|
Jack Dangers, "variationes espectrales"
Series 7 is a project on the UK-based label Bella Union, formed by former Cocteau Twins Robin Guthrie and Simon Raymonde. Over seven releases, seven artists will take seven days to record seven songs. The Meat Beat Manifesto founder/front-man's contribution is probably the closest he has ever come to the Meat Beat sound while recording as Jack Dangers. While it's hypnotic and infectious and a much anticipated sound, it's not, however, a Meat Beat record. The beats are here, Jack's production has without a doubt presented for our listening pleasure that signature sound fans all know and love, but there's something just not quite there. It could be the absence of sung or vocally sampling tracks, strong lead instruments, or heavy tune riffs. This isn't a bad thing, however, as it seems to be that the goals of this series is to harness what these few musicians are able to come up with in a short time without countless chances to change, modify, retouch, etc... It's enough to wet my personal appetite for now while we wait patiently for the next big MBM offering. - Jon Whitney
samples:
Giuseppe Ielasi, "5 Tracks;" Giuseppe Ielasi and Domenico Sciajno, "Right After;" tu m', ".01"
The "5 Tracks" CDR, published in a tiny edition of 100 copies in a beautiful silver-on-black circular sleeve, documents a solo guitar and electronics concert by improvising guitarist Giuseppe Ielasi in Athens, Greece. Ielasi's improvisations do not contain many typically instrumental gestures; every track sounds like a composed piece of tape music, with careful attention paid to the stereo field and to sudden shifts in dynamics and texture. Only a few times do we hear a recognizable volume pedal or a hand rubbing some glass on a guitar string. For the most part, the level of detail and patience here are the kind most often found in meticulous studio creations. The high point for me is the fourth track, a lengthy piece that starts as high tones and feedback and very slowly (VERY slowly!) adds percussive elements and crackling synthesizer; the sense of assured calm that pervades every piece is rare, and just wonderful. There are certainly affinities between "5 Tracks" and Kevin Drumm's seminal "Guitar" CD, but I don't think any improviser with an interest in electronic music wasn't inspired in some way after that album came out.
Recorded after "5 Tracks', the "Right After" CD does not appear to contain any guitar at all (at least, not according to the credits). Ielasi's partner on this album is Domenico Sciajno, formerly a bassist and currently one of the most musical and interesting of all improvising laptop players. Sciajno's computer and Ielasi's electronics (a tableful of gadgets, I imagine) are integrated here into a seamless single voice. I can only assume that the music is improvised due to the history of the publisher, Erstwhile Records, but if I had no such background I might not guess as much. If "5 Tracks" only occasionally belies its uneditted live and improvised nature, "Right After" does not at all. The high sine tones are out in force right from the start, which can be either exhilirating or annoying, depending on your patience for such things. The second half turns somber, with calm quiet prevailing over the jarring cuts that open the disc. Much more aggressive and strange than Ielasi's other recordings, "Right After" is also one of the very best and most cohesive releases on the Erstwhile label. More info at www.anet.gr/absurd and www.erstwhile.com.
samples:
A very different improvising group from Italy is the strangely punctuated tu m'. There is virtually no information given on the package of tu m's debut CD, but it sure sounds like a laptop to me (that telltale digital high-pitched whine is unmistakable). The group moves carefully through six relatively beat-oriented improvisations. The pieces develop slowly and deliberately, with loops rising up and fading out, sine tones entering steadily and cutting out, muted beats taking a place somewhere in the background and thump thump thumping along. Though the music is improvised, it sounds more similar to the abstract Mille Plateaux or Ritornell bands (Neina springs immediately to mind) than to what one might think of as "improv". The recording quality is muddy at times, especially when tu m' brings out the heavy bass, so many of the digital details are lost in an undifferentiated murk. This could have benefitted from a cleaner production, but the ideas still come across. More info at www.cut.fm. - Howard Stelzer
samples:
Califone, "Sometimes Good Weather Follows Bad People"
Raised form the semi-ashes of Red Red Meat, Califone started as a solo project of sorts for that group's Tim Rutili. Eventaully, however, he started to bring other people in to play, adding dimension and flavor to the sound, and, eventually, two of the other three members of Red Red Meat, Ben Massarella and Brian Deck. After the release of their cohesive and coherent debut LP "Roomsound" last year on Rutili and Massarella's own Perishable imprint, this year Califone reissues their first self-titled EPs on Flydaddy and Road Cone on Perishable, adding two tracks and an official title. "Good Weather" is a view into the Califone of before, and having heard "Roomsound," it's a great look into how jaunting and disparate their sound was early on. Yes, there is clearly a Bowie influence, as well as rural mountain geetar-pickin'. But work it all together with some driving percussion, samples and piano here and there, and change direction on virtually every track, and what you get takes on a life of its own. You can almost hear a conscious shift between tracks 1-7 and 8-12, where the production values went up, the vocal harmonies move to the front seat, and the instrumentation is more varied. It's a fascinating listen, evolution of sound-wise. Of the two bonus tracks, one is a remix of the earlier track "To Hush a Sick Transmission" sans vocals, and the other is the best Califone track you've never heard, as it's never been heard until now. All in all, a great reissue that shows the early potential of this ensemble considering where they are now. - Rob Devlin
samples:
ROSY PARLANE, "The Peetom Files"
VIBRACATHEDRAL ORCHESTRA, "The One You Call The Ghost Train"
These two are the latest 7" singles in a series initiated by Tonschacht to showcase different strategies of contemporary—not necessarily electronic experimental—music. The design is the same as the previous releases: a white typewriter font on black and vice versa on the info sheet enclosed. Nothing shall distract the listeners attention from listening itself. No. 009 features Auckland, New Zealand resident Rosy Parlane with "Kees.1" and "Kees.2". Side one sets a reduced breakbeat against an approaching intense swarm of electronic drones. On the flipside, "Kees.2" continues with an almost orchestral drone fading into distraction. Carefully selected sounds are introduced at first, while more sounds are seemingly randomly brought in, step by step, until a new structure evolves. As soon as the piece has completely mutated into something different, it stops. At first both pieces seem to be a bit short but each get to a point which gains and rewards your attention without having to wait a full CD length for it.
samples:
 The better known Vibracathedral Orchestra from the UK grace No. 010. Working with a variety of more traditional instruments, they sound a bit like an outtake of the fictive 'Industrial Unplugged' Series. "Oblong Two" is the far darker and heavier one of the two. It's mood is an ambiguous drift leading your ears towards amazement. The title track leaves the impression of optimistic ignorance in midst the wasteland. This is not really my pair of shoes but I'm sure lovers of freestyle post-everything will enjoy it. These editions are numbered and feature exclusive tracks and should be available at normal 7" single prices. For more info on this extraordinary series check out www.tonschacht.com. - carsten s
samples:
"REPLICANT RUMBA ROCKERS: A RATHER INTERESTING MIX"
Burnt Friedman presents a smidgeon of material from Uwe Schmidt's massive Rather Interesting back catalog for his own Nonplace label. For the 42 minute continuous mix, Friedman selects 14 of his favorite tracks from eight of Schmidt's many monikers (he's probably best known as Atom? or Atom Heart). First off, I must confess that I don't own a single Rather Interesting release. I figure this will be a good place for me to start considering I'm an adamant collector of Freidman's work and the duo's collaborations as Flanger. Friedman's bright and spacious aural imprint is all over the disc, either through his mixing, his own overdubbing or simply a like-minded approach. The main vibe is their usual one of jazz and electronica de latina, a blurred lines blend of sampled/programmed/played musica, sometimes at the mercy of glitchified hyper-editing. The rhythms vary from techno to tango and they never stop as pianos and keys noodle, bass lines bounce and slide, electronics blip and bloop, horns and vibes dabble and faux audiences clap in appreciation. At first it is indeed a rather interesting mix, always on the move and seamlessly sewn together, but after awhile it's a tad too cutesy and/or bland for my taste and I start to lose interest. What's missing is the dark beauty and black humor of some of Friedman's solo output that I love so much. I just simply prefer Friedman and Flanger's stuff over Schmidt's, simple as that. And that gives me a sigh of relief considering the financial commitment necessary to keep up with Rather Interesting, not to mention all of Schmidt's other endeavors. - Mark Weddle
samples:
town and country, "c'mon"
While I can truly say I have enjoyed Town and Country albums for years, I hadn't had such an incredible appreciation and awe for them until I finally had a chance to see them live. Friday night at the Zeitgeist Gallery in Cambridge, the quartet performed a number of songs from this, their fourth release. While it's musically apparent that this Chicago-based drum-less multi-insturmentalist acoustic instrument quartet have a serious history of improvisation, every song, every note is cold-calculated and executed with the skillfullness of professional perfection. I'm still marvelling at the amount of instruments which could actually fit in the tiny room. Through the night, the four musicians shifted around between acoustic guitars, double basses (yes, there was one song where two were played), bass clarinet, celeste, harmonium, cornet, and most impressively, a stunning set of hand chimes. I couldn't keep my eyes off these things, as they had to be rearranged between each song depending on which notes were used. The sound was phenomenal, dreamlike, intoxicating and swirling and makes me visualize the albums so much more than ever. To magically accent the evening, there was brief snowstorm outside which fit the second song on the album, "I'm Appealing" almost perfectly, as the song is filled with a harp-like effect by rhythmically strumming what could possibly be 32nd notes on two acoustic guitars. You can buy the album and get the same effect but I highly recommend both doing that and going to see the show if they're anywhere near you. Tour dates are posted at thrilljockey.com. Sure, it's a bit mathematical, a bit clinical, a bit music schooly, but it's really a stunning listen. - Jon Whitney
samples:
Caitlin Cary, "While You Weren't Looking"
Whiskeytown is dead. Long live Whiskeytown! After the demise of North Carolina's infamous entry into the alt-country sound before their final album was released in 2001, the members went their separate ways, though at that point they really numbered only three: Mike Daly, Ryan Adams and Caitlin Cary. The band was infamous for line-up changes, conceivably because Adams was so hard to get along with and was doing his absolute best to burn the band before they got too big. In press releases for his debut solo release, he commented that he felt too much like just the rhythm guitar player in Whiskeytown, one of the reasons he lost interest in the project. In truth, he wrote most of the songs, was the lead singer, and was really the only part people mentioned in reviews. It was Cary who was virtually ignored and deserving of more attention. And finally, with this debut LP on Yep Roc, following an EP last year, she gets it. Cary has a lovely, simple voice, with no histrionics or grasping at straws involved. She knows her range and she soars in it. Here, she records her songs written with Daly and others, on her terms. And what good terms they are. The album features an impressive cast of rotating players and alt-country favorites, including former Whiskeytown member Skillet Gilmore, former Jayhawk Jen Gunderman, and former Squirrel Nut Zipper Ken Mosher. All over the release, Cary shows herself as competent a songwriter and performer as Adams, though she chose to stick with the alt-country sound rather than cloud the water with multiple influences and genres as Adams did on "Gold." Song after song posesses what you want in a great country record: strong players, hummable melodies, memborable lyrics, and a confidence that you can taste. It's great to hear Cary get her due on this release, and to hear a closure to Whiskeytown. A bonus disc, included with the first pressing, includes a duet with Adams on a song they wrote together, a Whiskeytown live favorite. Here's hoping this release finally lets Cary be judged on her own strengths. - Rob Devlin
samples:
Che-Shizu "Yakusoku Wa Dekinai"
It's difficult to tell if Che-Shizu's leader, vocalist and kokyu (a Chinese violin-like string instrument) player Chie Mukai, had ever picked up her instrument before the tape for this album started rolling. Her solo kokyo improvisations (with which I am most familiar) do not rely on such conventions as tune or melody, so her atonal sawing never sounded out of place to me before. On this, a CD reissue of her band's debut album from 1984, it appears that she either never tuned her kokyu, or else has no idea where the correct notes are, or else had never even seen or even considered the existance of stringed instruments before deciding to play these songs. The tunes themselves are downbeat Velvet Underground-like droning things with ocasional odd, sour attempts at klezmer and waltz. But Mukai's bowed monstrosity steals the show, always a bit flat or else way too sharp, and damned if I didn't wince a dozen times within the first several minutes of listening0. Sure, it's awful, but it's also really interesting. It's so consistently bad that it's great. Know what I mean? I find myself listening first in horror, then a second time to make sure I'm really hearing what I think I'm hearing (christ, she really IS off for the entire damn album!), then again because I like the songs and the bizarreness has worn off. Speaking of the Velvets, Mukai's voice has a deadpan quality that brings Nico (especially "The Marble Index") to mind. Her band's accompaniment is appropriately spare and mournful, serving mostly as a frame for the kokyu and voice; a determinedly na?ve quality reigns, shocking in its spare directness. For more information, check www.alchemy.cc. - Howard Stelzer
samples:
Death Cab For Cutie, "The Stability EP"
For those who missed the limited release of Death Cab For Cutie's last release "The Photo Album," DCFC have released the EP that came with that release separately, calling it "The Stability EP." It's ultimately heavier material than that on the last LP, as these songs could almost crush the listener with their subject matter and slow, driven music. The center piece is "Stability," a near 13-minute DCFC epic that could almost be described as "Death Cab For Post-Rock." Languid, lush, slowcore galore, the track is easily the closest the band will ever approach that genre. The track finishes with over 6 minutes of great guitar melodies, a steady drumbeat, and keyboard swells and pulses with no clear vocals to speak of. Of course, there are vocals by Benjamin Gibbard at the top of the track, as well as piano, and a few Mogwai-like edits. The second track is a Bjork cover, and a great effort by DCFC, especially the hyper drumwork. DCFC are known for their odd cover choices live, as an MP3 search even turns up a cover of the Eurythmics classic "Here Comes the Rain Again." They pull off this Bjork classic with gusto and all sincerity, making it the highpoint of the release. "20th Century Towers" is classic DCFC, just a lot slower: meek vocals by Gibbard, intertwined guitar and bass, and just went you think it will give up the ghost and rock out, Gibbard holds it all in. The only complaint is the crowd vocal towards the track's final third. I would have preferred to hear Gibbard solo or double-tracked, not what you expect in a drunken English pub crowd. All in all, not a bad three tracks if you got it with the record, but I don't know if I'd spend $10 on it in the stores. - Rob Devlin
samples:
S.I. Futures, "The Mission Statement"
I'm rarely disappointed by Novamute releases. Usually, they have enough intelligent and interesting tracks to keep me interested and sometimes produce modern classics (Speedy J's 'A Shocking Hobby' being the perfect example of the latter). 'The Mission Statement', S.I. Futures' debut album for the label, is no exception to the rule, but also no significant landmark in the Novamute catalog. Modeling the booklet as a business convention guide the prolific SiBegg of Buckfunk 3000 fame drops science with a variety of electronic sounds including some abstract hip-hop ("All Terrain Aspects", "Assault On Precinct 14"). While the some of more electro-tinged tracks failed to keep my interest, the breakbeat vocoder funk on "Eurostar" is impossible to dislike if Rephlex artists like DMX Krew and Cylob give you a big chubby. However, the true highlight here is the second single "Freestyle Disco", a slice of bass-heavy 4/4 beats which heavily samples a dance instructional recording. French house fanatics and disco fetishists will eat this one up. Ultimately, 'The Mission Statement' yields multiple rewinds and will satisfy like a bag full of bite-size Snickers. - Gary Suarez
samples:
Si-cut.db, "Enthusiast"
The band with the least pronoucable name since a:GRUMH... is actually one Douglas Benford (the ".db" is his initials), who has left drum n' bass behind to explore sunny dub rhythms on his latest CD for the fine DIY-techno Bip-Hop label. The tunes do not attempt perfect replication of the Jamaican style, as does Twight Circus Dub Sound System or Tino Corp. Instead, Benford merely references the missing pieces and echo-laden beats of dub to turn in a pleasant, if light and airy, set of predominantly instrumental (save a sample here and there) tunes. The first few songs are as enjoyable as this sort of thing can be, but the end of the set turns a bit sweet for my tastes. The best work of King Tubby and Lee Perry had an underlying heaviness and darkness that Benford does not appear particularly interested in. The beginning of "Enthusiaist" contains some wonderful sections (particularly in the opening cut "Contaminile 2") which really stretch out and dig into the warm expansiveness that dub techniques can produce. The album gets poppier as it goes on, though, and becomes progressively less interesting. - Howard Stelzer
samples:
irr.app(ext.)
Add another awkward band name to your collection. After receiving news of the forthcoming release of "Inception and Silence Undivided" on Steven Stapleton's United Dairies label, I was curious to find out about the project. Matt Waldron has been recording and releasing music as irr.app(ext.) since 1998. The first release, "an uncertin animal, ruptured; tissue expanding in conversation" has a matchingly surrealistic sound and equally disturbing accompanying artwork (lots of asparagus-esque vegetation and mutated muscle tissue). It was a co-release between Waldron's own Errata In Excelsus label and the Icelandic label, Fire Inc. I contacted Matt and subsequently received five of his CDs, discs of which I was looking forward to digesting, dissecting and reporting about, but in the time I've had them, the music just becomes more unraveling with every listen. It's no surprise that Stapleton was interested in his work, which is essentially a reinterpretation of the never before released on CD, long out of print and masters destroyed LP, "Insect and Individual Silenced" by Nurse with Wound. I haven't heard it yet, but after hearing hours of work which never wears thin, I'm highly anticipating it. Waldron's work is very atypical of the volumes of CD-Rs that float around. It's advanced, sonically challenging, created from a collage of musically imitating sounds both found and created, seamlessly constructed. Matt seems to have an unchallengable ear for when to introduce pianos, clanging, backwards bits, cut-up sounds, digital demons, resurrective rumblings, and only an occasional pulse. Yeah, it's pretty dark. I find myself going through evenings where I feel I want to just throw the discs all on, one after another, kill the lights and get a complete sensory overload. Maybe it's time to try some new drugs. Either way, the official irr.app(ext.) web site is still being constructed, but there's an email address on the bottom. http://www.misanthrope.com/irr/ Perhaps he'll give you a good deal if you want to buy some of these gems before he's scoring insane horror films, producing your favorite electronic bands or becomes too busy to be bothered with the general public! - Jon Whitney
samples:
the legendary pink dots, "shadow weaver" & "malachai"
With the reissues of these two classic LPD albums, Soleilmoon has finally finished the project of bringing the old PIAS titles back into print. Both albums feature the album cover artwork of Babs Santini yet only the second part, 'Malachai' was actually produced by Steven Stapleton. Originally released in 1992, 'Shadow Weaver' was the first album to be recorded since the untimely death of guitarist Bob Pistoor.
Unsurprisingly, the mood is very calm, still, and reserved on the opening of each. A new lineup was created, which pretty much lasted for the next ten years with only minor alterations. Dutch guitarist/bassist Martjin de Kleer joined along with Canadian multi-instrumentalist Ryan Moore to take over drumming, bass and guitar duties. (Violinist Patrick Wright gave up his full-time duties but did make appearances on both records.) The group both explored more experimental territories, playing with different arrangements, moving in new directions for both production and technology, perfecting a balance between pop, post-prog, and psychedelia. I still remember a sizable number of old-school fans seemed to be lost on these albums when they were released, yet they remain two of my favorite LPD records. It was almost as if they had been consciously making an effort to shed the sound that lumped them in with the Wax Trax, Skinny Puppy and post-industrial goth crowds. Heck, Edward even sings "I'm sick of the same scene, I'm tired of this road" during "Twilight Hour." No longer was this band the outlet of Phil and Ed, in addition to the two new members, Niels was taking a more active role in the band than ever before, with a noticably stronger presence of saxophone, flute and other wind instruments. The lyrical basslines and tinkling piano melodies were fresh to the LPD sound and within the mix it was rather unworldly. There were fewer songs but the albums were the same length... LPD had finally agreed to be more patient with their songs, letting them grow and develop. They were unafraid to have heavy electronic beats on songs like "Needles" and "Laughing Guest," a saxophone duet on "The Key to Heaven", or sound effects like bathwater or birds, ripping guitars, acoustic guitars, and organic percussion.
samples:
'Malachai' opens with the stunning, yet surprisingly proto-rock-standard mimicing "Joey the Canary" with lush acoustic guitar, acoustic bass, and subtle, pulsing percussion. On Malachai, they pushed the envelope even further, creating with Steven Stapleton an album with loads of cut up tapes and a number of effects and lengthy drones, making tunes almost completely impossible to recreate live. At this time, the group seemed to be touring more than ever, but playing a lot of old favorites with the occasional current song or two. Highlights for me include the sparse, chilling instrumental arrangement of "Pavane," the serene closer, "Paris 4 A.M." and the 19 minute-long epic, "We Bring the Day," equipped with a scattering of signature Nurse with Wound sounds and sampled farm animals. (yum) Since both of these albums came out towards the end of their career with PIAS, they have been in circulation far less, and newer fans would typically have to spend loads of money to hear the albums. Thankfully the music is finally available again, "so cease your lonely mourning." - Jon Whitney
samples:
Luke Slater, "Alright On Top"
The electropop revival has seen it's first casualty. With 'Alright On Top' Luke Slater, revered for his techno-electro work under numerous monikers, makes a significant step away from the dancefloor and towards the bargain bin. Not nearly as kitschy as Miss Kittin or Felix Tha Housecat, the tracks on here have none of the trashy hip glamour that has been slapped to the backside of this new new wave. Rather than copying what seems to be working for everyone else (or sticking to what he does best and progressing a bit), Slater presents some bizarre hybrid of a mediocre New Order cover band and a 90's "electronica" one-hit wonder. In fairness, you do have to give the man some credit for doing what he wants to do (and hopefully bracing for criticism from his fanbase) and paying tribute to music he truly loves. However, weak songwriting (dubbed in true press release style as 'songtronica') accompanies uninventive and boring lyrics, making for an overall embarassment when compared to his strong backcatalog. To be honest, I'm hoping this electropop fad (or whatever you want to call it) pisses off and dies quickly like Detroit ghetto-booty music did. I'm not feelin' it... and it's already produced at least one awful album from a once-solid producer. - Gary Suarez
samples:
We know that sometimes these CDs are somewhat challenging to find, which is why we have a community section which can be used to obtain nearly everything available on this site. |
