Week 51
PIERRE GERARD – FULL YELLOW CYLINDER (CD by Eliane Tapes)
MICHAEL CASHMORE – UNTIL THE END OF VIBRATION (CD by Lumberton Trading Company)
KIYOSHI MIZUTANI – ACTUAL INFINIY/2 VARIATIONS (CD by Ferns Recordings)
MARISKA BAARS & NIKI JANSEN & RUTGER ZUYDERVELT – HARDANGER (CD by Laaps)
KARNNOS – REMEMBRANCE (CD by New Approach Records/Winter Serpent)
ALAIN BASSO – LAMINAIRES (CD by Terres D’Empreintes)
MARCELO CUGLIARI – VOID SESSIONS (CD by Unfathomless)
ED CHANG’S BLINDFOLD DELUXXXE – LIVE AT SALON ZWERGE (CD by No Sides Records)
MICHEL FABER, ROBIN RIMBAUD, TRUUS DE GROOT, HAROLD SCHELLINX AND MANY OTHERS – THE SECOND ANNUAL (book by Korm Plastics)
STRANGE DEVICERS – NEW URGENCES (CDR by Kirigirisu Recordings)
MANUEL CARBONE / PAOLO CALABRESE – ± (CDR by Minimal Resource Manipilation)
TAÂLEM ADVENT CALENDAR 2024 PART 3
11: CINEMA PERDU – AFTER (3″ CDR by Taalem)
12: JON UNGER – MAGNIS (3″ CDR by Taalem)
13: TZESNE – RIH ZEHM BUH (3″ CDR by Taalem)
14: FREDRIK MATHIAS JOSEFSON – CEDARS AVENUE (3″ CDR by Taalem)
15: ANDREA MARUTTI – THE KARNAK LOOPS (3″ CDR by Taalem)
16: ORPHAX – BELLOW
17: INGEOS – KDI DCTB 326 {H} RACINES – CLAIRIÈRE – PRÉSENCES VOILÉES – RAMIFICATIONS – ÉTOILES & CŒUR
ELOINE – COMPULSIVE DINNER GUEST (cassette by Test Tone Music)
EXPENSIVE PEOPLE (cassette by Spleen Coffin)
ME & BUKOWSKI – ME & BUKOWSKI (cassette by Benevolent Pain)
D.K.E / PERSONS UNKNOWN – SPLIT (cassette by Benevolent Pain)
PIERRE GERARD – FULL YELLOW CYLINDER (CD by Eliane Tapes)
Switching from cassettes to CDs is not only an environmentally speaking good choice, but also the better option for delicate music. Indeed, when you deal with music by Pierre Gerard. I have already reviewed some of his work, and noteworthy is the sometimes tranquil approach he takes. Somehow, I thought he was part of the world of improvised music, and his other new releases (no review) point in that direction, but the two pieces on ‘Full Yellow Cyllinder’ proved me wrong. The information is relatively sparse on the instruments used. Acoustic instruments, such as guitar and double bass, usually play a primary role. Still, here it’s more drone generators, sine waves or such, maybe because he wants to be in line with Eliane Radigue because that’s the Eliane in Eliane Tapes. Again, the music is not too loud and not too present and only shows itself when you turn up the volume. On the second piece, a lot of volume pumping is necessary as this is all very low in the frequency range and too low for me (too Bernard Günter-like, if you will, and I wasn’t a fan of either of that ultra-low volume approach). In the tradition of Radigue, the music is minimal and at times, there are very few changes, but during these 40 minutes there are enough scenery changes. There is also an occasional voice, low in the mix, reciting poetry. A least, that’s what I think it is. This is only on the first piece, and the second is all instrumental. The second is also the one that asks the most in terms of quietness, making me prefer the first one over this one. At the same time, I realise this is a consistent approach and fits the idea of this label. (FdW)
––– Address: https://www.movingfurniturerecords.com/eliane-tapes/
MICHAEL CASHMORE – UNTIL THE END OF VIBRATION (CD by Lumberton Trading Company)
Here’s one of those familiar names, but I had to look up to be sure. Michael Cashmore was a member of Current 93 and worked as Nature And Organisation, so I’m sure I heard something of his work. But I’m also not too sure when and where. Here, he has an album with no less than 23 pieces of music, all within 38 minutes. The label calls these ‘vignettes’, which I think is another word for sketches. I looked it up to see if this is the soundtrack to some film, but it isn’t. Cashmore uses piano, electronics, organ, electronics, rhythm, guitar and orchestral sweeps, and that’s his work that should be regarded as one piece. He also writes, “Every time I Work with Sacred Audio Frequencies, I am Learning from them, and they are also an Expression of my Personal Transformation of my Physical Consciousness. It is also a Documentation of my Experimentation with The Unequivocal Connection between Music and Mysticism, a Connection that is almost Exclusively used only for greed and money these days” (all the capitals are his, by the way). The music here has a strong classical feeling, quite orchestral, but unlike the symphonies of the 19th century, they are gone in the blink of an eye. Sometimes there is suddenly some distorted guitar sound, which pulls you right back into the world of rock music. It has very much that feeling of a film soundtrack, and if you have been reading Vital Weekly for a long time, you know I am not a fan of albums with vignettes or sketches, or whatever you prefer to call them. Cashmore’s one-work approach doesn’t work for me, as I hear 23 pieces because they are all so different. Intimate, jubilant, spacious or down to earth, he keeps changing the tone from piece to piece, which, for me, doesn’t have this one-work approach unless you think of this as one roller coaster. There are many pieces I wouldn’t have minded to last twice the length, which, in some cases, would mean they are still relatively brief. As with soundtrack albums, I have this vaguely feeling of unfulfilled potential. There is some excellent stuff in here; that much is sure. To play a track on a loop doesn’t have the same feeling. (FdW)
––– Address: https://fourthdimensionrecords.bigcartel.com/
KIYOSHI MIZUTANI – ACTUAL INFINIY/2 VARIATIONS (CD by Ferns Recordings)
The French label Ferns Recordings has been responsible for bringing old and new work by Small Cruel Party, and by now, also several re-issues of Kiyoshi Mizutani’s old cassettes on LP and CD. These works date from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s, and at the time, Mizutani was a member of Merzbow, when they were a group and not the solo vehicle of Masami Akita. In his solo work, Mizutani only uses a few elements of the classic 1980s Merzbow sound and creates something of his own. The guitar plays a role, including tape cut-ups, collage, metal percussion, loops and downright noise. There is plenty of variety in the three pieces on this CD. Mizutani (and Masami) had a background in free jazz and improvisation; some loosely organised playing can be found in these recordings, but now on instruments that are far from conventional. As I noted before (Vital Weekly 1439), I believe Mizutni worked with multiple tracks, allowing him to create collages of disparate sound elements, which he managed to get into a dialogue. This is most clear on ‘Actual Infinity’. ‘Variation 1 and ‘Variation 2’ are noisier affairs, more linear in approach, with feedback chains and mucho distortion on all the sounds, which may include a rhythm machine on the second variation. At times, quite a brutal force, some of which may foreshadow Masami’s work or Merzbow live in the late 1980s (a lineup that included Mizutani), the start of the rainbow-coloured sound effects phase to transform all acoustic sounds from the players. As such, this 1993 release is a historically interesting work. (FdW)
––– Address: https://fernsrecordings.bandcamp.com/
MARISKA BAARS & NIKI JANSEN & RUTGER ZUYDERVELT – HARDANGER (CD by Laaps)
The three players on this CD could have been together when recording the music; their home country, The Netherlands, isn’t big. But it worked differently. The start was with Niki Jansen and her playing of the Hardanger fiddle – hence the album’s name. The information indicates Mariska Baars guided her (but how this guiding worked, we aren’t told). We know her best as soccer Committee, her highly intimate project for guitar and voice. She responded with vocal and guitar recordings (another indication they weren’t in the same studio). This was handed to Rutger Zuydervelt, the best-known name here, if only for his work as Machinefabriek. He and Baars worked together before as Fean (see Vital Weekly 1157 and 1229) and various releases with the Kleefstra brothers as Piiptsjilling. The way ‘Hardanger’ was made is a new way of working for them, although maybe not so much for Zuydervelt who did many long-distance collaborations. The two pieces are simply called ‘Hardanger I’ and ‘Hardanger II’ and are similar. The long stretched tones of the Hardanger play an essential role throughout both pieces, and Zuydervelt uses a bit of colouring and repetition to construct two majestically played pieces. There is undoubtedly some extra bowing by Baars in these pieces, and her voice is in the background. She’s not singing texts (as far as I know) but adds to the droney atmosphere. The music is quite drone-like but with lots of movement as well. At the beginning of ‘Hardanger II’, a bit sounds folk-like, but that seems to be the only instance. Otherwise, it’s more abstract, or even modern classical at times, with bowed stringed sounds and some Baars’ vocalisations. The slowness of the music has a majestical feeling; nothing rushed, nothing out of place, and things unfold most naturally. Slow music for the slow season: the perfect soundtrack. (FdW)
––– Address: https://laaps.bandcamp.com/album/hardanger
KARNNOS – REMEMBRANCE (CD by New Approach Records/Winter Serpent)
J. Aernys and A. Guerra started Karnnos in 1998 and are the only members to have been part of the group ever since. Their music is a “heterogeneous tapestry, combining elements from folk/traditional music, experimental, ambient, or post-industrial languages and codes. The main thread of the project can be seen as avoiding the obvious and searching for unconventional, unusual solutions without alienating the listener, keeping a minimum connection with the notion of ‘song’ and some conventions regarding duration or structure”. The instruments include acoustic guitar, percussion, dulcimer, hurdy-gurdy and bass guitar; quite a bit of the latter as it happens. The last quote: “the project does not fit into a single musical category because there are no real limits to what we can do in a record except the self-generated ethos and pathos”. This is a good thing to mention. Otherwise, I would have used the word ‘pathos’ without knowing if it was self-generated. Maybe it doesn’t fit any category, but it is not as unconventional as they want us to believe. Within the context of a song, they play atmospheric music on their instruments, bowing, strumming and plucking, adding this low-speaking voice, reciting texts/poetry, or what have you. As long-time readers of Vital Weekly know, lyrics aren’t my strong suit. So what Karnnos’ lyrics are about? I couldn’t say. I think the music is relatively conventional, but I am speaking of listening to atmospheric music from manyf different angles for a long time. Think a bit of Current 93 or Contrastate but with less of a personality for the singer of Karnnos. That is reflected in the music, which is not too outspoken but may be part of their game plan. If so, the low voice fits the reflective music quite well. At 65 minutes, this is a pretty long album with few variations. Still, the last piece, ‘Dissolution’, with its distorted guitars to start with, descending on a 20-minute fade out, is a satisfactory ending, perhaps because it is instrumental. Don’t get me wrong: Karnnos do a great job, and I enjoyed quite a bit of it, given some things that aren’t for me. (FdW)
––– Address: https://nghproductions.limitedrun.com/
ALAIN BASSO – LAMINAIRES (CD by Terres D’Empreintes)
For many years active in the world of field recordings and electronics, and yet I never reviewed much of his music. I am speaking of Alain Basso, who came up in the cassette network in the 1980s when he worked as Phaeton Dernière Danse and had a group called Denier Du Culte. Following that, I lost him out of sight, but he continued producing music for film and dance. His latest release is ‘Laminaires’, containing seven pieces, five composed at the turn of the century, and the last two are from this year. In these pieces, he uses many field recordings, listed on the cover, in French. Sounds from nature, children, a sporting event, steampunk machines, voices in general, birds and alarms. In many cases, it isn’t easy to recognise any of these, which is excellent. While I think there might be some kind of electronic manipulation through modular synthesis or digital processing, it might very well be the case there is none of that and everything exists solely in the world of field recording. These pieces fit very much the tradition of other French composers, such as Luc Ferrari and Eric La Casa (who delivered the sound of flies on one piece); excellent, powerful collages of natural sounds that somehow sound like electronics – well, maybe alarms and steampunk machines contain electronic components, but you get my drift. Evocative pieces, radio plays or imaginary soundtracks: you decide. One piece, containing just birds and alarms, is inspired by Alfred Hitchcock’s ‘The Birds’ and is the only piece inspired by something. It all works very well. A lot is happening in these pieces, and there is that undoubtedly element of musique concrète in these pieces, which makes these pieces very dynamic and dramatic. All pieces were commissioned by organisations or won prizes at, no doubt, prestigious festivals, adding an element of serious composer-ship, and it’s well deserved. Basso does an excellent job here. If the two aforementioned composers tickle your fancy, and you never heard of Basso, this one provides an excellent introduction. (FdW)
––– Address: https://alainbasso.bandcamp.com/
MARCELO CUGLIARI – VOID SESSIONS (CD by Unfathomless)
The latest two releases by Unfathomless contain music by composers new to me. One I will discuss next week; now it’s time for Argentinian composer Marcelo Cugliari. I know he had a cassette on the Neus-318 label last year. As with all Unfathomless releases, the location is mentioned in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and more precisely, his father’s living room. He passed away in 2021, and in his piece (40 minutes), Cugliari uses radios and a radio/TV set as the primary sound source. This is a somewhat different kind of release for this label. Usually, the composers record sounds in nature, under bridges or in harbours, but not a lot at home, let alone use radios and TV. Also mentioned are objects. Cugliari writes, “This creation seeks to explore the duality between silence and sound, channelling my father’s absent presence and exploring the void left by his departure. The piece evokes a profound sense of nostalgia and loss, using the sounds of the radios as a bridge between the past and the present.” It may be a bit far-fetched, but it is a loving tribute. I immensely enjoyed this, if only for the very different approach Cugliari takes compared to many of his label mates. I am convinced he also uses a bit of old-school pedals, echo and such, and musique concrète-inspired ambient meets noise. The crackling of objects mingles with radio and TV static, along with a tactile approach to sounds, yet it also sounds very composed and organised. None of this morphs into mindless noise, as Cugliari knows when and where it’s time to move on, when it’s time to tone it down, making it sparse and when to give some urgency; all the things a great composer should do. There is not a lot of carefulness in the music; nothing is too quiet, and it has lots of details and variations. All in all, an excellent release, and I’d be curious to hear what’s next for him. (FdW)
––– Address: https://unfathomless.bandcamp.com/
ED CHANG’S BLINDFOLD DELUXXXE – LIVE AT SALON ZWERGE (CD by No Sides Records)
Ed Chang has a blog about Beethoven. Another blog he has is about his music. That blog is called the Quodlibet Recording Annex. The Blindfold in the band’s name of this CD release has a history. It all began after he moved to New York’s East Village and took an interest in the noise rock of Sonic Youth and John Zorn’s Naked City. He joined a weekly Blindfold workshop at Sound OWT in Chinatown. That became the band name for a few regular workshop attendees. The group on this release came together on a night in 1997, not in NYC but in Chicago and had only Ed Chang from the original Blindfold group. The rest are guests. We have Fred Lonberg-Holm on cello. He’s been regularly featured on Vital Weekly. And since he played and recorded with God is my Co-Pilot, he’s used to this kind of mayhem—Jeff Day on drums Gabriel Andruzzi on sax and Adris Hoyos. The liner notes say she plays drums. So, two drum sets? It doesn’t sound like it. Anyway, this is a live recording with 20 minutes or so of music, and in the last five minutes, the tape just rolled. So we hear the audience as well. And what a twenty minutes it is. This could be chaos at a loud volume, but instead, we have a flow, including vocals or somewhat animalistic screaming. Somewhere in the middle, a section builds into a great riff. There are guests as well. I can hear a trumpet, maybe two somewhere in there. This kind of hectic music quiets my mind. For some people, it’s ambient; for me, it’s this. Though It doesn’t hurt to hear this multiple times. A lot is going on. Things simmer down towards the end—the year’s surprise release, in my opinion. (MDS)
––– Address: https://nosidesrecords.bandcamp.com/
MICHEL FABER, ROBIN RIMBAUD, TRUUS DE GROOT, HAROLD SCHELLINX AND MANY OTHERS – THE SECOND ANNUAL (book by Korm Plastics)
A yearbook of sorts, perhaps? Yes, but different. Of course, different. An alternative Advent Calendar, maybe. Yes, in a way, quite. Korm Plastics-style. As one does.
Here we have The Second Annual, the yearly production of offcuts and unique pieces assembled by Frans de Waard for his imprint Korm Plastics, which is currently focusing more on books than CDs or vinyl, I get the impression. But all the better for it since the roster has already produced quite the line-up of spectacular titles: from the complete’ VITAL’ in (re)print to Jeroen Vedder & Jerry Goossens’ long-sought-after history of punk in The Netherlands (1976-1982), and from Freek Kinkelaar’s ‘Wondersound’ collection to ‘Neumusik – The Complete Edition ‘and, of course, De Waard’s trials and tribulations entitled ‘This Is Supposed To Be A Record Label’
Now with ‘The Second Annual’, we get quite the crew on writing duties again. Christmas time reading on Section 25 that is. Or getting to know the work of Peter Tscherkassky. More Wondersound and a chronicle of Shimmy Disc (1987-1998). All from the heart, the core, the nucleus, from the inside. And a collection like this one is a true treasure trove. You’d be hard-pressed to know every topic under review here.
And, of course, a well-curated selection of tasty topics and seasoned scribes doesn’t need a crown or pinnacle per se. But still, it’s very nice to have one. None other than world-renowned author Michel Faber graces these pages with a Pornogrind piece that fell to the cutting room floor when putting together his utterly brilliant collection ‘Listen’—a fantastic gesture of generosity. As if to underline, we all listen: famous or not, from Scanner to Modelbau, from Sok to Schellinx, from Lukas Simonis to Bertin, with Nick Soulsby, David Elliott, and Michel Faber. Listen. Put on—just to name a few—Radio Tonka, NTS, Concertzender—and read & listen. In your very hands, a year of discovery to be heard. (SSK)
––– Address: https://www.kormplastics.nl/
STRANGE DEVICERS – NEW URGENCES (CDR by Kirigirisu Recordings)
Strange Devicers is a duo consisting of Matt Atkins and Andy Rowe. Matt is no stranger to these pages; I reviewed many of his works. His catalogue reads like who’s who in label land. As a percussion player, he improvises but works with electronics, objects and tape loops. Andy Rowe works as Slate Pipe Banjo Draggers, using a “constantly developing selection of Pearlcorder T2020 dual mini & microcassette players, Walkmans, dictaphones, mixers and effect units. The sounds created during each improvisation are drawn from an ever-growing collection of found and prepared tapes.” The first release by Strange Devicers I reviewed in Vital Weekly 1399. I liked what I heard. Music that seemed to be on the quieter edge of noise with a strong tactile feeling reminding me of a lo-fi recording of a Jean Tinguely installation or the work of Graham Dunning or Clinton Green; something involving turntables or other devices rotating, and around that we find some looser sounds. Maybe some of this contains field recordings or found objects (or both), and throughout, there’s a live feeling to the music as if it’s all recorded in concert. In ‘This Track Name Was Stolen From Somebody Else’ there is a familiar sound/loop, but I can’t place its origins. It’s something that’s been nagging me since I first heard this release a couple of days ago. Despite the mechanical approach, there music seems instead loosely organised by the two, in a kind of improvised way, not taking too much care about minor details but a ‘let it all go easily, make it all part of the music’; maybe a kind of Fluxus or performance kind of thing. Lovely stuff throughout. (FdW)
––– Address: https://kirigirisurecordings.bandcamp.com/
MANUEL CARBONE / PAOLO CALABRESE – ± (CDR by Minimal Resource Manipilation)
I only heard music by Paolo Cabrese before when I reviewed his ‘No. 16’ in Vital Weekly 1443, which I thought was a fine work of immersive guitar music. On his release with Manuel Carbone, the duo has “various binaural waveforms, white noise, processed urban and underwater phonographies, feedback, and tape loops”, which “decisively stems from the exchange of ideas, critical analysis of archived phonographies and compositional drafts between Carbone and Calabrese, trying to examine the sound’s role as a form of language”. There is more artful talk on Bandcamp, about “opposite approaches” and “fluidity’s mirrors”, not all of which I understood. Let’s turn to the music, which is what it is all about. For a label that I have learned chiefly about works generated through improvisation, the four pieces on this CDR are composed instead, and the opposite approaches are probably in the dynamic use of high and low frequencies. Low is low, and high is relatively high; I can still hear them at my advanced age. Even without a complete understanding of the concept, the music is rather interesting, with its low-end rumbling and high-frequency crackling; the latter appears in the first two pieces and the low-end in the last two. I would probably have done a different order of these four pieces, high, low, high, low or such. You could describe this as mood music or the conceptual end of laptop glitch music, and curiously enough, I don’t hear as much of the urban and underwater phonographies (probably processed beyond recognition) and tape loops. Where are they hiding? That’s merely an observation and says nothing about the music, which is sturdy and slightly mysterious, with brightly atonal blocks of contrasting material. That’s how I like them best. (FdW)
––– Address: https://mrmrecordings.bandcamp.com/
TAÂLEM ADVENT CALENDAR 2024 PART 3
11: CINEMA PERDU – AFTER (3″ CDR by Taalem)
Following Modelbau, the second Dutch music act is Martijn Pieck’s Cinema Perdu. Pieck is a man with modular synthesisers, and he shows a lot of refinement in his music, not by twiddling as many knobs as possible, but by recordings events and layers them into a composition. It’s like [Law-Rah] Collective, of which he is also part. It is very atmospheric music but also very dynamic music. It’s never too silent but moves gently from low to high in volume and frequency range. It maintains a beautiful dark side, even when we hear crackles in the middle section. I say this about a lot of music, but ‘After’ feels like a trip. Cinema Perdu transports the listener from one place to the next. The downside is the size here; 20 minutes? That’s it?? I wouldn’t have minded this t be 40 or even 60 minutes. I heard some great ones in this series; this is among the best. (FdW)
12: JON UNGER – MAGNIS (3″ CDR by Taalem)
Martijn Pieck from Cinema Perdu works with Jon Unger in Woodbender (see Vital Weekly 1208 and 1077), but Unger (not his real name) also had a solo release (Vital Weekly 1180), to date his only one. I understand he works a lot with guitar and builds his effects. On the previous solo release, I suspected the presence of field recordings, but none seem to be on ‘Magnis’. One solid piece of drone-like guitar sustaining, which somewhere in the early parts looks as if it is going explode into feedback (spoiler: it doesn’t), but from the ones in this box I heard so far, this is undoubtedly one of the louder works. Unger combines drones created by guitars and their afterlife in his effects in a fine moody and, at times, explosive drone, all connected and with quite some nice movement. This is a straightforward piece of drone music, almost like it was recorded in real-time. (FdW)
13: TZESNE – RIH ZEHM BUH (3″ CDR by Taalem)
The project is Tzesne, and the title is even more unpronounceable, “Rih Zehm Buh”, but my oh my, this is a nice one to listen to. In the 18 minutes, three parts can be defined. The first part is an ambient atmospheric piece with harp sound, or maybe prepared piano sounds over a tapestry of sounds that wouldn’t be weird to include in Art of Noise recordings. That digital/analogue stretchy Fairlight feel. They’re not voices, but there’s something connected to vocal synthesis. The second part has a creepy high-pitched pulse, and next to that, the most minimal backing layers I’ve heard so far in the Advent Calendar. But the atmosphere is great as it continues and continues. Play at high volume for optimum enjoyment; the third part will make that extra impact. The combination of wind chimes and rain and a sonic manipulation of the rain make it synthetic in the end. No, I have no clue who Tzesne is, but what a track! (BW)
14: FREDRIK MATHIAS JOSEFSON – CEDARS AVENUE (3″ CDR by Taalem)
If you haven’t heard of Fredrik Mathias Josefson yet, under which rock have you been hiding? We are talking about one of Sweden’s masterminds in electro-acoustical composing. He has three master’s degrees on his CV to prove it. Maybe you know him from his older musical incarnations, as he has been active as Moljebka Pvlse, and he was the Pvlse in Negru Pvlse with Peter Nyström (Negru Voda). “Cedars Avenue” is a 20-minute composition, and there is so much in there that I can’t even begin to tell you what and where. The complexity of the layers is enormous and between the layers, there is a lot of interaction. At some point, jazzy horns or other wind instruments are changing into the sound of ambulances, and you are simply incapable of telling what it is anymore. The chime sounds can originate out of anything, and even if electro-acoustic compositions aren’t your ‘thing’, you will want to hear this piece to know what it’s all about. Simply mesmerising. (BW)
15: ANDREA MARUTTI – THE KARNAK LOOPS (3″ CDR by Taalem)
Andrea Marutti is a frequent visitor of the Taalem catalogue. Several 3″s and many annual samplers have enjoyed carrying his music. Andrea is the man behind Afe Records, which was incredibly active in the first decade of this century. As Amon and as a member of Hall of Mirrors, Maribor and Sil Muir, he is part of my collection and gets played quite often. “The Karnak Loops” has one track titled “Hiss From The Temples”; I can’t tell you why both titles are different. I can tell you that this piece is a heavy orchestral composition, which may be limited in its choice of different sounds and, therefore, sonic complexity. Still, the composition and atmosphere are essential because if this choice is so dense, minimal and intrusive, it has become an example of what you can do within your chosen limitation. A beautiful orchestral drone that might, no wait, that WILL appeal to fans of Lustmord in his ‘Heresy’-era. (BW)
16: ORPHAX – BELLOW
The final Dutch composer in this package is Sietse van Erve or Orphax. I have been following his music since almost from the start and reviewed many of his releases. If you read my words over the years, you may be aware of two things: Orphax plays drone-based music, and I greatly enjoy what he does. I am thinking about the word below, the title of this 20-minute work. Consider the possibility of Orphax using a bellow-based instrument, like an accordion; maybe he does; perhaps it’s a case of associative name play. I know he uses a lot of real synthesisers in his work, along with sound effects, to colour the sound further, and ‘Bellow’ is no exception. This time, the drones are at the mid to high end of the spectrum, creating a firm buzzing sound, which at one point reminded me of buzzing bees, but a lot of them. As with all of his work, changes occur minimally, and nevertheless, they always arrive at the right moment, never too early or too late, which is a sign of craft. It was an excellent work, easily among his better works, which isn’t easy, but that’s one crowded field. (FdW)
17: INGEOS – KDI DCTB 326 {H} RACINES – CLAIRIÈRE – PRÉSENCES VOILÉES – RAMIFICATIONS – ÉTOILES & CŒUR
Cédric Peyronnet switched from the name Toy Bizarre to Ingeos but maintained the ‘KDI DCTB’ numbering he uses to sort his work, very much like a classical composer uses ‘opus’ to catalogue their work. He also loves long titles these days. This new one means: “Roots – Clearing – Veiled Presences – Ramifications – Stars & Heart”. As always, Peyronnet works with a delicate balance of field recordings and electronics. Sometimes, these field recordings are heavily unprocessed, yet we can never fully be sure what they are. Clueless. Sometimes, they are rendered beyond recognition, and it’s all about how he put them to work in a composition. The collage form is his favourite form. Not by layering events but by setting them apart, sometimes even separated by a bit of silence. As this work goes on, it seems as if things become gradually more abstract and distant, as if there is some kind of disappearance act at work. The electronics sometimes melt into beautiful lingering drones, and the crackling of leaves or objects with contact microphones makes this a piece of beautiful atmospheric music. (FdW)
––– Address: https://taalem.bandcamp.com/
ELOINE – COMPULSIVE DINNER GUEST (cassette by Test Tone Music)
EXPENSIVE PEOPLE (cassette by Spleen Coffin)
It’s a surprise to see Test Tone Music still exists. I primarily know their releases from the group Billy?, which may have been some 20 years ago when I last heard them (and, as always, I might be wrong). As you should know by now, Bryan Day is the man behind Eloine, and he’s a craftsman creating some weird sound tools out of wood, metal, springs, and whatever he finds in the junkyard. He adds homemade synthesisers, found tapes, objects and an organ. He recorded The five pieces in his home studio, and I don’t know if he sits down and records a bunch of sounds, takes them to the computer and carefully creates edits and mixes. It might very well be possible, but just as likely is the opposite, which means he records everything live. It’s not for me to say what it is; it could go either way if I’m honest. That is to say, there’s an element of improvisation in his music, and at the same time, he stays clear from overtly plink and plonk music. Eloine likes his sustaining sounds, drones and otherwise, to be a backdrop in the music or sometimes even the chief element of the dish, in ‘Smokers Pillow’, for instance. This leads to the thought this might be processed and edited recordings. Day takes his time in these pieces, which are all about nine minutes long. Sometimes a bit long and staying too much in the same place, whereas change would be nice. But throughout this cassette is very lovely. It is the kind of improvisation with non-traditional objects and lo-fi electronics that I enjoy very much.
Day is also actively involved in projects with other people, such as Naturaliste and Euphotic. As Expensive People, he teams up with L. Eugene Methe (Naturaliste, Rake Cash, Simon Joyner, Gertrude Tapes) and Alex Boardman (Shelf Life, Rake Cash, Watch the Stereo). They use a violin, electronics, invented instruments, synths, guitar, bass, and effects. This is more improvised music, with that noise/drone/rock element attached. Nothing all too nervous and hectic playing, but more the slow-burning, mildly distorted feedback music. It’s a bit of New Zealand, if you get my drift. Expensive People create broken textures, which fall apart as they are being played. It has that mysterious feeling, a search for something or somebody in a darkened forest, a bit directionless, which is the beauty of it all. Psychedelic music is another word to describe the works here, but it is very much a different kind of psychedelia here. The tracks are lengthy, drifting wide and far, and maybe on the long side if you are not out of it. It’s best enjoyed with a beer or some wine, not doing anything but enjoying this broken-up drone-inspired improvisation for a dismantled rock combo. (FdW)
––– Address: http://www.testtonemusic.net/TTM/TestToneMusic.html
––– Address: https://spleencoffin.com/shop/expensive-people/
ME & BUKOWSKI – ME & BUKOWSKI (cassette by Benevolent Pain)
The Benevolent Pain label has been around for quite some time, but in the first years, they made one release every few years, which isn’t a bad thing, just a remark. Behind the label is Marcus, who has been a member of the Aachener noise scene since we met in the AZ in Aachen, probably mid-90s. And when we meet up it’s also mainly in Aachen or somewhere else more towards the Ruhr area. The first release they did I probably bought at Machinenfest, was a 12″ with tracks by Dazzling Malicious (which is Marcus), Ahnst Anders, Contagious Orgasm and Hôpital. Yes, there are some mighty acceptable names on there! Me & Bukowski is another project by Marcus and Der Verlorene Faden, who I had never heard of before. As said, Marcus is known of Dazzling Malicious and Persons Unknown; behind Der Verlorene Faden goes Micha von Elend from Leipzig, 100% female rage, distortion, bass, effects and love. As a little spoiler before this review ends, I will definitely check her out, as this release has some great moments.
Ok, so we have a cassette here, gold, limited to 23 pieces in a black drawer cardboard box and it comes with a skull in a test tube. The length is about 22 minutes per side, where side A has one piece titled “Deine Gedanken in meiner Erinnerung”, and side B has five shorter pieces. “Deine Gedanken in meiner Erinnerung” (your thoughts in my memory) is a lengthy composition with fragments of anything. Noisy as hell but in a good way, it combines moments of spoken words, anger, emotion, and samples of old music … It’s like a journey through the mind and memories of a troubled person who can’t comprehend reality in a way he should … Wait, what was this band called? Hmm … I think …
The reverse side as said, has five shorter tracks, also summing up to 22 minutes. The style doesn’t differ much from the other side, which is a sign that Marcus and Micha found a nice synergy in their mutual composing. There is a bit more attention for Micha’s vocal work but in all honesty, not everything is as coherent and easy to follow. But hey, it’s noise. Were you ever able to follow each performer with shitloads of effects on his or her voice? One track got to me the moment I heard it first. “Coping Strategy” has a part where – with the happiest of voices – the lyrics are ‘I hate you’. That’s tension or duality if you ever thought you had heard anything. The sounds are cut up into some kind of structure and heavy noise through a phaser chokes the whole thing up. “Days of Stress” is the loudest / hardest one on this release when it comes to harsh and erratic (though not as erratic as I’m used from f.e. the American scene), and “Sublimation” is like a noise drone/HNW and it makes sad because it’s only 3 minutes … I want more. (BW)
— Address: https://itdrones.bandcamp.com/
D.K.E / PERSONS UNKNOWN – SPLIT (cassette by Benevolent Pain)
Another cassette out of the beautiful city of Aachen in Germany. And again, it’s from the Benevolent Pain label and yes, Marcus – the man behind the label – can also be heard here. First of all, the projects. D.K.E., a.k.a. The Dunning- Kruger Effect, is a project of Sebastian Schweren who people might know of config.sys, Contaminant or Swanika. Marcus is the second guy there and helps out live and such. The reverse side is inhabited by Persons Unknown, which is Marcus’ project, and there Sebastian helps out in live situations because, after all, otherwise, Person Unknown would have been a better name.
‘The Dunning–Kruger effect is a cognitive bias in which people with limited competence in a particular domain overestimate their abilities, ‘ it says on the almighty Wiki. ‘Some researchers also include the opposite effect for high performers: their tendency to underestimate their skills.’ But is there any relationship to the music? Let’s find out. The D.K.E. track “Shtriga” covers 30 minutes and, therefore, the whole side of this nicely packed tape in an edition of 23 copies. Again, with a skull in a test tube, I think it’s a matter of collecting them all. The track opens with minimal manipulated beats and sudden full explosions of noise. Dynamics are all over the place, and deep synth/drone layers and moments of self-reflection enter the composition—minimal, a bit orchestral, crunchy edges. Where I thought it would be rhythmical or noise, it turns out to be soundscapish with an emphasis on sound design. It’s a beautifully sculpted piece, with loads of dynamics and careful choice of sounds.
The Persons Unknown side of this split is an entirely different style, but after hearing the first tones, it’s clear that this person has something to say. Musically, you can’t get any closer to yourself when you show emotion, and when you do power electronics, it’s as close as you get to showing the back of your tongue (edit: a Dutch saying). Five tracks of power electronics with a strong DIY attitude, with which I mean that it’s less polished than the American version of this style. It’s way more of a punk attitude, ‘I had to suffer, now it’s your turn,’ and I like it. And on the fifth track, “Für Was Betest Du?” (For what are you praying?) Marcus again works with Der Verlorene Faden on the Me & Bukowski split, also reviewed in this Vital. It seems a track where the music is created by Marcus and the vocals are by Micha and they both have something to say. Keep talking to my friends, making music, letting those emotions go, letting the anger out … Just be sure to press ‘record’ and let me suffer with you. (BW)
— Address: https://itdrones.bandcamp.com/