BERLINERTHEORIE – LIVE (CD by Staalplaat)
RENE BERTHOLO – UM ARGENTINO NO DESERTO (CD by SIRR.ecords)
BRUTAL SOUNDS EFFECTS VOLUME ONE (CDROM by Brutal Sounds Effects)
WAKE UP AND LISTEN – MUSTARD KEANU (3″CDR by Alias Frequencies)
ILLUMINATI – CDEP1 (CDR by Planetsounds)
FELIX KUBIN – JET-LAG DISCO (CD by A-Musik)
AS ALL DIE – TIME OF WAR AND CONFLICT (CD by Crowd Control Activities)
STEPHAN MATHIEU & EKKEHARD EHLERS – HEROIN CD (by Staalplaat)
DEFEKTRO – AMBER BLOOD (CD by Lastgap Art Laboratories)
MSBR & BLAZEN Y SHARP – DIRTY KNOBBY (7″ by Gender Less Kibbutz)
BERLINERTHEORIE – LIVE (CD by Staalplaat)
Berlinertheorie is a joint venture between Sam Auinger and Rupert Huber.
Originally shipped as a music and internet-project where the two artists
performed live on the Net from the Berlin-based DAAD-artist program. The three
tracks on this mini-CD are selected from these sessions revealing the wide
musical spectre within the so-called hauskonzert-live performances. The album
opens with a track from 1995 titled “Miles” – a track that takes its focal
point on two vocal loops processed and manipulated in a way that reminds of
Steve Reich’s “Come out”-classic from 1966. The last two tracks moves towards
more ambient-isolationist-oriented grounds. “Intro” created in 2000 opens
slowly with wind-sounding noises that are interrupted by the sounds of trains
passing by. The overall sound of “Intro” has an echoed expression that creates
a cave-like atmosphere. Last track titled “Bruce Willis” from 1999 is like
“Intro” slow and quite in a dark sense. The track is built around dark drones
that move along with clicking pulses varying in speed throughout the track.
Definitely a pleasant mini-cd by Berlinertheorie. (NMP)
Address: www.staalplaat.com
RENE BERTHOLO – UM ARGENTINO NO DESERTO (CD by SIRR.ecords)
Imagine an entire sound realm interpreted by someone shut away from the world
of
the jingle and the commercial and who had never heard electronic music before
but wanted to design and build machines to produce a kind of new music. Rene
Bertholo’s vision is that kind of sound world distilled in a microcosm. He
started to build his own instruments close to 30 years ago, having never
attempted it before. He recorded the results and those results are
extraordinary. What’s immediately transparent is that alienation and primitive
emotion is the oxygen of this sphere. Rhythms limp towards the horizon; you
want to help them on their way but can’t. Fledgling percussion taps nearly but
not quite in sync, as though almost weary from the effort. Blips bleep and
chime joyously, but this is not a sound world inhabited by the Noton regulars:
these are the noises of birds and other animals patched up to a generator
resembling something from Terry Gilliam’s Brazil. Um Argentino no Deserto is
the type of music that Russolo and the other Futurists dreamed of when they
first hit upon their manifestos but never quite realised in earnest. It is a
fragile and seemingly temporary music. And it is also timeless. This is the
true sequenced language of machines and an incredible roadmap of years of
artistic endeavour, with no recourse to recognisable signposts along the way.
Truly innovative and the one recording in recent times to leave me virtually
speechless. (BL)
Address: http://www.geocities.com/sirr_pt/index.html
BRUTAL SOUNDS EFFECTS VOLUME ONE (CDROM by Brutal Sounds Effects)
A bizarre CD-ROM of six movies with no documentation whatsoever, other than the
group names – Jean Street (29.00), Panicsville (3.56), Raped at a Disco (8.10),
Rubber O Cement (5.15), Skozey Fetisch (7.42) and Towel Orchestra (5.25). All
are completely unknown to me. The sound is manipulated tape-noise or live
noise
improv in the main, although there are some exceptions, but there’s nothing
greatly original in this. I watched the movies once but I have to admit I’m
not
sure I’d do so again. The video quality is actually fairly good and the films
themselves are quite accomplished, using a great deal of digital trickery and
computerised effects juxtaposed with the live performances. The quality of the
accompanying sound is not that wonderful unfortunately. What’s most puzzling
is
that this is labelled an ‘interactive’ CD-ROM. I didn’t find myself
interacting
or, for that matter, reacting. (BL)
Address: http://brutalsfx.homestead.com
WAKE UP AND LISTEN – MUSTARD KEANU (3″CDR by Alias Frequencies)
Mustard Keanu comprises nine short tracks across 18 minutes of systemic and
comedic sound manipulation, utilising what appears to be live cut-ups and
sample-processing of existing recordings on vinyl and otherwise apparently.
This Australian duo on new label, Alias Frequencies, have a considerable
history
of live performance, principally from their eponymous Australian radio show on
which they performed (over a 9 year period!) live mixes of their hallucinogenic
scratch music, a sound that dissolves continuously from recognisable
easy-listening sources and spoken word recordings into slowed, speeded,
pitched,
reversed and generally barbecued audio plague pit offerings. The intriguing
thing about the process is that it doesn’t layer mercilessly; it’s as if a
single victim source is chosen and the output improvised straight to disc. The
live nature of the performance is, as a result, unmistakeable. Includes a
guest
performance by Kermit the Frog who always brightens up any recording he touches
I feel. Simple but effective and unpretentious sound art, and a release that
grows with each playful–and wakeful–listen. (BL)
Address: http://aliasfrequencies.org
ILLUMINATI – CDEP1 (CDR by Planetsounds)
First release proper from a project who, for me, had one of the standout
entries
on this label’s recent Laboratory Sounds Volume 1 compilation CD.
‘Constantinople’ opens proceedings with nine minutes of striking, glassy-eyed
electronics, not exactly glitching and not terribly minimalistic either, but as
far from the noise domain as can be. ‘Winter Fire’ is more traditional
synthesized fare with the addition of Tim Jones’ simple strumming to anchor the
millpond soundimage, but with troubling synthetic loops decorating the surface
of the water. ‘Hertzlow’ interrupts with 40 seconds of digital
noise-buffoonery.
But it’s soon a memory. ‘Argenteum Astrum’ is more like it again: mantric
looping and manic laughter, which evolves into tubular bell-like chiming and
creepy digital processing. Finally, ‘Seaghost of Snape Island’ continues the
unease with more shifting, coruscating electronics, backed by an undercurrent
of
eerie synth washes – quite spellbinding and over too quickly. This is an
excellent, well-defined release of soundworks from Illuminati highlighting the
other side of this vast new electronics scene, where invention and uniqueness
are not necessarily unknown quantities. (BL)
Address: http://www.planetsounds.co.uk
FELIX KUBIN – JET-LAG DISCO (CD by A-Musik)
Jet-Lag Disco has been specially released for Felix Kubin’s Japan Tour back in
February this year. Thus all information on the 3″-size sleeve has been written
in Japanese. Jet-Lag Disco contains six tracks lasting approximately 16 minutes
– A short but funny ride through sonic worlds where old-school videogames and
Western-themes in the best Nelson Riddle-style seem essential. The Jet Lag
Disco opens with two tracks titled “Phonebashing” and “Groscher lausangriff”
that should be able to satisfy any wacky techno-DJ of the underground
dancefloors. Kitsch with a big K is the right word to describe an album
dedicated to listeners of electronic cartoon-techno with a slight sense of
humour. (NMP)
Address: www.a-musik.com
AS ALL DIE – TIME OF WAR AND CONFLICT (CD by Crowd Control Activities)
As All Die – an artist-name that promises the blackest of the blackest – and
keeps its promise. “Time of war and conflict” operates on a level that belongs
to the darkest and gloomiest edge of the experimental-scene. With a starting
point taken in the periods of world war, the music is built up around
acoustical instruments played in a dark folk-style and a subdued obscure voice
that reveals its background in the black metal-scene. The music is dark and
slow. And to create the perfect atmosphere As All Die utilize elements similar
to albums like Lustmord’s “The monstrous soul” or Profane Grace’s “Serenity of
the endless grave”. Meanwhile electronic soundscapes once in a while add a
little emotion to the otherwise cynic overall expression. Listeners of dark
ambient and dark-folk music should be able to find the musical treasure
underneath the many layers of death and tragedy. Others may find the black
expression a little exaggerated. But then again: Considering the concept of the
album, the extreme blackness seems unavoidable. (NMP)
Address: www.ezlink.com/~crowded/
STEPHAN MATHIEU & EKKEHARD EHLERS – HEROIN CD (by Staalplaat)
This is the first CD to come out in the new BromBron project between Staalplaat
in Amsterdam and Extrapool in Nijmegen. The invited artists record a CD for
Staalplaat in the studio of Extrapool, ending the recording period with a
concert. Sort of a residency project with experimental acts. In this case it
works very well. Unlikely instruments (for electronic music) are being used
such a guitar, organ, drums etc… Not that you can hear it directly though at
all times. The whole CD is quite surprising, very melodic at times with
familiar sounds and melodies reminding me of some twisted Residents tones. Well
you shouldn’t worry too much cause we get plenty of unaccessible non-melodic
electronic buzz here too, some which remind me of the h3o. Overall a very
varied CD. It goes from one corner of the world to the other and back and
forth… a nicely lined up journey with a lot of different things happening on
the way… and therefor it (kick’s ass and) is highly recommended! (HB)
DEFEKTRO – AMBER BLOOD (CD by Lastgap Art Laboratories)
Defektro is a Japanese duo heavily into building mechanical instruments that
work in a repititous mode. Rather then just using a sample, the machines create
a rhythm and their CD is filled with examples of their work. Mainly short
pieces of mechanical, factory like sounds. Sometimes they seem to appear in a
crispy clear form, and at other times they are heavily distorted form, as
Defektro are also into building their own sound effects (a look at their
website will teach you what is available, since they are also selling these).
Sometimes I’m reminded of the mayhem caused by Survival Research Laboratories
or the constructions of Matt Heckert, but Defektro cleverly combines the best
of both into their own sound. A pity I can’t view the video that they also gave
me… (FdW)
Address: www.lalweb.com
MSBR & BLAZEN Y SHARP – DIRTY KNOBBY (7″ by Gender Less Kibbutz)
MSBR, one of Japans more interesting noise bands because it isn’t just noise
mind you, is doing collaborations all the time. Here with Blazen Y Sharp, a US
duo that off and on release stuff on their Gender Less Kibbutz label. This is
an one-sided affair pressed on marble blue vinyl. One piece that is not very
long swirls around drum sounds, which solemnly find their way in the grooves,
backed with majestic drones. A nice piece. I don’t understand why there isn’t a
likewise nice b-side… (FdW)
Address: www.intrasuoni.org