HOWARD SKEMPTON – HOME AND ABROAD (CD by Content)
C. NEWMAN – COMPASSION (CD by Content)
ANNA LINDAL – VIOLIN ALONE (CD by Content)
WITH A MINIMUM OF MEANS (CD by Content)
Content is a new Swedish label who are going to be specialized in ‘modern classical music’. Not that they told me, I’m just guessing here from the content of the four CD’s in from of me.
Let’s kick of with the least interesting one to me. Skempton plays the accordion and presents 33 (although, strangely, the front cover says 32) short pieces for this instrument. I hoped it would in Oliveros style, but alas it short and folky tracks. Too much melody in here for a drone lover as I am.
Chris Newmann hour long piece Compassion a melody is played on a violin and a piano, and repeated in various forms and tempi. Described as such it may seem minimal music, but it’s in fact much more serial music. Quite a nice passing of time… if there wasn’t so much other music to hear around.
Eight pieces for solo violin from six different composers are interpreted by Anna Lindal. I’m probably not at all the right person to comment on this. I’m not skilled to judge this kind of contemporary music, since I have no clue whether these are good interpretations or not. So maybe I could just say (and to some extent that’s what’s all about), I liked hearing it.
The most interesting one is a compilation with minimal and conceptual music as their guide. The legendary Alvin Lucier piece ‘I’m Sitting In A Room’ is featured here in its first 1970 recording (lasting half the time of the well known Lovely Music version). A guy named Bjorn Nilsson composed a homage to LaMonte Young for a piano and percussion and consists for heavy concentrated banging for about 15 minutes.
Zoltan Jeney plays an organ piece somewhere in the streets of Budapest, which slowly changes. Kinda like one organ from ‘Four Organs’ by Reich, but slower and less swing – same minimalism however.
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310 – AUG 56 (CD by Ichor)
Debut CD for a band that has been making music since 12 years. They use loops, found sounds and beats… with trying to avoid any of the usual ambient industrial references, one could say this is a very nice cross-over between styles that cover ambient, industrial and post rock (such as the tinkling guitars of ‘Mbaba’). The studio is used to some extent here, many elements take their root from dub, with echoy drums and reversed guitars. Nice laid back music, relaxing atmosphere (despite the press releases ranting about ‘big city organic ambiance). (FdW)
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INTRAVENE – FLOTATION TOY WARNING (CD by Auf Abwegen)
A new star on the firmament of the ambient industrialists. Intravene is a collaborative effort by the two Steve’s, Meixner (of Contrastate fame) and Pittis (Band Of Pain, Dirter Promotions). I must admit that I stuck this in with some remote sense I may not like it too much. Contrastate’s pathetic singing more and more turns me off. The four long tracks combine low end rumbling of drones and samples. After about 10 minutes a dark break beat kicks in, but it doesn’t ruin the nice built up from before. All tracks have these trademarks of remote ambiance, and vaguely hint at drum & bass. Luckily there are no vocals to be heard (well lucky for me, I guess). Tension is built carefully in ‘The Author’ packed with location recordings of children’s and cars. Like a radioplay, hauntingly beautiful. Very nice CD Steve’s. (FdW)
Address: <aufabwegen@aol.com>
SUBARACHNOID SPACE – ENDLESS RENOVATION (CD by Relapse)
Apparently the first studio CD by those space rockers after a handful of live work on CD. They took a whole bunch of live and rehearsals into the studio and built them with the manipulative tricks the studio offers into a very space like jam of pounding drums, organs and guitars of course. Lots of dubbed guitars, played with the usual accords and tons of feedback. Of course I am not a space head, but I quite enjoyed this one again. Space on. (FdW)
Address: <relapse@relapse.com>
KAPOTTE MUZIEK – LEIF ELGGREN
KAPOTTE MUZIEK – LASSE MARHAUG (both 7″s by Korm Plastics )
Two more releases in an ongoing series of concert material by the Kapottelads demixed by composers who ‘have a specific relation to the given material’. Leif Elggren’s piece of plastic supports a sea of smouldering static, chopped into shuddering waves by a hovering helicopter. This stutter continues onto Side B, where the life is slowly choked out of it. Over-amplify a bowl of Rice Crispies and record their snapping, crackling and popping descent into a soggy, silent goo.
Lasse Marhaug enshrouds twisted, protesting circuitry in ground hum, electric thunder and metal. Sounds cascade, then roll about like tumbleweed at the mercy of whimsical gusts of noise. Taut insects sensing the heat whine and protest – their tiny cries slice through the maelstrom. Then we are through and at the crossroads where waiting slipstreams continually whizz past each other. Metal balls rain down on tin roofs. (MP)
Address: <kormplastics@staalplaat.com>
CORNELIUS – FANTASMA (CD by Matador)
One night – late – after switching off studio stuff, I turned on the TV sound – I like to listen to TV, not see de picture (unless it’s the historic All Saints performance on BBC’s Top Of The Pops the night Willie Nelson gigged in Amsterdam ) when I’m done with frying myself, ‘cos it’s better that way. There was an extremely odd song about a ‘Star Flute, Surf Lider’. It was constructed from excessively trippy atmospheric arrangements which burst into the most fucked up breakbeat programming I had heard for a while. Later, I wandered into a record store hoping to purchase a Buddy Merrill re-release and heard the same song, so I previewed the rest of the tracks and left Buddy till next time. Cornelius is a young Japanese person who may have visited Lucy in the Sky with her Diamonds for just slightly longer than necessary. This is one of the most psychedelic al bums I have heard for years, sort of like The Beatles meet Sonic Youth meet Farmers’ Manual in Owlsley’s bedroom on Haight Ashbury. Loads of samples including a few from Godley & Creme’s ‘Consequences’ (when is this coming out on CD, goddamit!), which are marvellously incorporated into this whirlwind travesty tapestry. A couple of obligatory shite numbers (always seems to happen, dunnit ?). Very weird, very Dr Strange. Check it out, even if you don’t buy it. It’s been a while since I heard such an admirable abomination of styles. (MP)
STILLUPPSTEYPA – REDUCE BY REDUCING/MOEDER IN DE WOLKEN
(LP by FIRE.inc./SOME)
Slow minimal rhythmic music that reminds me of some Panasonic stuff; a drone, a click hitting a reverb really hard, some high pitched tones. Sounds also a bit as the soundtrack for a film on a submarine, techno sounds like sonar.
B-side is a remix done by Ryoji Ikeda and is similar but more up tempo and reminds me of one track of his excellent CD called: +/-. “Pulse-Techno” is the word that comes to mind. This record is a must for those who like minimal and rhythmic in one. Very good record for me personally. (RM)
Contact: <sfs@isholf.is>