Plenty of new music to be had this week from Laetitia Sadier and Storefront Church, Six Organs of Admittance, Able Noise, Yui Onodera, SML, Clinic Stars, Austyn Wohlers, Build Buildings, Zelienople, and Lea Thomas, plus some older tunes by Farah, Guy Blakeslee, Jessica Bailiff, and Richard H. Kirk.
Lake in Girdwood, Alaska by Johnny.
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The electropop revival has seen it's first casualty. With 'Alright OnTop' Luke Slater, revered for his techno-electro work under numerousmonikers, makes a significant step away from the dancefloor and towardsthe bargain bin. Not nearly as kitschy as Miss Kittin or Felix ThaHousecat, the tracks on here have none of the trashy hip glamour thathas been slapped to the backside of this new new wave. Rather thancopying what seems to be working for everyone else (or sticking to whathe does best and progressing a bit), Slater presents some bizarrehybrid 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 creditfor doing what he wants to do (and hopefully bracing for criticism fromhis fanbase) and paying tribute to music he truly loves. However, weaksongwriting (dubbed in true press release style as 'songtronica')accompanies uninventive and boring lyrics, making for an overallembarassment when compared to his strong backcatalog. To be honest, I'mhoping this electropop fad (or whatever you want to call it) pisses offand dies quickly like Detroit ghetto-booty music did. I'm not feelin'it... and it's already produced at least one awful album from aonce-solid producer.
Okay, I know this dude's friends with the Fridge guys but the kickofftrack on this EP+video sounds too strikingly similar to "Kinoshita"from Fridge's 1999 single. Dan Snaith is a Canadian who's studies havelanded him in London, where he now makes his home and his muisc. Thisfour-tracker contains the aforementioned ripoff, "Dundas, Ontarioremix" two new tracks, the album version and a video of "Dundas". Whilehis skills as a player and technologist are more than evident in all ofhis recordings, I always feel there's something conceptually missing.The beats he drops on the opening of track two, "Tits and Ass" arebombastic at first, then the track drifts into some pretty melodickeyboard loops which sort of linger in the air like a fart in a roomthat won't dissipate soon enough. The other new track, "Webers" is alsopretty, with a xylo-phoney melody which reminds me of being stuck in aJapanese restaurant in a cheap Kung-fu film waiting for my take-outnoodles minutes before the ninjas burst in. It's accented by tiredrhythmic clicking and an artificial bass drum kick, but once again Ifeel about as statiated after I've eaten only one gyoza. Themade-for-chic coffee shop ambiance LP version of "Dundas" closes theaudio portion and the video of the remix version rounds out the set. Tome, the video seems like it's trying to parodize Beach Party MTV-stylevideos whilst making fun of the place where young Dan grew up, takingthe form of a home video of a bunch of drunk Canadian kids. Even theplushies couldn't help this one in the end.
If you're Icelandic, you're probably already aware of OlafurJosephsson's project, as his career got a large boost by opening forgodspeed you black emperor! last month in Reykjavik. His "band" nametranslates as Digital Hakon (Hakon the Good was the king of Norway inthe 10th century and has a long legacy of being name checked innumerous songs) and the music is probably the most amazingly producedCD-Rs I have ever received. A heaping serving of patience is needed asthe disc opens with a gentle 8 1/2 minute piece of soft drones andsparse guitar. Over the course of nearly an hour, the music crescendosslowly, slowly, slowly. Various other instruments are added, numerousdifferently treated guitar sounds, un-dominating beats and rhythms,bass, long-stretched keyboard synth string sounds, pianos, andbell-like chiming things (xylophones, wind chimes or keyboard sounds,it's hard to tell what's real these days). Unfortunately, as is theseeming downfall of everything I'm writing about this week, there are anumber of derivative elements. Sampled tirades of Jesus freaks hasalmost been done to death by godspeed, swirling guitar melodies echothose from the Aerial M record and chord progressions I'm hearing arestrikingly similar to those overused by Mogwai and their imitators.These aren't bad things to emulate by a long shot. If anything, moremusic needs to be this patient and delicate. Josephsson, however, seemslike a very intuitive man, tactfully issuing this disc only as a CD-R,giving out a number of songs for free on his website, www.islandia.is/hauskupa.In essence, he's made a silent statement that he's here, he's busy, butthings are not quite ready just yet for a mega-super world dominatingrelease. Pay attention to him, however, as things will happen. You canquote me on that. In the meantime, lend him an ear and I'm sure hewon't let you down. -
David Edwards deserves an "A" for effort on his debut full-lengthrelease as Minotaur Shock. The interplay of organic piano and guitarwith electronic instruments and sampled beats blends nicely in thisshimmery recordng of tinkling melodies and sharp rhythms. When I sawthe names Fridge and Four Tet dropped in writeups on this album,naturally my interest was piqued, but seeing those names made me expectsomething somewhat derivative of the two. What Edwards is doing iscompletely different from the Fridge boys. It derives, however, morefrom the repetitive, glistening days of Aphex and Autechre mixed with alittle cheesiness of Isan and only a slight nod to Four Tet. While it'snot a bad thing, it is somewhat predictable, in the way that you knowthe first 40-second track is an intro, the second track will probablybe one of the strongest, and the ending will have that proverbialessence of finality to it. The production is great, the melodies arecatchy, yet I'm finding myself more interested in hearing how Edwardsdevelops as a musician. After a year of stunning electronic releases bygroups like Múm, Dntel, Ulrich Schnauss, Four Tet, and Telefon TelAviv, I'm honestly seeking out something more challenging and far moreoriginal. Keep us posted, Dave. -
The scene is Brooklyn, NY. The time is present day (okay, 2001. This release came out last year, but I just found it for review). And the music is by... Hey! Who the heck are these guys? From Arena Rock Recording Co. comes this compilation of both unknown and well-known Brooklyn bands. And what better cause could there be but donating all the proceeds to the Brooklyn Animal Resource Coalition? Arena Rock has introduced us to some superior rock bands in the past, and Brooklyn has a history of being the birthplace for impressive rock. And the results are astonishing. This is, quite simply, the best 2-CD multiple band compilation I have ever heard.
Arena Rock
The established acts show off their strengths: They Might Be Giants bring a great rock record to the table, complete with quirky lyrics; Grand Mal is at their heavy-psychedelic best; Nada Surf donate a fantastic acoustic track with well-blended harmonies; and Elk City come off like Concrete Blonde with a fuzz bass. It's pretty impressive just taking the home team donations into consideration. And what about the little-heard from visitors? They hold their own, and, in some places, could teach the veterans a move or two. The Seconds come out of the gate ready to tear out your throat, with a punky Cure sound; Blasco try to break your heart with a very film noir, Giant Sand-like sound; Stereobate successfully combine Mogwai with Thurston Moore without sounding lame; and then recent Arena Rock signing The Mink Lungs want to groove you with their lo-fi slacker sound. Overall, the variety of sounds and abundance of bands make for a very disjointed but aurally pleasing mix. A great introduction to some great new bands, a worthy cause, and two CDs for one low price. Christmas can come a little early for you, too, this year. - 
In the grand tradition of celebrities venturing forth from their meagerbeginnings to great acclaim and stardom, comes Claudia. Claudia, thelatest one name celebrity, the airline hostess, the actress (SaturdayNight Live, Sex and the City, and more), and now, the entertainer. Onher debut release, this CD single on Sourmash USA, Claudia introducesthe world to her voice, and opens her heart to us all. Does shesucceed? Not all that well, no. But it IS her first release, and Isuppose we can forgive her that. This is a phenomenon that must beheard to be believed. Man, what a personality Claudia truly is. Andwhat better material to pick for sixties redux than a track popularizedby Skeeter Davis and another by Lou Reed? These songs just lendthemselves to the treatment. And Claudia has put together a fine bandfor the release, just so you know it's not a joke. Actually, the truthis the music and her voice together sound like what you can expect tohear in your favorite pub on karaoke night. And the voice that youexpect to be dazzled by is really buried in the mix, and sometimesthat's for good measure. But is that really what's important? No.Claudia is not here to show you the most beautiful voice you've everheard. Nor is she here to show you what a wonderful new approach shehas to this music. She's here to entertain you. She wants you to feelher emotions. She wants to be loved, and to love you. She wants you tostare at that photo on the front of the CDs for hours on end, longinglyhoping for it to wink at you and blow a kiss. And it's the style morethan anything else that's important for that. Not the music. The musicis secondary to the image. So what more do you need? Listen foryourself, and have an open mind for the ways and wiles of Claudia. -
For this five track EP on Germany's Crippled Dick Hot Wax, omnipresent artiste Lydia Lunch teams up with Los Angeleno instrumental duo Tommy Grenas and Len Del Rio, aka The Anubian Nights. Strange bedfellows? Hardly. The Nights' solid grooves are both live and looped, drawing on smoky bar jazz, Martin Denny exotica and electronica. Thankfully it's devoid of the tongue-in-cheek tackiness such a concoction could create. Lydia is simply, perfectly credited as "chanteuse". She is extraordinarily melodic here as she erotically exhales two short stories and an especially lusty poem. I imagine her words and voice are enough to make some homosexual men reconsider things. On 'Nothing But Trouble' she confessedly purrs "the trouble with being so bad is that it feels so damn good" then regales us with the sins of her trouble man. With an opiated whisper she tells us of a little man in the title track, "another hopped up bastard on a barstool" who'd "go in heat just like a little bitch" at the sight of any woman out on the town. 'Potango Tango' plays out like a horn-y Foetus production, Lydia insisting "your kiss tastes like an orgy" and "your kiss is my elixir" over a throbbing dance rhythm. The near instrumentals 'Guernicana' and 'Potango Tango (Rmx)' tastefully round out the suite. Everything from the music to the voice to the lyrics to the artwork is complementary on this release. I'm just about sick of it I've been listening to the damn thing so much. It's only April Fools Day, but I'm pretty confident this will be my top EP of 2002. -
Music should never be purely judged by how it sounds. It should also bejudged by how it makes the listener feel upon listening. Whatexperiences it inspires. What textures and emotions it invokes. Onthese qualities alone, Pilote takes the taco.Stuart Cullen receivedaccolades for his debut album "Antenna", and on this, his second album,he explores the same melancholy electronic ground, but with a moreinteresting and disturbing tone. I felt at once a myriad of emotions:'Paul Oakenfold', the album's opener is borderline schizophrenic withits slowed-down vocal sample and simple beat that belies the underlyinghorror, and made me feel like someone was watching me; 'FrenchCanadian' sounds like the soundtrack to the perfect crime, where avaluable piece of information is stolen, like a Mamet picture; 'TheFourth' made me feel like I wasn't doing enough for the problems of theworld, like the homeless; 'Nelson' made me want to start/join a FightClub. It's all very melodic, gorgeously constructed, and horribly densefor such a meager and simple structure, for the most part. Programmedbeats, jumbled vocal samples, keyboards, and synthesizers can make fora boring listening experience. Not with Pilote. While it has a heavytone, the album is very playful, and that inherent contradiction makesfor a compelling listen. This is one of my favorite releases of thisyear, based purely on the originality of the sound, and it was releasedin October of last year on Domino. There are a few moments that sound alittle too familiar. That keyboard sample on 'Paul Oakenfold' sounds abit too much like one the Lo-Fidelity All-Stars used on the Pigeonhed'Battle Flag' remix, and 'Junior' sounds very much like music one wouldhear on later episodes of Miami Vice. But again, it's all in theinterest of invoking a very pure, raw emotional response. And that,Cullen succeeds at beyond all doubt. -
Department is an experimental industrial duo from Australia, who go bythe cryptic personas of Gatz and Spacious. Not much is known abouttheir past except that one of them (Spacious, I think) was in an early'90s Aussie prog-metal band called Vauxdvihl (pronounced: vaudeville)that apparently achieved minor cult status.
Department claims thattheir attitude is based on a "punk" aesthetic - "making strongstatements, keeping album lengths short and getting straight to thepoint." Well, maybe, but the music on these two self-released CDssounds more like a modern soundtrack for an apocalyptic student film.Department is mostly instrumental, with industrial drum machine beats,layered synths and guitars, processed samples, and lots of noise thrownin for good measure. On the whole the music sounds a few years dated,but there are definitely some intriguing elements within the mix. On'This Is Tension Avenue,' the first disc, the most notable track is"Detached," where a pleasant guitar line plays over synth drones andwhat sounds like stereo-shuffled radio clips. I could definitely dowithout the overbearing "Cure For the World," the only song withvocals, which makes fairly evident why Department is primarilyinstrumental, but the film-music synth washes of "Pulchrify" areengaging enough that it's worth a few listens.
'Exiting,' Department's more recent album, takes a step off to one sideby adding ultra-reverbed horns to the industrial jams of "From TheClutches" and "There's No End," and on the whole the music soundsslightly less serious, almost reminding me at moments of Mr. Bunglewithout the frontman/clownish vocal antics of Mike Patton. The mostinteresting track on 'Exiting' is "Baltra," a quiet computer-generatedpiece of bouncing and cycling tones, which is a pleasant departure fromthe intensity of most of the rest of the album. I think Department liketo think that they're more experimental or groundbreaking than theyreally are, which is not a big issue, but it makes me feel like there'sa lack of irony to this music which is sorely needed. Their biographystates, "Anti-corporate paranoia never sounded so good," and I hopethey're kidding, at least a little bit. Department is a nice additionto the industrial canon, though, and with their very tailoredindustrial film score sound, I wouldn't be surprised if they show up onan indie-flick soundtrack in Australia sometime soon. -
The biggest problem with Richie Hawtin's 2001 mix CD 'DE9: Closer ToThe Edit' was the hype and attention devoted to the techniques andsoftware used to create it. As gearheads and laptop geeks oohed andaahed over the new innovations and opportunities for experimental DJs,many people including myself found the result kind of dull.
It wasultimately a straightforward techno mix made with more than just amixer and two Technics 1200's. Big deal. Please forward all complaintsto the Customer Disservice Dept. Following a similar model, Algorithm,ironically another veteran Canadian techno DJ, presents his first mixCD almost as a response to the process-focused approach spearheaded byHawtin. The result, however, is infinite more interesting than 'CloserTo The Edit,' mainly in part due to better track selection. Whilelimited to a small backcatalog of Force Lab 12" releases, as well assome previously unreleased tracks from new signings, the quality ofthis material shines through. Force Lab's signature deep bass-heavyclicktechno & clickhouse evokes the futurism that Detroit technohas always promoted, but arguably lost hold of as it became more andmore dated. Algorithm takes advantage of his right to excessivefiltering as he submerges these dubby sounds even further withoutoffering the full release given by French house classics like "MusicSounds Better With You." However, with effected loops from mainstaysKid606, Kit Clayton, and Farben as well as up-and-comers like Yagya,OZY, and Posterboys Of The Apocalypse, who cares? This is ideallistening for late-night coding sessions, late-night afterpartying andlate-nite pornography downloading. -
This mysterious CD with an oversized package, which may or may not be aSub Rosa-related project, is a live recording of a 1999 collaborationin Belgium between electronic music giants Mika Vainio of Pan Sonic andChristian Fennesz. There are two 30-minute tracks: the first is acollaborative set between the two artists, the second is a solo set byVainio. As much as I like and respect both of these artists—Pan Sonicand Fennesz each released one of the best albums of last year—this CDleaves a lot to be desired. Vainio's work with Pan Sonic and his solowork as Ø often revolve around cold analog rhythms and stark soniclandscapes. Fennesz's trademark sound is his laptop processing ofguitar and other sounds, striking a unique balance between beauty andnoise. None of this is very evident on this collaboration. Onlyoccasionally is rhythm a factor, and much of Fennesz's textures areoverpowered by Vainio's blasts of feedback and distortion. Though therecording quality seems decent enough, Vainio is mixed a little louderthan Fennesz, and when Mika lets it get loud, Christian becomes barelyaudible. In theory, a collaboration between these two seems like agreat idea, but the members of Pan Sonic have a less-than-stellar trackrecord when it comes to releases with other musicians (i.e. the'Endless' CD with Suicide's Alan Vega; the 'IBM' LP with BruceGilbert). The only notable exception is last year's 'Wohltemperiert',Ø's disc with Noto. Fennesz, on the other hand, is usually quite goodwhen working with other artists—Peter Rehberg, Biosphere, etc. Here,however, it seems like the two artists are in their own worlds and notfocusing on the music as a whole. At one point, while Vainio iscreating loud swishes and swoops, you can hear what eventually became"Year In a Minute" on Fennesz's 'Endless Summer' disc very quietly inthe background—almost as if Fennesz was trying out new material in themiddle of the set instead of improvising. The Mika Vainio solo set isstandard Vainio. Five-minute stretches of silence interspersed withrandom bits of static compete with long stretches of analog ton.Nothing new, but may be interesting enough to the Pan Sonic junkie.There is almost no information about who released this disc; it seemsto be on a label called Audiosphere but it also says "conceived byAudioview/Lowlands ¥ Sub Rosa ¥ (Audio) Incident" on the package. Itseems to me like this disc and its unnecessary, DVD-like packaging is apretty blatant attempt to cash in on the Fennesz and Pan Sonic names.It's another example, too, of why it isn't necessary to release everylive recording of an electronic artist that exists. A collaborationbetween Mika Vainio and Christian Fennesz could result in an amazingdisc, but this is apparently just a chance encounter, not a wellthought out endeavor. Releasing it only detracts from the body ofimpressive work that both artists have under their belts. -