AUGUR & BIRDS OF TIN – STRANGE SEEDS COME FROM ODD FLOWERS (CD by Manifold)
BRUTUM FULMEN – SPORK (CD-R by Neus 318)
INTERCITY (CD by 1050)
TARKATAK / KLANGWART – TÖA / AMÖBENRUH (split 7″ by Klangstelle)
AUGUR & BIRDS OF TIN – STRANGE SEEDS COME FROM ODD FLOWERS (CD by Manifold)
Two new bands present themselves, not just their two separate ways of
working, but it’s also a collaboration between these two, one man bands.
First it’s Birds Of Tin working on Augur, then vice versa and the each
solo. Overall, one could say this is the old industrial ambient territory
again. Tons of all sorts of sound processing is everywhere and treat sounds
beyond recognition. In general Auger seems to dwell a little bit more on
pitch down sampling and is less ‘open’. But as an outsider I find these
differences minor and there is an overall coherent sound. Check out two new
fine groups.
Address: <manifold@manifoldrecords.com>
BRUTUM FULMEN – SPORK (CD-R by Neus 318)
Some while ago I reviewed quite positively a CD by these people, and now I
have a new work that primarily deals with feedback. But added with the help
of a metal cabinet and a typewriter, to mention some of the sound sources.
Brutum Fulmen succeed again in combining harsh noise with more subtle
moments. This works best, I think, in the shorter pieces, and they are
luckily in majority here. The long “Rasputin” has it’s moments but lacks
structure. The shorter pieces work best in their noisy, Hendrix feedback
like capacities. Excellent noise is hard to find – but here’s an example.
(FdW)
Address: <noisy@i.am>
INTERCITY (CD by 1050)
One of those puzzling affairs. Seven tracks by five different improvising
musicians from Japan. Best known (at least for me) is Taku Sugimoto, who
plays one of his subtle guitar moments. Followed by a solo saxophone
improvisation by Masahiko Okura, which is also subtle and nice. Kozo Ikeno
plays trumpet over effects (mainly reverb I’d say) which gives it a distant
atmosphere, like he is playing upstairs in a garage. Tamaru’s bass is
entirely covered with effects and is of droning nature. Akifumi Imaizumi
plays guitar and effects and is sustained piece is like a huge crescendo
from an orchestra and remote strings. Sugimoto is the only one who is
featured twice and again you can touch the vibrating air of the strings.
And track 1? That was a short, one minute introduction, apparently played
by nobody. You now have about as much information as I had when I started
writing this, so not much… Just a nice document of today’s improvisation
scene from Japan.
Address: fax: 00-81-489 282686
TARKATAK / KLANGWART – TÖA / AMÖBENRUH (split 7″ by Klangstelle)
Today’s experimental music is often not just about beauty but more about
sound itself as a material. Experimental music is getting “microtonal” or
“microscopical” in a way because musicians are getting more into the
details of sound itself rather than using sounds to create melodies. It’s
like putting sound under a microscope; time stretching for instance is a
function in the digital sound world that gives the idea that you are
“zooming in” into the sound, the actual sound waves.
After thinking about this, for me the question rises; “why is it that most
people find this such difficult music to listen to?”
Compare today’s music to painting and let’s say; popular music is like
figurative art, there are stories being told like; “boy with tear in the
corner of his eye” or “lost the love of my live” sort of stories. But most
of the people that like this kind of music would still not like to have
this “story” hanging over their couch as a painting. Instead they prefer
some abstract painting that deals with paint itself; the material as the
first and most important subject of the painting. But still they do not
like to listen to abstract music or music that deals with sound on itself.
(I know it’s easy to generalize here but maybe you understand what I mean).
This sort of experimental music is not like a landscape or a still-life,
there are no stories told, it’s music that deals with sound itself, it is
more like science in a way because it deals with the phenomena of sound
itself. But ‘yes’ it is beautiful and ‘yes’ that was probably a big reason
why they did these experiments. Alvin Lucier is a important figure in all
of this I think because most of his work consists out of sound experiments
from which he doesn’t uses the results in a composition trying to make
music with the thing he came up with but just leaving the experiments as
they are, at their strongest.
The overall atmosphere of this seven inch is “ambient like” drone and high
pitched sounds and very science like. It is packed in a handmade cover of
plain carton, stamped and there are circles painted on both sides plus a
photocopy of a picture mounted to the cover.
I like playing this seven inch on 16 rpm! (RM)
Address: <a2581949@smail.rrz.uni-koeln.de>