- Mark Weddle
- Albums and Singles
Fehlmann is an electronicmusician with 20 years experience as a member of Palais Schaumburg andthe Orb, producer/mixer for Sun Electric, and as a solo artist andre-mixer. Last year's "Good Fridge. Flowing", also on Apollo / R + SRecords, collected 20 of his solo pieces from 1990 to 1998. "One toThree. Overflow" seems to be a collection of solo leftovers with 8 ofthe 12 tracks being re-mixes (of and by Fehlmann) and collaborations.This disc, beautifully mixed/produced by Fehlmann and mastered byStefan Betke (aka Pole) has the same ambient-IDM flavored techno feelas "Flowing". The songs are bright and fluid, sexy and sublime ...thumpin' grooves to dance or chill out to. It's not quite like the Orb,but you can definitely tell that he is a member of the Orb. Fehlmanndoes a fine job of re-mixing Charles Wilp's "Charlies Angeles" andInfiniti's (aka Juan Atkins) "Never Tempt Me" (which is unfortunatelymarred by insipid spoken word lyrics). It's easy to see why he is indemand for re-mix and production work. In turn, "Superfrühstück" and"Wee Wee Mademoiselle", both originally from "Flowing", are re-mixed togreat effect twice apiece by Plug Research and Fehlmann and To RococcoRot and Sun Electric/Willekes Wille, respectively. The "Superfrühstück"mixes are an especially tasty blend of ambiance, smooth bass and beats.The final 2 tracks are collaborations of a more ambient/experimentalnature: "Tuning" with Mute Records boss Daniel Miller and"FriedrichstraBe" with King Crimson guitarist Robert Fripp. Round itall off with 4 straight Fehlmann tracks mixed in and you have asurprisingly cohesive and solid 62 minutes of electronic music. As with"Flowing", this one features groovy minimal artwork courtesy of theDesigners Republic. Worth every penny of the $16.75 import price tag... - Mark WeddleRead More
- Jason Olariu
- Albums and Singles
I feel a littleembarrassed browsing through my local record store's New Age section,but only a little. I find the latest album by the Brazilian group Uakti(wa-ka-chee), and am vindicated. Taking their name from a mythiccreature whose body is ridden with holes and makes wonderful sounds ashe runs and winds pass through him, Uakti here perform music composedfor them by Philip Glass. Nine of the ten tracks (the last composed byGlass for ballet) are inspired by the rivers of the Amazon, hence thealbum title. Mostly percussion-lead (from homemade instruments tomarimbas) with woodwinds and sparse keyboard accent, these pieces(which flow together seamlessly) don't really recall rushing water, northe calm babble of brooks. They sew together bits of tribal warmth andairy classicism onto a frame that sounds a lot like Steve Reich's"Music For 18 Musicians"-era melodic minimalism. Allowing your mind tofloat free of association and physical sensation, this music is perhapsbest suited for the waters of an isolation tank rather than tropicallocales... brilliant and beautiful, nonetheless. - Jason OlariuRead More
- Administrator
- Albums and Singles
Sometimes it gets quitedifficult to describe something without using comparisons to othersbefore them. While I really enjoy this, the charming and honest debutfull-lengther from Best Boy Electric, the slow and melodic musiccombined with the hesitant vocals screams of influence of Galaxie 500,Bedhead and of course, Low. Best Boy is based in Madison, WI andfeatures former Low bass guitarist John Nichols, who left the band tohead to college. The album was produced in Duluth by Alan Sparhawk fromLow and features a similar formula of simple drums, slow pace, melodicguitar lines, heart-felt bass strums and quiet keybaord backgroundaccompaniment. The lack of pop ditties and up-and-down stroked guitarsdoesen't necessarily warrant calling this "sad" music, so I'm confusedwhere people get off on accusing bands like this of being as such. Thisshould be an interesting band to watch develop over the next few years,as the singer sounds like he's just beginning to get comfortable withhis voice. Those fans of the above mentioned bands would probably enjoythis as much as I did while if slow-core or shadow-pop isn't yourstyle, it's most likely not for you. - Jon WhitneyRead More
- Administrator
- Albums and Singles
Read More
- Administrator
- Albums and Singles
My pick of the week is the fourth album by this German group, released in 1998. Notwist is allegedly an offshoot from the Tied and Tickled Trio, a jazz rock influenced group who can be found on more remixes than original product, including the Aerial M remix album "Post-Global Music".
Zero Hour
For nearly all of the songs, the first measures start up in a wonderful electro glitchy rhythmic interplay, eventually kicking in to a fuzz-bass based pop tune, indie-pop (if possible) in nature. Music must evolve, and thus indie glitch-pop is born (?) as this album represents what you might get when you cross Coil with Magnetic Fields and Sam Prekop (of The Sea and Cake) at the vocals. Taking a break from the easy-melody pop, a few tracks break the electro mold and step over the line, rejecting vocals and adding a small horn section, living percussion players, nasty sounding organs and saxophone vs. drum break downs. Stereolab fans beware, as I have heard they're touring around with the band here and there for their current tour. The tunes keep your head bobbing, the melodies warm your soul and the electronics tickle your brain. Hunt this one out because Zero Hour isn't necessesarily an easy label to hunt down.
Read More
- Administrator
- Albums and Singles
Just when you think Mute USA dropped the ball and turned their back on music in general (re: the exodus of classics such as Einsturzende Neubauten, Diamanda Galas and Nick Cave from the US label) they shock us all and strike a deal.
 
Mute US has entered a new market with German post-kraut-rock releases now due from To Rococo Rot, Kriedler and Schneider TM. "The Amateur View" is To Rococo Rot's first full-length release in the USA - preceeding this was the EP release on now defunct label Emperor Jones/Trance Syndicate as well as a couple European-only releases on City Slang and Kitty-Yo. To Rococo Rot take their music seriously and produce professionally with an audibly perfectionistic touch - a gentle yet appropriate blend of drum machines and live drums, sequenced and performed keyboards, samples and live bass. The tunes are pleasant, the tempo moves well throughout the entire disc, the sounce are slick and polished, there's nothing sloppy here. Don't let the title fool you, this album is anything but amateurish.
Read More
- Administrator
- Albums and Singles
I must admit I didn't know what to expect when hearing this, but I'm pleasantly surprised. This is the first (to my knowledge) first full-length official release from Russian sound engineer, Ivan Pavlov. Ivan is definately showing influences of a cross between Panasonic and Ryoji Ikeda, but it is definately his own. A pleasant surprise on this is the human element that has become so withdrawn from other music in this genre, his baby daughter Sasha appears on one of the tracks. I know it's nothing new, but it's something that fits well.Read More
The second collaboration between these three, and what a fine disc it is. Low bass dub influenced music, the Mick Harris signature drum loops, and special effects by Eraldo Bernocchi. While Laswell and Harris have been mass producing music lately in the droves, the right combination always has a possibility of yielding a stellar product. Listen to this one loud.
- Administrator
- Albums and Singles
The second collaboration between these three, and what a fine disc it is. Low bass dub influenced music, the Mick Harris signature drum loops, and special effects by Eraldo Bernocchi. While Laswell and Harris have been mass producing music lately in the droves, the right combination always has a possibility of yielding a stellar product. Listen to this one loud.Read More
- Gil Gershman
- Albums and Singles
Read More
- Gil Gershman
- Albums and Singles
To the uninitiated, Blonk sounds like a madman - babbling excitedly in non-languages, spitting guttural noises and pitched burps like a Speak-N-Spell rewired by a lunatic. He's quite sane, and enormously entertaining, an avid devotee of the obscure history of sound poetry.
Dadaist and surrealist poets were drawn to the rhythm of language, applying their cut-up and repetition techniques to words, vowel sounds, consonant clusters and lip and lingual sounds. The results can be as stirringly meditative as Velimir Khlebnikov's "Kolokol Uma (Ringing The Bell of Mind)" or as playful as Blonk's own "Geen Krimp," an exhaustive study in the Dutch language's most problematic letter combinations (lots of "gr"s and "krs"), and the playful lip farts of "Labior." At the other extreme of this vocal-lore is Man Ray's "Lautgedicht," a text with all words gleefuly "XXXXX"-ed out, performed by Blonk like a Conehead love-call. Blonk's choking-victim gurgle and spirited brays, whoops, smacks and hoots would get him tossed from even the most liberal restaurant, making Vocalor the perfect vicarious thrill for those who have had it with the snotty properiety of their local art scene.
Read More
