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HymenThis album is a fine addition to the Hymen catalog. As the labeldoesn't issue new albums all the time, it is obvious that they areselective with regards to what they release. Having a high level ofstandards has paid off with Scatterheart,Benny Boysen's second release as Hecq. His sense of dynamics is a keyelement to his music's success. During "Doraccle" the shifts betweenloud and quiet are extreme, and help to sustain a level of tensionwithin the music. At 61 minutes the album is long, but the variety ofsounds and textures keeps the set interesting. The way Egyptianpercussion and pizzicato strings are used on "Flood Me" make it ahighlight of the album. His use of these unusual textures shows thathis influences are more varied than those of many electronic producers.Although Boysen is technically proficient at programming intricatebeats, he doesn't let the process become the focus of the music.Instead the set retains an emotional feel, although it often soundscold and mechanical. There is always an underlying drone or atmospherictexture that keeps the tracks grounded in human emotion. The openingtrack "FDK" begins with over a minute of droning, whirling tones beforethe beat kicks in. From this point on, the percussive patterns arejuxtaposed with the atmospheric elements. By focusing on one element orthe other, there is the possibility to listen with a different focuseach time. The inclusion of several short interludes consisting ofsampled dialogue also helps the set to retain a human quality. Thisseems to be a direct reference to the "skits" often featured betweenthe songs on hip hop albums. While many electronic acts talk of theinfluence hip hop has had on their work, Boysen has addressed thissubtly within the configuration of the album itself. The fact that thedialogue is from films also emphasizes Scatterheart's cinematicquality. Although there is a great amount of variance of sounds betweenthese tracks, they work well together as a whole and flow well into oneanother. Although there are many short tracks among the 23 featured,each seems to last long enough to effectively present an idea, withoutsounding unfinished. The running order is well organized, with "TBE,"the loudest, most chaotic track, placed at the halfway point. Thisshort track's noisy barrage of percussion balances the set perfectly.It's refreshing to find that although there are so many peopleproducing instrumental electronic music today, there is still thepossibility to create an album as fresh sounding as Scatterheart.
samples:
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On this double CD, their third release, Jesse Poe's Tanakh have abandoned songwriting and shifted their attention to creating dark atmospheric soundscapes. Seven musicians contribute to the project, including Pat Best, who must have felt right at home here, as the shifting drones sometimes recall his work with Pelt. The music sounds very much a product of the cavernous temple in which it was recorded.Alien8 Recordings
While listening I felt as if I had entered that space. The booklet's photographs of instruments and other constructions scattered about the dimly lit space enhance the perception of the recording. Although split onto two CDs, one 59 minute track and one 28 minute track, the music is best perceived as one piece. There is enough textural variety to make Tanakh a thoroughly enjoyable listening experience for the 90 minute duration. While it is not easy to deduce the exact instrumentation used, piano, hand percussion, guitar, distant moaning voices, and various low-end drones can be heard rising and subsiding during the piece. It seems that rather than focusing on individual instruments, the group was concerned with conveying a bigger picture that gives a sense of the space of the building itself. The resonances created by these instruments in various combinations, and at various volumes, recall both Organum and the Deep Listening projects of Pauline Oliveros. There are many levels of activity, making this a recording that will reveal different layers of sound with repeated listens. There is a haphazard, yet unified quality to the way the musicians interact with one another. A noisy, low-end rumbling sound is offset by the sound of piano strings being slowly plucked. Light percussion suggests a rhythmic element but does not set a tempo. The music feels both chaotic and calming at the same time. This sense of dynamics is what saves the album from becoming simply "ambient". It is difficult to record one piece that remains engaging for 90 minutes straight, but Poe has chosen musicians who fit the purpose well. The album benefits from having not been recorded in a studio, the immediacy of the sound being crucial to its' success. The abrupt stop at the end of CD2 implies that the tape ran out during what was possibly a much longer session. It also lends a timeless quality to the recording. There is a sense that Poe wanted the recording to be a document of what happened when a group of people gathered in a particular place at a particular time. This is a bold statement to make for someone who possesses talent as a traditional songwriter.
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Someone in this band has been to hell and back; the vocalist emulates enough emotions to make a manic depressive feel good about the way life is going. Depravity, arson, prostitution, obsession, betrayal, manipulation, and alcoholism are just a few of the topics the lyricist conjures up in the first half of the album. The music is a fitting combination of manipulated beats, chamber music, sickly lounge deliveries, and darkly lit soundscapes fluctuating between old phonograph recordings from the 1920's and blazingly confrontational arrangements that could've only been born out of the heart of a psychopath.Ipecac
If the drama of the album is to be believed, the entire recording is for the father of the female vocalist. More than a few songs mention a father figure directly and one track is titled "Daddy." Whether houses are being mysteriously burnt down or someone is getting wrapped up in a love affair that is decidedly one-sided, there's little to be happy about on any of these songs. But the music is so damned intriguing and varied that even "Whiskey Bound," a song about a father leaving (the vocalist's?), feels absolutely spell-binding. After a slight lull right at the beginning of the album (parts of "Daddy" and "$2.18" sound forced), the album stays thoroughly consistent. At times there are violins and horns moaning away underneath the gaps, whispers, shouts, and moans of the singer and at other times heavily distorted guitars and slimy drums scatter about randomly. The first part of the album resolves itself into a twangy piece of melancholy that aborts itself and comes away sounding as like a soul, gospel, and funk song all wrapped into one. On the other hand, "Will" is a piece that recalls vocal jazz arrangements and all the glory of hip-hop beats pieced together to form the perfect, underlying groove. The music is sometimes desperate and forlorn and at other times it is absolutely cocky and incensing. There's no denying that some songs are outright sexy, but at the same time there are points on this record where everything sounds sleazy. That's part of the appeal; these musicians aren't afraid to get things a little dirty. Vincent & Mr. Green also happen to be provocative and smart enough to keep things varied. A lot of these songs are really pop tunes in disguise, but their arrangements and use of texture keep the album seductive, mysterious, and addicting from beginning to end. The end, in particular, is a superb one. "When We Were We" and "Dance (Part II)" both stand out as two of the best songs on the album. 
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