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VITAL WEEKLY
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number 505
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week 51
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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!
you can subscribe to the weekly broadcast
using the following rss feed:
http://www.harmlog.nl/vitalfeed.asp
New broadcasts will be sent directly when uploaded. For more information
on
podcasts go here: http://ipodder.sourceforge.net/
* noted are in this week's podcast
LOSS - I KILL EVERYTHING (CD by Spectre
Records)
RANDOMNUMBER - GOLDEN ACRE SLEEPS (CD by Highpoint Lowlife) *
TOSHIYA TSUNODA - RIDGE OF UNDULATION (CD by Hapna)
3/4HADBEENELIMINATED - A YEAR OF THE AURAL GAUGE OPERATION (CD
by Hapna) *
MERZBOW - MERZBUTA (CD by Important Records)
AREA C - TRAFFICS & DISCOVERIES (CD by Last Visible Dog)
FIRE IN THE HEAD - BE MY ENEMY (CD by Audio Immolation Industries)
*
SERGE BAGHDASSARIANS & BORIS BALTSCHUN (CD by Charhizma) *
MICHEL DONEDA - SOLO LAS PLANQUES (CD by Sofa/Sillon)
ALESSANDRA ROMBOLA - URENA (CD by Sofa/Sillon) *
WADE MATTHEWS - ABSENT FRIENDS (CD by Sofa/Sillon)
A NEW STAR IN THE HEAVENS (CDR compilation by Zaftig Research)
IN CAMERA (LP by Some Fine Legacy)
AF URSIN - AURA LEGATO (LP by La Scie Doree)
BENJAMIN BRUNN - DE-ESCALATE (12" by Bine Music)
BOGGER - BOGGER (12" Vinyl by Digital Gadget)
GLENN DAMBO - GLENN DAMBO EP (12" Vinyl by Digital Gadget)
HELVETIKONE - HELVETIKONE (12" by Digital Gadget)
PANICSVILLE/SPIRES THAT IN THE SUNSET RISE (7" by Nihilist
Records)
RESIN - SPRING THE SACRED (CDR by Tib Prod) *
SOUND_00 - LOVE EP (3"CDR by Tib Prod)
GOH LEE KWANG/TIM BLECHMANN - @ FREI RADIO FUR STUTTGART, 2 FEB
2005 (CDR by Tib Prod)
RECONSTRUCT III: SWAMPS UP NOSTRILS REMIXED (2CDR by Tib Prod)
BJERGA/IVERSEN - STREAMS OF FROZEN LIGHT (THE LIGHTHOUSE TAPES
VOL. 6) (CDR by Simple Logic)
THE ONE MAN ENSEMBLE OF DANIEL PADDEN - LIVE AT VPRO RADIO (CDR
by Brainwashed) *
PARADIN - COMA DIGENEAN (CDR by Gears Of Sand) *
THE PORTABLE QUARTET - TAKE THE TRAIN (CDR by Crouton Music) *
HENRY LEO DUCLOS - THE FALL OF MY CHURCH (MP3 by Audiobulb) *
CADUCEUS - INFL 03 (MP3 by Caduceus Music) *
LOSS - I KILL EVERYTHING (CD by Spectre
Records)
I kill everything! The album title very well predicts what to
expect when putting this second release by Loss into the player.
Usually artists working in the fields of Power Electronics concentrates
on expressions of sheer sonic violence. Loss does too, but with
a twist! Stylishly reminiscent of early Cold Meat Industry-artists
(The Protagonist, Raison D'Etre etc.), Loss also applies elements
from the intersection between Neo Classical and Dark Ambient.
On first part of the album the orchestral sounds of dark classical
dominates while noisy electronics operates in the sub-levels.
During progression the roles of the album changes, ending up with
a more abrasive expression as the tranquilizing atmospheres of
orchestral ambient is suppressed by the full throttle impact of
aggressive Power Electronics. Screaming vocals sounding like demons
from hell and distorted in the traditional Power Electronics manner,
saturates most tracks on the album. So despite the emotional melancholic
sense on the album we are dealing with an album of hard-thrashing
aural machismo. "Beauty and the beast" has, in other
words, been pushed further to the extremes. (NMP)
Address: http://www.spectre.be
RANDOMNUMBER - GOLDEN ACRE SLEEPS (CD by
Highpoint Lowlife)
Apparently there in the post-code LS6, that is Leeds, United Kingdom,
the population of bands is enormous, and it's also the place where
Random Number (or rather randomNumber, as he spells it), aka Matt
Robson, hails from. He's probably best known as the drummer of
Hood, as-well some other, unnamed bands, but as randomNumber playing
two 'unsynchronized laptops and a tabletop of controllers and
effects'. randomNumber released music on Rocket Racer, Fencing
Flatworm, Catmobile and Rock Action and offers ten tracks that
fit the Highpoint Lowlife catalogue very well. Or that of like-minded
labels, like Expanding or Static Caravan. However I am the first
to admit that randomNumber may sound alike so many others, it's
at the same time a bit more crude, a bit more angular than so
many of his mates in this area. The melancholic element is present
and alive, but operates on a much more marginal level. Beats and
stuff like that are more energetic and free floating and this
is quite a nice album. Alike so many but just a little bit more
refreshing and a little bit more of his own. (FdW)
Address: http://www.highpointlowlife.com
TOSHIYA TSUNODA - RIDGE OF UNDULATION (CD
by Hapna)
3/4HADBEENELIMINATED - A YEAR OF THE AURAL GAUGE OPERATION (CD
by Hapna)
The Swedish Hapna label is slowly expanding, here doing two releases
at once. The first is the second release on their by Toshiya Tsunoda,
who is also responsible for the first release on the label in
1999. Tsunoda works field recordings as-well as music dealing
with sound in relation to space. On this new CD there are various
examples of this, such as the eight times layered sine waves in
the opening and closing pieces of the CD. In between there are
three pieces of field recordings. Here they are presented untreated
(as usual). Tsunoda knows where to put a microphone and how to
make a field recording that is interesting to hear and not 'just'
a field recording. Three further pieces on this CD deal with aluminum
plates and vibrating objects, picked by piezoceramic sensors to
make the vibrations audible. In all eight pieces Tsunoda explores
sound phenomena, but it's explorations that are interesting to
hear, not just for the sake of exploring. Three different approaches
for Tsunoda on one disc, that is something odd. Usually he explores
one idea per release (just field recordings, just vibrations),
so in that respect this is something of a 'best of' or perhaps
'an introduction'. In any case it's probably the most varied work
of Tsunoda so far. In case you need a place to start: here it
is.
The other new release is the second CD by 3/4Hadbeenelimated,
following the self-titled debut on Bowindo from 2003 (see Vital
Weekly 423). The band is expanded to a quartet, besides Stefano
Pilia (guitar/double bass), Claudio Rocchetti (turntables) and
Valerio Tricoli (sound architect) also Tony Arrabito on drums.
The mentioned instruments are only half what they really use,
because every sound object can be an instrument, and then there
is still the studio itself. 3/4Hadbeenelimated operate out of
the tradition that improvisation can be the basis of sounds that
can be further re/deconstructed in the studio. They cite This
Heat, Todd Rundgren and P16.D4 as their influence, and especially
the first can be easily traced back indeed. They improvise together
in their own studio and then take the sounds apart, and stick
them back together in a way that suits it better. Various pieces
are layered, chopped up (although never in a radical manner),
slowed down or sped up, but invariably 3/4Hadbeenelimated is interested
in playing a bit psychedelic music, music with a good flow to
it, for the listener to dream away. A bit cosmic, a bit kraut,
a bit singer-songwriter (with vocals mind you, so also in that
respect less P16.D4) but all quite nice. Think Tape, but with
more instruments and a bit more rocky. (FdW)
Address: http://www.hapna.com
MERZBOW - MERZBUTA (CD by Important Records)
Merzbow is hardly new to using rhythm and percussion in his work.
He started out, after all, as a drummer. Many of those early Merzbow
recordings are filled with percussion sounds, most of the recent
ones involve competing rhythmic loops, and some even utilize acoustic
drums over which noise junk is grafted. That Masami Akita understands
rhythm cannot be denied. But the key difference between those
recordings and his new direction is that the drums on his new
albums are electronically generated dance beats that seem to reference
industrial techno, rather than jazz or rock. Here, the beat seems
to be a gimmick that effectively anchors each piece to one spot
from which it cannot move. Maybe that paradox is intentional,
but for me it doesn't work very well. Throughout "Merzbuta",
the beats are so bludgeoningly repetitive that they don't allow
the music to do much more than mark time; it becomes clear after
just a few minutes that they aren't very interesting as sounds
on their own (they sound like they could be some software presets),
and that the album will be five slight variations on the same
limited idea. I found myself growing weary at about the middle
of track 2, restless at track 4, and finally I caught myself watching
the minutes tick down on the CD player. What went wrong here?
I'm reminded, unfortunately, of Muslimgauze, who also relied on
a looped pulse as an artificial device to keep uninteresting music
aloft until the length of a CD is filled. The beats are the most
distinguishing feature of this album (aside from the nihilistic
"animal domination" artwork, which is too juvenile to
be taken seriously... if you really think all humans should die,
who would buy your records? or, for that matter, make them?),
and yet they are like boulders holding down music that, judging
by the synth squalls that flutter impotently underneath and around
the beats, wants to soar. (HS)
Address: http://www.importantrecords.com
AREA C - TRAFFICS & DISCOVERIES (CD
by Last Visible Dog)
I'm sad to report that I don't like this new CD on one of my favorite
American labels very much. With Last Visible Dog, I have such
a huge respect for the publisher that I'm willing to start with
the premise that if LVD is excited enough about something to put
it out, then I want to hear it. Unfortunately, Area C, the "band"
of one Eric Carlson of Providence, Rhode Island, seems to be a
rather typical new-age-like guitar droner, far less creative than
the tangentially similar 1/3 Octave Band or Andrew Chalk. On most
of the pieces presented here, what makes the biggest impression
on me is the sound of rack delay effects, rather than the music.
Sure, it's pleasant enough, and the other evening when I had friends
over for dinner and beers, I unhesitatingly put this on in the
background. It was innocuous, sure, but the unpleasant odor of
New Age seeped through enough to subliminally steer our conversation
towards the topic of 80s Tangerine Dream records. Whoa. There's
a point about midway through the album where the sound of processed
strings is less pronounced, and some synth pulses take over. Fine,
but it's still so... nice. Not beautiful, not reaching for anything
in particular or taking risks, but merely a pleasant sound. It's
like Peter Wright without balls, all surface but not much to chew
on, pretty yet flat. (HS)
Address: http://www.lastvisibledog.com
FIRE IN THE HEAD - BE MY ENEMY (CD by Audio
Immolation Industries)
From the noise department comes Fire In The Head,
a project by Micheal Page, since early 2004. Page was a member
of Slogun, when they played live but after a while he wanted to
do his own thing, mixing noise, drones, dark ambient and power
electronics. So far he has released ten CDs/CDRs, which I didn't
hear. So it's not easy to relate the new work 'Be My Enemy' to
that. Ten tracks are to be found here of not just the classical
noise of banging some sheets of metal and feed that through a
bunch of distortion, causing a storm of feedback. Fire In The
Head uses synths, distortion, the usual power-noise vocal screaming,
but there are also moments of relative tranquility, taking things
a few steps back, such as 'Daddy's Got A Gun' (the whole thing
with titles of course is the usual thing with the power noise
musicians), which is a spooky affair. Influences by Whitehouse
(or any copyist since them) are never far away, but Fire In The
Head gives the material a strong twist of his own, and makes this
into a more than nice disc of power noise. (FdW)
Address: http://www.collectivexxiii.com/fireinthehead/
SERGE BAGHDASSARIANS & BORIS BALTSCHUN
(CD by Charhizma)
Now here's something I just don't seem to figure out about. I
must admit I never heard of Serge Baghdassarians nor Boris Baltschun,
and there isn't yet any information on the Charhizma website.
The cover, though nice as it is (a combination of letraset and
an Ikea catalogue), doesn't hold any substantial information.
I expected this to be somewhere along the lines of improvised
music, but that isn't the case - it seems. There are three tracks,
almost fourteen minutes, eleven en twenty-five minutes. Ok, so
it's music, but just what kind it is - I don't know. It seems
to me sampled together stuff, perhaps electro-acoustics, maybe
guitars? These are processed together in these longer pieces,
which are basically collages of sound. Sometimes these sounds
appear as blocks of heavy, upfront sounds (though never noisy),
or almost inaudible crackle and static. Altogether in one piece.
So, I don't get it, but do I like it? That is also something I
haven't quite figured out. Sometimes the blocks of sounds are
quite nice for what they are, and a certain tension is felt in
them, but at other times things are just too simple for words,
and seems to be put together with rather simplistic means. A most
curious disc that leaves me quite confused, to say the least,
but certainly that should be given a few more spins, before any
of it's content becomes a bit clearer. But not today. (FdW)
Address: http://www.charhizma.com
MICHEL DONEDA - SOLO LAS PLANQUES (CD by
Sofa/Sillon)
ALESSANDRA ROMBOLA - URENA (CD by Sofa/Sillon)
WADE MATTHEWS - ABSENT FRIENDS (CD by Sofa/Sillon)
Norway's Sofa Music label were never reviewed before (sad to say,
but true) but they have an extended catalogue of improvised music
by loads of Norwegian musicians, but they have recently started
a sub-division called Sillon. Here they release CDs in nice hand-stamped
carton sleeves, in an edition of 500 copies, of works that consist
of improvised music by one person.
The first release was a bit earlier in the year by Michel Doneda,
who plays soprano saxophone. The seven pieces were all recorded
in july 2004 and consist of a fine balance between sustained notes
on the saxophone and loosely played fragments, not hasty but pastoral
and intense sounding. The saxophone is to be recognized as such
throughout this work, and I must admit that I am not a bigger
lover of the instrument, I think here with the sustained, almost
drone like sound, things sound pretty much OK. It is a very intense,
almost noise related music of an acoustic kind. Quite an achievement.
The name of Alessandra Rombola is new to me, and she is originally
from Italy, but now living in Spain, where she plays contemporary
and improvised music. Her debut CD 'Urena' was recorded in the
small village of the same name, in the church of that city to
be precise. She plays flute along rather conventional improvised
music lines most of the times, but there are parts where she uses
the flute to play rhythmical figures with her fingers. The church
space provides of course natural reverb, which adds an even more
spacious character to the music. I was more taken by her playing
of the flute as an object, rather than some of the more conventional
playing, but over all this is a very fine disc of improvised music.
Also living in Madrid, Spain, is Wade Matthews, who plays alto
flute and bass clarinet. Previously he had a release on Creative
Sources (see Vital Weekly 470), and even when he worked with electronics
before, this is his first release using only software synthesis
- 'no sampling, no overdubbing' - it says on the cover. In seven
pieces he plays around with high end sounds, buzzing around likes
bees, in a highly digital surrounding. Minimalist sound patterns
spark off and things move around rather in a slow way. It's ok
stuff, I think, but not really great. Sometimes it hears like
a bit too much of 'switch it on and see what happens'. Maybe it's
something other people can do better. (FdW)
Address: http://www.sofamusic.no/sillon
A NEW STAR IN THE HEAVENS (CDR compilation
by Zaftig Research)
It is of course the time of the year for a Christmas compilation,
and even if you don't like it (like me) than it's hard to avoid.
But you can always enjoy a special alternative christmas compilation.
There was (or perhaps is) a Dutch radio station, known for the
Staalplaat Mort Aux Vaches, who commissioned special christmas
tunes and put them out on limited CDRs, which by now would take
you through half a day of listening fun, but then you can continue
with 'A New Star In The Heavens', a very lengthy compilation by
Zaftig Research. Not all of the tracks seem to have a direct link
to God, I mean Christmas, as some are just about the time of the
year, such as 'The Long Descent Into The Dark Of Winter' by Goose.
It's a varied bunch of tracks that either pay seriously homage
to some of the finest christmas songs, or like C/A/T try to make
fun of all the things that surround christmas. And with some it's
hard to find any link, either to the time of the year or christmas,
other than perhaps the title, like in Azoikum's 'Clicks'n Noise
Carol'. But in all this is a very nice compilation that is mostly
suitable for this month, but in some cases for the rest of the
year too. (FdW)
Address: http://www.inhell.com/eskaton/
IN CAMERA (LP by Some Fine Legacy)
AF URSIN - AURA LEGATO (LP by La Scie Doree)
Now that Mirror is on hold, perhaps for ever, it's time that Christoph
Heemann starts something new, but it's something that has been
in the pipeline for some time. Together with Timo van Luyck, also
known as Af Ursin, and sometimes member of Noise Maker's Fifes
and of the Mirror live line up, he has been working on new material
as In Camera (which is not to be confused with the best Joy Division
rip off on 4AD in the early 80s). Just like once Mirror did, the
first LP is released by Some Fine Legacy, in a beautiful, Mirror
like cover. It's hard not to think of Mirror when listening to
the first In Camera, but there are some fine, small detailed differences.
First of all there is the stronger use of 'real' instruments,
such as piano and percussion and the more spacious use of sounds,
i.e. less dense than some of the Mirror material. Overtones and
sustained sounds are of course an ongoing interest for both artists.
They lurk in the background and at the beginning of the second
side they arise a little bit from the mass, but throughout the
record they add a nice drone dimension to it. Some damm fine stuff.
Can't wait to hear some more (and hopefully not all as expensive
and rare as the Mirror stuff)
At the same Timo van Luyck releases a new LP as Af Ursin, if I'm
not mistaken his second or third. Van Luyck produces all the sounds
himself on his records, which are finely woven together. He plays
electronica to process sounds from a flute, voices, glass harmonium
and on side two even, a drum-machine and bass guitar. Here, on
this side, things are jumpy, perhaps even a bit krautrock like,
which doesn't sound unlike old HNAS records. But for the most
part this record (four lengthy pieces in total) contains wonderful
extended drone music, that is alike some of the UK counterparts,
but Af Ursin adds a much more musical dimension to it, through
a much clearer use of instruments and a likewise much clearer
production. Great stuff for those who like expand beyond the 'ordinary'
drone music. (FdW)
Address: <timo.van.luyck1@telenet.be>
BENJAMIN BRUNN - DE-ESCALATE (12" by
Bine Music)
This is the follow up to 'Music Under Pin' (see Vital Weekly 481),
which then presented four tracks by the for me unknown Benjamin
Brunn and four remixes, including one by Frank Bretschneider.
Here he is by himself again, with another four tracks of minimal
techno. A forceful yet minimal rhythm built each of the tracks
and small icing is put on the cake. It's not in it's kind but
also nothing ground breaking new. If I was a DJ of this kind stuff
(or in fact a DJ at all), I would perhaps stick this in my record
bag and give it a few spins along some of the finer Bretschneider
and Kompakt stuff - it wouldn't be a too strange thing to do and
would no doubt be a good spin. But at home, these pieces by itself
didn't do much for me. (FdW)
Address: http://www.binemusic.de
BOGGER - BOGGER (12" Vinyl by Digital
Gadget)
GLENN DAMBO - GLENN DAMBO EP (12" Vinyl by Digital Gadget)
Jeff Pils has become a popular name in the DJ-communities of Berlin
thanks to his uncompromising sets on the Dönerlounge Club,
Berlin. Second and third release of the Berlin-based Digital Gadget
present the composing part of German Oliver Kiesow alias DJ Jeff
Pils. Operating under the name Bogger on the self-titled second
Digital Gadget-release, Oliver Kiesow very clearly marks his attachment
to the club-oriented style. Four tracks that all would be suitable
for some physical performance. This 12"-vinyl album opens
with the track titled "Joana", a track that first of
all uses the old-school Detroit techno-sound to create a track
of sheer minimalism based on repetitive up-tempo beat-textures
and only a few other elements of sound. Following track titled
"Octron" is noisier, more experimental and more down-tempo
with slow and distorted rhythms still repetitive though. Side
B continues with another upbeat dance-floor track titled "Etacon"
followed by "Kontrolle" - a track that is more noisy
and experimental but still with a leg on the dance-floor thanks
to some house-like interruptions in-between the slow-breathing
machineries and mid-tempo rhythm texture. On the other Ep, Oliver
Kiesow operates under another project name "Glenn Dambo".
In comparison with the Bogger-release there is still a lot of
club-attitude on Glenn Dambo. Also the funkiness remains, but
the overall style is darker and even more repetitive. The four
tracks on the album all takes the starting point in minimalist
electro, with much focus on repetitive rhythm structures and hypnotic
grooves. There is only a minimal use of distortion on the album.
Instead the album uses microsounds and clicks'n'cuts giving a
more multileveled expression. Second track on the album titled
"Input" uses Kraftwerk-reminiscent robot voices in the
mix adding a great artificial expression on the electro style.
Two quite interesting Ep's by DJ Jeff Pils. Picking only one of
the two Ep's, the best choice would have to be the Glenn Dambo
Ep, if you ask me! (NMP)
Address: http://www.digital-gadget.de/front
HELVETIKONE - HELVETIKONE (12" by Digital
Gadget)
German sound artist Eduard Müller alias Helvetikone, has
the honor of being the first artist out on Berlin based label
Digital Gadget. Artists released on the label are affiliated with
the radio show "Digital Gadget" broadcasted in Berlin.
Helvetikone works in the abrasive territories of club-oriented
IDM with broken beats, distorted noise and voice samples blended
into a storm of rhythmic chaos. Sheets of ambient are being used
to create excellent atmospheres in the fast and breathtaking eight
tracks. Closing track on the album, "Before I", creates
the climax and the grande finale of the album with massive drones
of crushing power electronics finding its way into the atmospheres
of ambientscapes and complex break-beat textures and thus empowering
the feeling of sonic apocalypse. A short album clocking 28+ minutes,
but with the ability to knock even the strongest dance-floor-athlete
down on his knees. A very promising debut-release from Digital
Gadget! (NMP)
Address: http://www.digital-gadget.de/front
PANICSVILLE/SPIRES THAT IN THE SUNSET RISE
(7" by Nihilist Records)
In the ongoing series (if such a thing is the case) of split 7"
records, Panicsville here teams up with the oddly named Spires
That In The Sunset Rise. They are a four piece playing guitar,
organ, drums, slide guitar and zither. 'Little For A Lot' is a
freely played song, with a folky voice. New folk perhaps, or perhaps
a bit more adventurous version of Current 93, without the nasal
voice of Tibet (or whatever it is these days). Nice song, a bit
too long. After the break would have been a good ending.
On the other side there is Panicsville, who is now also a four
piece, besides Andy Ortmann (on 'clicks, creaks, bumps in the
night'), including vocals, piano and guitar. Their song is along
the lines of the other side, and has also a semi-medieval feel
to it. Again a bit of Current mixed with some older Dead Can Dance.
A strange move, but it's a nice track altogether. I am not sure
wether a full length CD would be right next move, but we'll see.
Ortmann is always in for a surprise or two. (FdW)
Address: http://www.nihilistrecords.net
RESIN - SPRING THE SACRED (CDR by Tib Prod)
SOUND_00 - LOVE EP (3"CDR by Tib Prod)
GOH LEE KWANG/TIM BLECHMANN - @ FREI RADIO FUR STUTTGART, 2 FEB
2005 (CDR by Tib Prod)
RECONSTRUCT III: SWAMPS UP NOSTRILS REMIXED (2CDR by Tib Prod)
BJERGA/IVERSEN - STREAMS OF FROZEN LIGHT (THE LIGHTHOUSE TAPES
VOL. 6) (CDR by Simple Logic)
One of the best pieces of modern classical music, but still in
a tradition, from the twentieth century is 'Le Sacre Du Printemps'
by Igor Stravinsky, from 1913. A ballet about the rite of spring,
a piece with a lots of drama and changes. A powerful, percussive
work. Resin from Canada uses sound material from this great piece
for his own, well, remix? reinterpretation? appraisal? He created
four pieces that dwell heavily on the use of violin parts of the
original, and less on the percussive outbursts that the original
have. Resin plays more moody music that however is quite nice
too. Moving slowly with an endless mass of sampled strings, going
from light to dark over the course of these four pieces, this
is quite a nice release.
Also, much to my surprise actually, quite a moody release from
Sound_00, the man behind Every Kid On Speed and other some such
names. As Sound_00 he presented quite some loud and vicious releases,
but on his 'Love EP' he plays foremost 'nice' music. This release
is part of a whole series of EPs, such as 'dark', 'pain', 'flower',
'cut' and more, all to be released by various labels. Chilly chill
out music, with a bit of modern classical touch, but much slower
and more minimal in approach, but unmistakably playing the a nice
piece of highly atmospheric music.
The name Goh Lee Kwang seems to be popping up more and more and
here he works together with Tim Blechmann. Together they recorded
a piece for Frei Radio Für Stuttgart. Blechmann plays laptop
and Goh plays feedback mixer. Not the easiest music, as you can
imagine. Lots of high pitched piercing sounds that are fed into
the computer, which in return does some fairly obscure things.
Not always convincing in what they are doing here, but in the
third track, the whole spectrum shifts from high end to low end
and that was quite a nice move.
Every once in a while Tib Prod puts up some sounds on their websites
by a specific artist which can be downloaded and used for remixing.
A massive pack of do-it-yourself remixers in return come up with
their remixes. Jan-M Iversen and Cadmium Dunkel were already done
in the past, now it's time for Swamps Up Nostrils, the project
of Arnfinn Killingtveit (who also works as Helmetricon, Synkopat
and Malebarisk), and which is a hotch-potch of musical sounds
and directions, so probably more than excellent for remixing.
Although on the two lengthy CDRs, it must be noted that the majority
of the remixers choose for the ambient side of Swamps Up Nostrils.
Stuff runs through plug-ins, creating a somewhat rawer version
of ambient, but in general it's quite nice altogether. Suspects
include Tzesne, Chefkirk, Resin, Staplerfahrer, Every Kid On Speed,
Carl Kruger and loads of others whose name you might recognize
from the Tib Prod catalogue.
Of course a new batch of releases on Tib Prod must also include
a new collaboration of label boss Jan-M Iversen with Sindre Bjerga,
but it's a release on the Polish Simple Logic label. The sixth
and last volume of The Lighthouse Tapes (previous releases are
on Foxglove, First Person, M.I.R. and soon on Paha Porvari and
Kabukikore) is one of the best works I heard from these two guys.
Cracking electronics (like trying to burn the element of the guitar),
carefully toying around with feedback and minimal changes that
are however quite present. A bit noisy, a bit ambient, careful
and intense, nice recording (beyond the more usual lo-fi that
is): perhaps even the best so far. Think old Zoviet*France, area
'Mohnomishe'. Great. (FdW)
Address: http://www.tibprod.com
Address: http://www.simlog.tk
THE ONE MAN ENSEMBLE OF DANIEL PADDEN -
LIVE AT VPRO RADIO (CDR by Brainwashed)
It is perhaps a bit confusing: The One Ensemble Of Daniel Padden,
whereas the cover lists five players. The previous two albums
by Daniel Padden contained music, all played by Padden himself,
but as we are dealing here with a live album, it's not strange
to see it become a real ensemble. Padden, who is also a member
of Volcano The Bear, is assisted by people who play bouzouki,
drums, percussion, cello, viola whereas the man himself plays
guitar and sings. As the attentive reader probably noticed the
recordings were made at the VPRO radio, by the very same (nice)
people who delivered so many excellent recordings for Staalplaat's
Mort Aux Vaches series, it's, when you hear this, not really a
big surprise that they aren't released by Staalplaat. Although
the series has many different musical angles, the music of Daniel
Padden is very very far away from what Staalplaat releases. Padden
plays a very personal version of folk music. Not always very skilled
and trained, and the songs aren't the nicest ones, this is new
folk, a somewhat more grim version of folk music. Rooted not just
in folk (or perhaps, not at all), this has traces of free improvised
playing, with elements of drone and noise coming in at the far
end of the sound spectrum. Just as it's music that Staalplaat
wouldn't release, it's also music that is vastly away from any
daily appetite at the headquarters of Vital Weekly, but perhaps
that's the reason why I must admit that I quite like this. Surely
not music I would want to hear all day, but this release blew
me away, just because it's so different than so many other things
here (well, perhaps with the Panicsville/Spires That In The Sunset
Rise 7" mentioned elsewhere this week). Moody new folk music
that fits the dark short days of the time of year best. Very very
nice. Just 500 were made - and I don't know why not on a real
CD! (FdW)
Address: http://www.brainwashed.com/
PARADIN - COMA DIGENEAN (CDR by Gears Of
Sand)
Earlier this year I had my first encounter with the music of Paradin,
aka Ben Fleury-Steiner from the USA. He released 'Flesh Of Caverns'
on Mystery Sea (see Vital Weekly 472), which means you have to
find him the areas of deep and dark ambient music. His previous
releases I never heard. Paradin uses synths, singing bowls, bowed
metal and treated guitar here on 'Coma Digenean', a single piece
that consists of five different parts and sees a continuation
of the previous Mystery Sea work. However it should be noted that
Paradin doesn't play very strict ambient music, but is rather
interested in creating a large atmospheric cloud of sound; this
is something in which more happens than just one single drone,
but various sounds move around each-other, all creating this atmosphere.
In that sense there is more happening here than on an average
ambient album, and that the sound is more up there and present.
Spooky and mysterious music that certainly has a cinematographic
quality. Very nice ambient music that makes a bit of difference
from the rest. (FdW)
Address: http://www.gearsofsound.net
THE PORTABLE QUARTET - TAKE THE TRAIN (CDR
by Crouton Music)
From the ever so-active Jon Mueller comes this
limited CDR by The Portable Quartet. Each of the four members
plays besides their instrument (Mueller on snare drum, Chris Rosenau
on banjo, Jim Schoenecker on oscillator and Thomas Wincek on melodica)
a suitcase, and the whole thing was recorded on june 25th 2005
at 'the now demolished Sturtevant Amtrak Station in Sturtevant
Wisconsin' probably using a simple set up of a mini disc and a
microphone. There is a certain charming lo-fi quality to both
the recording and the music. Everything sounds a bit remote, a
bit far away, and also it sounds a bit old (through the use of
banjo, perhaps) but Schoenecker makes sure that we do realize
this is from the twenty-first century with high peeps and sweeps
on the oscillator. The whole thing sounds as recorded by accident,
four people waiting for the train to take them to the next gig.
They sat down and waited and decided to play some music - perhaps
things didn't went as such, but just as-well could have been like
that. The music, highly improvised of course when it comes from
the house of Crouton, seems also to have this accidental approach,
but it's never too loosely improvised or haphazard. Things are
pretty coherent throughout the recording. With a nice retro cover,
this is a very nice thing. (FdW)
Address: http://www.croutonmusic.com
HENRY LEO DUCLOS - THE FALL OF MY CHURCH
(MP3 by Audiobulb)
The more I listen to the five pieces of Henry Leo Duclos, the
less I understand what it is about. On a label such as Audiobulb
Records one would expect something that has to do with ambient
and rhythm (in that order) that was once filled under ambient
house. And certainly, Duclos plays something with rhythm and ambient
(in that order), but he doesn't like to play a very sequenced
beat or some-such, but rather makes a collage of these elements,
without caring too much if they belong to each-other very well.
A bit of an uneasy marriage, as you can imagine. The rhythms are
forcefully present, but don't seem to run in a very smooth way,
a bit abrasive and certainly not really a danceable thing. The
music didn't grab me that much either, so I am left behind with
rather mixed feelings. (FdW)
Address: http://www.audiobulb.com
CADUCEUS - INFL 03 (MP3 by Caduceus Music)
The last words of the previous 'Influence' was: I wonder whose
next (see Vital Weekly 497), and for some reason I missed one,
since this is 'Infl 03' and here it is the album 'Metri' by ø,
which was a great influence for Caduceus, and rightly so. That
album influenced a lot of minimal techno-heads throughout the
years. The strict minimal, cold and clinical beats but with a
great groovy drive that was much imitated but not very often surpassed
inspired many after that. The four pieces here are much along
the lines of the original, which is nice, just in case (like me)
you haven't been playing the original for some time, but it's
perhaps at times also too close to the original. A good opportunity
to get the original out of the dust and play it again. Like I
said: imitated by many, surpassed by few. Caduceus do a good job,
but also don't pass ø. (FdW)
Address: http://www.caduceusmusic.net
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