of "We're Only Science" byKeith Tenniswood of Two Lone Swordsmen (who also assisted in thealbum's production), both of which turn the originals into cheesy housemusic and are borderline tacky. Dot Allison strikes me as a genuinelytalented vocalist (she formerly fronted early '90s trip hop outfit OneDove) and songwriter. 'We Are Science' is a demostration of thedevelopment of her own style, but she still seems to have a long way togo.

samples:

• We're Only Science
• Strung Out
• Substance (Felix da Housecat remix)

29 December 2002

Administrator

Albums and Singles

Cold Spring Records
Cold Spring might be more recognized as a distributor of dark ambient,neo-classical, death industrial and japanese noise music than as alabel, but as this compilation shows, this is unjustified. 'Chamber' isa fine selection of various neo gothic & post industrial sub genredmusic. The songs are culled mostly from recent releases but there arealso some exclusives like "Hail The Queen," the last track everrecorded by Folkstorm, a remastered version of the haunting"Mitternachtsberg" from Von Thronstahl and a preview of forthcomingalbum by The Days Of The Trumpet Call. The inclusion Mark Snow (knownas composer of the X-Files Theme) and Benedikt Middler is surprisingbut not necessarily unfitting, as their contribution is the title songfrom their score of "Nekromantik," a German splatter movie. Kerovnian,Schloss Tegal, Band Of Pain, Toroidh (the new project of the Folkstorm/ MZ.412 founder), Endrva and Von Thronstahl represent various shadesof dark and black ambient while Ignis Fatuus, The Days Of The TrumpetCall, A Challenge Of Honour dive more into the martial neo-classicalfields once explored by Laibach (and In The Nursery). Laibach are evenpresent with a version of "Die Liebe" from the soon to be officiallyreleased 'Neu Konserativ' bootleg album. The sincerity and powerfulrealization behind the ultra deep traks by Novatron and Sleep ResearchFacility distantly separate them from any 2nd or 3rd-generation "darkambient" cliches. This compilation is more than just a mid-priceintroduction, as it is carefully arranged to be enjoyed as a whole andcomplete piece (especially on rainy days or in the darker hours of theday). There lies much unexpected beauty and love hidden within—and outof darkness there comes light.

samples:

• Von Thronstahl - Mitternachtsberg
• Endrva - Theme for an Imaginary Obsession
• Novatron - Angel

29 December 2002

Albums and Singles

Antifrost
A unique restriction was given to the artists for this compilation; allartists were only allowed to use a limited bandwidth of 200hz for theircontributions. Subsequently, Francisco Lopez, Zbgniew Karbowski, KimCascone, Coti, Ilious, Philip Samartzis and others work their waythrough frequency ranges from 0 to 17002hz. Most remain in the lowerrange from 0-200hz up to 490-690hz (Lopez, PG 13, Karkowski, Coti,Kawasaki, Ilios) while a few step into the middle 991-2298 hz (AS 11,Samartzis, Yoshida) and only Cascone and Jason Kahn work in the highestranges, from 14000hz to 17002hz. While the goal was -not- meant as a"tonal experiment for studio technicians," it requires a very goodstereo system to pick up the barely audible parts some pieces mainlyconsist of. What's lacking, however, is a sense for the extraordinarylike some of the Ash International releases have. Furthermore, theminimal nature of the pieces is puzzling, as they sound like they mighthave originally been completely different tracks simply run over with afilter, cutting out all but the desired 200hz spectrum. It's thislimitation that sometimes prevents a track from ever really gettingexciting. 'Suffer / Enjoy' is theoretically a success but in fact notan album to please anybody other than the hardcore sound experts.

samples:

• Philip Samartzis - Untitled
• Francisco Lopez - Untitled #131
• Jason Kahn - Untitled

29 December 2002

Administrator

Albums and Singles

Hidden Art
If I could leave this year with one thought for each reader to hold, itwould be to consider how lucky you are. How lucky everybody readingthis is to have access to a computer and is literate enough to read,because, even if you're not reading these words on your own computer,you're probably living in a society where you can voice your opinions,vote, read, work, and educate yourself. It's ironic that after threeyears in the making, Grant Wakefield's project is finally availablejust as the USA and Great Britain are making plans to wage war again onIraq. Facts, samples, quotes and narrations alone usually end up in asea of public radio, where the words rarely fall on ears that aren'talready somewhat aware of some of the tragedies that have been carriedout through bombings or years of sanctions and inescapable radioactiveaftermath. What Wakefield has done is piece the words together withexclusive music from Aphex Twin, Bola, Speedy J, Orbital, and a numberof others. The story is arranged chronologically, from the pre-Europeanhistory, through the early 20th century, through events that lead up tothe Gulf War and its aftermath, the music underlines the narration andclimaxes at appropriate points of tension. While the messages at timesfeel somewhat force-fed through hip techno music, it almost feels likeit needs to be at this point, since the gung-ho messages from thewar-mongers is being even more force-fed through the media as news. Itsgoals, as described by the full title, are "deconstructing the GulfWar—a permanent record of the fate of Iraq and a guide to the languageof mass media propaganda." The story is, unsurprisingly more horrificbeyond imagination, with an angle not entirely unlike Michael Moore'sin "Bowling for Columbine," where the media is clearly exposed forbeing manipulated by superpowers and driven by capitalism rather thanfocused on facts and humanity. But don't rely on Wakefield's wordsalone: guests include President Bush (senior), Madeline Albright,Oliver North, comedian Bill Hicks, and numerous world leaders,unidentified soldiers and victims in their own words. It succeeds as acommentary and should be recognized as such. Wakefield isn't crying outagainst evil Western empires nor is he providing solutions forindividuals who do not wish to support the campaigns of their owngovernments. Thankfully, we're fortunate that one of the benefits of USmilitary funding gave us the internet, and Firethistime.orgpicks up where the recordings have left off, providing more informationto read and links for people to get involved. If you love the bands butfeel this is a glorified public service announcement, a second CD hasbeen provided with instrumental versions. Hopefully you will take thetime to hear the first disc out and make up your own mind for yourself.

samples:

• From the Cradle
• The Whore of Babylon(Pan Sonic)
• Say Hello to Allah (Aphex Twin remixed by Black Lung)
• ...To the Grave (Amba)

29 December 2002

Administrator

Albums and Singles

Antifrost
A unique restriction was given to the artists for this compilation; allartists were only allowed to use a limited bandwidth of 200hz for theircontributions. Subsequently, Francisco Lopez, Zbgniew Karbowski, KimCascone, Coti, Ilious, Philip Samartzis and others work their waythrough frequency ranges from 0 to 17002hz. Most remain in the lowerrange from 0-200hz up to 490-690hz (Lopez, PG 13, Karkowski, Coti,Kawasaki, Ilios) while a few step into the middle 991-2298 hz (AS 11,Samartzis, Yoshida) and only Cascone and Jason Kahn work in the highestranges, from 14000hz to 17002hz. While the goal was -not- meant as a"tonal experiment for studio technicians," it requires a very goodstereo system to pick up the barely audible parts some pieces mainlyconsist of. What's lacking, however, is a sense for the extraordinarylike some of the Ash International releases have. Furthermore, theminimal nature of the pieces is puzzling, as they sound like they mighthave originally been completely different tracks simply run over with afilter, cutting out all but the desired 200hz spectrum. It's thislimitation that sometimes prevents a track from ever really gettingexciting. 'Suffer / Enjoy' is theoretically a success but in fact notan album to please anybody other than the hardcore sound experts.

samples:

• Philip Samartzis - Untitled
• Francisco Lopez - Untitled #131
• Jason Kahn - Untitled

22 December 2002

Administrator

Albums and Singles

Those unfamiliar with the comic genius that is Bill Hicks will never get a chance to hear anything new from him. Unfortunately, he died of pancreatic cancer in 1994, never quite achieving the acclaim he so richly deserved. Only after his death has there been an increase in interest about the man from both big personalities (Radiohead and Tool have dedicated albums to him) and regular folk. Hicks wasn't so much a comedian as he was a social sermonist. He would lecture about the many futilities in our twisted, twisted world, about the Kennedy assasination, about US drug policies, and about Sonic the Hedgehog and Clam-lappers Volumes 1-90 (his Blockbuster video receipts showed these as his most frequent rentals). Some of his routines have seemingly been borrowed or flat-out stolen by other comedians (Denis Leary's routines about smoking are dangerously close to Bill's) but no one did them as well as Bill. Unfortunately, there has been very little available from Hicks that truly show the genius of this great loss to comedy. There's a few bootleg videos floating around of him, and a few official ones on Sacred Cow Productions and BBC Channel 4 Video. The best evidence continues to be issued by Rykodisc, who have released seven Bill Hicks CDs, two just recently.

Rykodisc

For the uninitiated, 'Philosophy: The Best of Bill Hicks" is probably a good place to start. It's a collection of tracks from the first four Rykodisc CDs with no added material.

Bill started out rather tame if you consider his later, expletive-ridden, Lenny Bruce-like rants. 'Dangerous' was recorded in New York over several nights, and it's just dead hilarious from the onset. His takes on smoking and drugs, staying in hotels, the state of modern music (George Michael and Debbie Gibson are HUGE targets), and the like may seem dated now, but you can think of more modern equivalents and just wonder what Bill would have said. Considering the fact that the work is over 10 years old, it still holds up very well. Bill shows early on that he doesn't take his job lightly, and that wherever he goes he's takin' you with him, kicking and screaming if necessary. The CD also contains one of several classic Bill Hicks show-enders: a speech about feeding the hungry of the world so we can explore space together. It may seem corny, but coming from Bill it's practically a revelation.

'Relentless,' by far, is my favorite of the series. Some of his earlier material is here, just in a different form. His rants on smoking and drugs have new slants, and his stance on the news, his ideas for stunts in major motion pictures, and his take on the Persian Gulf War are priceless. Plus, they're just as timely today, with the son-of-the-Bush planning to take us in for what Daddy couldn't finish. 'Relentless' also features a new facet to the Bill Hicks aura: music. The last track on the album is a song called "Chicks Dig Jerks," performed by Marblehead Johnson, Hicks' band with producer/engineer/friend Kevin Booth. It's not that great a song, but the way they present it on the album—with Bill seeming to leave the comedy club at the end of the night, getting in his car, and finding the song on the radio—is classic.

Next in the series is 'Arizona Bay,' a title taken from Bill's belief (and hope) that Los Angeles will eventually be "flushed away like the turd city it is" in a major earthquake, leaving ocean-front property in Arizona. This CD was one of two completed mere months before Bill's death, and represents a major step forward. Music is present on this album more than any other, integrated into the album for segues and complete songs. Bill is in rare form, especially his analysis of the LA Riots, which he narrowly avoided to perform a few shows in London. One of my favorite bits of Bill's ever is his scathing diatribe on the Kennedy assasination: at one point he remarks that people always tell him it happened a long time ago and to let it go; Bill's response is "Okay, then don't bring up Jesus to me. I mean, as long as we're talking shelf life here." The music isn't all that great, but considering the fact that it's Bill on guitar it's a pretty good mix. The album closes with yet another classic Bill ending: his Elvis impression.

The last in the original series, 'Rant in E Minor,' is taken from Bill's final performances. It's also his most offensive material ever. Not that it's a bad thing, at all. It has less music, which is also not a bad thing, either, as it leaves more room for comedy. Bill pulls out all the stops on 'Rant' to provide a twisted view of consumer culture. COPS, Bill Clinton, Rush Limbaugh, artists doing commercials, pro-lifers, and religion in general take a firm bashing, as Bill lets it be known that he will tolerate NONE of it. "You do a commercial and you're off the artistic roll call, and that goes for everyone... except Willie Nelson. Twelve-million-dollar tax bill, Willie got a little looser than the rest of us. I just have to turn my head when he does Taco Bell commercials." The rendition of said commercial that follows deserves entry into the Comedy Hall of Fame. It's easy to see why so many prefer this CD, as Bill is at his most honest, like an open nerve exposed for all to poke at and examine. That alone makes for brilliant comedy, but also gives us insight into the man behind it, as well.

The two new releases are unique because of their material, but also because of their circumstances. Where Kevin Booth, Bill's best friend and producer in most everything, was involved in the first five Rykodisc CDs, he's completely missing here, as these sets were brought to life by Bill's family. Bill apparently recorded most every show he performed (standard for a lot of comedians), and those tapes belong to his family, so we are promised more unreleased Bill Hicks material. 'Love, Laughter, and Truth' is a collection of material that cannot be found on the other discs, and, most probably, any of the videos of Bill, either. It is also the shortest of all the releases, with just a little material being highlighted in its forty-five minutes. It also has terrible sound quality, something that the engineers have tried to correct in bringing the CD to light but haven't really made vast improvements on. This is one of those CDs that people will want to own so that they can have the entire collection (I bought it, and several of his videos in PAL format from foreign sources; now all I need is a multi-system VCR). Not for the casual listener, but still fantastic and better than most any comedian you'll hear nowadays.

The crown jewel in the set is the complete and (mostly) unedited Bill Hicks stand-up routine. 'Flying Saucer Tour Vol. 1' is the first in a promised series of such recordings, chosen for their content, situation, and quality. The show is unedited, except for the fact that (perfectly situationally humorous) the tape ran out before the show was over. So, they cut the portion that didn't fit and added the ending from another show. This particular show was also chosen because of the audience Bill was performing for. The powers that be noticed that Bill put on better shows when the audience didn't "get" him, and that was certainly the case more than once. Bill's reaction is by turning into the pale-faced demon he used to proclaim himself and doing his absolute best to win them over. Here and there, he succeeds. But for me, it is yet again a reminder that no matter what happens the show must go on. Bill is having the most horrible show of his life (one of the tracks is actually called "Worst Audience Ever") but he still does his best. Considering that, and the fact that the show serves as an even greater reminder that he didn't ever gain popularity, it's the best of the series. You want to know why Bill was banned from David Letterman? Why Tom Waits says "he will correct your vision"? Why Dennis Miller and Brett Butler call him one of the greatest comedians ever? Finally, you will.

samples from Relentless:

• Sex on Trial
• Smoking
• Drugs Have Done Good Things

 

samples from Arizona Bay:

• Hooligans
• As Long as We're Talking Shelf Life (Kennedy)
• Me & Saddam

 

22 December 2002

Administrator

Albums and Singles

Kitchen Motors
Some of the lucky few reading this might remember Gudmundur VignirKarlsson as the polite Icelandic guy who opened up for Múm on theirNorth American tour earlier this year. His debut album is the firstfull-length by a single artist to be released by Kitchen Motors. Itmight seem somewhat odd for a label whose prior releases have consistedof live and often improvised multi-act collaborations to choose aone-man studio nerd for release, but, for an electronic record, it hasan almost undescribably improvisational feel. While the album openswith beat-friendly glitched up numbers, it's not long before piano,looped and manipulated spoken word, and light environmental sounds(like cows) find their way to the mix. Karlsson isn't satisfied enoughwith the proverbial beats which line nearly every other laptopmusician's albums, so a variety of other tempo-keepingdevices—including a metronome and what sounds like metal cans andpans—are introduced and take over when the electronic beats run theircourse. The melodies are pleasant and unobtrusive, with very littlesurprises, making this a very safe album to have playing on the walkmanwhile enjoying a hot beverage and watching all the crazy holidayshoppers rush in and out of hectic downtown shops. It's peculiar enoughto keep the mind active, making up original stories about where peopleare from, what they do for a living and how couples met. Kippi Kaninus(latin for the muscle that controls the smile) never feels like it'strapped by the rules of chin-scratching glitch or snooty moderncompositional piano, and Karlsson isn't afraid to bring sounds in andout as he feels. He's got an amazing ear for the balance of sounds andwhen progressions need to change and evolve, his only obstacle now isto break free from 3-5 minute passing thoughts and fully develop hismelodies into wonderful, full-bodied, buxom songs.

samples:

• Örbrot
• Livingroom Piano
• My Friend the Trampoline

22 December 2002

Jesse Niemenen

Albums and Singles

Synaesthesia
In a blind taste test, 4 out of 5 people said this was a new RyojiIkeda album. Subtitled "an abstract electronic compilation fromAustralia & New Zealand," here we find various characters churningout digital mulch for your vibrational pleasure. From Xenakis-stylemicromachines to feedback clock chimes, to the VST sausage grindersthat are so popular these days. Speaking of which, there is an alarmingtrend among many musicians of this genre to put out a product thatcould be sold under anyone's name. It is an unfortunate by-product ofmodern audio software that a lot of music emerges with the same zipperysheen. Unlike previous comps coming out of the underside of the world(such as the "set reverb unit to 20, touch your guitar haphazardly andmoan" —a.k.a. "NZ noise" output so widely revered a few years back)this one doesn't establish a regional flavor to the glitch. That said,what we have here is an enjoyable collection of volume swells, feedbacksqualls, clipped rippage and single-ball-bearing-inside-a-water-towermoments. Standout cuts for me were Candlesnuffer, Oren Ambarchi, andNetochka Nezvanova.

samples:

• Oren Ambarchi - Kozel
• Netochka Nezvanova - Poztgenom!knuklearporekomplekz
• Candlesnuffer - Bathe Him In Paper