STEVE RODEN/IN BE TWEEN NOISE – LAMP
STEVE RODEN/IN BE TWEEN NOISE – CHAIR
DEREK BAILEY – PLAY BACKS (CD by Bingo)
Z’EV – AN UNS MOMENTO (CD by C.I.P.)
ALAN LICHT – RABBI SKY (CD by Siltbreeze)
MIRIAM DE WAARD – VOOR ELISE (mCD)
DAUERFISCH – CRIME OF THE CENTURY (CD by BUNGALOW)
STEVE RODEN/IN BE TWEEN NOISE – LAMP
STEVE RODEN/IN BE TWEEN NOISE – CHAIR
(both 3″ CD’s by New Plastic Music)
It took a long time to complete the trilogy that started with “Splint”, but
here they are. To explain it: three 3″ CD’s in which music is made by using
solely designer objects from at least 3 to 4 decades ago. No other sounds
were used and only slight processes have been adapted.
Lamp (designed by George Nelson in 1952) has three tracks, the first one is
a metallic like rhythm and some samples swirling around – if you said this
was a shortwave I thought it would be a good guess. Then ‘Undulant Spores’
is deep bass-time stretched thing that slowly grows into a lighter coda.
The last track – the shortest too – bangs lighty on the lamp and has a
natural echo and an unnatural crackling.
The Chair that is the sound object here was designed by Harry Bertoia (who
we all know as a sculptor and who has made 10 LP’s with music playing his
sculptores) has 7 shorter tracks (and each is dediacted to somebody, like
RLW, id Battery, Harry etc.), but the austrity started on Lamp, and in fact
on most In Be Tween Noise releases, is still there. The curves that each
track take is small and are in a pretty straight linear way. The rhythm
that starts ‘glisten’ is a break from this, but by no means a bad one. The
three CD’s form an excellent series, well executed and very consitent in
it’s high quality. (FdW)Address: <sroden@deltanet.com>
DEREK BAILEY – PLAY BACKS (CD by Bingo)
A while ago free guitarist Derek Bailey made a CD with a drum & bass DJ
uder the most appropiate name “Guitar, Drum ‘n Bass”, which is an excellent
idea: the jazzyness of drum & bass went well with the improvised guitar of
Derek. Entrepneur Sasha Frere-Jones, himself a guitarist, kinda copied the
idea. Inviting musicians to create drum tracks and Derek playing along with
those. The result is very much a Derek Bailey CD with twelve different drum
tracks, not just d&b, but also trip-hop or dub inspired. Of course one may
wonder about the idea itself: why just drum/rhythms, why not just vocals,
just drones, just… fill in?
Despite this hesitation, it is a very nice CD however, which works well and
is an overall varied thing. Especially the more uptempo pieces, such as
Casey Rice and John Herndon, which are played with a lot of tension and
aggression.
Some people went beyond the assignment, like Bundy K. Brown who starts a
guitar duel with Derek, or the narrative piece with Jim O’Rourke and Loren
MazzaCane Connors. There is one track is which nothing is added – John
Oswald – and I’m puzzled why not.
One of things sadly missed (by me at least) is a good solid, 4 to 4 techno
piece and see good ol’ Derek go wild over that. Only Sasha’s own piece
comes close with it’s Pan Sonic inpired rhythm. (FdW)
Address: Bingo – 295 Greenwhich Street, suite 356 – New York, NY 10007
Z’EV – AN UNS MOMENTO (CD by C.I.P.)
Z’ev is back! After two releases last year on Soleilmoon – one of them a
re-issue – and both sadly missed here, here is another new old work. The
work of Z’ev is mostly known for his metallic percussion with occult
inspirations, but Z’ev is also working under many other names. If you are
young and wish to seek out more about Z’ev, then try to find a second hand
copy of his double CD ‘One Foot In The Grave’ or the Industrial Culture
Handbook. Because yes, boys and girls, Z’ev was among the founding fathers
of industrial music.
Uns is one of the names Z’ev uses (or used – I think), for a more poetic
tape project. Using outdated technology, like Farfisa organ, cassettes and
old amplifier, Uns speaks texts on tape and accompagnies himself in noisy
backgrounds. Originally Life Sentense was released as a cassette in 1986 as
a c30 tape, so a rare recording of ‘Save What?’ is here too (originally on
a cassette in an edition of 50). This was recorded at the final UNS
performance in 1982.
The nice thing about CD’s is you index 99 tracks and shuffle this. Since
Life Sentense is mainly a work of cut-up and collage, the 14 short tracks
are divided on 98 tracks (track 99 being ‘Save What?’, so when that appears
in your shuffle mode, you quickly skip it – which is the bad thing about
shuffle play).
As a true lover of Z’ev (owing almost everything he did – but sadly missing
these UNS recordings), this is a most welcome re-issue. Of course parts of
the UNS work were on the Touch 2CD set, but it’s very interesting to hear
these works in their entire length and complete the image of Z’ev further.
(FdW)
Address: <vertonen@earthlink.net>
ALAN LICHT – RABBI SKY (CD by Siltbreeze)
Alan is one of those guitarists with a jazz background who is into noise
and drones played on the six strings. Besides he is an articulated writer
on minimal music. The liner notes to this CD proof that he has thought
about what he’s doing, plus he’s giving some nice references (Phil Niblock,
Steve Reich, LaMonte Young etc – so check them out in case you never did).
The two lengthy tracks are about permutations: layered sounds on a
multi-track machine, which are pitched slightly differentely. The title
piece are five different sections of noisy guitar tickling, drony electric
organ sounds and other treatments of the guitar. The second piece ‘All
Blues’ is a more steaady block of highly amplified guitar playing, and is
apptly dedicated to Phil Niblock. This piece could have been much longer,
me says. That’s the main problem: it’s so short, just under 40 minutes,
whereas it could easily last 60 minutes if it was up to me… But excellent
impressive new minimalism indeed. (FdW)
Address: Siltbreeze – 727 South 7th Street – Philadelphia, PA 19147 – USA
MIRIAM DE WAARD – VOOR ELISE (mCD as a Private Release, but you can buy it)
Of course it’s not news anymore is it – our erstwhile and tenacious
editor-in-chief and mensch-uber-alles has, together with his charming and
unshort wife, realised one of the most important releases of his career.
And no, it’s not this CD, rather it’s the underlying cause behind this new,
tiny pink thing that I am referring to – her (for it is female) name is,
surprise, surprise Elise Charlotte Sophie and she was hatched on 3 May this
year. So if you haven’t sent a congratulatory cheque yet, you better get a
move on.
The anxious parents-to-be obviously copped a look early on and established
the sprog’s gender so that they could cunningly decide on a name and sculpt
a composition using some of the frightening little tools midwives carry
around with them.
Her foetal heart beats, suspended in a rich amniotic ocean – steady, with
the certainty only cellular mitosis can know, cloaked in her mother’s
reassuring and regular breathing. The classical melody drifts in, looped at
first, then released in a spurt of birth to fulfill it’s melodic destiny.
Little furry objects and stuff that squeak are rubbed and rattled against
the microphone, while the bulging mum gainly struggles to coax the charming
little ditty out of her melodica – if you know what I mean. More fidgeting
as a musical crib-thing playing the theme slowly winds down to rest again,
and we sink back into the succulent sound of a gooey, squishy, relentlessly
pulsing, though very tiny (sooooooo tiny, can you imagine – the same size
as the top of your pinky, goddammit) ventricles. (Isn’t nature wonderful).
Weighing in at 4375 grams (metric, you imperially challenged bastards!)
this new release by Frans and Miriam de Waard is probably good enough to
eat. (It’s comments like these that keep them from keeping me away from the
recently offsprung spring.) Gorgeously packaged in new skin which smells of
secrets and slumber.
More respect for them, they’re fertile, fer chrissakes ! (MP)
DAUERFISCH – CRIME OF THE CENTURY (CD by BUNGALOW)
Regular recipients of this highly opinionated, and oft quoted list of
thoughts on music may perhaps recall my recent huge, throbbing,
purple-glowing eulogy on Bungalow, the most cool thing to come out of
Chermanny since the Luger. Too bad if you don’t, ‘cos I isn’t gonna do it
one mo’ ‘gain, ja !
Responsible for some of the wackiest music around, for encouraging the
current deluge of popularity surrounding the surging interest in the sounds
and music of possible madman and certain composer Peter Thomas, and closely
linked to the bizarre and highly creative Japanese clubpop scene, Bungalow
have now put forth and left another endearing stain on the face of
contemporary music history. Dauerfisch are almost certainly Kunstler Treu
and Kunstler Abshagen (occasionally accompanied by some of their chums),
who seem to be two domesticated critters who wield a kind keyboard, drumbox
and other smooth and unwrinkled devices as accompaniment to their eloquent
and often humourous lyrics. Some of it’s in Das Chermann, so it’s partially
lost on me, as I don’t always acknowledge my previous incarnations, and
some is in English, because at the moment I have no choice but to live
through this one. It is a magical musical tour through a number of styles,
expertly crafted and tightly woven with love and glee. Groovy tracks to
twist and shake you, others that take you down a trail or train track. Warm
and cool. (MP)