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STORM
Chris Watson ¬ BJNilsen_
Touch # Tone 27
CD
3 Tracks – 18:09
Chris Watson writes:
“During December 2000 several significant storm fronts developed across the North Sea and Scandinavia.
Benny remarked to me that he had recorded some of these on the Baltic coast and proposed a collaborative cd project based around our mutual interests in the rhythms and music created when the elements combine over land and out to sea.
We spent the next few years gathering recordings on our respective coastlines and islands during the very active weather windows during the autumnal equinox and winter solstice. This was focused around our following one particular cyclonic system, which veers over Snipe Point on Lindisfarne to the Isle of May in the Firth of Forth, and finally descends upon Öland and Gotland where Benny listened in with a favourite pair of Sennheiser omnidirectional microphones.”
Chris Watson
Newcastle upon Tyne August 2006
Track Listing and notes:
1. Chris Watson - No Man's Land 15:51
Late October on the strands of Budle Bay where dense layers of transient alien voices are swamped by a full moon tide creeping across the island’s silver causeway.
Now lapping out of the gathering gloom an immersive sea wash is filling then draining away carrying slow currents from here to another place.
There are no reference points in this darkness.
Glimmer dawn in the gaping mouth of a sea cave below Tarbet Gulley where the siren songs of Cromarty, Forth & Tyne ebb and flow with the swell.
Draw in close but hear now a fresh voice from beyond the horizon.
Recorded during the months of October & November from 2000 to 2005 on the North East coast of England and Scotland. Microphones; Sennheiser 2 x MKH 110's binaural pair, MKH 60/30 M&S rig, DPA 2 x 4060's spaced omnis. Recorders; Nagra lV-S, Nagra Pll and Sound Devices 744T. Edited and Mixed in Boston July 2006
2. BJNilsen & Chris Watson – SIGWX 18:18
Viking, Forties; Cyclonic North East gale 8 backing North later 3 to 4.Thundery rain, moderate to good.
Mixed in Boston and Stockholm June & July 2006
3. BJNilsen – Austrvegr 15:28
A black ruthless sea. Heavy winds making it impossible to stand up straight, icy rain hitting your face like needles.
Recorded on the southeast coast of islands Gotland and Öland, Sweden, using a pair of Sennheiser 110 binaural mics straight to a Tascam DA P1 DAT during December 2003 and July 2004. Locations used included cottages, sheds, barns, fields and the coast. Edited and Mixed in Stockholm 2006
CHRIS WATSON
A sound recordist with a particular and passionate interest in recording the wildlife sounds of animals, habitats and atmospheres from around the world. As a freelance recordist for film, tv & radio Chris Watson specialises in natural history and documentary location sound together with track assembly and sound design in post production. He has released 3 solo CDs for Touch: 'Outside The Circle of Fire' [1998], 'Stepping into The Dark' [1996], 'Weather Report' [2003] and one album, 'Star Switch On' [2002, Tone 18], features recordings based on his work by AER, Biosphere, Fennesz, Hazard, Philip Jeck, Mika Vainio as well as two original recordings by Chris. 'Stepping into The Dark' won an Award of Distinction at the 2000 Prix ARS Electronica Festival in Linz, Austria.
BJNILSEN
BJNilsen lives and works in Stockholm, Sweden, Born in 1975. He has been active with experimental music and sound since the early 1990s with various constellations. Since 1999 he has been releasing records as Hazard on the UK labels Ash International and Touch, making music and sound for documentary film, television and commercials. He is focused on the sound of nature and its effect on humans, field recordings and the perception of time and space as experienced through sound, sometimes electronically treated.
He has released various albums for Touch and Ash International. His last solo release was 'Fade to white' [Touch, 2005] and he collaborated with Chris Watson on 'Wind' [Ash International, 2001] and 'Land' [Touch, 2002].
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shoppe at www.foetus.org! You wont find this in stores or from any other online retailer.
This 72+ minute CD contains previously unreleased material recorded in the last couple of
years. Along with newly recorded material, some of the material was originally written
during the LOVE sessions . Also included are collaborations with Rotoskop and the Melvins
and a remix by Phylr. JG Thirlwell regards DAMP as a "satellite" album to the last FOETUS
release LOVE. The DAMP cover is a deluxe ten panel foldout on heavy card with lyrics,
featuring photos and design by JG Thirlwell. The complicated printing process involves
spot hi gloss lamination which took a long time to perfect in the printing process.
You can hear excerpts from the album at www.foetus.org
01) I Hate You All [03:26] (2003, mixed 2006) Originally commissioned for Japanese
recording artist Atsushi, this furious big band stormer appears here performed by JGT for
the first time. *previously unreleased.
02) Antabuse [01:51] (2006) A brand new instrumental composition. *previously
unreleased.
03) Chimera [04:55] (2004, mixed 2006) A lullaby/hymn originally written for the LOVE
album. *previously unreleased.
04) Into the Light [06:33] (1995, improved 2006) The definitive version of a the track
that previously appeared on Null, this is the definitive version with a different improved
second movement. *previously unreleased.
05) Shrunken Man [05:00] (1999) This is a radical reinterpretation of a song by The The;
it was commissioned by JGT's dear pal Matt Johnson and previously only appeared on the
very limited The The Interpretations EP. Remastered 2006.
06) Mine is No Disgrace (w/Melvins) [08:23] (2000) JGT's collaboration with the Melvins;
it previously appeared on the Melvins The Crybaby album. Remastered 2006.
07) Hemo the Cuckold [07:29] (2004) This unusual epic was originally written around
the time of the LOVE album. *previously unreleased.
08) Not In Your Hands [05:20] (2005) The classic track previously on the (not adam) EP;
this is a re-mastered version.
09) Paging Dr Strong (w/Rotoskop) [03:18] (2003) This track previously appeared on the
Rotoskop album revolution:lost, but this is the raw demo version with a different mix.
*previously unreleased.
10) Blessed Evening (Phylr remix) [04:12] (2006) A remix of the blessed evening track
from LOVE by Jim Coleman, JGT's partner in Baby Zizanie (aka Phylr and Here; ex-Cop
Shoot Cop). *previously unreleased.
11) Sieve [05:00] (2006) This was performed by versions of the Foetus live ensemble for
a couple of tours. Initially written as a live track, this is the first time a studio version has
existed. It is newly recorded for DAMP. *previously unreleased
12) Cold Shoulder [16:08] (2006) A brand new sixteen minute instrumental. *previously
unreleased.
please visit www.foetus.org
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NOVEMBER
(AND ALSO THE TREES / YOUNG GODS)
Announcing the debut of a new collaboration
NOVEMBER is an extraordinary collaboration between film soundtrack composer and 'The Young God's' drummer Bernard Trontin and Simon Huw Jones, singer/lyricist of 'And Also The Trees'.
Their blend of music, that unites deep, electronic sound-waves, low- fi loops, glitches and rhythmic pulses with a vocal that drifts from subtle melody to poetic narrative is unique and will interest fans of Nick Cave and Stuart Staples as well as anyone into dark-ambient music such as Biosphere, Boards of Canada and Coil.
NOVEMBER is a unique experience and a masterpiece of electro-acoustic. This is Shayo 010 coming as a deluxe digipack, with booklet, mastering by Denis Blackham (Biosphere, In Gowan Ring, ...).
You can have a brief taste of the evocative music they've come up with here:
November at Strange Fortune
NOVEMBER is a Shayo release distributed in North America by Strange Fortune. Expected ship date in North America will be December 7th.
Strange Fortune
www.strangefortune.com
The source for strange & exquisite sounds
Strange Fortune / PO Box 440383 / Somerville MA 02144 USA
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artist: Vanishing Voice
title:Nordic Visions
catalog #: IMPREC132
format: cd
upc: 793447513225
release date: February 27, 2007
Nordic Visions was originaly released in a tiny vinyl edition of 525 copies which sold out immediately. Here it is by demand, resurrected as a digital tiki for the original vinyl release.
While Wooden Wand and Satya Sai jammed with the Sky High Band in beautiful California, the Vanishing Voice dug in deep in the frozen northeast. Snowed in with utopian texts and mounting paranoia, Steven The Harvester, Heidi White Diamond Diehl, and Pete Wolfy Nolan joined Nonhorse in an abandoned textile factory, boiling out these ballads of suspended disbelief and hope for the better world.
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artist: Vanishing Voice
title: Stone Tablet
catalog #: IMPREC122
format: cd
upc: 793447512228
release date: Feb 27, 2007
Total Can-style audacity from Brooklyn drone stew Edward Goreyian broken house sufic wanderers the
Vanishing Voice.
The Vanishing Voice head down from the mountain for another dip in a lake of elephant seals.
A misty warbling leads down a twisted path where molten earth and crust collide. The beginning of the end of the beginning. Lots has been said bout these brooklyn teen idles:
"They're chasing rainbows!"
"They're graveyard spongeheads!"
"A pregnant poo-bah frolicking in the forest!"
No dice... Whatever Kraut or Swede compatriots that may be a part time relation the Vanishing Voice are mining the sound of the naughties in a subterranean part of brooklyn, as reprehensible as that place might be the beast still roams Gotham and these fuckers got him by the tail.
Stone Tab is a trip to be sure. Mother Mark Ospovat cracks the whip of dogsled Imandi while snarling
bad dog Pete Nolan kept a forward propulsion on skins and molten guitar spew. Mad man Steve J Taveniere of local faves Meneguar lent a cool head and a popular sensibility to the proceedings with skills on the
acoustic axe to be sure. Non horse Crane, magnetic wizard and dj let loose his usual bag of hidden charms and H. "Reality" Diehl,with a voice said to make many a grown man cry, a magik trash harp and the mind
of the other, kept us all in the ethereal realm. Don't worry though, this strange brew rocks out for real and thanks to the folks at Important Records, you can be sure it was recorded in the highest fidelity known to man.
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artist: Baikal
title:Baikal
catalog #: IMPREC19
format: cd
release date: Feb 27, 2007
Baikal is a new burner from Bardo Pond brothers John & Michael Gibbons along with fellow Bardo Pond members Clint Takeda and Jason Kourkonis. This time they ventured down the route of heavy free-improvisation and a Last Exit style hard rock approach coupled with a hard psych bend. With two tracks each weighing in at over 30 minutes in length it's clear that Baikal is a deep voyage underseas with yet another mindblowing Bardo Pond sideproject featuring Bardo brothers John & Michael Gibbons as your tour guide – and it's a heavy trip indeed. Dive in.
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artist: Axolotl
title:Memory Theater
catalog #: IMPREC120
format: cd
release date: Feb 27, 2007
Memory Theater is an absolutely essential collection of the best of Axolotl's out of print cdrs and vinyl only releases.
Karl Bauer spent quite a bit of time collaborating with Black Dice, Mouthus, Double Leopards and various other acclaimed members of the noise underground before heading off on his own as Axolotl. In the last couple of years Axolotl have released numerous cd, cdr and vinyl releases many of which quickly went out of print and started demanding some serious coin on ebay. Memory Theater collects the best of these out of print releases into one convenient package designed by Karl Bauer.
Axolotl has collaborated with the likes of the Skaters, Magik Markers, Yellow Swans, Inca Ore, Skygreen Leopards, Religious Knives, and Mouthus. Axolotl has toured Europe and the United States and shared the stage with the likes of Animal Collective, Black Dice, Boris, Charlambides, Chris Corsano, Double Leopards, Excepter, Sightings, the Skaters, Terrestrial Tones, Tomutonttu, and Yellow Swans.
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artist: The Bark Haze
title:untitled
catalog #: IMPREC128
format: lp
upc: 793447512822
release date: Feb 27, 2007
This limited edition lp was pressed in an edition of 500 with letterpressed covers done by Manifesto. These are completely different recordings than the Bark Haze compact disc also on Important Records.
The Bark Haze is primarily a guitar duo of GOWN (nom de plume of one Andrew
Macgregor) and Thurston Moore (Sonic Youth etfuckingcetera). Auxiliary
members have been know to include Pete Nolan (Magik Markers, Virgin Eye
Blood Brothers, Cops et al). Their name came from a mis-hearing of the
radical early 70s R+B group the Bar-Kays and from that moment the concept of
mis-hearing and allegiance to presenting the mis-hearing as some open-ended
musical course became The Bark Haze's identity. So far all concerts have
taken place in Western Massachusetts and once in the confines of Cambridge,
MA's Twisted Village record emporium. They anxiously await their debut gig
in the UK at the Nightmare Before Christmas event curated by Moore. As the
heroic and potentially bonkers Carpenters refrained We've Only Just Begun.
Damn straight.
artist: The Bark Haze
title:untitled
catalog #: IMPREC127
format: cd
release date: Feb 27, 2007
This exclusive CD release is entirely different from the LP release on Important which is also untitled.
The Bark Haze is primarily a guitar duo of GOWN (nom de plume of one Andrew
Macgregor) and Thurston Moore (Sonic Youth etfuckingcetera). Auxiliary
members have been know to include Pete Nolan (Magik Markers, Virgin Eye
Blood Brothers, Cops et al). Their name came from a mis-hearing of the
radical early 70s R+B group the Bar-Kays and from that moment the concept of
mis-hearing and allegiance to presenting the mis-hearing as some open-ended
musical course became The Bark Haze's identity. So far all concerts have
taken place in Western Massachusetts and once in the confines of Cambridge,
MA's Twisted Village record emporium. They anxiously await their debut gig
in the UK at the Nightmare Before Christmas event curated by Moore. As the
heroic and potentially bonkers Carpenters refrained We've Only Just Begun.
Damn straight.
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artist: Eleh
title: Floating Frequencies/Intuitive Synthesis Volume 1
catalog #: IMPREC125
format: LP
release date: Feb 27, 2007
Eleh was formed to specifically to pay tribute to early experimental minimalist pioneers especially La Monte Young, Terry Riley, Eliane Radigue, Pauline Oliveros and Charlemagne Palestine. This record is pressed in a deluxe edition of 400 on audiophile quality 180 gram vinyl mastered and pressed at RTI with letterpressed jackets done by Manifesto Letterpress.
Eleh creates highly minimal and deeply spiritual pure analog drone music with emphasis on the physical ultra-low end. Incorporating tones as low as .05 hz (well below the range of human hearing) Eleh is as much of a physical experience as it is an audio one. To be heard and felt correctly the listener must be sitting with ears at speaker height at least 7 feet away. Noise cancelling headphone use is also recommended for the optimum listening experience.
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artist: Rameses III
title:Honey Rose
catalog #: IMPREC121
format: cd ep
upc:793447512624
release date: Feb 27, 2007
Rameses III are architects of the most beautiful swathes of blissful ambience whose releases have previously found homes on labels like Celebrate Psi Phenomenon, Music Fellowship, Scarcelight, MYMWLY, Barl Fire and Type.
On “Honey Rose”, the group’s first release for Important, the South London trio build a bucolic soundtrack to Jon Spira’s mysterious short film “Suityman”. Whilst the influence of Bruce Langhorne, Boxhead Ensemble and much of the 4AD roster can be keenly felt on this six song EP, so too can the wondrous drone narratives that are such a feature of Rameses III’s previous works. More structured and melodious then much of their output, “Honey Rose” is the perfect place for a newcomer to begin exploring the music of one of the finest purveyors of ambient drone operating in music today.
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The silence is broken by "The Boat Was My Friend" flickering to life with a pronounced sonic electricity; as if hot stones were being dropped onto an overamplified guitar. Then waves of cello combine with furtive percussion to suggest trapped energy, almost untethered. A female voice wordlessly chants something akin to a lullaby, but the feeling is much less hush little baby than cradle will fall. There is little relief ahead as this entire record is steeped in unease. Some ancient force is getting loose and the likely results are to be both hidden and brutal.
The plucked bass notes of "Ocean out of wood" briefly conjure a brilliant and avant-swinging Nordic jazz.. er, ..odyssey, but this is a red herring as "My feet, over there" with it's grinding pace, inhuman ripping and excruciating stuttering sounds, evokes an appalling smothering of hope. In isolation this is a mighty piece, but is ill-placed and might even have been better as a separate 7 inch. Next, the truly unforgetable "Easy on the bones" is the sound of something desperately wrong. In the first series of Twin Peaks, a terror was conveyed by the needle stuck at the end of a record as the incarnation of Bob invades Laura Palmer's house. Svarte Greiner echoes that scene but takes the audio-horror a step further with a repetitive sawing sound as gentle as lapping waves. Waves in a sea of blood and bone fragment, that is.
Several tracks feature a pure, faint, female voice. This keeps a necessary sense of listenable normality to all the ghastly scraping, eerie rustling, startled bird calls, horrible footsteps, suspenseful door openings, and strangled surprises. We feel unease, but could we recognize the long-forgotten scent of human sacrifice, execution, and ship burials if we heard it?
Despite its overtly gothic organ, tinkling bells, synth, stuck needle and vinyl hiss, "The black dress" somehow works. Whether this is a Buffalo Bill sewing machine scenario, a tender necrophilial closeness, or a silly dark wedding, depends upon your imagination. It also features a similar sense of footsteps ripping through long grass that are a central feature of "An ordinary hike." "Ullsokk" is furtively squelchy with more of the pure chanting bringing to my mind either a nearby victim or Lady Macbeth figure, before "The dinner table" introduces a rhythm that Martin Hammett would have enjoyed working on, and maintains an emerging ceremonial atmosphere. Thankfully the ambiguity isn't shattered: Were those dinner bells calling cannibal spirits? Is there to be a sacrifice? Is this scary, or funny? That's a gorgeous voice. What's he building in there?
"Final sleep" sounds like a standard horror shovel scene, though the plane passing overhead smashes any ancient spiritual notions, while it also emphasizes the idea of the proximity of all this to normal life. Snoring sounds are drowned by an operatic peace and soothing swathes of which The Dead Texan would approve. Is that rain, a bottle being emptied, blood or piss?
As David Lynch and Angelo Badalamenti ably demonstrate, horror can be brought into sharp relief when set against the beautiful and the bland. Like a shiny, pert blonde and blue-eyed Christian woman casually whispering "We should nuke Afghanistan". The Moors Murderers ( Ian Brady and Myra Hindley) made audio tapes of the torture and murder of their victims partly for, in particular, Brady's later arousal. Nevertheless, I imagine that "Knive" somehow isn't an ideal music for any fictional or factual serial killing psychotic fiends. Consider Fred West who, with his devoted wife by his side, prefered something bouncy and jolly to drown the screams. During his happy decades of abuse, torture, dismemberment and murder in the cellar of his terraced house at Cromwell Street in Gloucester, Fred loved to blast out "Yeh Yeh" by Georgie Fame and the Blue Flames, and I bet he whistled that pop ditty the day he hanged himself in Winson Green prison. Utterly harmless, but horribly apt when cast against his crimes:
We'll play a melody and turn the lights down low / So that no-one can see / We gotta do that, we gotta do that / We gotta do that, we gotta do that / And there'll be no one else alive in all the world 'cept you and me / Yea, yea, yea, yea, yea / Yea, yea, yea, yea / Pretty baby I never knew such a thrill / Just thought I'd tell you, because I'm trembling still / But pretty baby, I want you all for my own / I think I'm ready to leave those others alone....
Despite a weird recognition factor perhaps brought on from too many Hammer Horror films, I prefer to think that the sounds on Knive which seem to depict the slow emergence of a brutal horror and a subsequent peace, couldn't possibly be what I imagine they are. What's more, how could I recogize that which I've never heard? Either they must have been part of some dream, an inherited genetic unconscious, or the snoring was tryptophan induced and the whole thing was some pro-turkey vegetarian art-terrorism. Just in time for Christmas.
samples:
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