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05 April 2008

Administrator

Albums and Singles

Excepter's fourth album seems like an obnoxious mess at first, but repeated listens reveal patterns in the chaos. Using deceptively simplistic beats, electronics, swimming voices, and even a bass clarinet for good measure, they add rich textures to uneasy rhythms for music that is ridiculously addictive.

Paw Tracks

On most of these songs, the deceptively simple rhythms become the core on which the other elements depend. Voices are thrown into the mix seemingly at random while counter rhythms, found sounds, and melodic bits from other instruments come and go. It is this constant motion that propels the album forward, albeit at such a similar pace for much of it that some of the distinction between tracks is blurred. The rich stimulation overload quickly becomes the norm, making anything simpler boring by comparison.

Many of the lyrics are about economic politics but are more sarcastic than didactic. A good example is the opening line of "Shots Ring": "Did you know the cost of life is $1/That's why there are slaves." In a similar vein is "Kill People," in which a variety of voices shout the title in different styles and are processed in a number of ways. Instead of becoming an annoyance, the lyrics serve the purpose of keeping the songs playful rather than succumbing to overseriousness.

There's a sense of humor at work here, but the album has its share of uneasy moments as well. "Greenhouse/Stretch" has a strange electronic opening vastly different from the songs the precede it and eventually delves into some dark areas in its second half. On its heels, "Walking Through the Night" has sinister distorted sounds on top of heavy beats. One definite head-scratcher is "Sunrise." While it is a decent song, it initially takes its cues so obviously from Sonic Youth that I assumed it was a cover or at least an interpretation of sorts, but no credit to that effect appears anywhere on the booklet. Even more puzzling is the last-minute addition of a line from Stevie Wonder's "Higher Ground." I'm not quite sure what the band's getting at on this track, but it's fun to listen to anyway.

Excepter take the kitchen sink approach to composition with this album, and it succeeds despite the initial vertigo of having to make sense of it all. Yet the group throws out a lifeline with its beats, allowing the rest of the music to unfold one glorious step at a time.

samples:

05 April 2008

Matthew Amundsen

Albums and Singles

The new work from Mike Gallagher of Isis finds him using a subtle touch with sparse guitars and hazy drones to create instrumental atmospherics with a dramatic edge. While it works great as background music, there are also plenty of nuances to reward attentive listening.

Conspiracy

"Allusions" begins the album with a low-end pulse and sustained notes while a clean, minimal electric guitar plays. Other textural sounds make themselves known as the guitar slowly takes on a central role. Most of the songs here don't stray too far from that formula, but neither do they all sound the same. "It Darkens His Door" uses subdued distorted riffs, while "Equilibrium" takes a more delicate approach. The best tracks are the last two. "The Night Splits, Wide and Open" uses epic builds to achieve a dramatic conclusion, and "And It Falls by the Gallons" uses bouts of churning, sputtering distortion to cathartic effect. The most ordinary song is "Ruminations of Before." It's not a bad track by any means, but it is a little boring compared to the others.

I like this album better than Nova Lux. The compositions are structured a bit more cohesively yet still retain a unique mood, one that never fails to immerse me completely.

05 April 2008

Matthew Amundsen

Albums and Singles

Starving Weirdos Brian Pyle and Merrick McKinlay and guests don their wizard robes to invoke unknown realms of existence. Some of the methods may change from song to song, but each has an allure and mystery all its own.

Bottrop-Boy

"Summon" is like walking through a vast, majestic hall with its airy pitches, panned rattles, and swooping tones. The only bit of melody comes toward the end, played on an exotic scale. "Orchestra at Twilight" begins more contemplatively with breathy electronic exhalations and roiling mechanical sounds, eventually joined by what could be pterodactyls crying for food. The album's only rhythm comes from hand drums and light percussion on "In Transit," accompanied by a thirsty beehive on the prowl. "Sunset at the College Cove Bluffs" uses subtle washes and forlorn foghorns to give a sense of space, as if opening a tunnel to another plane entirely.

The group is quite effective at making alien worlds seem like normal ones by slowly unfolding various textures throughout the tracks. They've certainly got my attention with this sublime recording.

05 April 2008

Matthew Amundsen

Albums and Singles

The four untitled tracks that make up No Canal are stylistically both familiar and new. While two of the songs feature the mechanical churning of previous Mouthus efforts, the other two stray from the group's comfort zone with mixed results.

Bottrop-Boy

The first track signals a departure right away with its clean pitches, backing drones, and a contemplative mood that almost feels maternal. Unfortunately, its high level of tape hiss somewhat sullies the effect, but it works well enough at low volumes. The second track returns to the abrasive guitars and drums I have come to expect from Mouthus, and it doesn't disappoint. Its crushing rhythm shambles along nicely with the guitar loops and feedback, falling into an enjoyable ear-splitting groove.

The album's most puzzling anomaly is the third track. While the instruments play light jazz that would sit well in a David Lynch movie, it is ruined by excessive distortion that quickly becomes grating and unnecessary. While much later on in the song the two parts find a somewhat peaceful coexistence, the abrasion has already done its damage. If it had been lower in the mix it may have worked better with the other instruments, but as it stands, the track is memorable only for its annoyance. Conversely, the last track is the album's best with its loping rhythm, distant harmonics, and scattered noises.

Despite a misstep or two, the good outweighs the bad to make this a solid album. If nothing else, the departures here prove that Mouthus still have a lot of uncharted territory to explore.

30 March 2008

Administrator

Albums and Singles

The Trunk label rescues from extinction Vernon Elliot's composition for two 1960s children's TV shows: the charming Ivor The Engine and the decidedly surreal Pogles Wood.

Trunk

Vernon Elliot took up the bassoon as a toddler, became a founder of the Philharmonic Orchestra, player at the Royal Opera House, conductor of the RPH, a music teacher, writer, and jazz enthusiast. The exquisitely contemplative music for Ivor The Engine was his first work for television and he went on to compose for almost all of Oliver Postgate's Smallfilms productions. Postgate was an animator, puppeteer and writer who made some marvelous TV series including The Clangers, Ivor The Engine, The Pogles, Pogles Wood, and my particular favorites Noggin the Nog and Bagpuss. He was assisted by illustrator and model maker Peter Firmin. Given that, perhaps we can forgive Firmin for co-creating Basil Brush, mouthy fox hand-puppet and one of the biggest nuisances in British television history!

Trunk has already released music from The Clangers but this new release captures a little slice of music-making history. Jon Brooks at Newyattsounds has sifted through a huge cardboard box of tape reels that were getting close to disintegration. The remastering job is done with the loving care that these recordings deserve, since it mirrors that which went into them in the first place. Along with the musical themes and episodes are studio exchanges and sound-effects and the package includes handwritten labels and notes. All this gives a real glimpse into the working processes of Postgate and Firmin. The Ivor music aches with melancholy charm and sound effects (such as donkey departing, coal being tipped, and the engine chuffing or resisting starting) are sweet and ordinary. The endeavor evokes cardigans and cups of tea.

Ivor is totally off the breakneck digital pace of today, but The Pogles is worlds apart. It could never be made now. The joy is too simple, the element of fear too primal and naturalistic, the whole concept too languid and effortlessly politically incorrect. The original 1965 version was cut from the BBC's Watch With Mother series after complaints from parents that the character of The Witch was too scary for pre-schoolers. With all due respect to her pre-Thatcherite visual weirdness, much of the anxiety stems from Vernon Elliot's slashing music that accompanied her appearance. Pogles Wood (1966-68) is still wonderful and crazy. Some of its magic and innocence is conveyed by Elliot's playful compositions. Adventures consist of Mr Pogle supping bilberry wine and feeding it to his plant (called Plant) The cast walk, run and play games as a ritual strangeness envelopes everyday life. Once seen, the characters of Mrs. Pogle, Pippin, Hedgepig, and Tog (a stuffed toy brought to life to fight The Witch) are unforgettable. As with (the unrelated) The Singing Ringing Tree, from East Germany's DEFA studio, they really don't make them like this anymore.

Trunk has plans to release many of the other recordings from the Smallfilms series in the near future.

samples:

30 March 2008

Albums and Singles

E.E and The Owl Archimedes love dancing to death... literally. Adoringly these two sculptors have put one of the world's most-revered tunes to the chopping block and, by virtue of its eradication, developed a new spectrum of radiant sounds and mutant un-rhythms to enjoy. This is a requiem for the dancing queen, who in death sounds as marvelous as she did in life.

30 March 2008

Administrator

Albums and Singles

Wise Owl

There is a theory that one thing is simply the parody of another thing. The Greek word from which we get the English "parody" literally means "beside or parallel to a song or ode." Stretch that definition out a bit and some very interesting things can happen with parodies: crime could "stand side by side" with sex or wealth could be made a parallel of poverty. This may not seem particularly original or innovative, but the upshot is that a parody can cast new light on something for better or for worse. Parody can reveal what originally captivated us about our favorite records in surprising ways or it can amplify the repulsive in something and give us pause for reconsidering it. E.E and The Owl Archimedes have clearly spent some time with ABBA's "Dancing Queen" and their love for the song is evident through every second of their double-CD tribute to it. This is by no means a remix project, however; The End of Deconstruction is a loving parody of ABBA's dance-floor machinations. It is composed of four entirely unique ambient-noise pieces, each developing slowly and with a somber tone, suggesting the slow march of a funeral procession. The bright and energetic life of "Dancing Queen" is thus transformed into a dark meditation on what happens when the music decays and the happy veneer of pop-beauty fades.

The irony is that the beauty of the song doesn't really fade during the parodic transformation, but is replaced by an attractiveness of a different kind. The first disc begins with E.E's "Venus." It presents itself delicately at first, slowly growing into a constant and voluminous hum. Bits of stereo debris bubble to surface over the course of the song lending it only the most microscopic variation . "Venus" does away with time or alters it; lasting more than 19 minutes it swallows up more than a quarter of an hour quietly and surprisingly. Its all-encompassing flow sets everything into drift and seduces by its simplicity. When that monumental tone is silenced a sense of loneliness is all that's left in its wake and every other minute sound, from the moaning of a loose board to the uneven drop of a leaky faucet, becomes as loud and intrusive as an unexpected car horn. "Birth," on the other hand, takes the opposite approach. It begins in deceptive silence and then crescendos quickly, the familiar sounds of "Dancing Queen" almost recognizable through the slow distortion and patterned, tessellated noise. It's a clumsy piece to be sure, nakedly revealing portions of the song and unfurling like a cut and scored digital tapestry. Nevertheless, it inspires both laughter and appreciation; it is absolutely ridiculous that the song should be made to contort this way, but it's also amazing that the original lends itself so perfectly to these degenerative processes.

E.E's "Liminal State" begins the second disc and supplements "Birth." Here, all the pretzeled twists and turns of "Birth" are transformed into a backing band and a choir of voices are brought to center stage. What was a noise piece is transformed into an orchestral explosion of grandiose proportions. Though the song is filled with colliding sounds from beginning to end there is a sense of space present in the work; as a result the undulating of various component noises feels more peaceful and relaxed than busy and tense. It's a delicate balance that he strikes between distress and calm and he keeps that balance interesting for over half an hour. It stands out as the best composition on the album. That's not to take away from The Owl Archimedes' concluding contribution, "Lost Memories." This seems to be a supplement to E.E.'s "Venus" as it adds a great deal of depth to that ascetic and severe drone. Like that opening song it is almost unidentifiable as a reworking of "Dancing Queen." Replacing the stereo hiccups are a series of digital horns that scream and stretch throughout the song. As the piece develops various dial tones begin to populate the work almost as though they are vying for attention with those horns. This competition comes to a frenzied head about halfway through and then the intensity subsides and the album ends in a simple and lovely drone.

The End of Deconstruction comes in a hand-made double-CD package with a small but classy insert and is also numbered. Only 40 copies were made originally, some of which may still be available but will likely be gone soon. The record label has also made the music available for free through their website by way of MP3s. This may be a parody, but the artists involved couldn't have taken the project more seriously; it shows in both the music and the presentation.

samples:

30 March 2008

Administrator

Albums and Singles

This rare second album from the band gets new life, five extra bonus tracks, and a bit wider recognition on its reissue on Tzadik (on the "Fullforce Composer Series," seriously John, is there a series to go along with every album you release?). All kidding aside, that is a pretty good description of the style presented here. Shards of metal, hardcore punk, jazz, and the avant garde all come together here, somehow as a congealed package.

Tzadik

Very much in-line with what is commonly referred to as math rock, Ahlecuhatistas expand past just musical complexity as narcissistic masturbation (no overwrought solos or the like here), but thrive on the dense interplay of the trio. As chaotic as it all sounds, a close listen reveals it is not the result of noodling or improvisation, but instead carefully calculated and planned composition. At the same time, the short (mostly sub-four minute) track lengths limit self-indulgence.

In that regard it is stylistically not all that removed from some of Zorn's own work, notably Naked City, but instead of the rapid shifts in genre, it is more the mood, tempo and structure that are the variables. It lacks that same gonzo "broken radio on seek mode" quality, but feels more coherent because of it. The frequent shifts and stop-start nature of some of the tracks lend a very invigorating, exciting sense to the work which ensures it stays out of the realms of stuffy musicologist beard stroking and a little more something that’s just entertaining as opposed to beard stroking music.

Tracks like "Good Question" emphasize that balance, the mid-point of the track features some extremely dexterous high end guitar picking that would make pretentious jazz cats snap their fingers at how much they're "digging it, maaan" before blasting head-long into hardcore punk grind.

Although there is really no time for "soloing," it's not hard to hear how all three members are extremely proficient at their instruments: Shane Perlowin's guitar work is constantly frantic, yet impeccably timed, Derek Poteat's bass often vacillates from distorted metal lead to carefully measured jazz riffs (see opener "Cracked Teeth") while drummer Sean Dail plays with manic rapid fire energy on "The Day the Earth Stood Still" and does a great speed metal double kick drum track on "RPG 3."

The five additional bonus tracks appended at the end of the disc are an entirely different entity in some regards, as they are functionally just live improvisations of the band as opposed to the highly structured and composed nature of the rest of the album. Without a disclaimer in the liner notes of this, however, I think most would be hard pressed to recognize the difference. That alone is a testament to how well this band works together and plays upon each other's strengths.

samples:

30 March 2008

Administrator

Albums and Singles

By all accounts this is a metal album. From the dark, lo-fi black-and-white artwork, gore-ified fonts and titles, I expected some form of death or black metal, and I was pretty much right on target. Now, knowing the label that put this out, I assumed it couldn't be just any generic metal album, because Alien8 is known for leaning towards the experimental.

Alien8 Recordings

The opener, "Process of Bestialization," cemented that hypothesis of mine rather quickly. Sure, the demonic vocals and drum machine blasts raised fingers up in Ronnie James Dio devil horn fashion, but the accompanying controlled feedback that reached a point of near ambience was a different demon entirely, and was definitely conventional riffing or head banging in nature.

For those who like their metal either black or deathy or a combination of both, tracks like "They Who Enter Caves" will fit the bill. It is hard to tell if the track is being led by a processed guitar or a synth but the pace and mood of overall track, coupled with the vocals and drums, is unabashedly metallic in nature. However, the underlying ambience that is a bit more apparent during the ending shows more debt to dark ambient than the rest of the track leads on. Similarly, the 12-minute "Bonded by Wyrd" adds some prog rock elements into the metal sludge with its rapid guitar arpeggios and restrained vocals and massive drum break down during the second half.

Other tracks show the metal vestiges even less, the sustained "kvlt" produced guitar roar of "Dove Instinct" have more in common with label mates Nadja or some overamped release from the heyday of the Cold Meat Industries label than it does to any traditional metal band. Even though "Sky as a Reversed Abyss" is more blatant in its use of guitar and other forms of traditional instrumentation, the lugubrious pace and barely structured guitar put it more in the family tree of early Swans or other like minded industrial-tinged sludgesters.

It wasn't entirely wrong to immediately assume this is a headbanger's type album (there is definitely a black metal edge to this entire album), the sound is actually much more varied than expected from the genre, and incorporates a significant amount of other stylistic elements that will catch the ears of those who aren't adherent metal heads (such as I). Although this mysterious band (as of this writing there isn't even an entry on discogs.com for them, and they've got everything!) seems to be relatively new on the scene, they are already showing a wide enough array of talents to make them worth keeping an eye on.

samples:

30 March 2008

Administrator

Albums and Singles

Greetings and salutations from me here at V/Vm Test Records (est. 1996) to you out there in world wide webbed land. O.K. some of you know the news, some of you may have seen the news at the website, others will be oblivious to the news but here we expand on the news in the best way possible, hopefully giving you a smile along the way.

First up there are two new releases out next week on V/Vm Test Records and in a couple of shops very soon -

Both releases are very limited, so be quick as these have been pre-selling well to those who have requested advanced information and every release will be supported with MP3s from the masters, so you don't even have to encode anything.

V/Vm - there was a fish... in... the percolator - 12''vinyl (175 copies)
http://brainwashed.com/vvm/news/various/20080225_vvmt25_gallery.html
ok first up there is a limited to 175 copy 12" vinyl release which follows on from the 2001 7" release (the owls are not what they seem).

so it sees V/Vm return to plunder and ravage audio from the town called Twin Peaks. David Lynch probably wouldn't like it, who knows. But it's a real pilfering going on here across both sides of this black vinyl grooved audio landscape.

They are all on there, the log lady, killer bob, the midget guy along with the norwegian business men.

The Covers have been individually handscreen printed by my friend and acclaimed artist and designer Motorboy, each label has been hand drawn and written on by myself and there is a map showing the entrance to the black lodge (from the owl cave drawing) with each record. Everything has been hand numbered and there are Red, Green and Brown covers.

There is a full gallery of shots of the release at the link above with additional links to audio previews, as you will see it's as hot as shelly in the double r diner and is best listened to with a slice of chery pie and hot coffee which in the words of special agent cooper "is as black as midnight on a moonless night". This release comes with free MP3s of this release along with the original english muffin 7" audio and other supporting text and possible future additional audio and videos.

The Stranger - bleaklow (CD and limited CD and MP3 100 copy expanded version)

http://brainwashed.com/vvm/news/various/20080225_vvmtcd26_gallery.html

Bleaklow is the first full length release from V/Vm alter ego The Stranger since the 1998 release on Phthalo Records. If you want to place this output it's the missing link between the noiser moments of V/Vm output and the dark memory haunted memories of The Caretaker. It's like one big long journey on a grey and windswept day. There is an occasional glimmer of sunshine piercing this overall forboding gloom but these moments are fleeting and you are left in no doubt that this is a dark, dark ride. You can preview tracks and check out two videos via the link above and of course the first Stranger release has been available for free download now for the last twelve months here.... http://brainwashed.com/vvm/releases/vvmother/phthalo_thestranger.htm and that is in 320kbps stereo too.

The limited 100 copy only version comes with 14 additional tracks and in slightly superior packaging, signed and numbered. If you like the atmospheres generated by The Caretaker be sure to check The Stranger material out also.

HOW YOU CAN HELP V/VM TEST

Ok that's the new releases right there, now it's important for me to get as many sales of these as possible as funds from sales are the only thing which helps the label survive and also provide more free music than almost any other label out there. Remember i am not on iTunes, Bleep or any other soulless provider of poor quality MP3 audio. I prefer to survive the hard way and give audio away because ultimately this will be the future. Remember I embrace digital technology far more than labels on these services.

In 1997 thanks to brainwashed.com i was giving away MP3s then and still i give it away totally for free.

Of course now it wouldn't be a V/Vm mailout without me giving you something for free and below there are a number of releases which are amazing that you should download now. Be sure to check them out and if you find them of interest help me to make more available by making a small donation to the label as cash makes things a little easier for me this end by removing the stress of surviving on hardly anything in this day and age. Plus as the Goodiepal himself says it's good for the soul to even pay a little for what is free (or we hope he says this).

You can also help out totally by spreading this mail on messageboards and via mailing lists to your friends. As so much is free content thanks to open minded nature of those i work with.

VUKZID AND ALL NEW FREE DOWNLOADS AVAILABLE NOW FOR FREE.

All of the following releases are available on the newly revamped VUKZID microsite >> http://brainwashed.com/vvm/micro/vukzid/releases.html

RA-X - from the vaults of the f drive (parts 1-4) >> http://brainwashed.com/vvm/micro/vukzid/vukzid21.html

Here for your listening pleasure i present some lost and previously unavailable works from the legend who is RA-X (a.k.a. Vincent Koreman).Since 1992 RA-X has been working on a mighty catalogue of audio work for labels including Bunker Records, KK trax, KK Records, Silver Recordings, Kommando 6, As best records, Mighty Robot Recordings his very own Angelmaker Records,and numerous tracks on comps, splits and 7"s for different labels around the world. The audio featured here stretches back over a large period of his career. It's mainly electronic, distorted in places with lighter moments. Almost exclusively recorded on hardware with less of todays D.S.P. / VST audio thrills giving it more of an innocence. Vincent is a total legend who has been there and done it the hard way and he needs your support.

GAEOUDJPARL - mort aux vaches extra >> http://brainwashed.com/vvm/micro/vukzid/vukzid19.html

It is a great pleasure to present this work by the Gaeoudjiparl/Goodiepal. The mort aux vaches boxes which were limited to 45 copies are all exclusive. They include 2 unique icons or time travel objects, 1 or 2 original scores, 1 object of wonder, 7 discs from the Mort Aux Vaches series. All objects have travelled with and been part of the Gaeodjiparls live performances during 2001-2007. Here Vukzid presents all the audio from these strange audio discs. A true piece of musical outsider work be sure to check out the enclosed gallery. This is an amazing collection of weird looking vinyl you will ever see by one of the true mavericks of this day and age.

DINO FELIPE / ABOUT THIS PRODUCT - ass milk split e.p. >> http://brainwashed.com/vvm/micro/vukzid/vukzid20.html

A split release featuring Schematic records artist Dino Felipe, out of Miami and About This Product who have has audio released on Tigerbeat6, Phthalo and also here on Vukzid. Here on this split release we find an unsettling output, discordant and noisy in places showcasing each of their respective talents and for me it's a nice honour that they chose to give me this audio to distribute for free.

SGURE - anulus pexie >> http://brainwashed.com/vvm/micro/vukzid/vukzid18.html

A vast array of vulgar pieces, glimpses into the foul and uncomfortable, intermingling with voice, speech, deafening silence and vomit create this pure utter musical torment. There is no code, no real rhyme or reason for the epic temper tantrum known as Sgure and this is an amazingly violent but beautiful release for fans of digital noise and dare we say po-faced labels like Mego.

Plus there are four new works by my very good friend 'The Experience' which i will discuss in the next mailout in May along with a new release by The Caretaker which is coming out on Installsound in May.

details about the new Caretaker release are here >> http://brainwashed.com/vvm/releases/vvmother/installsound_caretaker_cd.html

Thanks for listening, buying, supporting and spreading the news out there.

Busy times, good times and hard times.

I will raise a glass in your absence and will continue to fight the good fight in your honour my friends.

V/Vm

---
I'll bring you precious contraband
and ancient tales from distant lands
of conquerors and concubines and
conjurers from darkened times
---
www.brainwashed.com/vvm

30 March 2008

Administrator

Albums and Singles

To coincide with the tenth album release and subsequent tour as Meat Beat Manifesto, Autoimmune, Brainwashed introduces the sixth in the Handmade Series. Music For Planetarium is a solo Jack Dangers disc of music recorded for the T.I.T. Planetarium in Budapest. The disc will be released on April 8th and is once again done in a hand made letterpressed sleeve. Brainwashed will have 500 to sell and hopefully get some to Jack in time for the tour. Pre-orders are being taken now in the brainwashed commerce shop.

Explanation...
Large Magellanic Cloud
Kowal's Object
Lindsay-Shapley Ring
Polarissima Borealis
Minkowski's Object
Pinwheel Galaxy
Horologium Dwarf
Fourcade-Figuero
Burbidge Chain - [MP3]
Whirlpool Galaxy

Electronic Tape Music for T.I.T. Planetarium, Budapest.
recorded under a quilt at night in Marin County, CA
by Jack Dangers at Tape Lab (p) + (c) 2007

hand-set and printed with lead type by Michael Babcock at Interrobang Letterpress