MICK HARRIS & ANTHONY CHILD – CERTAIN BEYOND ALL REASONABLE DOUBT (CD by
Manifold)
THU20 – DERDE SCHIJF (CD by Staalplaat)
JOHN HUDAK – DON’T WORRY ABOUT ANYTHING, I’LL TALK TO YOU TOMORROW (CD by
Alluvial)
MUSIC IN MOVEMENT ELECTRONIC ORCHESTRA (CD-R by Grob)
ROBERT RUTMAN’S STEEL CELLO ENSEMBLE (CD by Die Stadt)
PRESOCRATICS – PURE CAPTALISM AND THE CIRCULAR SYSTEM (7″ by Edition…)
KLANGWART – KOLN/OLPE (LP by Staubgold)
REZNICEK – AUDI & GOGGO (10″ by Staubgold)
MICK HARRIS & ANTHONY CHILD – CERTAIN BEYOND ALL REASONABLE DOUBT (CD by
Manifold)
I’m not sure if the title is the name of the band, so I list the two
composers as artists… Mick needs no introduction I guess, just my short
remark that I am not really into his drum&bass outings of late, stick to
your trade! And that trade is dark ambient, something he controlls very
well. Mr. Child is behind Surgeon, according to the info, but who are they?
Maybe I’m just stupid?
This was recorded in Berlin earlier this year and is just almost 70 minutes
of a dark trip into dark, darker, darkest worlds of sampled icy landscapes,
black and bleak clouds over industralized nightmares, annoying high pitches
occure below the surface and are never irritating. Just dark and
hauntingely beautiful. (FdW)
Address: <manifold@manifoldrecords.com>
THU20 – DERDE SCHIJF (CD by Staalplaat)
Well, a new release by the old (dare I say legendary) dutch band in a very
nice paper sleeve. It is not easy to describe it as it bounces between so
many different corners in various ways and at various speeds, dragging the
listener up and down. One can perhaps say modern computerized musique
concrete.
After a few listens you start to get really into the CD, some very nice
melodies, if they can be called so, pop up here and there. And noise parts
too between the more interesting quiet bits, occasionally very dull nosie
actually and I can’t agree on the old saying that time heals all wounds,
they just get more annoying with every listen.
The whole CD can be compared to a fairy tail in a way, you go through some
very nice soft areas and scary frightening ones too. But the story has a
happy ending folks, so don’t worry about it keeping you awake! (HB)
Address: <mailorder@staalplaat.com>
JOHN HUDAK – DON’T WORRY ABOUT ANYTHING, I’LL TALK TO YOU TOMORROW (CD by
Alluvial)
Soon Hudak will be a new household name for you, this being his third CD in
a short period. Here the minimalist offers one track, the soundsource of
which has been taken from his answermachine: his mother. She died last
year, and in the light of the title, this is a sincere hommage to her. The
55 minutes are filled with tones that work in layers, repeating clusters of
some low resolution sound, but which embodies a whole universe and never
bores. I’ve listened to this on headphones, and I was fascinated by the
richness of the work, the moving character, the simplicity of the complex
work. Just minimalism beauty. (FdW)
Address: 420 Oak St. Apt#1 – Kalamazoo, MI 49007 – USA
MUSIC IN MOVEMENT ELECTRONIC ORCHESTRA (CD-R by Grob)
This release reads like a who’s who of current hip people: Peter Rehberg,
Justin Bennett, Christian Fennesz, Keith Rowe, Jerome Noetinger, Gert-Jan
Prins and others fro the field of electronica, improvisation, noise etc.
They have played around Europe in various combinations together, and
moments of those concerts are captured on this CDR. Like with many
improvisational music this has good parts and parts in which the group
finds a good flow. It’s hard to tell how a complete concert sounded, but
the elements captured here sound pretty much o.k. At many times noisy, with
many overlaying events going on at the same time, and at other times
introvert, like in the opening sequence. Elements of individual musicians
might be reognized, such as the powerbook frenzy of Peter Rehberg. In
general a worthwhile experience of new improvised music. And of course the
format of CD-R is excellent for capturing events like this. (FdW)
Address: distribution A-Musik
ROBERT RUTMAN’S STEEL CELLO ENSEMBLE (CD by Die Stadt)
For many years now Rutman leads an ensemble of people who play on
instruments built by Rutman. These are metal sheets which are bowed and
played with bows. It’s kinda hard to explain what it looks like, but it
results in a kind of powerful ambient drone music, which isn’t unfamiliar
to the kind of the more proliferic Organum. On ‘Matthias Steel Cello’ the
metal plates are also played by hammering on them, and this too creates
overtones (because that is what it is basically all about: creating
resonant overtones). It’s fascinating to hear all the variations that are
possible, and that actually seem to form a melody, like on “Duet”. Again,
this is minimal music played from/with a different angle. More dark, maybe
more ‘industrial’, but that creates a world of it’s own. (FdW)
Address: fax: 00-49-421-75993
PRESOCRATICS – PURE CAPTALISM AND THE CIRCULAR SYSTEM (7″ by Edition…)
A strange release: every is red, the cover, the record itself and the
innersleeve. The press note is list of equipment used, and it’s guided by
a quote from the cynical Heraclitus (ancient greek thinker). And the music:
a strange collage of noise that is not offensive, but rather low level
feedback like, that is intercepted with all kinds of strange noise. As said
not the offensive kind of noise, but one that is fascinating to hear,
because it bounces and shifts all the time. A strange and probably highly
conceptual item. (FdW)
Address: 1019 Hampton St. – Atlanta, GA 30318 – USA
KLANGWART – KOLN/OLPE (LP by Staubgold)
A while ago I reviewed a 3″ CD of improvised electro-acoustic music by this
band, and now there is this LP. I have no clue what happened in the mean
time. Either they threw out their entire electro-acoustic
instruments/principles, or they found some old synths. Side A, with it’s
almost 27 minutes a long side, is a tripping affair around a ticking rhythm
machine, and arpeggio synths. A truely German, and a truely cosmic affair.
This could have been made 20 years ago, although I would like to point out
that this is by no means negative. It’s just very nice flowing stuff, but
expect no innovative new music here.
The other side “Im Garten” (meaning “In The Garden”) is a kind of
self-explenatory title. Tropical dawn chorus leads you into the garden,
were frogs and birds call the day, and were you find that strange animal
called synthesizer. Again mood music, but without a tempo, and again no
musical revolutions are happening. Just relaxing, just nice… (FdW)
Address: <a2581949@smail.rrz.uni-koeln.de>
REZNICEK – AUDI & GOGGO (10″ by Staubgold)
Another household name to come (watch this space). Reznicek is kinda like a
student of Asmus Tietchens (or at least that’s my view of him). The title
piece is one side of the record, and has highly treated sounds which were
apperentely recorded between 1965 and 1970. It is the audio display of a
house from dawn to evening. Slowly it’s starts living, it starts breathing,
things happen more and more until the evening falls, and things become
quite again. Voices are there, but hard to recognize. It’s strange music,
but it kept my attention.
Side B contains “Haus Armgartburg” and was originally made on CD in an
edition of 1 copy. It had ten tracks for random play mode. Again we find
sounds recorded around the house and it is a more broken up kinda sound.
Things start and stop… hard to find the structure in here. Maybe we
should think it’s pity that it’s not CD (but hey why cry, we get a lovely
picture disc instead). The A-side worked better… (FdW)
Address: <a2581949@smail.rrz.uni-koeln.de>