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VITAL WEEKLY
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number 546
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week 40
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Vital Weekly, the webcast: as an experiment
for the time being, we offering a weekly webcast, freely to download.
This can be regarded as the audio-supplement to Vital Weekly.
Presented as a radioprogramm with excerpts of just some of the
CDs (no vinyl or MP3) reviewed. It will remain on the site for
a limited period (most likely 2-4 weeks). Download the
file to your MP3 player and enjoy!
complete tracklist here: http://www.vitalweekly.net/podcast.html
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* noted are in this week's podcast
LUC FERRARI - ET TOURNENT LES SONS (CD by
Cesare)
LIONEL MARCHETTI - NOORD FIVE ATLANTICA (CD by Cesare) *
GERRITT & JOHN WIESE - THE DISAPPEARING ACT EP (CDEP by Misanthropic
Agenda)
SISSY SPACEK - DEVILS CONE AND PALM (CD by Misanthropic Agenda)
LHD - LIMBS OF THE FAWN (CD by Misanthropic Agenda)
THOLLEM MCDONAS - POOR STOP KILLING POOR (CD by ThollemMcDonas)
WOLF EYES WITH JOHN WIESE - EQUINOX (CD by Troniks)
DOUBLED YELLOW SWANS - GLOBAL CLONE (CD by PACRec)
THE RITA - THOUSANDS OF DEAD GODS (CD by PACRec) *
HUE - UN'ESTATE SENZA PIOGGIA (CD by Grey Sparkle/Trazeroeuno)
PASSO UNO - IL PASSATO RIEMERSO (CD by Trazeroeuno) *
TEXTU RIZER - 7 (CD by Antifrost) *
DOVE YELLOW SWANS - LIVE DURING WAR CRIMES #2 (CD by Release The
Bats) *
RACCOO-OO-OON - IS NIGHT PEOPLE (CD by Release The Bats)
PETER BLAMEY & JIM DENLEY - FINDINGS (CD by Split Records)
*
D_RRADIO - OUT OF LOVE/YOU HOLD MY BREATH (7" by Distraction
Records) *
FUNKIS/ANULAIBAR - ARFIHORPOTIS (CDR, self released) *
ANTHONY GUERRA & MATTHEW NIDEK (CDR by Black Petal)
THE MINERALS - SAPPHIRE MIND (3"CDR by Black Petal)
EMERGE - IMMERSION (CDR by Mystery Sea) *
TZESNE/IVERSEN - ENDS OF HUMIDITY AND ELECTRICITY (CDR by Series
Negras) *
ANDREY KIRITCHENCKO & KOTRA - LIVE ON EM-VIZIJA (CDR by Nexsound)
*
CHRISTIAN GALARRETA - LIVE AT CCE, LIMA, PERU, 30-01-2004 (CDR
by Tib Prod) *
TÜSÜRI - IDHYLIO EPHOKA (3"CDR by Tib Prod)
ALAN CURTIS - LIVE ACTION (CDR by Herbal Records)
GOH LEE KWANG - ROOM SOUND (CDR by Herbal Records) *
JUTO AVITEN - WATER MUSIC #1 (CDR by Herbal Records)
LUC FERRARI - ET TOURNENT LES SONS (CD by
Cesare)
LIONEL MARCHETTI - NOORD FIVE ATLANTICA (CD by Cesare)
From the recently deceased composer Luc Ferrari a
CD with two pieces, which are for a small ensemble and tape/electronics.
The small ensemble here is the Ensemble Laborintus: five people
playing harp, percussion, clarinet, cello and flute. In 'Et Tournent
Les Sons Dans La Garrigue' (meaning 'and sounds are spinning in
the garigue') I believe the score is somewhat open ended. Musicians
are asked to communicate with each other along the lines of what
is presented on tape. It's hard to figure what it is exactly on
the tape and what is played. We recognize the percussive sounds
for sure, but the other sounds aren't easily to separate from
the instruments. I believe the tape is rather made of organ like
sounds, which are sometimes in drone position (the beginning of
the piece) and gradually move into a very hectic form of playing.
Instruments follow easily in all of this and everything is woven
together in a very harmonic way. The ensemble also performs the
second piece, but with guest player eRikm on CD player. Originally
Ferrari was supposed to play eRikm's part, but he died six days
before recording it. The CDs contain sounds over which the instruments
improvise, while it 'must stay together' and occasionally they
are allowed to play quotes from 'Patajaslocha', a dance suite
from 1984. This gives the whole piece a circus music like character
with sounds swirling around, from the total abstract to rather
joyous music, but somehow it lacks a bit of tension.
On the same label is 'Noord Five Atlantica' by Lionel Marchetti,
the self-taught master of musique concrete. Liner notes are all
in French, and so is the labels website, which is a pity, since
I am a bit in the dark what it is all about. It's a relatively
long Marchetti piece, just over thirty three minutes, and throughout
it breaths a solemn atmosphere. Its almost drone like, composed
of sustained sounds from instruments or field recordings (the
latter being more likely), but interrupted by spoken word (by
people such as Yoko Higashi and Greg Kelley) which is likewise
hard to follow what it is about and radios tuning in and out.
Despite all this vagueness, there is a great deal of tension around
this piece. It's like some anger is always lurking around the
corner, waiting to attack. Sudden outbursts in sound makes this
even more scarier. The whole piece is quite narrative, even without
having an exact understanding what it is about. A powerful piece,
almost hörspiel like. Great listening but be careful with
it in a dark room at night. (FdW)
Address: http://www.cesare.fr
GERRITT & JOHN WIESE - THE DISAPPEARING
ACT EP (CDEP by Misanthropic Agenda)
SISSY SPACEK - DEVILS CONE AND PALM (CD by Misanthropic Agenda)
LHD - LIMBS OF THE FAWN (CD by Misanthropic Agenda)
Of these three new releases on Misanthropic Agenda there is one
common factor: John Wiese plays on all three of them. The first
release is with Gerritt, the main man behind the Misanthropic
Agenda label and meet up as occasional members of Sunn 0))). On
'The Disappearing Act EP' they have three tracks, of which the
first two are relatively short and walking known noise paths.
A barrage of sound and mayhem from the destruction of whatever
objects lay about, fed through piercing electronics. But there
is a strong elements of electro-acoustic music in there as well,
taking the noise thing out of its safe house, and bringing it
in to something new. The third piece however starts with a long
silence, perhaps too long but once the ball is rolling, it is
really rolling: sine wave like tones mingle with it each, accelerating
until it never reaches a collapse point. Also in the noise territory,
but what a great piece!
Sissy Spacek is one of Wiese's older project, a grindcore band
he founded with Corydon Ronnau in 1999, back in St. Louis. After
Wiese had moved to Los Angeles, the Sissy Spacek project became
a solo affair, with Wiese chopping up old recordings. Now Ronnau
also lives in Los Angeles, and they add a third member, Jesse
Jackson. I believe that the one, twenty-one minute, piece here
is a mixture of the old and new Sissy Spacek. It features the
mindless, harsh grindcore sound, but then heavily chopped to pieces,
not too dissimilar to Merzbow's 'Scissors For Cutting Merzbow'
project. A harsh noise affair, but towards the end there is the
collated sounds of people cheering, which adds a funny note to
the music.
LHD seems to be a new name for me, even when they have releases
on PacRec, Blossoming Noise, Pure, Jyrk and Chrondritic Sound.
LHD is the collaboration of Phil Blankenship a.k.a. The Cherry
Point and John Wiese. Here we enter total noise land: thirty five
minutes of unrelentness noise attack. Furious, loud, dirty, distortion
crashing over feedback, feedback adding feedback. You get the
drift. Fine for what it is, but perhaps also too much of a dead
end street noise thing, which is a pity since Wiese shows on the
other two discs that he surely knows the way out. (FdW)
Address: http://www.misanthropicagenda.com
THOLLEM MCDONAS - POOR STOP KILLING POOR
(CD by ThollemMcDonas)
Although Thollem McDonas is working as a composer and improvisor
for a considerable period, it is only since 2004 that he started
to release cds of his music. From this moment he surprises with
a continuous stream of high quality releases. With each release
McDonas impresses as a gifted musician. This is also true for
his newest album "Poor Stop Killing Poor". With this
release McDonas completes his trilogy of solo piano albums. In
his own words: "Together the 3 albums represent very different
approaches to much of the same material. The first "Nuclear
Bomb, Cave Painting" is a studio recording primarily presenting
many ideas without development incorporating much silence throughout.
The second "Poor Stop Killing Poor" is a live recording
in Detroit this past spring, the concert was played straight through
without pause and with much improvisation. The 3rd album "Racing
The Sun, Chasing The Sun" consists of the first half of two
different live recordings from this past year welded on top of
each other, woven in and out."
On "Poor Stop Killing Poor" McDonas concentrates his
ideas in 15 improvisations. Most of them are short and pregnant.
All pieces were recorded during a concert in Detroit at the Bohemian
National Home. Must have been a great evening as - listening of
his cd - McDonas was in good shape. He is never hesitating and
never thrifty with ideas, playing continuously with maximum concentration.
The playing of McDonas is not only of a high technical standard,
but also very communicative. His music is drenched in many musical
traditions, and McDonas succeeds in making an original brew of
it. 'Post-classical circus punk world jazz free music' is he once
described it himself. Above his music always dwells the spirit
of an 'angry young man' who deals and connects with what is going
on our fantastic and absurd world. So this vibrant music is really
about something, if one can say so.
Often I find it a tough exercise listening to solo albums of improvised
music. But this one - and other records of McDonas - are absolutely
an exception. Just jump in this exceptional source of musical
energy and enjoy it. (DM)
Address: http://www.thollem.com/
WOLF EYES WITH JOHN WIESE - EQUINOX (CD
by Troniks)
DOUBLED YELLOW SWANS - GLOBAL CLONE (CD by PACRec)
THE RITA - THOUSANDS OF DEAD GODS (CD by PACRec)
I think I'm at odds with Frans regarding noise from reading his
reviews of John Wiese but I'm attempting to be positive if perhaps
by using oblique strategies.... And I think Brian Eno has a lot
to answer for, as do The Pink Floyd - (by which I mean the Studio
LP of Ummagumma in particular), that is the idea of Ambient "music"
as opposed to the experimental music of say just for example The
Two Virgins or Kontakte. Ambient music in the form of Equinox
(Track 1) is like The Church at Laodikeia, is a light industrial
looped variety - a landscape of the suburbs of a northern European
town under a grey Saturday afternoon sky, its not the Rialto,
or the Alhambra, or even the ruins of Hiroshima in 1945...
Computers (also) have a lot to answer for, they make virtual what
was once real, once physical, they remove the sacred and the profane
under a surface of simulacra. Wiese remarks in an interview "If
I was born 20 years earlier I probably would be doing the same
thing with tape", could he? A trade on eBay of his lap top
for a couple of Revoxs would I think prove him wrong, and I'm
neither being cynical or negative in this suggestion, but offer
the idea that the physicality of production in art, especially
this form, is, and always will be crucial. But then Track 2 appears
after 5 minutes of silence (not 4:33!) to be a firework party
later on that evening, a field recording, with much amusement
by all, on the disk at least...
5 tracks from cassettes of GMS (Gabriel Mindel Saloman) and Pete
Swanson. Pieces - notably parts of track 2 and 4 bear all the
hallmarks of live improv jazz, and hallmark is an apt word here
as I think it qualifies the material from the more noise based
work which at times relies too much on the monosodium glutamate
of electronics, that is reverb and echo. There are the pulses
and swathes of feedback etc. but where things get exciting, and
I think improv has this opportunity, is where the two improvise
dynamically with each other and their sound sources. And yet here
is another problem, a solo improvisation is very much inward looking,
which focuses on the envelope of the particular instrument, Fahey,
Bailey rather than Merzbow who fries other fish, but when we have
ensemble work I think a duo is insufficient to produce the kind
of interaction which can maintain an interesting collaboration.
Doubled Yellow Swans seem at times over stretched and a 'doubling'
- the addition of more members might make all the difference.
One last thought as I'm giving advice, I'd not only like to hear
a larger group doing the kind of things the current line up do
well, but what of trying to work with home made acoustic instruments,
and here I'm thinking of the kind of things Harry Partch created?
Now that would be interesting.
There is an alternative aesthetic which to use a far too simplistic
metaphor runs like a mirror image to the one one sees or that
is placed in front of one in everyday life. Here terms like 'progress',
'harmony', 'tradition', 'form', 'idea', 'content', 'purpose',
'terrorist', 'fanatic', 'patriot', 'religious', 'materialist atheist',
'existentialist', are all deconstructed in aporia, in the aporia
of works such as the one titled above. This is an aesthetic of
the Pharmakon, the remedy is a drug, a poison, and so in this
difficult review (to write?) written language both denies presence
and gives the metaphysics of a transcendental presence - it is
to say (clearly) only in and with the legacy of such ideas that
I can express, recount- re count? the experience of this work.
Re Count (to you) (an impossibility- yet that's what this is)
"This scission, this opening, this appearance of appearing
through which the present seems to free itself from the textual
machine ("history," numbers, topology, dissemination,
etc.) in fact denounces itself at every moment" To borrow
- or better steal others words as how can I give them back? This
then is it not a counting of a Thousands of Dead Gods. Excellent.
(Jliat)
Address: http:// www.iheartnoise.com
HUE - UN'ESTATE SENZA PIOGGIA (CD by Grey
Sparkle/Trazeroeuno)
PASSO UNO - IL PASSATO RIEMERSO (CD by Trazeroeuno)
The summer of 2006 was hot, but the summer of 2003 was also extreme.
It was the month that Italian musician Hue worked on a CD, traveling
the small villages of Italy, armed with minidisc and a microphone
to record the people working and various other kinds of sounds.
A year later, Hue visited Davide Valecchi (also known as Aal)
and played guitar with him. From then on the album 'Un'estate
Senza Pioggia' emerged as Hue also recorded some other friends,
such as Giuseppe Verticchio (Nimh), Giulio Biaggi (Nefelheim),
Andrea Marutti (Never Known, Amon, The Afeman), Paolo Ippoliti
and Laura Lovreglio (both of Logoplasm) and Luca Sigurta (Fhievel).
Some of these people are known for some more abstract, non traditional
musics, but Hue managed to find them in a rather playful mood.
The title translates as 'A Rainless Summer' and is a quite nice
work of some of the more daring areas of ambient music. Traditional
instruments of ambient music, such as guitars, organs and didgeridoo,
play the more recognizable and accessible part of this work, but
there is also lots of space for elements from the world of glitch
and the processings of field recordings - still the starting point
of this work. Sometimes warm (pun intended) and joyous, some with
the chirping of insects and dogs and a desolate guitar, empty
and spacious. Not an album of major surprises, but a fine release
on the brink of seasons changing.
On the same label Passo Uno, which is a four piece including Hue
on field recording and mixing, Stefano de Ponti on acoustic bariton
guitar, electric guitar, percussion, keyboards, Alessandro Bider
on cello, clarinet, double bass, acoustic bass and keyboards and
Andrea Avolio on drums and percussion. The music here is apparently
the soundtrack for 'Memorie Di Crespi D'Adda - Il Passato Riemerso'
by Stefano Di Ponti and Michela Mozzanica. Of course I haven't
seen this film, but the music has great cinematographic qualities.
It is much alike the music of Hue himself, but whereas he plays
experimental ambient, the ambient part here is played on a rock
instrument line up. Carefully they play the desolate songs in
a very spacious way, melodic and rich. The experimental part comes
from whatever field recordings Hue mixes in. At times I was reminded
of 3/4Hadbeenelimated, but Passo Uno is less experimental, but
the studio-as-instrument, is also of great importance for them,
while staying on a much more melodic level. Intense, warm but
also, to stay in the analogy of seasons, more autumn like music.
The clarinet and the guitar play minor chords, adding a strong
sense of melancholy. Not going unknown musical paths, but a great
musical trip. (FdW)
Address: http://www.trazeroeuno.org
TEXTU RIZER - 7 (CD by Antifrost)
Behind Text Rizer are two considerable well-known Greek musicians:
Coti K (electronics) and Nikos Veliotis (cello). The first one
plays on several of the Antifrost releases and Veliotis has released
a beautiful CD of solo work of a highly drone like nature. His
playing on '7' (which hold four tracks, rather four parts that
flow into each other) however is highly minimal, but not always
as droney. In the opening piece, '7.1', the cello is used almost
in a percussive, with short bangings that are gradually getting
stronger and stronger. Electronics seem to be absent, or at least
they mingled with the cello to that extent that they couldn't
be heard. However they open up in '7.2' and then the cello follows,
both in a highly stereo fashion. This short piece fades over in
the third piece, which is the longest here, and half of that track
is filled with just solo cello. Here too the full stereo element
remains present, and listened on headphones, like I did, creates
a very spacious atmosphere. The overtones with which this ends
make up the final track, which is basically one long fade out.
It seems to me that electronics dominate this piece. It's hard
to say how this is exactly made: the cello is as such to be recognized,
but the electronics aren't. It would give the listener the idea
that it plays a lesser role, but I wouldn't be surprised to know
that they are in fact much bigger. The whole CD is one of utter
minimalism, but at the same time of an amazing beauty. Very controlled,
very focussed, and simply great. One of the best Antifrost releases.
Ever. (FdW)
Address: http://www.antifrost.gr
DOVE YELLOW SWANS - LIVE DURING WAR CRIMES
#2 (CD by Release The Bats)
RACCOO-OO-OON - IS NIGHT PEOPLE (CD by Release The Bats)
It's highly likely that of the five pieces on 'Live During War
Crimes #2' I witnessed one in concert: it was recorded in January
and February 2006 on various concerts, and one of them was in
Extrapool. Of course I can tell which it is. But the concert by
Dove Yellow Swans was great: a wall of noise, played on one or
two (can't remember exactly) guitars and a whole barrage of electronics.
The feedback drone they offered, worked in quite a psychedelic
manner. Since a playing session of the recordings in the household
environment can't be as loud as in a concert space, you could
wonder if it works. Well, I think it does work also on a slightly
softer volume. The psychedelic qualities of guitars feeding back,
distorting through a bunch of effect pedals are still loud and
clearly present, and the five untitled cuts surely represent the
various qualities Dove Yellow Swans have to offer. From loud and
mean to loud and heavily controlled, such as in the final piece.
Great noise.
I never heard of Raccoo-oo-oon, who are from Iowa City, which
might not be strange since 'Is Night People' is their first recording.
Originally released as a tape and now re-issued on CD. I hear
vocals, drums, saxophones and guitars - the cover doesn't reveal
anything about the line up, so we are in guessing land here. The
music is a lot, but above all it's free music, free form rock/punk.
References go out to Sun City Girls, Excepter and Animal Collective.
I must admit I like the raw and untamed power of the recording,
whereas the actual music itself is perhaps of lesser interest
to me. Partly it has to do with the saxophone, which played as
they do here, is not really my thing. The music is basically one
large explosion of sound, without becoming too much of a noise
festival. But in all this freeness it sounded a bit too regular
for my taste. An alright adrenaline shot, but not outliving it's
promise. (FdW)
Address: http://www.releasethebats.com
PETER BLAMEY & JIM DENLEY - FINDINGS
(CD by Split Records)
For whatever reasons I am not fully aware of the name Jim Denley
is not a household one in the world of improvised music, but perhaps
that's just perspective of things. Perhaps it has to do with the
fact that he lives in Australia? Denley plays here alto saxophone
in duet with one Peter Blamey who is credited with mixing desk.
Together they produce four pieces of music, which are simply great.
Somewhere in this issue I mentioned I don't like the regular playing
of saxophones, and even when Denley is not a pure, experimental
saxophone player (the instrument can be recognized still, very
occasionally), his playing excites me much more. It's loud, even
a bit violent, of blowing, hitting, breathing and whatever other
possibilities the man uses. It arrives at a mixing desk, and Blamey
adds a whole range of static hiss and crackles to it. I believe
this to be without any sort of sound effects, which makes the
achievement all the more amazing. At times this sound like pure
electronic music, and moves away into something extraordinary.
Beyond pure improvisation, this incorporates musique concrete,
electronic music and electro-acoustics. (FdW)
Address: <splitrec@ozemail.com.au>
D_RRADIO - OUT OF LOVE/YOU HOLD MY BREATH
(7" by Distraction Records)
This is the third 7" in a series of three by D-rradio (see
also Vital Weekly 510 and 524), following 'Born' and 'Dear John'.
'Out Of Love' is the more melancholic tune of the this. It is
a bit darker than their previous work and shows their more laidback,
easy listening late night music. A lonesome tune on an old casio
is the solo player here, with melancholic guitar lines and a laidback
electro rhythm. Complete with cut-ups this is probably the most
experimental track I encountered so far by D-rradio.
'You Hold My Breath' is a more uptempo tune, with a surprising
bunch of analogue synthesizers floating nicely over each other.
The beats are kept to a minimum but are necessary to act as the
glue of the piece and jump like a jac in the box after the break,
opting for a full joyeus experience. Almost cosmic music, loaded
with sound, but still fresh and open.
Should one decide to go for a download of this 7", there
is also a remix of 'Out Of Love' by Matthew Rozeik (follow the
links), who takes the melancholic guitar lines and lets them battle
with some more crushing, harsher sounds. All three are highly
recommended. Now let's have a real CD. (FdW)
Address: http://www.distractionrecords.com
FUNKIS/ANULAIBAR - ARFIHORPOTIS (CDR, self
released)
Behind this odd name there is just one person: Olle Svensk. So
far he just released one CDR but almost fifty pieces on the internet.
'Arfihorpotis' is one piece, divided into five sections and according
to Svensk absolute music, meaning that it has no particular meaning
or underlying concept, but is rather open for anyone to be interpreted.
The work is an example of drone music, but one that goes from
the quieter moments to louder parts, and doesn't necessarily stay
on one particular stance. From the opening metallic rumble (with
lots of reverb) the work shifts back down into the depths of slowly
developing tones and drones. Sometimes things move very slowly
and nothing seems to be happening, but that creates at the same
time a hypnotic effect, without leaping into boredom. The music
is quite nice, but nothing spectacular in terms of developing
new insights in the world of drone music. Lovers of the Mystery
Sea label will know to find this. (FdW)
Address: http://funkis.anulaibar.com
ANTHONY GUERRA & MATTHEW NIDEK (CDR
by Black Petal)
THE MINERALS - SAPPHIRE MIND (3"CDR by Black Petal)
When moving to Japan, guitarist Anthony Guerra started his Black
Petal label, which mainly releases CDRs, but all handsomely packaged,
in minimal but beautiful paper sleeves. Of these two new releases,
one is a 5" CD single by Guerra and percussion player Matthew
Nidek. Nidek is from the USA but lives in New Zealand and has
been playing with Guerra since 1999. They had a release on Seedy-R.
Here they play a composition by Guerra, called 'Brand New Love',
which is also to be found on Guerra's solo CD 'Empty Kingdoms'
(see Vital Weekly 511). I must say that the two don't seem to
fit very well. Guerra's blues like guitar, with slow notes leaving
much space among the notes is a world of its own. Nidek plays
a lot of notes leaving hardly any space between them, and is almost
like the counterpart of Guerra. Nidek plays subtle for sure, but
seems to be afraid of the silence. Together with the recording
quality not being that great, I must say that this is a bit of
an uneasy marriage.
For reasons not entirely clear to me, the release by The Minerals
is longer than the Guerra & Nidek one, but it's pressed on
a 3"CDR. There is logic somewhere. The Minerals is a band
by Adam Rasheed and various floating members. For 'Sapphire Mind'
he is joined by Matt Earle, who is known as one half of 'Stasis
Duo', but also a member of X-Wave, Your Intestines, Antipan, Tofotron,
XnobbqX and his cassette label Breakdance The Dawn, as well as
playing other Australians in the field of improvisation. The Minerals
play an odd combination of what seems to be broken down electronic
equipment (sound effects, guitars, an organ, feedback, bang on
a can), over which they 'sing' - which not necessarily requires
effort of style. The sound is occasionally distorted and raw,
but there is a strange, compelling atmosphere to these singer
song writer pieces of a highly abstract kind. The eight pieces
are short, to the point (perhaps) and deal all with 'love', in
one way or the other. Definitely the strangest singer-song writer
stuff is some times and certainly quite from the field of outsiders.
(FdW)
Address: http://www.blackpetal.com
EMERGE - IMMERSION (CDR by Mystery Sea)
In the past we noted the work of Emerge, but it was covered in
some darkness. Now we learn it's Sascha Stadimeier from Augsburg,
Germany, who has released a 7" on Drone Records and 3"CDR
on Verato as well as a couple of unheard releases on his own Attenuation
Circuit. Here he arrives on the somewhat prestigious Mystery Sea
label, with seven parts of 'Immersion', plus an eighth track,
called 'Deprivation'. Like with many Mystery Sea releases, this
is also something that moves below sea level. But unlike many
others on the label, this is not free-floating deep sea washes,
this is more a submarine travel. Water bounces on against the
boat, and inside there is metallic rumble of objects falling on
the floor, both nearby and far away. Perhaps it has to do that
I had a discussion about Werkbund over the weekend, that this
comes around today, but 'Immersion' has pretty strong similarities
to the oldest Werkbund records: metallic rumble inside the large
reverberating spaces. It's hard to say if Emerge works like this,
or that it's perhaps a bunch of field recordings, but he manages
to create eight wonderful pieces of deep ambient with a strong
experimental twist, and that's exactly the way I like them. (FdW)
Address: http://www.mysterysea.net
TZESNE/IVERSEN - ENDS OF HUMIDITY AND ELECTRICITY
(CDR by Series Negras)
The drawings of Jon Martin is the starting point for this collaboration
between Norwegian Iversen and Spanish Tzesne. Luckily the cover
shows the black and white drawings of Martin, so we can see how
they look like. It's however not a drawing per track, as there
are eleven drawings and seven pieces. Both sound artists are known
for using computers and playing music that is probably best described
as ambient industrial: not really noise related, but daring enough
to step out of the usual boundaries of ambient music. On their
joint release, for which they have just the telephone line to
create it, hence the title, they display the best possibilities
they have to offer in this field. Deep dark tapestries of sound,
with elements of the concrete sound world being highly processed,
make up a rich, deep sound world, that is sometimes as minimal
as the drawings on the cover. Just like the drawings, the music
is perhaps also black and white: endless fields of droning sounds
set against small shimmering white lights. From both artists,
this is one of the stronger works I encountered (well, perhaps
alongside some of Iversen/Bjerga releases). (FdW)
Address: http://www.seriesnegras.org
ANDREY KIRITCHENCKO & KOTRA - LIVE ON
EM-VIZIJA (CDR by Nexsound)
Following last weeks review of Zavoloka and Kotra, here comes
another release, this time involving the third champion of Ukranian
experimental music, Andrey Kiritchenko, as part of Nexsound's
live reports series. Recorded on the 16th of April 2005, they
have a set of swirling sine waves and percussive like sounds.
Subtle at the beginning, but somewhere half way through it gets
a bit distorted and reduced feedback like. However the piece,
just over twenty-eight minutes, stays under control. Highly atmospheric,
it is still remotely away from the current warm ambient glitch
music produced by Kiritchenko or the usually louder music of Kotra.
More microsound than click and cuts music. Careful silent music
in a long beautiful curve. Very nicely produced. (FdW)
Address: http://www.nexsound.org/nlr
CHRISTIAN GALARRETA - LIVE AT CCE, LIMA,
PERU, 30-01-2004 (CDR by Tib Prod)
TÜSÜRI - IDHYLIO EPHOKA (3"CDR by Tib Prod)
The Norwegian Tib Prod label always finds new talent, from the
strangest corners of the globe. Christian Galarreta for instance,
who hails all the way from Peru. He used to work under such names
as Evamuss and Diosmehaviolado and had a label by the name of
Aloardi, as well as a whole bunch of other projects for radio
and websites. A busy bee. In recent years he works as solo artist
under his own name and collaborates with others. The recording
here at hand is a live one from 2004 and Galarreta uses hard and
software as well as 'self made physical instruments' to play the
extreme silence or the extreme loudness. As such it's a bit unbalanced:
the noise side of this prevails over the quieter moments. Galarreta's
work hoovers to large extends in the digital area, the total fucked
up Mego-like style of yesteryear. It works best in the opening
and closing tracks where things are best balanced. Quite a nice
release altogether.
Also new for me is Tüsüri from Basque country. He contributed
various MP3s and other pieces to Tib Prod releases, but somehow
failed to impress. Here, on a 3" format, he presents one
piece of music made out of field recordings: car passing, objects
in the wind and other sounds which aren't easily to be traced
back to anything. After some active beginning, the piece unfolds
into a more static thing, with repeating, lengthy blocks of sound.
A rather more noise related kind of drone, despite the fact that
it's not really noise at all. It lacks the refinement of the usual
drone material out there, but that makes it all the more enjoyable.
Not great, but quite ok. (FdW)
Address: http://www.tibprod.com
ALAN CURTIS - LIVE ACTION (CDR by Herbal
Records)
GOH LEE KWANG - ROOM SOUND (CDR by Herbal Records)
JUTO AVITEN - WATER MUSIC #1 (CDR by Herbal Records)
Of these three new releases on Herbal Records, the most well-known
artist is Alan Curtis, formerly of Reynols, now known as Alan
Curtis. These days he is active a solo musician, playing stages
around the world. On 'Live Action' excerpts from three such performances,
one in Japan, one in Belgium and in the USA. Armed with electric
guitar, tapes, mini disc, toba violin (whatever that is), contact
microphones and 'no-instruments' he crafts some interesting pieces
of loud experimental music together. Not noise in the strictest
sense of the word, but clearly present. The guitar plays the important
part in these improvisations, fed through boxes of distortion
and other foot pedals, whereas the tapes have a more modest role
in the background. Densely layered, dirty, raw but with lots of
tension underneath, this is a highly enjoyable release.
Herbal Records label owner Goh Lee Kwang's previous releases weren't
all that convincing so far, but this release quite is. It's the
first thing he did when arriving in Berlin, recording it on his
miniDV camera (sound only). Subtitled 'solo improvisation with
DJ mixer', he explores the various possibilities of the machine,
ranging from sheer silence to feedback noise, but has a level
of control, which doesn't let thing go out of hand too much. The
noise bits are sometimes uncontrolled nasty frequencies (such
as in the sixth, untitled, piece), but when he takes matters back,
volume wise, it's intense, playful and carefully constructed.
So far the best release I encountered by him.
The most unknown one here is Juto Aviten. No information here
whatsoever, just the cover saying 'made with water...', which
is indeed clearly to be heard. Water drips a little bit here,
and gets somewhere along the line a computer treatment by Aviten.
Deep bass made via forms of extreme filtering, a very occasional
high end tone, which seem to be arriving more in the second half
of this forty-five minute piece, when the real water sounds are
long gone. I don't believe it's Aviten's idea to play a piece
of music, but rather playing a large block of sound that works
as an environment, that can be played at a low volume and will
fill your own environment quite nicely. Played loud and paid with
lots of attention, this work isn't that strong. (FdW)
Address: http://www.geocities.com/herbalrecords
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