A fictitious bio describes Hank & Slim as a 60+ year old duo fromTexas who collaborated and then had a falling out, moved their separateways and never spoke again. In actuality it's Robin Storey (of Rapoon)and Nigel Ayers (Nocturnal Emissions) and the fictitious story is themost entertaining aspect of this disc. 'The World Turned Gingham' is asomewhat sparse and limited version of KLF's timeless monumentalclassic 'Chill Out'. It's laden with old western tunes twanging away ingated echoes, meshing in with a sparse Angelo Badalamenti-wannabekeyboard background, mixed with radio broadcasts which could be real,but probably fictitious. While the disc worked for unobtrusivebackground noise while filing taxes and recovering from a fatteningEaster dinner, I honestly couldn't stop thinking of how I'd rather belistening to "Chill Out."

 

samples:

• Dark Cloud Lightning
• The Ballad of Marky Martin
• Campfire Catfish

In most places where this is listed for sale, it is called "1", not"nullpluze.nz"; just so you know if you're looking for it. MichaelFakesch (Funkstörung) wrote a glowing review of it, and that is whatmost folks post as a blurb. And why not? Fakesch (and Deluca) releasedit on their excellent Musik Aus Strom, and one can see where it crosseslines with their music. Where Funkstörung just cant seem to helpthemselves in the "I'm-not-gunna-let- this-beat-run-in- straight-meter"tomfuckery, Crunch lets the beats run in straight meter. He picks somehighly digitized sounds and builds with that, none of the 4000 samplesper 3 minutes here. There are changes, great changes, sweeping changeswithin each track even, but it seems more within the scope of thetrack. If you've ever thought or said, "this funkstörung record isgreat but i wish they'd keep a beat and stop showing me how manymillions of samples they have stored", then this is close to what youasked for. Most of the record is decidedly downtempo, eitherhead-noddingly slow, pulse beat or beatless; synth washes are generallyon the somber side, with melodies subtle and often quite beautiful.Most of the programming sounds pretty complex, if controlled.Headphones are recommended for occasional use. Overall, this is verynicely varied electronic music, really one of the best in recent monthsI've heard. Somehow original sounding enough in a genre fast becominghomogenous. If you get the chance, get it on thick slabby double vinyl,in the great sleeve Fakesch got gooey about. I don't have anything badto say about this record and I'm really looking forward to other stufffrom this anonymous outfit. If you want a comparison beyondFunkstorung, none of this would sound out of place on a Schematic MusicCompany compilation. Very recommended. Thank you for your time.

 

"Substancia 3" gathers mostly exclusive/forthcoming tracks from 11artists on Belgium's Quartermass roster: DJ Wally, Bisk, Benge,Freeform, Shudo, Fisherofgold, Mash'ta, Bump & Grind, Rip-OffArtist, Richard Thomas & Jon Tye and Tal. Now I know why I don'town anything from the Quartermass roster. There is variation -illbient, electro funk, breakbeats, sample mania (think Coldcut, onlynowhere near as cool) - but not much of anything of interest. Justtired and tedious sounds, samples, effects and sequences and songs thatgo nowhere. Freeform's "Cantho" wins the coveted 'sucks the least'crown by trading off atmospheric thumps with cacophonous outbursts ofpots and pans percussion. Benge and Fishertogold's space technoofferings grow dull quick. Shudo's "Bringing Together the Best" failsto do that in its mess of drum loops, drone and cliche scratch sample.Richard Thomas and Jon Tye do something a bit more experimental withvarious samples, but in the end it sounds like a funeral march througha pet store. That's it. I can't take anymore. I want to wash my earsout with something good now.

 

samples:

• DJ Wally - I Must Be Mad
• Freeform - Cantho
• Tal - Breaks, Rattle & Roll

While listening to the Trifid Project EP, it became known to me that anumber of email list members have been wondering what Jimmy Plotkin hasbeen up to lately. While the man hasn't been releasing material on thebigger indie labels, a few things have managed to surface. The TriffidProject is a collaborative effort with members of Ant-Zen superstarsCelluloid Mata and Ultra Milkmaids which takes the form of a shortsix-track CD and clear 10" record (limited to 400 copies). It's beenreleased through the young Vacuum label through some unknown agreementwith Ant-Zen. The music is abrupt and attention-grabbing, with quirkysamples, spinning tapes, distorted aggression, processed vocals andchunky beats. While it only stretches about 22 minutes, these are someof the finest electronic manglings I've heard recently — combining awonderful atmospheric makeup with unobtrusive guitar, live bass guitarand coldly calculated, crunchy, intelligent, overprocessed beats.
Atomsmasheris a new group which features Plotkin, DJ Speedranch and David Witte ondrums. While we wait for a full-length release, a pre-release CDR-EPhas managed to find its way into a small number of shops, courtesy ofthe Boston-based noise-loving label, Hydrahead. Atomsmasher, unlike theTriffid Project, is almost pure aggression, with speed-metal resoundingriffage, drilling distorted vocals, and tons of computerized electronicreprocessing. Strangely approaching jazz-like in the way everybodywished Praxis would pursue following their 'Sacrifist' LP. This disc isfairly short too, three tracks and under 10 minutes, but for thesticker price, it's a must-have. Unfortunately its scarcity (limited tosomething absurd like 100 copies) has given this release the potentialto become inflated far beyond the musical value on future onlineauctions. A new full-length should have these tracks. Speaking of thefull-length album, when I looked at this label's website I find nothingon this release or a full-length. What gives, guys? Now you know whatPlotkin's been up to.

 

samples:

• Trifid Project - Zickzack
• Trifid Project - Psalm 66
• Atomsmasher - Placebo

Although firmly rooted in the realm of power electronics, Morgenstern'slatest release tends to use this footing more as a springboard forother ideas and actions, rather than as an end in itself. Unlike Slogunand Control, just to name two others who use power electronics,Morgenstern is using this framework as the building blocks that enablethe exploitation of rhythm, distortion, tribal trance and other,darker, elements. Atmospherically, 'Cold' is all about opposites;aggression vs. meditation (or loud vs. quiet).
The first track, which gives the album its name, is a good example ofthe quiet side of this release. Calm, brooding, trance-like, but in theend very unsettling. This trance atmosphere, with the help of somebackground voices, ushers in the second track, which uses similartechniques to heighten the sense of disquiet. The electronics are alsointensified, so while this is not an assault of the type Whitehousemight produce, the sense of serenity is now missing. This bridgebetween the two tracks also a microcosm of the overall release. Worksslowly build and fade, forming a unique texture and flow. It is thethird song "Hypnotized," however, in which the potential of the firsttwo is in bloom. The distortion is way out there, the rhythm ispounding, driving, and the vocals are handled in such a way as to leaveany goth fan speechless (that and the constant church bell in thebackground). This track is a marriage between power electronics attheir finest, and all the best of Muslimgauze's later distortion, withthe fourth track takes expanding on this theme. Thundering, pounding,weaving in and out, the harsher elements are actually somewhatdiminished here, yet the distortion and rhythm are magnified.Furthermore, whatever is being done with the vocals, both in theforeground and background, is a flowering of pure evil. After a ratherghostly ending, an even harder song, the centerpiece of the album'saggression, "Insight" begins. Here the power electronics are at theirmost impressive, the distortion is constant, and the droney elementsare turned way down, which allows the vocals to take center stage.
The unique flow of this release is then restored on the next song,aptly titled "Interlude." Near playfulness a la Nurse With Wound over aheavy undercurrent. Here we are given time to rest and collectourselves, yet when we become aware of our sonic surroundings, they areno less disturbing than everything that has come before this. On theseventh song the slow build starts again. By the ninth track, after asuccession of builds, the intensity subsides again. Swirling anddreamy, the rhythm resembles the beat of a human heart, and one getsthe sensation of gaining entrance to another realm. The last piece,"Over," brings the listener back to the mood created by the one withwhich Cold began. More rhythmic than the first, but is no lessparadoxical, and just as its title suggests, that is how Morgensternleaves us.

 

samples:

• Eye
• Blow Away My Reason
• Insight

How long after an album is completed does it take to be released? A few weeks? A few months? Red House Painters' sixth full-length album came out earlier this week - three years to the month of its completion, tied up in major label buyout limbo and searching for a worthy new home. Thanks to the folks at Sub Pop for realizing this record, a warm welcome after years since Songs for a Blue Guitar.

Sadly enough, many people have arrived at brainwashed or are now Warp Records fans because Coil, Meat Beat Manifesto and Aphex Twin have crept into their collection through NIN remixes. What most average NIN listener doesn't realize yet is that Reznor's entire act is derivative from Cabaret Voltaire, Front 242, Kiss, 'With Sympathy'-era Ministry and above all, Gary Numan. Watching this man step on stage to a large club packed with about 600 die hard fans is a rather messianic experience. The man has a career half way through its third decade, a fresh and energetic young band and he looks incredible for his age. Numan has always toyed with the part man/part machine persona, so it comes as no surprise his backing group is a talented array of cyber rivetheads, and while his music over the years has straddled genres, it has never lost its anthemic fervor. The crowd went nuts for every song, singing along with every word, reminding me once again that I need to hear more of his post-1984 material. Of course, when suggested, most people will turn away, lumping Numan into a category with one-hit wonders and nostalgic retrospective collections including Culture Club and Kajagoogoo. So he might play "Cars" live, so what? Listen to me: it's good for you (things really only started making sense to me after seeing his live incarnate, I'll never miss a show of his now). There's nothing cheesy, aging or dated about the killer show and those who doubt are only displaying their ignorance. Live dates are posted at www.numan.co.uk.

 

Enough of my reviews have come over the Brian for most of you to realize one thing: my reviews suck. So before I fumble to explain what makes Cowboy Bebop great, trust me on this one fact: Cowboy Bebop is the single greatest story-telling feat of the late-twentieth century.

I finished watching the 26-episode anime series for the second time yesterday and realized that people who dismiss anime as crap were missing out on a gem. Anime has been pretty much dismissed by western-culture as sexist, violent and mindless. And with some of the crap that reached our shores in the early-90's, yes, some of it does fall under that category.

But then there are masterpieces such as Neon Genesis Evengelion, Lain and the entire Miyazaki/Ghibli catalog.

And then there's Cowboy Bebop.

Most of the 26 episodes seem like stand-alone stories that could be watched on their own. And each one could stand on it's own. But all 26 together stand together as a work that I can only compare to Alan Moore's Watchmen as hinting at a larger, deeper picture.
It's hard to describe the show without it coming off as a "I've seen this before" type of sci-fi show. Only they never once spell things out for you, only hint at what's going on. No voice-over explaining how star-travel was allowed by an advanced gate system, or how an accident with one of the gates has rendered the Earth almost-uninhabitable. Instead you have to watch several episodes to get this. You've already heard this story before. Because that doesn't matter. Only the characters matter. By telling their story, does the world they inhabit get populated.

Each of the five protagonists have their own story. And none of their stories gets unfurled the way you would expect from the medium. Most of the story isn't even told, only left for you to guess at.

It's a story about alienation, even among friends. It's a story about how you can't walk away from your past, no matter how many times you stated that you can. It's about how we all know we belong somewhere, even if where we belong doesn't exist. One eye sees the past, one eye sees the present.

Oh, and do not watch the dubbed version if you have a chance. I decided to check out some of the dub on the final episode and none of the emotion came through.
The movie is due out in Japan this summer. I may have to take a trip there just for the opportunity to watch it on the big screen. Guess I'll have to learn Japanese, too.

 

Exactly 57 minutes. Ten songs. Slightly sinister. Very sensual. Damn depressing. Though the title refers to the Eastern supposition that each of us is connected to our one, true love by an invisible cord, 'The Red Thread' unravels a fascinating and devastating mess of frayed relationships and tattered egos. It's like watching a violent movie spectacle: you can't help getting sucked in, as much as you believe in real life you'd turn the other way. Aiden Moffat's lyrics, often muttered or tossed off in a thick Scottish accent, grow gradually decipherable with each listen.

Kandis is the first of at least three monikers to date for electronic artist Jens Massel, his releases as Kandis, Senking and Fumble making up the bulk of Karaoke Kalk's 5 year deep back catalog. This digipacked disc collects 14 tracks from the four 12"s spanning 1996-1999, which seems to be the year Massel retired the project. Honestly, it doesn't much matter which name he uses as the differences among and quality of the music of each is negligible.