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VITAL WEEKLY
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number 696
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week 38
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Vital Weekly, the webcast: 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
before submitting material please read this
carefully: http://www.vitalweekly.net/fga.html
Submitting material means you read this and approve of this.
* noted are in this week's podcast. We finally have a feed again. 1000x times to Maximillian for his endless patience & help. Its here: http://www.vitalweekly.net/podcast.xm
Editorial news: we have decided to stop reviewing MP3 releases. Please do not send any discs with MP3 releases. Just send me an e-mail with a link and a short description, so people can download it. The amount of releases pile up every week and I can no longer devote time to MP3s. Whatever you see coming in the next few weeks are the last ones. Please do not send anymore. Also: releases that do not contain the original artwork will most likely be no longer reviewed. The real thing is necessary for a real judgment. If you wish to send us not the real thing, please contact us first. <vital@vitalweekly.net>
UNICAZÜRN - TEMPORAL BENDS (CD by Uzu Music) *
ABATTOIR (CD by Evil Rabbit Records) *
VOICE OF EYE - SEVEN DIRECTIONS DIVERGENT (CD by Conundrum Unlimited)
*
FLATLINE SKYLINE - ALL SOUND/NO VISION (CD by Mechanoise Labs)
*
2|FAVOURITE PLACES (CD compilation by Audiobulb Records)
MILLIPEDE - ALL MY BEST INTENTIONS (CD by Hymen Records)
AHNST ANDERS - MANY WAYS (CD by Ant-Zen)
THE RORSCHACH GARDEN - A PLACE FOR THE LOST (CD by Bazooka Joe)
GRIEF NO ABSOLUTION - EUROSTOPODUS ARGUS/CRYPSIS (LP/EP / Digital
album by Flingcosound)
DEFLAG HAEMORRHAGE/HAIEN KONTRA - HUMILIATED (CD by Tochnit Aleph)
TIMO VAN LUIJK & FREDERIK CROENE - VOILE AU VENT (LP by La
Scie Doree)
ONDE - PURPLE (LP by Ondemusic)
ZONK'T - BEAT WINS YOU AND ME (LP by Sound On Probation)
HEAL - SUPERNATURAL (LP by Sound On Probation)
MICRO_PENIS (LP by Doubtful Sounds)
MARCO FUSINATO - RIPPING SKIES (LP by No Fun Productions)
ASTROMERO - LIVE IN SAN FRANCISCO (LP by No Fun Productions)
STEPHEN CORNFORD - TWO WORKS FOR TURNTABLES (7" by Permanent)
ACL - BIG FAT ARSE (7" by Hag Records)
BLACKPEPPER - VQAREKK/COLOUR/COLOR (7" by Dirty Demos)
BIG CITY ORCHESTRA - THIRTY YEARS OF (CDR by Ubuibi) *
DOODSHOOFD - NYD (CDR by Skumrex)
DOODSHOOFD - HEIL HNW (CDR by Skumrex)
DOODSHOOFD - HEIL HNW (Cassette tape by Skumrex)
BAGMAN FOR KENNETH MC KENNA (3"CDR by Skumrex)
MIXTURIZER MXTRZR (CDr by R.O.N.F. Records)
NRYY NOISE RE YACKY (3inch CDR by Hikikomori Records)
KENJI SIRATORI - SHUTDOWN (CDR by Verato Project)
CONTAGIOUS ORGASM + FLUTWACHT - INSPECTION OF 1 HOUR (CD by Seeking
Sensation Scale Music + The Tourette Tapes 2009)
SPRUIT - ON/OFF (3inch CDR by Spruit)
PINE TREE STATE MIND CONTROL - ESQUMAUX (3inch CDR by Walnut+Locust)
THE BLACK BOX (sound box by FSS)
UNICAZÜRN - TEMPORAL BENDS (CD by Uzu
Music)
Recently I was quite disappointed by Cherry Red's re-issue of
some material by Five Or Six. Whereas the band's complete output
might easily fit on two CDs, they were granted a single, forty
minute CD. What a shame. That complaint has nothing to do with
this CD by UnicaZürn, save for the fact that one half of
UnicaZürn was once a member of Five Or Six, David Knight.
Later on he was a member of Arkkon, Shockheaded Peters and played
with Lydia Lunch. These days he is also a member of The Amal Gamal
Ensemble, an improvisation group. There he meets Stephen Thrower,
whom you surely know as a member of Cyclobe and Coil. Heavy weights
from the world where alternative popmusic, rock music even, meet
up with the more experimental edges of music - the world of Vital
Weekly. Together they work as UnicaZürn, but hardly a day-time
job. This material was recorded over a period of five years. Knight
gets credit for synthesizer, organ and guitar and Thrower for
keyboards, saxophone and clarinet. Danielle Dax appears on one
piece with vocals. Perhaps that piece, 'Jack Sorrow' is the albums
only hint towards 'pop' music, or perhaps just her vocals. Its
a short piece, and hardly representing the album. The other three
pieces span some forty minutes and finds itself in a highly abstract
sound mode. It opens up with some drone like material, which unfolds
itself over the course of the pieces into a fine work of electronics,
which rely heavy on analogue synthesizer (cosmic at times) and
heavily treated, spacious guitars and reed instruments, in what
is a great album. An excellent production, with always something
happening at every corner of the room. Quite 'loud' and 'present',
this is music that grabs the listener and leaves him breathless:
until Dax sings the final piece - almost like a lullaby. Great
CD. (FdW)
Address: http://www.unicazurnofficial
ABATTOIR (CD by Evil Rabbit Records)
Wow. What a mighty blast this is. Robert van Heumen we know from
his previous work in the field of laptops and improvisations while
Audrey Chen on cello and vocals is a new name to me. Chen screams,
whispers, mumbles, talks and sometimes she does that with her
voice, but perhaps more with her cello. Its not easy to say that,
as it seems that the laptop of Van Heumen is the overall controller
of the sound. He too screams, whispers, mumbles and talks with
the input given by Chen, and not always at the same time. Two
worlds that collide and communicate. Van Heumen takes everything
apart, melts them into bricks and builds a new house with it.
Heavy duty improvised music, but 'silence' is word that they hardly
seem to know here. From the very first to the very last second
things erupt like volcano. Sometimes we are on top of that volcano,
watching the eruption, then we see hot lava running down, slow
but hot and powerful. This CD lasts about an hour, which seems
quite long to me. It has a lot energy, this music, but it also
exhausts the listener quite a bit. To give this your full attention
is great, but you should be prepared for it. This music is not
entertainment, a lazy laid-back recording, but it requires full,
100% attention. Perhaps to be taken in a smaller doses then as
a large 5inch pill it is now. Play half, take a nap and then the
rest. Its rewarding however. (FdW)
Address: http://www.evilrabbitrecords.eu
VOICE OF EYE - SEVEN DIRECTIONS DIVERGENT
(CD by Conundrum Unlimited)
Since some time Jim Wilson and Bonnie McNairn, together known
as Voice Of Eye are back. In 1997 they stopped creating music
to 'build an off-the-grid sustainable home and studio in Taos,
New Mexico', which took them ten years to build. Since their return
their have been a couple of releases, which saw them return to
their fine of lengthy, warm ambient electronics with great emphasis
on the psychedelic quality of the pieces. Maybe therefore the
opening piece here on their twelfth CD 'Seven Directions Divergent'
is quite a surprise: its almost popmusic, slow rhythm, e-bow on
the guitar, and Bonnie McNairn on some heavenly voice trip, and
sounding a bit like Cosey Fanni Tutti. Laid-back popmusic. Almost.
This is continued in the following piece 'Where Are You?', which
is, me think, even better. Voice Of Eye changed that radical?
Hard to believe, and no, they didn't. At least not to that extent.
Throughout it seems indeed that elements of popmusic have been
brought in, without losing the original ambient sound. 'Transformational
Birth', the piece that closes this CD is one of those typical
lengthy Voice Of Eye ambient excursions. A bit without any sense
of direction, sounds flowing about, like being in space. They
drift in and out of the mix, without any synthesizers (according
to the cover), like the real cosmic music thing. That makes this
a great CD. Drifting, flowing in all pieces, bouncing back and
forth towards the more 'pop' like tunes and lengthy, atmospheric
excursions. A great album, I'd say, an excellent combination of
both ends, making a very mature album. Great psychedelic music.
(FdW)
Address: http://www.voiceofeye.com
FLATLINE SKYLINE - ALL SOUND/NO VISION (CD
by Mechanoise Labs)
Back in Vital Weekly 495 I reviewed Flatline Skyline's debut album
'Horizon Grid'. Flatline Skyline are R. Andrew Scott and Jacen
Kemp and back then it seemed to me a cross-over between IDM, gothic
and noise. Atmospheric songs in which vocals play a big role.
The new album 'All Sound/No Vision' continues this. The mood is
again dark, rhythm are loud, aggressive, demanding (whatever you
may think is appropriate) and Kemp's voice sound like Marc Almond,
although screaming in 'Sleep Tight, Silent Knight' reminding me
of Last Few Days. It has also moments of contemplation and introspection,
such as in 'Aperture', but those pieces are sparse, but provide
that necessary counterpoint. In that sense this album is a much
more varied than 'Horizon Grid' and this variety is what makes
this album very good. Perhaps not the sort of music I'd play a
lot I guess, but this one is really nice. (FdW)
Address: http://www.mechanoise-labs.com
2|FAVOURITE PLACES (CD compilation by Audiobulb
Records)
Following last week's Thomas Koner's mentioning of longitude/lattitude's
in the piece, this compilation, the second in a series, does the
same. Each of the ten pieces is a favorite place for the composer.
They are also mentioned by the place it is, although then its
still not easy to know what it is, except of course 'my bed' by
He Can Jog. I could of course install google's earth view thingy,
but then I rather listen and imagine these places myself. Oh oops.
The booklet provides me with pictures and descriptions of each
of the places, which is a nice read. If you read these, you might
think that this is a CD of purely field recordings, as there are
references to recording dates/times, but I guess that's when the
basic material has been recorded, which was later manipulated.
Throughout one can say that these ten composers all belong to
the world of microsound, with their minimalist, electronic processing
of the original field recordings. Sometimes we hear a bit of rainfall,
bird twitter, people talking or snooring in 'my bed'. Not much
news under the sun in terms of music, but throughout I must say
this is a nice compilation of well made field recordings, microsound
and electronics. Including Lawrence English, Yannick Franck, Micheal
Santos, Icarus, Sawako, Jeremy Bible, Austitici, Calika and Micheal
Trommer. (FdW)
Address: http://www.audiobulb.com
MILLIPEDE - ALL MY BEST INTENTIONS (CD by
Hymen Records)
American composer Don Hill has been exploring darker territories
of ambient under the name Porteur De L'Image over the years. Now
the Chicago-based artist has released a debut album under the
alternative name Millipede. Compared to the explorations of aforementioned
Porteur De L'Image, Don Hill as Millipede circulates in more beat-driven
sound worlds with rhythm structures that spans from IDM-textures
to more discreet pulses of clicking pulses. The overall style
still points towards the ambient scene, yet the soundscapes isn't
dark or threatening. The strength of Milipede is the artists ability
of creating deep otherworldly ambience, that sometimes moves into
harsher expressions not far away from IDM-legends Gridlock. Anyone
interested in Gridlock or ambient-driven IDM should definitely
check this work out. Music to dive deeply into. Mesmerizing! (NM)
Address: http://www.hymen-records.com/
AHNST ANDERS - MANY WAYS (CD by Ant-Zen)
A couple of years ago I reviewed the debut album from german sound
artist Henrik Erichsen under his alias "Ahnst Anders".
The album, titled "Dialog" and released on the Pflichtkauf-label
in 2007, was an intense album drifting somewhere in the borderlands
between dark ambient and downbeat industrial. Now two years later
Ahnst Anders is ready with his fourth release, being the first
album released on Ant-Zen Recordings. If the debut album was good
(and it definitely was!) this latest album carrying the title
"Many ways" is nothing short of excellent. The atmospheres
of the album is darkly intense. Keeping the foot in the dark ambient
there are similarities to the earlier albums but the compositions
seems more varied but still with a great sonic flow on the album
as a whole. Generally the composer sticks to the longer pieces
with average playing times around 7 minutes per track. This means
that the composer has plenty of time to create some musical intensity
and atmosphere in pieces that overall use minimalist expressions.
The sound of the works are first of all dark and sinister thanks
to the slowly moving heavy drones that either lives on their own
or sometimes in company with rhythmic patterns that spanning from
downbeat to more upbeat technoid expressions. Despite its blackness,
there are much beauty hidden in the thick fogs of heavy drones.
Especially pieces like "Phonique", "Forrest"
and "Still there" oozes of melodic beauty. Excellent
new album that will please both ambient listeners and technoid
fans. (NM)
Address: http://www.ant-zen.com/
THE RORSCHACH GARDEN - A PLACE FOR THE LOST
(CD by Bazooka Joe)
German artist Phillipp Münch has to be one German electronic
music scene's most active artists with a number of aliases and
collaboration projects. Two of his most active projects are the
hard-hitting powernoise-act Synapscape and the sharp contrast
to Synapscape, being the minimal electropop-band The Rorschach
Garden also starring Barbara Teichner and Natascha Pohlmann. The
band started in the fall of the eighties operating in a decade
before a few years up till 2001. From this year forward a great
number of releases has seen the light of the day on labels like
Fich Art, Bazooka Joe and Sub.ver.siv. Present album "A place
for the lost" turns the memories back to the British technopop-scene
of the early mid-80's. Especially New Order comes to my mind as
I listen to the 14 tracks on the album, especially thanks to the
vocal of Phillipp Münch that in expression reminds of Bernard
Sumner. Despite its call to the heydays of 80's electropop the
project has its very own approach with influences of the industrial-scene.
The strength of the band is the powerful energy that is hidden
under every single track, that in combination with the upbeat
rhythm-textures makes a good choice for every DJ-set. Highly recommended.
(NM)
Address: http://www.myspace.com/therorschachgarden
GRIEF NO ABSOLUTION - EUROSTOPODUS ARGUS/CRYPSIS
(LP/EP / Digital album by Flingcosound)
GNA make no grandiose claims for what I assume they assume is
"metal" though
some tracks (5/6/7) appear almost experimental or with a slight
shift even HWN. They seem to be genuinely exploring what is for
them *new* territories, the source of their sound - perhaps even
vocals so over-inscribed by feedback, distortion and noise that
no meaning or avant garde statement can raise its pretentious
self-indulgent head. It may be hard for some to grasp but the
search for meaning is either successful or fails, in other words
asking what a drum kit is for presupposes an essence on the material
before its existence which is nothing other than anti-human religiosity.
Life for the Jazz musician (like a drum kit or saxophone) has
purpose, for noise there are only uses- not defined meanings which
explains why the old avant-garde look on from behind at the play
of post theoretical musics. GNA are Deleuzean affects, lines of
flight, territorializations
de-territorializations - movement towards a B.W.O. (jliat)
Address: http://www.flingcosound.com/
DEFLAG HAEMORRHAGE/HAIEN KONTRA - HUMILIATED
(CD by Tochnit Aleph)
Packaged in a silver anti-static bag along with two printed cards
one having dense self indulgent text "My excrement hallucinatory
rejections of a concrete reality.." and even denser overwritten
text with photographs of blurred hand writing on the reverse.
When tracked down - (they give no address) the following amongst
other can be found "" "[sic] GOLDIE - drums, voice,
credit card, amplifier, stereotaxic. MATTIN - GNU/Linux computer
feedback, voice, guitar. Formed in East London in 2001... perform
internationally... work with noise, silence and abjection... transgress
all notions of what a performance can be without imposing aesthetic
or moral limits... two of the most unpredictable and 'conceptual'
contemporary sonic activists... "[sic] Goldie is one of the
most original noise musician/performers on the European scene...
from any current or cultural influence, Goldie's work places itself
in a unique conceptual universe, ..DEFLAG (etc) collaborated with
some of the most radical and legendary musicians in the avant-garde
such as Eddie Prevost (Prévost?) (a *Jazz* drummer!) and
Philip Best " And continues with reviews from Dan Warburton
(The Wire). &...Nick Hobbs validating their oeuvre. Actually
despite all this the piece begins with guitar / drumming noise
@ 3 minutes a lot of shouting - everything then goes quiet and
we hear a silly child voice and chimes? to give way to more shouting
and noise finale. When was The Two Virgins series released? I'm
sorry this is weak avant gardeism of the 1960s - no wonder Eddie
and the Jazz heads want in. They *do not* transgress notions or
moral limits or is there anything original here, certainly no
unique conceptual universe whatever that might *mean*- but you
might start by checking out the work of such as Fowler and the
ideas regarding the current state of sonic art in "in the
blink of an ear"- The only post-modern credentials they have
is passing off clichéd rubbish as art given a set of an
influential clique in line with Damien Hirst's (successful) objective,
so the whole thing might be an ironic gesture - at least that
is an excuse. otherwise as a quote they give from A&Lers Michael
Baldwin, Charles Harrison, Mel Ramsden from 1994 states "To
mistake the causes and reasons which originate cultural practices
for the causes and reasons which make it possible to go on with
those same practices is a species of immaturity which terminates
in Stalinism, or in some even worse adolescent disorder."
which is sufficient even given the pedigree/praise above to write
this off as "embarrassments and pettinesses " I suspect
and hope that the self regarding, self pitying narrative is just
a post-modern ploy, through I'm aware of an enormous anti-intellectualism
(read anti-human) tendency in the Stalinist Jazz Mafia/Media.
(jliat)
Address: http://www.mattin.org/DHHK.html
TIMO VAN LUIJK & FREDERIK CROENE - VOILE
AU VENT (LP by La Scie Doree)
ONDE - PURPLE (LP by Ondemusic)
The work that involves Timo van Luijk is always presented in the
best possible way. No pennies are saved to make sure the listener
has something great (literally in the shape of a LP) in his hands.
No cheap, easy CD, but a small piece of art. Not that these art
pieces provide you with much information. 'Voile Au Vent' for
instance just states the names of Van Luijk and Frederik Croene,
when and where it was recorded and the name of the label, but
nothing much else. Of Van Luijk we know he plays trumpet, electronics,
toys and such like, and Croene, we learn somewhere else, is a
piano player. Over the years Van Luijk has moved in his solo and
collaborative work towards more traditional forms of improvised
music. While he is responsible for the electronic part of it,
always loose and free, waving just above the ground, the other
player, a pianist in this case, places both of them on the ground
with his playing. Although I must say that it seems to me here
that Croene is also using electronics in his music. Four pieces
are played here of which one '... Pour Le Vent...' has a regular
rhythm of some kind, and is the most worked out, i.e. composed
piece of music, it seems. But all four pieces are equally great
I think. A remarkable outsider record, of someone who doesn't
care about trends and such like.
The second album by Onde sees Van Luijk however doing something
different. Onde's three members were all once part of Noise Maker's
Fifes and consist of Van Luijk on trumpet, guitar and electronics,
Greg Jacobs on violin, organ, electronics and Marc Wroblewski
on strings, metal and accordion. They sort of play live in the
studio and then further process/post produce the material a bit.
This is, as said, far away from Van Luijk solo music or duo improvisation.
The tides are the central thematic approach to both sides and
the music sounds like. Flowing likes waves, breaking the shore,
both sides have a great drive to them (does sound like a rhythm
machine on 'Vloed' actually). Onde here sounds a bit like Troum:
lots of regular instruments feeding through quite an amount of
sound effects, but Onde sounds a bit more opened up than Troum
(which seem to be hermetically closed at times). Onde seems to
be going for that similar kind of trance like music. Drone with
a drive. A fine record, topped in a great fold out sleeve. (FdW)
Address: http://www.lasciedoree.be
Address: http://www.ondemusic.be
ZONK'T - BEAT WINS YOU AND ME (LP by Sound
On Probation)
HEAL - SUPERNATURAL (LP by Sound On Probation)
Behind both these pieces of vinyl is Laurent Perrier, whose career
dates back to Eleve Model, his Odd Size label and these days releasing
his own music on Sound On Probation, using a variety of names,
each with its own distinct difference. Zonk't can be best described
as his industrial music project. The album opens with 'War', with
a not too fast rhythm borrowed from the world of hip hop, but
without vocals and piercing nasty frequencies. Click 'n hop? Was
that the term once coined for this? I don't recall. But think
a slow Pan Sonic, and you'll be fine. In 'Pore' the tempo goes
up quite a bit, with freaky sounds bouncing in and out. Synth
driving, be it from analogue or digital origins, while 'Clutter'
reminds us of early Esplendor Geometrico. On the other side two
pieces, of which 'Phlegmon' has a low flying techno beat and seems
to be the most straight dance beat oriented piece here. 'Glaire'
is the longest piece on the album and the most abstract one. More
loop than rhythm based, around some pseudo ethnic beat and more
nasty frequencies. Great album, great decision to put this out
on vinyl too. Nothing new in terms of musical innovation but excellently
crafted. Will spice your alternative dance event.
Rhythm is also present on the album Perrier recorded under the
'Heal' guise, but that's about the only thing that links Zonk't
and Heal together. For 'Supernatural', Perrier recorded, cut,
sampled, rearranged the work of eleven musicians, who play drums,
double bass, Fender Rhodes, piano, brass, cello, clarinet and
such like and created an album which sound on the a-side like
50s soundtrack: dark, jazzy, people smoking cigarettes in barely
lit cafe's, lots of hats. Film Noir music. Great stuff, that combines
the old tunes with new techniques and no doubt fits into areas
I may have read about but probably forgot. The b-side is with
three tracks (against five on the other side) a bit different.
More electronic based it seemed, more ambient house alike, more
minimal, and perhaps of the two records, the side I liked least.
A bit ordinary minimalist dub ambient house techno music (file
under, anyone?). Not unpleasant to hear, but maybe a bit too regular.
Nice enough. (FdW)
Address: http://www.soundonprobation.com
MICRO_PENIS (LP by Doubtful Sounds)
Wether we should believe everything we read? Perhaps not. With
much thanks to the internet, that pithole of lies. According to
the label Doubtful Sounds, Micro_Penis is a quartet from Mulhouse,
France, of Sebastien Borgo, Alexandre Kittel and Claude Spendelauer,
who 'escaped from the mental hospital of Rouffach in the South
Alsace'. What all four escaped? It sounds like they could, or
perhaps just that one guy who does the 'vocals', erm, 'voice'
stuff here. He grunts, growls, howls and screams over the music,
which is made by. Made by what actually? Electronics no doubt,
pitched to the lowest note possible and perhaps some sort of acoustic
objects being trashed about; maybe a saxophone here and there.
The interesting thing however it doesn't sound like a noise record
that much. Perhaps more like a crazy visual artist let loose in
the studio to record this, like Karel Appel's 'Musique Barbare'.
None of the obscenities can easily be understood, so perhaps its
all less obscene than the name might imply. Art brut for sure.
I thought two sides of this sort of improvised repressed noise
was a bit much, but I guess if you are crazy enough, you never
know when to stop. Throw 'm back in, and put them on medication
again. (FdW)
Address: http://www.doubtfulsounds.info
MARCO FUSINATO - RIPPING SKIES (LP by No
Fun Productions)
ASTROMERO - LIVE IN SAN FRANCISCO (LP by No Fun Productions)
Electro noise spluttering of malfunctioning electronics, feedback
and overloaded hum- HNW / noise variations across a semantic plane
of dead signifies graphemic nonsense of punctuated gaps in the
sound under erasure, a metaphysics of nonsense exposing itself
to the pornography of art and sound in the last instance divesting
itself of itself - over ripeness. Rotten fruit crushed and bloody
of a sub-cultural parasitic gesture of a cultural self induced
vomiting. Marco Fusinato (http://www.marcofusinato.com/) apart
from "doing things" and doing things with a guitar and
doing things in what *you* might call art - not ignorance - has
never the less produced - in spite of produced - because of -
produced- as a Kantian Synthetic Apriori causality produced a
remarkable record. Like Flavin better without the lights/guitar.
(joke). The persistence governs one side where the other is free.
(of experimentalism gesture culture place syntax) Though sadly
Astromero despite its C.C.C.C. pedigree seems lost, is a sc-fi
vortex of neo-Hawkwindian landscapes - for "psychedelic synth
/ noise" - read psychedelic synth / sound - with a decent
drummer would be psychedelic synth / pop - and quite nice as such.
I'm being overly harsh of this very "spacey" "trippy"
tom -foolery. It's OK, probably very fine, for myself I no longer
find fire-work displays either beautiful or exciting- the cynical
tastes of old age? Another oscillator sweep through VCF and reverb
breaks overhead in glorious color. ooooohhhahhhhhh -- Cantona?
The crowd like it anyway - side two a more composed (read yet
more reverbed!) studio piece is likewise. And a naf cover - the
horse head nebula would have been the more obvious. To be slightly
more serious the religiosity of its uber-science is daft. I wont
go into detail but NASA is replacing the shuttle with a V2, the
Playstation 3 forms the basis for the fastest supercomputer..
Folding@home - (jliat)
Address: http://www.nofunproductions.com/
STEPHEN CORNFORD - TWO WORKS FOR TURNTABLES
(7" by Permanent)
To work with turntables as the source of instruments is hardly
a new thing. Says Anne Hilde Neset on the liner notes for the
7" by Stephen Cornford. We all know that, I should hope.
Cornford has four turntables which he lets rotating with marbles,
ball bearings, one viola string, a ceramic disc, gears, rubber
bands, a dessert bowl, horse hair, two metal dishes, piano wire,
bicycle spokes, a draught excluder and gravel. This is placed
on the rotating plates and mixed together. A simple and effective
idea (which again isn't that new either, Insititut Fur Feinmotorik
did it also, and no doubt others), but Cornford's pieces are quite
nice, especially the one on side A, with the marbles rolling about
and adding a somewhat surprise like element to the fun, whereas
the other side, although divided into two parts, remains more
static in approach. This would make a great sound installation
I guess, and perhaps it was. (FdW)
Address: http://www.permanentgallery.com
ACL - BIG FAT ARSE (7" by Hag Records)
Of course it would be easy to say that whatever Hagshadow releases
is born under sun of Whitehouse, Sutcliffe Jugend of Sixth Comm
- as they put up shows by them in London. One G. GiveTOgod is
ACL (with the A wrapped in circle, like the anarchists do) and
pressed on 7" vinyl are two pieces 'Big Fat Arse' and 'Shit
Baby'. The vocals scream about - layered (the word fucking keeps
popping up) like in the best Ramleh tradition (of which the early
work is still favorite here), piercing electronics, fast oscillations
like latter day Whitehouse sometimes has, which almost form some
kind of rhythm. It borrows from all of that, but I must say ACL
does quite a nice job. Nothing new, but a dedicated follower of
a well-known style. (FdW)
Address: http://www.hagshadow.net
BLACKPEPPER - VQAREKK/COLOUR/COLOR (7"
by Dirty Demos)
Dirty Demos did release work before from Blackpepper, and also
of Jason Kerley, the man behind it (see Vital Weekly 586 for an
earlier 3"CDR). As Blackpepper he plays around with notion
of breakbeats in these three pieces. More spicey that much of
this kind of music on say Highpoint Lowlife, with the rhythm gliding
up and down the scale, no doubt thanks to Ableton Live. Not being
a DJ at all, I wonder if this record is really my thing, but these
three pieces are actually quite nice. 'Color' has no rhythm and
is the shortest track, more like a contemplative moment of tinkling
sounds. Quite nice music and could do well on your turntable if
you throw a party that involves bodies moving on the dance floor.
(FdW)
Address: http://www.dirtydemos.co.uk
BIG CITY ORCHESTRA - THIRTY YEARS OF (CDR
by Ubuibi)
Here's another celebration I haven't realized was coming up, just
like last week's The Legendary Pink Dots, Big City Orchestra also
exists for thirty years, but perhaps I just didn't realize it
would be thirty years now. How time flies. Like the Dots, main
character of in this story, Das, has delved the archives of his
band and presents five never before released sessions (multiple
tracks for three of them) from 1981, 1986 (two actually), 1991
and 2001 (recorded in Nijmegen 'in a camper' with Phil Knight
- to make another Pink Dots connection). The oldest session is
just Das on 'four shortwave radios'. Big City Orchestra, throughout
its many years of existence, have been very consistent in what
they do, musicwise. Long pieces of psychedelic electronics swirl
about, mostly at the darker regions of sound color. Ambient and
industrial are the two terms to spring to mind. This disc of material,
spanning twenty years, may show little development, but then I
don't think Big City Orchestra didn't set out to change the face
of music, but rather is an urge to create music that they simply
feel like creating. This disc is a long trip, seventy-seven minutes
of signature Big City Orchestra music. And onto the next thirty
years (and currently on tour in Europe). (FdW)
Address: http://www.ubuibi.org
DOODSHOOFD - NYD (CDR by Skumrex)
DOODSHOOFD - HEIL HNW (CDR by Skumrex)
DOODSHOOFD - HEIL HNW (Cassette tape by Skumrex)
BAGMAN FOR KENNETH MC KENNA (3"CDR by Skumrex)
I think someone called Too wrote to Frans in Dutch where I guess
he writes that the above are for me - that's all I can make out.
Skumrex is a label from Overijssel in the Netherlands, in google
maps its the middle of a field. Which is more useless information-
we live in an age of useless information. Of course as the geographiles
know "Overijssel is bordered by Germany to the east, the
Achterhoek region of Gelderland to the south, the Veluwe region
of Gelderland and Flevoland to the west, and Friesland and the
former moors of Drenthe to the north. Overijssel comprises three
regions: Kop van Overijssel in the northwest, Salland in the centre
of the province, and Twente in the east. Besides the capital Zwolle,
the major cities are Almelo, Deventer, Enschede, and Hengelo.
To the southeast, the province's surface is mostly sandy, interspersed
with small rivers, such as, Regge and Dinkel and brooks, in the
northwest, the geology is dominated by sediments from the Overijsselse
Vecht and clay." Sounds like something from Lord of the Rings
to the geographically challenged, just in case you are wondering
what is the relevance of all this - then its not, just as HNW
- that's a wall of noise "Hash Noise Wall" is not to
music.. Anitimusikalische Akation - which is German for anti musical
action- DOODSHOOFD is Dutch for Skull. How educational can a review
get- I do hope you are following - there will be a test. NYD (I
will leave for the curious to google (tip: google "nyd rune")
) 1:01:13 sounds like a pitchless tornado, until about 38 minutes
there is a slight wobble (& @ 48) and volume reduction? (why?
A act of self effacement? Explicit symmetry breaking (of the continuum
of the HNW) indicates a situation where the dynamical equations
are not manifestly invariant under the symmetry group considered.
This means, in the Lagrangian (Hamiltonian) formulation, that
the Lagrangian (Hamiltonian) of the system contains one or more
terms explicitly breaking the symmetry. Eh?) a remarkable work
which escapes any legitimizing systems. To get heavy - not only
States legitimize (musics/physics/ethics et al.) but contra Deleuze
rhyzomic groups (sub-genres, gangs..) do also - to value is to
become capitalist - the worth of Marxism makes it a Capitalism..
from the HWN perspective- not that in its monophony is there any
perspective, it overwrites, or ignores value(s). Not good stuff
but nice stuff, nice is value free. To comodify is to make good..
make goods / gods . get it? OK what country borders Overijssel
to the east? No cheating. The second CDR has two tracks as does
the cassette ("recorded in rural Netherlands" - come
on guys more detail please! - everyone reading this is asking
"which region of Overijssel?"..) both HNW which though
not identical share identities in parts- HNW which only reinforces
what is above - walls of disrupted noise - An interesting thought
in an already overlong review-can we have beauty without goodness?
Perhaps- here? Bagman noise could be described as extreme harsh
noise rather than "wall," the pieces are in constant
morphogenesis, a dangerous situation nearing the collapse of everything,
certainly no attempt at coherence which strangely is a problematic
for "wall" noise. I think at times he might be stretching
to far, in danger of falling into meaning - of vocals or some
kind of neo-industrial rhythmics of track 3, however the danger
of such "experimentalism' and pseudo-teleology is mitigated
(though it can't be justified) by the final track of wonderfully
new? (for me/him) totalizing high end feedback, breaking free
of the particular cathartic fall into a generalizing totality
removed of the personal id, disintegrations not of sound but of
universes of... ethics. Question: should catharsis be good or
just a pleasant respite from the truth that there is no good.
"Good is dead" - ha ha ha. (jliat)
Address http://www.myspace.com/skumrex
MIXTURIZER MXTRZR (CDr by R.O.N.F. Records)
I thought I had reviewed more than just a comp but then perhaps
I'm not
thinking.. Here the electronics go through slow processing and
manipulations - slow enough to be predictable and almost precisely
atypical
of any conventional western music. Compare with Spruit where the
chop up
offers a different more open approach to the development of forms
more akin
to their digital genesis. There is a massive hour and 8 minutes
here - some
latter tracks of almost sheer harsh noise others play with rhythms
devices
and real feedback. The more "live" the pieces the better,
the human as
opposed to microsecond digital manipulations. This focuses on
an important
issue - to engage in change today the need is to rely on the hyperfast
logic
switching of cybernetics or else deny change in the move to HWN.
To "hear"
the foot moving the wah wah or hear the hand turning the filter
/ oscillator
is to remove us back into a past which is dead and gone. So the
last track
is the most successful of the 9 apart from the needless fade into
reverb.
Still the old gods work - "The old habit, however, of associating
a goal
with every event and a guiding, creative God with the world, is
so powerful
that it requires an effort for a thinker not to fall into thinking
of the
very aimlessness of the world as intended. " (jliat)
Address (http://www.ronfrecords.com)
NRYY NOISE RE YACKY (3inch CDR by Hikikomori
Records)
KENJI SIRATORI - SHUTDOWN (CDR by Verato Project)
CONTAGIOUS ORGASM + FLUTWACHT - INSPECTION OF 1 HOUR (CD by Seeking
Sensation Scale Music + The Tourette Tapes 2009)
Now these three sadly I just don't get - Hikikomori Records is
supposedly an experimental music label from Denmark (despite the
Japanese sounding name!) which is surprising then as this release
can best be described as quirky-pop, the kind of thing which goes
down well I guess at The Wire (hi guys). Ordinary music with a
hint of turmeric, like Dulux off white paint - white but that
something that makes it different, interesting, *individual* guitar
strumming a very pleasant tune but a backing track made in a toilet,
bongos and rumba but with a hint of noise, waves crashing and
dial tones - I'm waiting for the whale sounds. No it's a fly,
and water, field recordings for the Abba generation- so - well
soooo musical- here come the bongos. I have a collection of Wire
tappers - and this kind of stuff appears on them in shed-loads.
The riffs and rhythms of Hoxton Square. Moving on -
Shutdown - micro sounding and using composed composites of no-pitched
sound, it however follows old ploughed ruts of musical convention
such that to those of a noise perspective it is not understandable
in its gentle semi-industrial rattlings. The fact that its packed
in an eco JakeBox is more typical than impressive. The asymmetric
label on the actual disk also gave some interesting noises - though
unintentional. The CO/Flutwacht is the strangest of all, conventional
avant garde micro sounds and voices - yes- conventional industrial
landscapes- and piano and gamelan? - beats and rhythms?? - with
synth samples and industrial pads??? - homage to Autechre? But
poorly done... deliberately I wonder - an ironic gesturing at
the pop worlds pseudo experimentalism? I don't think so. All three
seem unable to make up just what they are about or even attempting
to be
about. (jliat)
Address: http://www.hikikomori-records.com
Address: http://www.verato-project.de
Address: http://www.tourettetape.de/
SPRUIT - ON/OFF (3inch CDR by Spruit)
Marvelous digital cut-ups and glitches - music for the 21st century
at last, a positive and affirming digital aesthetic complementing
the over saturations of noise. Poetic digital ballets of sound.
It could be the self generated genius of some AI device @ M.I.T.
in its binaryism but IMO the product of a hard working and sensitive
mind which I know from the address is not silica. Anyone interested
at all in digital electronic music should check out this remarkable
work. (its such a nice feeling when someone gets it completely
right) (jliat)
Address: http://www.myspace.com/spruit
PINE TREE STATE MIND CONTROL - ESQUMAUX
(3inch CDR by Walnut+Locust)
"Part cult, part corporation, part social experiment, Pine
Tree State Mind Control layers subliminal messages under harsh,
yet hypnotic, noise." Track 1. Harsh industrial/2. underwater
sonar sounds through reverb/ 3. noise-drill and looped indiscernible
voice & noise. I could say I'm totally underwhelmed - (I am!)
but the catch is PTSMC could argue that that was precisely the
hidden message controlling my mind was meant to do? And not as
on their web site "encourage the listener to smile more often,
work harder, and get the best out of his or her leisure time.
" actually its rather annoying sounds. All a bit utopian
and magic crystals, one of the problems with utopian projects
like the concept of an afterlife is boredom. And anyway who says
I want to work harder! Though I did some work - in the second
track a very slowed down voice appears (when speeded up) to say
"im gladdy with my roots" - well yes? Far out man..
as for the chanting loop on the third track there is obviously
much else going on- a racket- one slight problem for people who
claim the ability to control minds, predict the future - lottery
numbers etc. is that they are not stupendously famous and/or rich?
Of course they might argue to use such powers in a selfish way
would be wrong - but I think that's a lie, and they are fakes
- but who put that idea in my head. No one - its bunk and nothing
but. (jliat)
Address: http://www.ptsmc.org/
THE BLACK BOX (sound box by FSS)
When Staalplaat released FM3's 'Buddha Machine' I was quite surprised
there wasn't much follow-up. No more releases, no remix album
et al. Or that other labels would jump the idea. Until now. A
Buddha Machine is a small box, with a built in speaker that has
a few, in this case nine, loops of sounds. FSS doesn't use the
word Buddha Machine, but here its a black box. It has short pieces
by Annie Feldmeier, Haptic, Cristal and Wrmlrd (who contributed
one piece, whereas the other did two). In total, perhaps twenty
seconds of music. That's all. But since they are loops they can
run forever. I am not sure if the text pieces by Feldmeier would
be something I would want to hear forever, or perhaps Wrmlrd noise,
but Haptic and Cristal's grainy sounds are great: it seems to
move around, whereas it is obvious it doesn't, its static sound.
There have been 2000 manufactured, and I recommend getting at
least two (three is better) and have fun with playing various
sounds at the same time, or try and get phase shifting music from
the same loop. A lovely object, despite the fact that it looks
like a small tombstone. Batteries not included. (FdW)
Address: http://www.flingcosound.com