FUTURE BIBLE HEROES, "I'M LONELY (AND I LOVE IT)"

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This is the 80's synthpop side of Stephin Merritt - another excellent project by the gloomysourpuss that everyone now knows and loves.
  Christopher Ewen createsthe wonderful OMD-styled bouncey music, which blends quite nicely withStephin's hopelessly romantic words and voice. Claudia Gonson is alsoon this release, adding a nice variety to the EP by singing solo in thesong "Cafe Hong Kong" and backing Stephin in the remake of "Hopeless(remix)," which was previously on the last Future Bible Heroesfull-length, "Memories of Love." For fans of the Magnetic Fields, orheavily synthesized music, with a humourously depressing twist. Picturethe Pet Shop Boys meeting Leonard Cohen, but with smirky lyrics like"There's no use even trying, because it's hopeless. All of our dreamsare dying of overdoses."
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CURD DURCA, "ELEVATOR 3"

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Albums and Singles
This is the 4th album byVienna based artist Curd Duca for electronic label Mille Plateaux, 3rdin the "Elevator" series of 'digitalanalog mood music' and my personalfirst. The 48 titled tracks range from 6 secondsto a little over 2 minutes for a grand total of under 40 minutes. Thealbum samples an interesting variety of sources such as easy listeningswing and jazz records (elevator music), atmospheres and found soundswhich he then proccesses and/or adds subtle electronic accompanimentsto. The more musically oriented samples are generally messed about withand given new environments while the less musically oriented samplesbecome music through Duca's ability to make them sound appealing andpiece them all together. It's not all that much unlike something V/VMwould do except that most of this is much more subtle and seems moreserious. Munich vocalist Carin Feldschmid also adds hauntinglybeautiful and sultry tones to 5 tracks. The result is similar to thatof an old film score and is surprisingly cohesive considering theamount of tracks and diversity of sounds. And that is where Duca'stalent really lies. He's able to maintain a level of interest and rangeof moods throughout with evocative sounds in short doses. Random playalso seems to be just as effective and lets me extend the total playingtime to however long I desire. "Elevator 3" is curiously relaxing andmysteriously entertaining, soothing 'background' music for more thanjust vertical journeys ...

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SONOVAC, "HIGH-ON-TECH" EP

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You ever hear a name so much that you really should indeed check them out?
  You ever trust alabel given everything they've released you've really liked? Have youever come home drunk, checking email and seeing an announcement of newreleases from an online store and chose things without thinking much?Well, here's a perfect case. This CD single has me confused whether Ithink it's the next big thing or it's so fucking awful I think I willstart peforming stress and endurance tests on it. Loads of 14 year oldsare making music like this in their parents house, although I've heardlots of teenagers making music less weak and cliche than this shit. Ithas some weird enjoyable element to it, all the same... Maybe I justdon't get it. To me,it sounds like discount kitsch, with predictablesimple beats and trashy lyrics. Then again, people do indeed buyterrible music. (Cylob fans will enjoy this.) As for myself, morelistens and I'm more confused. Listen to the sound samples and decidefor yourself.

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SONIC YOUTH?, "MUSICAL PERSPECTIVES 5"

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Well, maybe it's not really Sonic Youth, but it does follow along the whole theme of the Musical Perspectives series.
  Number 5 is a full-length collaborationbetween Kim Gordon, DJ Olive and Ikue Mori. The chosen language of thisseries is, of course Japanese, but unlike volumes 1-3, this one comeswith translations. (Sell-out!) From the first minutes of the release,it feels as if the magic is back: the noise, the experimentalism that aguitar band always wants to do. 60 second sound samples do this albumno justice as each song has a multitude of parts and sounds, allentirely wonderful this time around, utitlizing Gordon's voice andguitar work, alongside electronic Japanese fuckery with environmentalsound sources and samples. Leave the pop records behind and exploresome Musical Perspectives today!

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"INVISIBLE SOUNDTRACKS 3"

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Albums and Singles
The latest in Invisible Soundtracks collections, volume 3, features Rothko, 310, Bass Communion, Bob Ellis and many many others.
  Next to each track on thedisc, the artist has listed their favoritecomposer/director/actor/film—whether it is related to their compilationsubmission is unknown by me at this time. I can hear influence forexample in 310's cut on here which gives the nod to Badalamenti/Lynchand the film "The Sheltering Sky." At over 74 minutes, this collectionof instrumentals from 16 excellent artists is worth having for acollection and for study-hall time music this year in school.

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"L'AGE D'OR (THE GOLDEN AGE)"

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Albums and Singles
Eleven years of German rock comes together for this medium priced sampler from label L'Age D'or.
  I can't say I've heard of any of these bands but they sure dorock a lot more excitingly than a lot of the post-kraut-rock to surfaceover the last couple years. This isn't to say that stuff is bad oranything, but there's more to German rock than noodling at keyboardsand bass guitar, keeping your mouth shut. I'm now interested in findingout more about various bands on here like Tocotronic, whose openingsong just jumps out of the speakers with a pop style almost ready forprime time and an electronic element faking skipping sounds, all inrhythm. The energy continues with entertaining interpretations of TheJams' "That's Entertainment" and a 7-banjo cover of Kraftwerk's"Autobahn" by Fink. Look for it, hunt for it and if you give up, harasswww.lado.de.

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DRUMS & TUBA "WATER DAMAGE RE-ISSUES"

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Albums and Singles
Two brand spanking new reissues from My Pal God are the rereleases of Drums & Tuba.
 Imagine if the tubist and drummer from a high school band got togetherwith a teenage guitarist and decided to record whatever came to mind,and there you have Drums & Tuba. Somehow I get reminded of theKLF's "Fuck the Millennium" ending and three guys running behind themtrying to catch up. The tunes are fun and I'm sure this is a great bandto see live. Box Fetish collects the original 1999 record plus threenew tracks exclusive to this CD release. It starts out high schoolish,but towards the end, the songs become more adventurous with use oftrumpets and other percussives.
Volume 2 of the Water Damage Re-Issues is The Flying Ballerina,recorded in 1998. This disc seems to have more of a jazz influenceright off the bat while rocking out a little more. The formula'sbasically the same yet I find it more charming and variable. Thesediscs are ideal for those students who have to commute on busses ortrains. Certainly some great morning cup of moccaccino-blast heldwithin...

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BRIGHT, "FULL NEGATIVE (OR) BREAKS"

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Albums and Singles
Fans who love to drone onand on and on will love what they'll get from the new Bright record.Bright, formerly (currently?) based in Boston had a release in Darla's"Bliss Out" series a couple years back.
  Since then, I've often wonderedwhat ever became of them. Being in Boston, I never heard of themplaying, but I guess I've simply been missing out. 'Full Negative,' isa solid chunk of a well balanced diet of organic rock instrumentsworking together for the sake of sound, not show, with little need forvocals. From the first song, the sound is inviting and captivating,with dynamics that echo mid 80s Sonic Youth, 70s Wire or even earlyMogwai.

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FRED GIANNELLI, "TELEPATHIC ROMANCE"

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From Sahko in Finland comes this excellent priced CD from that guy who simply goes by Fred.
 You might recognize his name from the Psychic TV days of the 80s orsome remix works he did in the 90s, but try and clear your mind forthis release. This time around, Fred's been working with samples andsources, pulling together tremendous soundscapes for release.'Telepathic Romance' consists of two tracks named Contemplation. Part 1totals just over 30 minutes and incorporates some uneasy low rumblingsblaneted over by comforting lush strings. A perfect soundtrack to athunderstorm on a Sunday afternoon. Part 2 runs just over 12 minutesand can easily be the stunningly beautiful clearing after the storm.Choral samples, low drones clash with heartbeat-esque pulses. Too badthese sound samples are only 60 seconds. Hunt for this one.

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LIVE HUMAN, "ELEFISH JELLYPHANT"

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I figure I should get to this release as it's been staring me in the face since June.
  Some mightremember the Live Human release on Fat Cat last year, this is thesecond full-lengther from San Franciscan trio who's music is somewhatof a mix between improvisational play and break beat scratching. It's aperfect release to bop and groove to on your walkman while walkingbetween classes, but it's not a terribly coherent concept. You can stopit and start it anywhere without missing any feeling. While I think thealbum's fairly good and they've got a load of talent with the hypnoticuse of double bass and fierce scratching, it might have been betterwith half the songs and twice the amount of development time for eachtrack. I'd love to find out where this band goes as they do have somegreat potential.

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KIM CASCONE, "PARASITES"

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Kim Cascone, formerly of Silent Records, has founded the new label Anechoic and this is the debut release.
  "Parasites" is, to borrow a few bits from the pressrelease, "a blurring of the line between atomic samples andcompositions ... for either listening or constructing new pieces with".Most of the 20 numbered parasites are in the 6 seconds to 1 and 1/2minute range for a total of about 16 and 1/2 minutes. Each is a merefragment of heavily processed, digital desktop minimalism. It's notreally 'glitch' or any other easily discernible genre, just quick wavesand buzzes of sound. Altogether they form a haphazard collection ofdreadfully similar and not too terribly exciting, almost offensivelydull, music. It's a shame that parasite12 is only 32 seconds longbecause it's the most intense, unique and interesting of the lot. I'mnot normally one to use the "I could do this myself" line but in thiscase I'd have much more fun making my own in an hour with Cool Editthan listening to these. But maybe that's the point? I honestly don'tknow what the point is. The disc itself is the most appealing featureas it's a new 3" square shaped cd format known as 'card discs'. Likemini cds you need a player, such as a Discman, with a spindle in orderto play it. Ultimately what I'm left with is a $10 piece of eye candyto show to my friends after asking "have you ever seen a square cd?" Mymom thinks it's cute. I didn't play it for her though ... 
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  1. FOREIGN TERRAIN, "LP1"
  2. Rediscovering Chris & Cosey
  3. SALLY DOHERTY AND THE SUMACS, "SLEEPY MEMORY"
  4. "RGB [an audio spectrum]"

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