VALERIO TRICOLI & FABIO SELVAFIORITA – DEATH BY WATER (CD by Die Schachtel) *
ALESSANDRO BOSETTI – ROYALS (CD by Monotype Records) *
GARETH DAVIS & ELLIOTT SHARP – CANEPHORA (CD by Nuun) *
TETUZI AKIYAMA & TAKUJI KAWAI – TRANSITIONS (CD by Ftarri) *
THE JAZZFAKERS – TWO (CD by Pas Records) *
E:MF 3 (CD by Pas Records)
MERZBOW – DEAD ZONE (CD by Quasipop) *
EDWARD SOL – TASMA GANG BANG (business card CDR by Quasipop) *
EDWARD SOL – MOTELS & CUPIDS (cassette by Quasipop)
FEVER (LP + 7″ by Ultra Eczema)
HAIR STYLISTICS – HUSTLER POWER ELECTRONICS CONVENTION (LP by Ultra Eczema)
LAWRENCE ENGLISH – THE PEREGRINE (LP by Experimedia)
THE (ALMOST) INSANELY HAPPY EP (7″ by EE Tapes)
ECHTZEIT MUSIK BERLIN (book by Wolke Verlag)
GORDON MONAHEN – SEEING SOUND (book/DVD by The Robert McLaughlin Gallery)
STEVE RODEN – I LISTEN TO THE WIND THAT OBLITERATES MY TRACES (book/2 CDs
by Dust To Digital)
JENNIFER WALSCHE AND TOMOMI ADACHI – LIVE @ WKCR (CDR by Kukuruku Recordings)
TOSAS STAMOU – OBJECT 1 (CDR by Kukuruku Recordings)
MIKE COOPER (CDR by Kukuruku Recordings)
RINUS VAN ALEBEEK – LUC FERRARI (CDR by Mathka) *
HEU{S-K}ACH & PEDRO SOUSA – I KNOW NOT WHAT TOMORROW WILL BRING (CDR by
Resting Bell) *
GOH LEE KWANG – HIDDEN (CDR by Lunhare) *
KENJI SIRATORI – BRAIN MUSIC (CDR by Minerva) *
JAMES WYNESS – CLIPS (CDR by Tableshaker Limited Editions) *
DEEP – IF YOU DRIVE A TRAKTOR (CDR by Attenuation Circuit/Dhyana Records) *
ZANDER & FIEBIG – SOUND CYCLE (CDR by Attenuation Circuit) *
EMERGE – CONTRITION (3″CDR by Attenuation Circuit) *
FRANS DE WAARD ˆ THE MANY NAMES OF FRANS (cassette on Maneki Neko)
MACU & FEDERICO BARABINO – WAVES (cassette by Inner Cinema) *
HOPI TORVALD/KOMMISSAR HJULER UND FRAU (split cassette by Stand-Up Tragedy
Records)
RAZEN/CLASSWAR KARAOKE FRIENDS (split cassette by Stand-Up Tragedy Records)
EVAN LINDORFF-ELLERY – THE TEA MERCHANT AND HIS ATMOSPHERES (cassette by
Notice Recordings)
TINY MUSIC – EPITAPH (cassette by Notice Recordings)
VALERIO TRICOLI & FABIO SELVAFIORITA – DEATH BY WATER (CD by Die Schachtel)
“The Waste Land” is a 1922 poem by T.S. Eliot and its fourth part is the inspiration for ‘Death By Water’ by Italian composers Valerio Tricoli (of 3/4Hadbeeneliminated fame and his recent work with Thomas Ankersmit is
still not forgotten) and a new name Fabio Selvafiorita, of whom this is the first release. Although he has a degree in computer music, the idea behind this release was to use as little as possible from the world of sound processing by computer. They recorded the material at the Fiudecca Island in Venice and processed it with Tricoli’s Revox recorder, as well as adding a polystyrene (“a kind of futuristic intonarumori”), a mandolin and an organ. Maybe its because we know its based on a poem, but indeed it sounds like a narrative piece of music. Electro-acoustic music that is, largely based on field recordings, carefully processed and layered with some beautiful textures. Not drone like, but crackling of wind in trees, water sounds, maybe even voices whispering. Not always too quiet, or rather more often not really quiet, with a cicada like choir around the thirty-five minute break, all ending a gorgeous lament like ‘song’ at the end. Excellent narrative music, fully immersing the listener. (FdW)
Address: http://www.die-schachtel.com
ALESSANDRO BOSETTI – ROYALS (CD by Monotype Records)
Alessandro Bosetti is composer and multi-instrumental musician. On the album ‘Royals’ he plays piano, Wurlitzer piano, soprano saxophone, guitar, harpsichord and uses his own voice, electronics and field-recordings to complete his musical world. He gets support of Rozemarie Heggen on double bass and the voices of Fernanda Farah, Ksenija Stevanovic and Christopher Williams. Voice and music are important ingredients of this music. The first track ‘Gloriously Repeating’ is complex piece of modern electronic music built up with several voices and based on structure against non-structure. Harmony against disharmony in which he is gloriously repeating himself in several manners and repeating himself without repeating himself. ‘Life Expectations’ is based on words of Chris Heenan and Fernanda Farah. This composition has the same complexity as the first one, but only Bosseti’s voice and music are more integrated and the sounds have an open character and moves to a more closed mood. At the last track ‘Dead Man’ starts also as an open composition with a clear structure, but becomes more and more abstract supported by ongoing piano-lines. This piece of music hits me, maybe because of the length (7 minutes). The other composition takes 17 and 24 minutes and I cannot keep the attention to several atmospheres and complex melody-lines, contra-points etcetera. Although for lovers of electronic avant garde music is this album highly recommended. (JKH)
Address: http://www.monotyperecords.com
GARETH DAVIS & ELLIOTT SHARP – CANEPHORA (CD by Nuun)
TETUZI AKIYAMA & TAKUJI KAWAI – TRANSITIONS (CD by Ftarri)
A duet of acoustic guitar (played by Elliott Sharp) and bass clarinet (by Gareth Davis). The latter we know from his various collaborations with Rutger Zuydervelt, also known as Machinefabriek (and he who designed this CD) and Sharp is a long term mainstay of the New York improvised music scene. Recorded in a single day, april 5th 2010 at Sharp’s own studio, this is a meeting of two like minded musicians: open and gifted with the talent of fine improvisation. Two different instruments, one with a more short attack and the other able to produce short sounds as well as long sustaining ones, both played in such a way that we recognize what they are, obviously also because are trained listeners of improvised music, but its seems not their intention to far beyond what their instruments normally sound like. There is a great tension between both players resulting in some highly exciting music. Each piece has the right length, and it never seems overtly long or leap into weaker moments. A fine work.
Which, to spoil the end, can also be said of the meeting of two Japanese improvisers, Tetuzi Akiyama (acoustic guitar) and Takuji Kawai on ‘piano and preparations’. I don’t think I heard of him before, but Akiyama I know pretty well, and is great improviser on the six strings. They too recorded one day together, september 14th 2009 if you need to know, and the cover says mixed by Toshimaru Nakamura, which means, I think that, that the whole sound was picked up by a multitude of microphones and later on mixed together. A great sound actually, despite all the empty playing, its very full of dynamics. Here too, and that’s what ties these two releases together, we have two gifted improvisers, and both are not so much interested in using their instruments as resonating sound boxes, but both instruments sound like a guitar and piano. The main difference with the disc of Sharp/Davis is that this one is more open, more spacious and at times also more ’empty’ and silent, and not as ‘full’ as Davis/Sharp. But as said at the start, this too is a great disc of improvised music. Two great works. (FdW)
Address: http://www.nuun-records.com
Address: http://www.ftarri.com
THE JAZZFAKERS – TWO (CD by Pas Records)
E:MF 3 (CD by Pas Records)
With a name like Jazzfakers you could think they play fake jazz (courtesy of Lounge Lizards perhaps) or they play jazz that is not fake. And perhaps I should leave this with our jazz man, but I investigated it myself. ‘Flower Cacophony’, the fourth piece is indeed jazz and had it be the opening I would have easily passed it on, but the first three pieces were less jazzy. The first two more curious krautrock like pieces, stomping and driving with some great keyboards and hardly a saxophone, wheres as ‘Kenny G Voodoo Ceremony’ (great title) a downright piece of improvised music, spacious explorations of the instruments. This is followed by the two most jazzy pieces of the CD, which I didn’t care. The sixth and final piece is ‘In Three Dimensions’, which connects to voodoo ceremony, with some more spacious playing, but also going into a free jazz work out. Conclusion: I liked the first three pieces and had trouble with the last. Jazz is then not my thing, as they say nowadays.
The Jazzfakers are also presented on a CD compilation released for the Experi-MENTAL festival 3, which was held about a month ago. A fine mixture of free improvised playing by the fakers, Fester, Invisible Hand and PAS (the band behind the label as they say) but also pop from Carey Butt and rock by The Expanding Man – both not well spend on me. The best pieces were to be found among the up beat electronics by Blue Sausage Infant (although not his best work), Black Saturn and Fluid, the excellent drones by Richard Lainhart and Use Other Door and a rather noisey piece from Violet. A varied bunch that probably makes more sense if you were present than on the outside. (FdW)
Address: http://www.pasmusic.weebly.com
MERZBOW – DEAD ZONE (CD by Quasipop)
EDWARD SOL – TASMA GANG BANG (business card CDR by Quasipop)
EDWARD SOL – MOTELS & CUPIDS (cassette by Quasipop)
Quasipop is a label from the Ukraine and there we also find Chernobyl, which exploded twenty-five years ago. On the day that Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant exploded, march 12th of this year, Merzbow decided to record this anti-nuclear statement, giving it to Quasipop, to tie things together. As I must have written before, its never easy to review Merzbow, since he releases a lot of music and since I already reviewed a lot of his music. The most interesting piece here is ‘The Blade Of Oblivion’, which is also noise based, like of course so much else from Merzbow, but has a nice disjointed effect. Chaotic ramble of metallic percussion, electronics and chaos all around. Within his own limited circle of noise, this one sounded a bit different than much of his other material. The other three pieces were alright, but fit more his self-inflicted concept of noise, which so many seem to cherish. Maybe, just maybe, I was thinking that it would be good to move away a bit more from the straight forward noise improvisation – record on the spot – and go for something that is multi-layered and perhaps, dare I say it (?), more composed. Fans can’t go wrong with this one.
Label owner Edward Sol fills up many releases on his own label, and usually quite short ones, such as the business card CDR with ‘no actually xxx hardcore samples used’ in ‘Tasma Gang Bang’. It does, however use ‘VHS cuts, cassette loops, tapes, analogue synth and Casio drum machine’ and its a heavy five minute slab of industrial rhythm mayhem, with people shouting in the background, and distorted rhythm on top, with the synth spacing out. Maybe an almighty cliche but it works well. Nice package too!
More of his music on the three piece cassette ‘Motels & Cupids’, where he uses ‘tapes, found sounds and electronics’. This lasts about twenty or so minutes. Here too he taps into a familiar form of music, being the more intellectual approach of noise music, of mildly distorted sounds that has been found (radio, tapes, vinyl) and not necessarily add much. There is also the sound of hiss from cassettes, field recordings and electronic processings thereof, which make up a dense, partly drone set of pieces that I personally like better than the business card CDR, which I thought was more ‘funny’ than really good. This cassette is very nice however, although not entirely original, but surely one of the better works by Sol I heard so far. (FdW)
Address: http://www.quasipop.org
FEVER (LP + 7″ by Ultra Eczema)
HAIR STYLISTICS – HUSTLER POWER ELECTRONICS CONVENTION (LP by Ultra Eczema)
Apparently it took two years to create this package of ‘Fever’ covers, and apparently its the follow up to a LP with just covers of ‘La Bamba’ and a LP of versions of ‘Popcorn’ (would have loved to hear that one). ‘Fever’ is of course best known from Peggy Lee and a true classic. Its here in the hands of many I never heard of, but that’s the world of Ultra Eczema I guess. Now twenty versions of the same thing might be a bit too much, but the way things work out here you might have the idea that this is a bunch of weird music, and sometimes you may believe you are hearing something that is similar to the original and even more rare is what could be identified as a cover version. Stylistically this is all over the place from no wave weirdness to electro pop, lots of improvised bits and punk like covers and the 7″ has the prize winning LVMM and a killer cool version by DDV. Otherwise included are Body/Head, Rani Bageria & Nachtbote, Irwin Badman, Laundry Room Squelchers, Heather Leigh, Kawaguchi Masami, Ninos Du Brasil, Smokers, Van De Moortel, Tabata Mitsuru, Tobaconists [sic], Vastieuramen, Possesed Factory, Joshua Burkett, Preggy Peggy, Bridget Hayden, Muddy Waters and Kuupuu. I have no idea why I am rambling about this: only 200 were made and last saturday was the launch. I bet hardly a copy is left, but you can always try of course.
I know various people going wild over Hair Stylistics, which is the brainchild of Masaya Nakahara, also known as Violent Onsen Geisha, but somehow I missed out on those at least 40 CDRs produced so far and which can best be bought in a bar in Shinjuku. Mister Eczema asked him to do a record when he met him in a record store in Tokyo earlier this year and on the day he was due to leave back for Belgium, got the master handed at the airport. As far as I understand Hair Stylistics are all about analogue electronics, cheap ones, reel-to-reel abuse and which probably pokes a lot of fun of ‘power electronics’, but its quite funny music. Power electronics for sure, but at the same time it seems a parody of it, with odd lame improvisations of tape manipulations which are quite funny at the same time. I am not sure if I would run out to get all 40 CDRs from a bar in Tokyo, but once in a while, this is fine enough. (FdW)
Address: http://www.ultraeczema.com
LAWRENCE ENGLISH – THE PEREGRINE (LP by Experimedia)
Lawrence English get inspired The Peregrine of the English author John Alec Baker. The book was declared as one of the most beautifully written, carefully observed and evocative wildlife ever read. The peregrines wintered near the house of the author in eastern England. The author gives a lot of attention to the description of the landscape, sounds of the River and the movements of clouds. The same attention is hearable in the album of Lawrence English. He is a media-artist, composer and curator based in Australia. His work has been released by his own Room40 label, as well as Touch, 12K and Winds Measure. The Peregrine was realized in sound during the first half of 2011. The two compositions are intense pieces of long lasting multi-layered melodic lines which suggests as it the peregrine is flying in the sky in several circumstances. The album starts with sounds like a monk choir and church organ flood into this ongoing canto. Intense more noisy distorted layers create a massive harmonious wall of sound which takes the listener to a storm. Silence is mostly the next moment after the storm and quietly English builds this silent moment to several sound layers which come and go. The strength of this album is the creation of an intense atmosphere which is overwhelming. The peregrine is one of the most fast flying birds in the world and the power and speed of this bird of prey is beautiful converted in this album. I am really impressed by this album which is a great abstraction of the power of nature. (JKH)
Address: http://www.experimedia.net/
THE (ALMOST) INSANELY HAPPY EP (7″ by EE Tapes)
Insane Music, home of the many name of Alain Neffe uses to play music, seem to have a found a home with EE Tapes (also from Belgium) to catch up with some recently discovered music. One area Neffe is interested in, is what we can loosely call pop music. On this new 7″, we have six tracks, three by Human Dance (say an off-shoot for Human Flesh) and three by Subject, which is Neffe with guitarist Daniel Malempre. Much of what is released now is in fact ‘old’ music. The six pieces here were recorded between 1981 and 1986. This is not really pop music in the MTV sense of the word, but in the world of Alain Neffe surely it is, certainly when you compare it to his work with Pseudo Code or Human Flesh. Driving by rhythm machines, Malempre’s spacious guitars, Neffe’s melodies on the synthesizer and occasional vocal in ‘The Desert Call’. Neffe knows his classics too: one track is called ‘Magikal Hystery Sour (The Beatles Were Not So Bad, After All)’ and for ‘Jethro C’est Trop!!’, he takes out the flute to play along. Great to see six of such pieces together. (FdW)
Address: http://www.eetapes.be
ECHTZEIT MUSIK BERLIN (book by Wolke Verlag)
GORDON MONAHEN – SEEING SOUND (book/DVD by The Robert McLaughlin Gallery)
STEVE RODEN – I LISTEN TO THE WIND THAT OBLITERATES MY TRACES (book/2 CDs by Dust To Digital)
Not always, but when it comes to listening to music, I engage in various other activities. Depending on the kind of music and wether or not I am supposed to review the music. When it comes to reading, I prefer to read a book on music, this summer that was the autobiography of Keith Richards (which didn’t exactly prompt me into listening to anything he was ever involved in) and the lengthy biography on the band Madness – now that brought back everything to the player. Now when that was finished, three new books arrived in one week! From Berlin there is a 400+ page book on the improvised music scene, ‘Echtzeit Musik’, which means real time music. I love Berlin, but I couldn’t live there (or anywhere else other than my beloved Nijmegen, where there is no scene of anything, which allows you to go to a punk rock concert and after that meet everyone up at the disco). I wouldn’t want to move to where the ‘action’ is (Berlin?), but rather try and organize occasional action myself. How tiring it must be to be in a city where you can go to a great concert every night? Enough rambling about the pros and cons of urban life, the book please. Now, Berlin has indeed an active scene of live music, not just of an improvised kind but also noise, microsound, trash pop, free jazz and everything in between. Lots of players live in Berlin, simply because its a big city with still cheap areas. As a friend of mine once said: in Berlin you can live easily as a musician but don’t expect to earn your money there. There are lots of small performance places, living rooms in some instances, where you can find new music. This book tells that tale, with pieces by and interviews with all those people active in Berlin. It deals with the theoretical discussions of the scene, throughout with pieces from many familiar Vital Weekly names, such as Lucio Capece, Ignaz Schick, Michael Vorfeld, Franz Hautzinger, Andrea Neuman, Ekkehard Ehlers, Olaf Rupp but also on the historical side of places and people. In two languages, English and German, and quite an essential read for anybody who reads Vital Weekly, although not always the most easy reading.
In three languages (English, German and French) comes the book on Gordon Monahen, who is from Canada, but also lived in Berlin for a while, where he has his own club, Schmalzwald. This book deals with his work from 1978 to 2011, with pieces on his work, but also an extensive description of the works he composed in those years, such as various pieces dealing with wind and piano, and his most famous piece, ‘Speaker Swinging’ (which I once saw and this love very much). Much of his work is not just to hear, but also to see, hence the title, and hence the addition of a DVD. Its great to see an excerpt of ‘Speaker Swinging’, but also the registration of his installation pieces, with water and wind harps, machines/robotic pieces (which in ‘Sounds And The Machines That Make Them’ looks like a Barry Schwartz piece), concert registration (‘New And Used Furniture Music’) or amplified food in ‘Sauerkraut Synthesizer’. Maybe it takes away a bit of the ‘mystery’ now we see them, but I thought it was great to see many of them. A true fascinating view on music and together with the book an excellent overview of a great career (so far!).
Of an entirely different nature is a book compiled by Steve Roden, which deals with ‘music in vernacular photographs 1880-1955’, which is a photobook of old photographs that deal with music. Sepia toned pictures of people with violin, banjo, piano’s and gramophones – when the world was so much a better place (this may be regarded as a bit cynical). Add to that two CDs worth of found sounds, from wax rolls and 78 rpms of those people singing, from amateurs to high brow, this is a true nostalgic trip into the early american musical history. A fine book and two fine CDs – now that’s without any cynicism – for a melancholic, lazy sunday afternoon. (FdW)
Address: http://www.wolke-verlag.de
Address: http://ww.rmg.on.ca
Address: http://www.dust-digital.com
JENNIFER WALSCHE AND TOMOMI ADACHI – LIVE @ WKCR (CDR by Kukuruku Recordings)
TOSAS STAMOU – OBJECT 1 (CDR by Kukuruku Recordings)
MIKE COOPER (CDR by Kukuruku Recordings)
Kukuruku is a small label based in Athens-Greece. The aim of the label is to released independent music which has been recorded under intimate circumstances, like at home, live or field-recordings. Most of the music arises spontaneously. like free improvisation and sound poetry. Mostly I do not prefer recordings of free improvisations, because I miss the atmosphere of the moment. But Kukuruku knows how to choose the good moments. Jennifer Walsch and Tomomi Adachi recorded at 24th of April 2010 two pieces of music live at WKCR radio in New York. Adachi is a performer, composer, sound poet and instrument builder. Walche is composer and vocalist. The first track are free improvisations with voice. Singing, kissing, screaming, high, low, straight, thrilling and lots of more of sounds with mouth and throat have been produced. Great piece of music. The second track is more complex, because of the use of the self-built instruments of Adachi. Electronic sounds flow together with the voices of Walsche and Adachi. The speed of different sounds and voice is as quick as the first track and voices are sometimes minimal edited by the instruments of Adachi. No easy-listening music, but sounds which have been listened with great attention. The duo made a beautiful statement about the female voice. Tosas Stamou is a sound-artist and creates his own music instruments. At 28 January 2010 he played live at 6 d.o.g.s. in Athens a set of 35 minute. He uses voice-mail looped samples, a bowed motorcycle wheel mechanical automatic sound devices and a Typatune, a prepared toy-piano. The pieces is slowly built up with repeating metallic sounds, bells, mechanics and I do know what. Anyway it is like a slow machine which goes on and on. The human voices at the voice-mail has the same industrial mechanic atmosphere as the self-built music machines. The minimal changes are played carefully and with great attention. Slowly Stamou speeds up and changes the rhythms and comes to a climax and changes the atmosphere in music to more electronic. Objects 1 is a well played integration of humanity and machinery. Mike Cooper is active in music for more than 40 years. He mixes folk-blues and electronic music as an improvising singer/songwriter. He plays music for silent movies, radio-art and sound installations. This exciting mix has been played in Booze Cooperative in Athens on 31 January 2010. He played lap-steel guitar, additionally applying objects on strings and sang with a feedback effect processor. Cooper is a great guitarist, improviser and singer. The authentic and melancholic sound of blues and experiments on strings melt into each other to warm bath of strings played in 1000 ways. Softly Cooper explores the possibilities of his guitar, objects and effects. Abstract sounds, guitar chords, riffs and melodies and rhythms flow into small songs and flow away into abstraction or fine melodies and go back again. The concerts lasts about 70 minutes and can be played back during a late evening looking at the stars or fire with a good glass of whiskey. Cheers!(JKH)
Address: http://www.kukurukurecordings.com
RINUS VAN ALEBEEK – LUC FERRARI (CDR by Mathka)
So let’s see if I got it right: Rinus van Alebeek went to the house where the widow of Luc Ferrari left and played a CD of his work, or perhaps another of his works. He moved around the house, capturing the environment of the house, bedroom, guest room, bathroom, the kitchen and patio and the living room. This CD captures Van Alebeek’s movements and the music. Maybe I got it all wrong. I have no idea, as I didn’t capture the text very well on the cover, which reads about ‘stealing music’ – which made me think that Van Alebeek played a Ferrari recording (and I know various of his works, but didn’t recognize this one). Its an interesting disc, a private form of field recordings and sound poetry – less with words, more with action I guess. Maybe all a bit long I thought for what it was. The idea was clear after the first thirty minute piece. Quite a curious item this one, which leaves a lot of contemplate about. (FdW)
Address: http://www.mathka.pl
HEU{S-K}ACH & PEDRO SOUSA – I KNOW NOT WHAT TOMORROW WILL BRING (CDR by Resting Bell)
A curious trio of D’incise (laptop, objects), Marcel Chagrin (guitar, amp, bass drum) and Pedro Sousa (tenor sax, electronics) under the name Heu{s-k}ach & Pedro Sousa. Recorded over day in April 2010 in Lisbon, they offer four pieces of dense improvised music, carefully humming about, where each of the players seems to have the intention of being close to each other. I am not sure if that is really the intention or perhaps shyness on behalf of the players, but either way: I think it sounds great. These pieces are intense affairs, full of tension, like waiting for that storm that never comes (must be a 2011 summer feel in The Netherlands), with a great collision of acoustic sounds and electronics. Rumbling of objects, sustaining saxophones and the bass drum holding matters together. The fourth piece, ‘Bruno’s Dream’ leans towards jazz, but in the context seems to work quite well. A fine work altogether. (FdW)
Address: http://restingbell.net
GOH LEE KWANG – HIDDEN (CDR by Lunhare)
There is not a lot of information to go by on the release by Goh Lee Kwang – I have no idea what is ‘Hidden’ here, except perhaps any information. Goh Lee Kwang is best known as an improviser using no input mixers and turntables, so my best guess would be that he uses something similar here in this one piece that lasts just over fifty five minutes. Some of his earlier material I thought was too noisy, and this one isn’t entirely free from noise either but throughout the main part isn’t as noise based, although working with feedback/sine wave like sounds, crackles and distortion. Kwang works here with dynamics which is always a good thing and its also divided into various sections, each with their mood. Especially the part after twenty minutes to say thirty-five minutes is particular interesting with dense patterns, click like rhythms and bits of reverb/delay machines. The loud end section on the other hand is not too well spend on me. But throughout I thought this was the best release by Goh Lee Kwang I heard so far. (FdW)
Address: http://www.lunhare.net
KENJI SIRATORI – BRAIN MUSIC (CDR by Minerva)
One of the worse things, I should think, one can write that one release sounds exactly like the previous, and yet this is the sad news I have to report on ‘Brain Music’ by Kenji Siratori. Perhaps because its been only one week since I last reviewed anything from him, but this new one sounds exactly the same. The same sort of computer processing is used here, only in six long pieces instead of twelve shorter pieces, nervous, hectic bouncing around. I got the idea last week after eight tracks, so this new release seems highly superfluous to me. Unless there is a conceptual edge I am missing here, which I doubt. (FdW)
Address: none given
JAMES WYNESS – CLIPS (CDR by Tableshaker Limited Editions)
A new name, James Wyness, who releases his first disc on his own Tableshaker label. He uses a prepared nylon strung guitar, of which the preparations include: “battery powered vibrating devices, lavalier cable clips, nails of varying lengths, aluminum scraps, metal rulers, various lengths of steel bandsaw blade, metal vegetable steamer vanes, ball bearings, rubber bands, felt, fleecy web, hand-made wooden and rubber ball/spring steel beaters.” All of this make that the strings vibrate and give the music a rather percussive feel. For one reason or another it sounds all a bit soft, which might be due to the fact that it could have benefitted from some mastering. Although I liked various of these pieces, I am not entirely convinced that all ten tracks were fine enough to release. At a certain point I had the impression they all sort of sounded the same, the careful vibration of the strings of whatever object. It could have used a bit more variation I thought, and maybe that’s something to consider for the future. The ideas are good, but fails somehow in execution. (FdW)
Address: http://www.wyness.org
DEEP – IF YOU DRIVE A TRAKTOR (CDR by Attenuation Circuit/Dhyana Records)
ZANDER & FIEBIG – SOUND CYCLE (CDR by Attenuation Circuit)
EMERGE – CONTRITION (3″CDR by Attenuation Circuit)
Another trio of releases on Attenuation Circuit, although the first one is a co-release with Dhyana Records – hence a somewhat different package. Deep is a duo and consists of two bass players, Stefan Vetter and Bernd Spring. No doubt there is a string of sound effects attached to the bass guitars. One long, thirty minute track and one that lasts half of that. Now with a band name such as Deep and with two bass guitars and effects, you could expect that this is all about deep ambient music, but that’s not the primary interest of Deep. At times, many of them, Deep is more interested in playing rock like structures, less drums, not as much melody, but also with a certain groove going round. But the length of the pieces adds a long duration to both pieces and one could say that this adds to a more drone like character of the pieces. Think of a more mellow version of Earth and you have Deep. Minimalist avant-rock. Very nice.
The duo of Zander and Fiebig have been presented before on Attenuation Circuit, and this new release finds them in the city. Throughout seven different places in the city of Augsburg, they played their improvisations, reacting directly to the environment in which they play their music. Five outdoors, and one in the town hall and in a museum. This was all part of a project of getting experimental music ‘out there’ to rik publik. Zander and Fiebig use ‘live ambient sounds, electronics, samples and miked cello-bow’. Here a DVD would have been nice I think. See them play on these locations, and the curious looks of Rik. Now we hear them speaking, at least if these aren’t samples of people speaking, along with the carefully produced sounds produced by this duo. Together it makes sense: the somewhat hesitant played music forming small masses of sound with the street sounds in which they are produced. Throughout quite gentle music, improvised on the spot on mainly electronic sources and the environment being an extra sound element. Maybe a bit long here and there, and editing would have been in place but overall quite nice.
The final release is by Emerge, the project of Sascha Stadlmeier, who is also the man behind the Attentuation Circuit label. Knowing his previous releases, its not a surprise that on this new one he explores the edges of sampling through the use of a single sound source, in this case the bass guitar (track one) and prepared electric guitar (track two). These new pieces see him move away from his earlier work, going more into a collage like style of sounds, pieced together into compositions stemming from the world of musique concrete and making connections to the world of people like Marc Behrens or Roel Meelkop. Moving away from the more densely layered works with less variation, into a much richer field of music, at least that’s what I think. A major leap forward for Emerge. (FdW)
Address: http://www.wix.com/attenuationcircuit/attenuation-circuit
FRANS DE WAARD – THE MANY NAMES OF FRANS (cassette on Maneki Neko)
Pub quiz question: what is the common (X) factor between ZÈbra, Kapotte Muziek, Quest, Captain Black, The Whi, Ezdanitoff, Beequeen, Goem, Shifts, Freiband, The Tobacconists, Surge, Pick Up and Wander? Maneki Neko has released the cassette that was simply begging to be released: a compilation of tracks all featuring Frans de Waard, my compadre in Beequeen and Wander, either by himself or with friends. This tape can be viewed in two different ways: either as a simple compilation of the works of De Waard or as a tool to study the musical psychology of a man and his work. After listening to the tape and reading the informative liner notes included, I have opted for a mix even though that is tricky. Some people will say music should, ideally, be valued on what it is, rather than what it represents. I disagree; music can be made and valued in many ways. For instance, as either documentation of a process or as a conclusion of that process. Somehow, De Waard’s music feels like a constant documentation of processes, with an almost analytical even historical approach, originating from an idea or concept. The concept is given a name (an important part of the concept, often more humorous than you’d expect) and, where and when necessary, collaborations with other musicians are formed. The music, in many of the examples on this tape, has the function of documentation. It’s an almost archivists approach. This says nothing about quality of course, even if, at times, it feels the process is more important than the result. Searching for the De Waard common factor between the projects (providing you would want to do that), can be a bit of a challenge. Pressed, I would say it is research. Then of course there is the factor of the collaborator; what part of the music is typically De Waard and what does the collaborator bring to the project? This cassette has music ranging from the ultra-abstract to soothing pop, so obviously there is room for the influence of the partner(s) in these projects. But enough of the analysis: let’s move on to the music. With so many different projects, there are bound to be some you like and some you don’t. Some projects work better (on different levels) than others. Which ones they are, is basically up to the individual listener. Me, I like the music created as Ezdanitoff, Freiband, The Tobacconists. Saying I also like Wander (here with a great unreleased piece) and Beequeen would be a bit presumptuous, but I do. Lots of these tracks are remixes and much of it is previously unreleased. Some of it is strangely cold, unattached, even random (like ZÈbra), some warm and welcoming (like Captain Black, Ezdanitoff and a great track by Pick Up). Interestingly enough, De Waard has the personality to keep this tape together. The tape does not listen as 15 completely different projects, which is quite an achievement. De Waard breathes music. It is what he does. This tape is a document of a process in motion. Some of these projects will end as soon as they have served their purpose or when De Waard loses his interest. And then new projects will emerge, new horizons lure. Documentation in motion. A fascinating release this. (FK)
Address: http://www.vuzrecords.de
MACU & FEDERICO BARABINO – WAVES (cassette by Inner Cinema)
On the website of the label there is no information at all, yet (I hope), so I have no idea who MaCu is. Federico Barabino is a guitar player from Buenos Aires and has a love for sustaining guitar sounds trough feedback. With a title like ‘Waves’ its not difficult to assume something is happening here. It seems to me that MaCu is a synth player and in his duet with Barabino they go for longitude in sustaining sounds. Barabino plays the guitar holding to endless sustain of a single note, whereas MaCu adds crackling hiss to these proceedings. Its however not always carefully, soft drone like, but instead its usually a bit more harsher than what we normally expect from this area. It makes some pretty intense listening that somehow not always translates too well on cassette (I also received it on CDR, hence being part of the podcast, but a fine reference point too that some of the frequencies get lost on tape). I wish I knew a bit more about this. (FdW)
Address: http://inner-cinema.com/
HOPI TORVALD/KOMMISSAR HJULER UND FRAU (split cassette by Stand-Up Tragedy Records)
RAZEN/CLASSWAR KARAOKE FRIENDS (split cassette by Stand-Up Tragedy Records)
Bryan Saunders has already done some work into the world sleep, dreams and recordings made of them at night. Now he expands on that with an ambitious series of twelve cassettes, with twenty-four different artists. Together they form each a chapter of an unconscious novel. I am not sure if these artists record their own dreams or wether get a set of recordings from Saunders. I think that is the case. A promising list of artists and also a few of whom I never heard. On the first volume, side a, we find Hopi Torvald, a new name for me. He adds very sparse music to the spoken words (mumbling obviously). A bit of synths, maybe a bit of percussive bang, but not a lot. The cover mentions trumpet, percussion, synths, violin and field recordings from a Freemason house. Odd, but perhaps a nice sparse start is not bad? No information for the other side, recorded by the outsiders Kommissar Hjuler and the missus (sometimes called Mama B”r). They take the voice as a starting point for a series of transformations, looping them and singing over them, topped off with a bit of electronics from delay machines. Furthermore there is a very primitive form of sampling to generate a rhythm.
On the second volume we find two bands of whom I never heard, Razen from Belgium and Classwar Karaoke Friends from the UK. The first striking thing is the length of the tape, 108 minutes, which was even in the old days a rarity. It comes with a warning that one should not fast forward or rewind the tape, because its thinner than a normal cassette. Raven seems like a band to me, drums, guitars, bass and maybe a bit of keyboards, playing free form improvised music on top of the voice. Its all a bit too long here for my taste. That might be said of the other side too, which has lengthy chunks of just spoken word, before finally something else happens. When that is, the music has a bit of electronic processing, but not a lot. I am not sure sure what to think of this side. It didn’t do much for in terms of music. Maybe when the whole series is released we get a full picture. (FdW)
Address: http://www.bryanlewissaunders.org
EVAN LINDORFF-ELLERY – THE TEA MERCHANT AND HIS ATMOSPHERES (cassette by Notice Recordings)
TINY MUSIC – EPITAPH (cassette by Notice Recordings)
Of these two new releases on Chicago’s Notice Recordings, the first is by label owner Evan Lindorff-Ellery, also one half of the duo Dense. He claims to be a firm analogue man, which, given the format of his releases is spot on, I’d say. He uses Tingsha bells, hand bells, cymbals, radio, microphones, voice, room tone, no-input mixing forgotten and unmastered 4-track and 2-track cassette tapes, along with field recordings from South Korea and Chicago. His music is without ‘narrative, non-representational’ and it deals, I guess, with the beauty of sound. This tape is about sixty minutes I guess and has large chunks of sound, spinning round and round. If it moves from one field into another, it tends to stay there for a while. Lindorff-Ellery likes a somewhat broken down sound, everything here seem to sound mildly distorted from various stages of copying cassettes onto each other – i.e. the process of ping-pong. At times I am reminded of Eric Lunde, that similar kind of eroded sound, of playing and recording sound with the lowest means and still knowing how to create an interesting piece of music.
Two weeks ago we reviewed a split cassette between (D)(B)(H) and Tiny Music, and the latter have here a full tape of their own. Now we learn that Tiny Music is a quartet of Amanda Speen, Dain Daller, Stephany Colunga and Andrew Furse and they have a track per side – about fifteen minutes each. They use an extensive set of objects on side a and even more on side b, but then also more instruments. Whereas side a remains abstract throughout, the exploration the objects in a musical context, expands into folk like music on the b-side with violin and banjo’s being played. Both sides are heavily rooted in improvised music, but working in various other directions, such as indeed musique concrete and folk music. Especially the latter seems to me a road they should explore further as it is here that there reach for music that is full of tension, melodic and experimental. Very nice throughout (FdW)
Address: http://noticerecordings.blogspot.com