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- Oren Ambarchi - Der Kleine Koenig
- Oren Ambarchi - Links
The simultaneously-released Keith Fullerton Whitman 7" features two edited parts of a concert from March, 2001. "Part One" sounds surprisingly reminiscent of a soundtrack (like the Sonic Youth score to 'Made In USA'). Guitar and loads of processing provide a moody setting which, to me, could go on much longer without ever getting boring. "Part Two" takes off with electronically-altered layers of sound until the guitar resurfaces in the middle part, only to be buried again in an effects-assault conclusion. This one's indeed a pleasure to listen to. Whitman shows a clear concept in composition which puts this release up with the best that 2002 has had to offer yet. Get it while you can.
Both singles are (as all Tonschacht releases) limited to about 500 copies and come with an info sheet.
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It's only natural that a gallery filled with the visual art of David Tibet and Steven Stapleton be filled with their audio art as well. This limited edition (1000) set served as the soundtrack for their April 8 - May 4, 2002 exhibition at London's Horse Hospital gallery. Initially it was only available there and through Durtro's online store but it has since filtered down to the usual outlets (though the price point of roughly $45 will undoubtedly dissuade casual fans).
The packaging is a four panel fold-up with dark, white crested ocean waves on the outside and illegible chalk on blackboard writings inside. A six panel insert hides the discs and a Tibet painting underneath. Keeping in mind the background intent of this music helps to appreciate it, but of the two, Current 93 is the most rewarding for attentive listening. Here c93 includes past collaborators Joolie Wood and Maja Elliot as well as Julia Kent of Antony and the Johnsons. Between a spoken "alpha" and "omega", Tibet lays the foundation with a short ebb and flow loop of (presumably harmonium) drone while the three women crest his wave with piano and strings. Despite its nearly 41 minutes, it remains hypnotically tranquil and enthralling. Nurse With Wound, here just Stapleton and Colin Potter (as on the recent 'The Man With the Woman Face'), craft a longer but more minimal piece. It takes several minutes for their dulled roar to fully surface and massage like c93's piece. Change is perceptible - a slowing down, a temporal lengthening of the waves - but it's so gradual and so minute, it might go undetected while perusing the paintings (or anything else).
 
samples:
- Current 93 - Archealephtelos
- Nurse with Wound - SALT
 
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Billing itself as "an Icelandic Ambient Compilation," Uni:form, in conjunction with Thule, definitely adopts a broad definition of "ambient." The vast majority of tracks on '42 More Things' are more structured than such aforementioned nomenclature might imply, but the general presence of electronic chill-out background soundscapes (somewhere in between Warp's 'Artificial Intelligence' compilations and the atmospheric side of the Morr Music roster) is right on the mark.
Ilo, Thor, Ruxpin, and Biogen will likely be familiar to the more seasoned aficionados of Icelandic music as a result of their remix work for both Múm and Sigur Rós. Ilo's track "Tif" is among the more striking of the contributions: a trip hop-infused tapestry of distorted voices, guitar, piano and seductive beats. The fluffy but listenable "Flying," the angelic and moody "First Contact," and the drum 'n' bass-inspired "Above Sea Level" are Ruxpin's three pieces. These tracks, while exhibiting an impressive range overall, individually don't seem really go anywhere. They do succeed, however, in melding well with the relaxed vibe of the compilation as a whole. Biogen's "Hi-Fi FM" is quirky and up-tempo, while "Afloat" sounds like a digital sea spray overlaid with glistening mellow synths. "I Don't Have a Clue" by Thor is perhaps the closest to being truly ambient with its beatless lilt, along with the Trabant's track "Superman," remixed here by Worm is Green. Other noteworthy contributions come from the lesser-known Krilli (represented here by two excellent songs, one of which beautifully recalls some of the instrumental work on David Bowie's 'Low'), Rhythm of Snow's Autechre-esque "Getting Closer to an Unknown Goal," and Múm's twitchy Kanada remix.
Overall, '42 More Things' doesn't have much that will completely bowl its listeners over with either profundity or innovation, but as a whole, it provides for extremely pleasant and meditative listening.
samples:
- Ilo - Tif
- Krilli - 52cd 4kg
- Biogen - Hifi FM
- Ruxpin - Above Sea Level
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Fast forward to 2002. Collections of Colonies of Bees is mostly the duo's doing and 'fa.ce (a' is their third album since '99. It is a continuous suite of eight (all but the last untitled) tracks that glide through played, processed and played to be processed sounds - often with elements from each track carrying over into the next.
Besides acoustic and electric guitars, lap steel, piano and steel drums, Rosenau is also credited throughout with "assembly," "manipulation," "miscellaneous noises," and/or the Akai Headrush. Mueller provides drums or percussion on five tracks and another Milwaukee musician, Don Mahlmeister, also adds guitars, Rhodes and Wurlitzer piano, keyboard and programming. That should give you an inkling of the palette and production. In a way, the first track sets a false tone with an upbeat, yet mild-mannered, almost folksy jam involving acoustic guitars, EBow, Rhodes, lap steel, bass and drums. The aftermath is track two, as the final notes slowly fade away and scraped metal and ambient drift supersede. Track three is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful pieces of music I've heard in years, if not ever. At the heart of it all is the guitars, their intermittent suggestions of melody and harmonics intertwined with near silence and tiny electronic currents. It's as delicate and pretty as a music box or Faberge egg. A barely audible background of steel drums and bird song begins track four as computer voiced "dooooo"s of varying length and gender pile up with portamento-wavered piano notes. For song five, melted down lap steel licks pick up where four left off and are coupled with somewhat bombastic drum fills. The 11-minute finale belies its curious title of "mu:rder" as the band invents a gorgeous, deep lull, which, up until the final few minutes, are cluttered with digital debris. Start to finish, 'fa.ce (a' is a very finely-calibrated work. It has an impeccable focus and flow, a well balanced mix between acoustic and electronic instrumentation, and a learned sense of time and space. Plain and simple, 'fa.ce (a' is poetry in motion. Look for it in my top ten of 2002 list.
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This already mightily praised release by Tex La Homa finally reaches these shores through the Superglider label. Tex La Homa is Matt Shaw with with help on a few tracks by Dave Purse, and the music is guitar driven with electronic and breakbeat flourishes.Superglider
It's essentially electronic pop, with verse-chorus-verse arrangements and pop song subject matter. Pulsing basslines, laidback grooves, and tripping beats are augmented by electronic whirls, buzzes and beeps. Shaw's voice is low and sensual, desperately wanting all the way through the record. The trouble is that it's too static, too laidback, and too, well, formulaic. I can't place my finger on it any other way except to say it doesn't engage you. Tex La Homa strikes me as another band that looks good on paper, sounds okay on record, but can utterly convert you live. Every song has almost the same flavor, every vocal has almost the same treatment, every beat sounds fairly canned, and the subject matter is mostly loss or emptiness or the futility of love only to be let down again. Sadness overpowers it all, and that's part of what makes it so boring. It is well-produced with fine production values, but is just not all that interesting a listen. 'Dazzle Me' sounds like the desperate love letter to a lover who has not only left, but doesn't want anything to do with your life anymore, yet you still try ('and you know how I feel bout you/still you choose to do the things you do/should you have a change of heart/please don't keep me in the dark' is a perfect example). It's admirable, and by Goethe's "Three Questions," it is definitely worth doing. But does that mean I want to listen to it more than once? Nope.
 
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G.M. Wallis is the main force behind the legendary Konstruktivists, a nearly forgotten and often overseen band of the diverse early 80's UK experimental scene. He released several sought-after LPs starting off in 1982, has been a part time member of Whitehouse (around the 'Great White Death' era), collaborated with CTI for the 'Hammer House' EP in 1984 (reissued on 'Collectiv One') and the 1985 album 'Glennascaul' was even produced by Chris Carter.
Konstruktivists reappeared in the beginning of the 90s with a new line-up and techno approach which seemed a bit unfitting on World Serpent at the time. Following releases were spread amongst various small and independent labels all over the world. EE Tapes (once a tape, now a CDR label) from Belgium did a wonderful job on this one. Tasteful artwork accompanies this limited and hand-numbered collection of 14 unpublished and 'lost' tracks recorded between 1982-1999. With only one exception, the bass on "Neukon," G.M. Wallis is the sole artist creating pure electronic soundscapes with his synthesizers.
Half of the tracks are from 1983, a time when Konstruktivists released their probably best known album 'Psykho Genetica' on the long gone Third Mind label, and vary between some of his openly admitted influences: mid-period Kraftwerk, early Tangerine Dream, Neu! and Tuxedomoon ("Joeboy", "Desire" Pts. One & Two). He guides the listener through minimal and sometimes unexpectedly light-hearted synthetic pearls (like "Cologne") with the sovereignty of a man who not only knows his equipment well, but how to use it. Surprisingly only two newer tracks "Pinas R" (1994) and "Gas Mark" (1997) resemble what is commonly referred to as 'Old School Industrial' with distortions, feedback and a more aggressive attitude. The final and most current track, "Russia" is a beautiful outro: melancholy and nostalgia captured with just a few piano and string sounds. The sound quality sometimes lacks a bit of the high gloss finish of the current sounds, but this album works well as a reminder where electronic music took off and shows a substance which is timeless.
 
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Both the Greek inventor Daedalus and this Southern Californian share similar fates: they came up with something great that went tragically awry. This debut Plug Research full-lengther opens with a strong prelude: a simple, yet elegant combination of samples and original melodies, swirled together in a serene lullaby.Plug Research
The choices Daedelus makes to integrate into his mix strays from the typical pack of obscure jazz and folk records, stumbling into big-band-era film theme music, with swinging drums on top of easy listening orchestral samples. Even toy xylophone gets filtered in on tunes like the stunning "Adventress." By the time of the narrated story of "Astroboy," the album's development becomes seemingly clear as a sample-strong children's record for the 21st century. But then it takes a confusing turn for the worse and becomes overtaken by hyperactive electronic beats and painfully dull melodies. Mediocre sax, flute and clarinet playing takes over and the serenity is almost completely lost. Despite the (de-)evolution, the music still sounds decent; however, I feel like a kid lost at the amusement park wanting simply to go home. He could have easily stopped at the elements of delicacy before jumping into musically unchallenging post-drum 'n' bass of songs like "Soulful of Child" or the intellectually insulting and sonically out-of-place rap on the disc's two closing tracks. Daedelus isn't the inventor yet, he's still a child, and a bright one indeed with loads of talent, but I'm sure once he decides what he wants to do when he grows up, the output will be marvellous.
 
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Despite the fact he recorded it all over one weekend (probably in the bathroom of some English pub), he's actually pretty crafty when it comes to making a catchy hum-along tune. You know what to expect with song titles like "Pancreas," "Fag stealer," and the subtle "Fuck off." With over 20 tracks in 40 minutes, the novelties never overstay their welcome. The tracks are cheap and shambolic— and genuinely hilarious. Also included is a jazzified remix of the "The Reefer Song," by The Orb.
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