TRASH – INDUSTRIALSAMPLECOREGOUCHBEAT (CD by Mille Plateaux)
Trash are a UK collective of DJs who play music like mentioned in the title
of their CD. There is something fucked about all of these tracks:
sampledjungle beats with a lot distorted sounds, and likewise samples of
voices. This music is punk of the 90s, with a queen Elisabeth on the inside
from the best punk traditions of twenty years ago. Probably I’m missing the
political, social or philosophical stance of these boys and girls, but the
music is quite alright. Not outstandingely good or bad, but just… o.k.
(FdW)
Address: fax: + 49 69 252280
DONALD MILLER & MICHAEL J. SCHUMACHER – FLOOD (CD by Warpodisc)
Miller is one of the two guitarists from Borbetomagus (whom I think are the
best live noise group I ever experienced!) and of Schumacher all is said on
the press blurb that La Monte Young think he’s great (but it’s mentioned
twice, so it must be important). This CD contains 4 guitar duets, of which
1 is recordedlive and three are studio improvs. I expected more over the
top noise with somebody like Miller involved, but I was surprised to find
the more drony noisy here. The three studio pieces are bowed guitar
playing, but slightly distorted as if a couple of chain-saws are used to
bend thos six strings. The live piece seems to dwell more on the good ol’
echo chambers and have a more atsmopheric approach, or laid-back texture to
them. All four pieces use effectivley the minimal music history, but in a
much more noisy context. (FdW)
Address: Box 3491 – Newport, Rhode Island 02840 – USA
THE GODS MUST BE CRAZY (CD Compilation by Top Records)
Maybe I’ve read the guideliness to this CD a couple of times, but I can’t
figure out what they mean. As far as I understand it, the ‘Gods’ gave us
technology, in which we, the non religious of the nineties, put our
believe. The Gods Must Be Crazy is a ‘media-art mmanifestation’ held in
Enschede, The Netherlands. Probably a whole bunch of video’s, music, light
etc that deal with this siple to use technology of our times. Let’s face
it: technology has become to cheap and easy to own, that everybody has a
sampler, video editor, and everybody becomes an artist by having it. The
dream of Joseph Beuys (everyman an artist) has become reality. Maybe I
write a little bit in negative terms, because there is some very good
material to be found here. From the dark ambient of Sluik/Kurpershoek or
Rico Pronk and Keiichi Tanaka to dance oriented doodlings of DJ Amok or the
gabberesk Hasan Ozgok and partners. Noise too is added to the pallet by
Willem Heerbaart (who glides along his shortwave) and Artifical (who ranks
Remko Scha among them). Somewhat too simple are Eddie D with a spoken word
sample or the telephone tap of KWW TV.
I’m sure most of these names don’t mean much to the majority of our
readers, but let that be no reason not to check this out. It’s well worth!
(FdW)
Address: <planetart@pi.net>
PORTER RICKS – PORTER RICKS (CD by Mille Plateaux)
After leaving the isolasionist house, Thomas Koner, together with Chain
Reaction’s man Andy Mellwig, went minimal dance music. Their first couple
of 12″s were hailed with big enthusiasm, so was their first CD. They
changed Chain Reaction for a likewise hip label, Force Inc./Mille Plateaux.
After again a couple of 12″s, they now a second full length CD. Hummm…
don’t think what to think. It’s a compilation of various 12″s along with
new material. There is still a huge sense of minimalism breathed out here,
but the dance factor has become lesser. There are various versions of
‘Redundance’ in which Porter Ricks reduces their own work more and more. I
have no idea what they hint at with a track like ‘Exposed’: guitar sampled
lifted from some old record (disco or new wave) and hammers away with an
over-drive rhythm machine. Most curious. But as I play this CD more and
more I notice more small details, the icing on the cake as to say. It’s a
truely fascinating thing which grows more and more already. Horrible cover
bytheway! (FdW)
Address: <ac@force-inc.com>
IN KELLER (CD Compilation by Gold Coast)
Gallery Keller is one of those typical Dutch art spaces were a lot of
different undergroundart activities happen: concerts, mixed media
installations and exhibitions. Recentely they founded their own label, Gold
Coast, and this handmade CD-R is the first release. The first edition is
only 50, but if you write to the address below, I’m sure you can obtain
your own copy. Eight different bands are featured on this CD, all performed
at the Galllery. Some of these tracks were recorded live (as shown in the
title of the tracks, ‘Enige Keller’, ‘Keller-ized’ and ‘Kelder’) and other
were (probably) taken from sounds at installations. The variety of the
music presented on this CD is symptomatic for the gallery: from noisy
bursts (from Marcel Kaars & Didi Fire) to electro-acoustics (Anne Wellmer
or Kapotte Muziek), to the grizzy cid techno by leading Den Haag acts like
Unit Moebius, Nimoy (actually and off shoot of Unit Moebius) or Stephane
Brys. Ultrasound represents the drony end of guitar music with a beautiful
example of the genre. The CD it self is compiled with great sense of
thinking were to pt which track, so its a joyeus listen. Support the
enthusastic starters and write en masse to:
Address: Galerie Keller – Buitenom 15 – 2512 XA Den Haag – The Netherlands
BEAUTYON – THE ULTIMATE MEDITERRANEAN SAVAGE (CD by Irdial)
The loudest CD ever released – so Irdial tries to tell us. I don’t know,
but I find it a waste of words spend in a discussion of Beautyon vs.
Merzbow or whatever. This is just plain simple digital noise, which is
utterly boring and doesn’t shed any new light on the current situation of
industrial music or noise. I’m not sure if Irdial tries to expand in new
musical territory here, but maybe all noise makers should send their
‘loudest’ demo’s to them.
Address: <irdial@irdialsys.win-uk>
MONOLAKE – HONGKONG (CD by Chain Recation)
The fourth tin can to arrive from Berlin is like an audio travelogue of
trips made to Hongkong and Guangzhou by Behles and Hencke, aka Monolake.
Various of their previous 12″s are featured here (Cyan, Lantau), but as
usual with these things, I can’t find out if they are different from the
original vinyl slabs. Although there is the familiar hissy and fuzzy Chain
Reaction beat sound, I found this CD more ‘ambient’ then some of the
previous CD’s on Chain. The synth washes are a bit more cliche, but are
never out of place. In general you won’t be disapointed by this CD, if the
first already got a place on your shelves. Chain Reaction are a bath you
dive into. Just how do they do it? (FdW)
Address: fax: + 49 30 61130599
KOMET – FLEX (CD by Rastermusic)
The second CD by Komet on Rastermusic’s more regular label (the ones with
printed covers) is one of more minimal armchair finger tapping on the table
techno. This album however has more balls then usual laid-back no dance
techno has. The opening piece for instance has an experimental starter,
which gradually is taken over by a dubby rhythm, with a stereo pan of
samples. In the shorter tracks on this CD, Komet, stays more monochromic,
exploring one idea and leaves it there. For me the longer tracks work
better: they are built better and have more variation in them. And that is
for the arm-chair listener good thing. Minimalism is a good thing, but
with this kindof music, sitting down might not be the right experience.
However, in general, this is a good CD of experimental techno music on a
label that is worth following. (FdW)
Address: <100522.3536@compuserve.com>
TOY BIZARRE/SMALL CRUEL PARTY (3″ CD by Kaon)
This CD is the result of a trip to the French Pyrenees earlier this year by
Cedric Peyronnet (Toy Bizarre) and Key Ransone (Small Cruel Party). There
the two recorded a whole bunch of environmental sounds and afterwards each
composed some music with those sounds, thus showing each their own view of
the place. The four small pieces by SCP are very direct and to the point.
It’s almost like the four pieces are small performances held in nature:
using water sound, rubbing sticks: it’s like witnessing a SCP concert. Toy
Bizarre provides a longer piece which is apperentely more composed: sounds
are layered and repeated, treated (slightly) and bring to mind the
desolated mountain areas were this was recorded. Add to this an austere
cover and you see a succesful sound trip. (FdW)
Address: <kaon@hol.fr>