O. LAMM P- SNOW PARTY (CD by Active Suspension)
HENRY FLYNT – C TUNE (CD by Locust)
ILLUMINATI – CDEP2 (CDR by Planetsounds)
VARIOUS – XV (Compilation CD by Edition …)
PANICSVILLE/VERTONEN (7″ by Crippled Intellect Productions)
BACKBREAKERNECKBRACE – EP6 (CDR by Alienation)
ALIENLOVERS IN AMAGASAKI – BACKBOWL INP 15002 (CDR by Alienation)
DUODECIMO – PHORM (CDR by Alienation)
PHEROMONSTER DISK (CDR by Alienation)
INTERNATIONAL COMPILATION CDR3 (compilation CDR by Alienation)
8 ROLEK – PTAK MECHANICZNY (CDR by Mik Musik)
DEUCE – NOT IN THE KITCHEN (CDR by Mik Musik)
V.V. – NOTE (CD by Crippled Intellect/Crank Satori)
FEINE TRINKERS BEI PINKELS DAHEIM – HUNGERHAKEN’S SPECKROLLE (CDR by Absurd)
SCOTT SMALLWOOD – DESERT WINDS: 6 WINDBLOWN SOUND PIECES AND OTHER
WORKS (CD by Deep Listening
FUJIYA & MIYAGI – ELECTRO KARAOKE/ROT (7″ by Massive Advance)
O. LAMM P- SNOW PARTY (CD by Active Suspension)
>From the slowly gaining fame label Active Suspension, the debut CD of
O (as in Oliver) Lamm. Having played with label mates My Jazzy Child,
Erich Zahn and Organ, he’s now ready to release his first CD, which I
think is less poppy then much of the other recent works by Active
Suspension. O. Lamm however takes his ideas from popmusic and
occassionally bursts out in mayhem of distorted techno rhythms (in ‘I
Was A Joker Now I’m Just’) but throughout the CD he displays a wacky
of sense of humour, in which everything seems real but upon a closer
listen, things do not seem what they are. An uptempo rhythm is
changed into a slow one, piano textures into cracks and clicks and
there is a fresh and healthy sense of chaos around here. Lamm is
helped by friends who offer their instrumental skills in setting the
ideas of crazy latoppop. If you wish to see Lamm to be part of a
tradition, then he is rooted firmly in the Oval, A-Musik, Mego
esthetics, but he adds much more wit to the whole flavour.
Wicked, wicked popppppp music. (FdW)
Address: www.activesuspension.org
HENRY FLYNT – C TUNE (CD by Locust)
Henry Flynt is probably one of the lesser known figures from the
Fluxus movement. Apperentely he also played some times with The
Velvet Underground, and a writer against Stockhausen, 12 tone music
and the cultural domination of European art. Lately there has been
some more interest in releasing his music (a double CD on Recorded
for instance) and here is another one. On this CD, Flynt plays his
electric violin on one long piece. Recorded in 1980, with the help of
C.C. Hennix on ‘Pandit Pran Nath Tambura. Maybe because it’s an
electric violin, it reminded me of older Dream Syndicate/John Cale/La
Monte Young pieces. According to Flynt this is a meditation on/from
the cosmos. Gliding up and down the violin, and drones produced on
the Tamboura, give this an electric Eastern feel to it. Maybe the
minimal music as it was once intended? Not the sort of pleasent
ensemble pieces that some others came up with, but more a direct in
y’r face recording. Hardcore minimalism. Music that sucks you
entirely into, if you are open for it. A raw piece, but one I like a
lot. (FdW)
Address: www.locustmusic.com
ILLUMINATI – CDEP2 (CDR by Planetsounds)
Four brand new tracks recorded earlier this year from the solo
electronics project of Dave Clarkson, who runs the Planetsounds
label. This 25 minute disc opens with ‘Midget Germs’, a sinister mesh
of respiratory sonic malevolence, ebbing and flowing in shadowing
cycles: a very captivating prelude and, in my view, worth the
admission price of this disc alone. ‘Argenteum Atavism’ breaks the
spell somewhat with noisier, machine jitterings, before breaking into
gorgeous staccato glitchfabric sounds – a track which effectively
conveys the Illuminati trademark sound – a reclusive, worrying
electronica with the kind of occultation of meaning not evidenced
since early Scatology-era Coil. ‘Glass Box Trap’ is a similar
showcase for Illuminati’s desire to entwine melodic elements and a
sharper layer of abstraction; and it works to good effect. To close
the disc, ‘The Strange Door’ opens, if you catch my drift, revealing
over nine minutes of moody, mooncontrolled soundscaping, near ambient
in places, bringing proceedings to a fitting but very paranoid
ending. Another winner from this small UK label, quietly pushing its
wares into the beyond. (BL)
Address: www.planetsounds.co.uk
VARIOUS – XV (Compilation CD by Edition …)
Edition … seems to be establishing itself as an outlet for a wide,
but selective variety of sound art of high quality. With this
compilation, featuring works by James Whitehead, Colin Potter,
Hazard, S.L. Ledbetter, Toy.Bizarre, M. Beherens, JLIAT, Jio Shimizu
and Monos, the label is manifesting itself securely in a small, but
very interesting space within the world of the arts. With an interest
like this, it is not surprising that the material presented on this
CD is quite subdued and almost timid. Some of the tracks are plain
recordings of events, others are edited in a certain way. For
example, the first track by J. Whitehead is a recording of nuclear
tests and is propably just that. But the sound is very unique and
probably impossible to (re)create and has a superb mesmerising
effect. The second piece is by Colin Potter and is based on a line of
text (that I will not divulge), that becomes clear only at the end of
the track. The third track by Hazard is obviously edited sound
material, of which the origins are pretty much unclear. But the
result is very atmospheric and resembles hot, dry air and a lot of
sun. Track four is a radio rcording lasting just over half a minute,
with a female voice saying numbers and quite a lot of static. The
artist is not revealed. Track five is by S.L. Ledbetter and appears
to be a layering of sounds of organ fans and is indeed very hissy and
very mesmerising again. A beautiful piece. Track six is by
Toy.Bizarre, who recorded sounds on a hill top and seems to have
played around with wooden sticks right there as well. This track is
the most constructed one yet, and done so very very well, I may add.
With very plain and very edited sounds, Toy.Bizarre creates a world
of his own, to which we are invited, if not tempted. This guy is
getting better every time. Track seven is a very short disruption of
static by J. Whitehead, that functions very well within the whole.
Number eight is by M. Behrens. It slowly rolls us into near silence,
beckoning for all the noise out my window to give it a rest damn it!
A very gentle and tentative piece with a dark, but light atmosphere.
The next track is by JLIAT and must be very inetersting conceptually,
because during the ten minutes it takes, I can only hear very very
changes. This is probably something to take a lot of time for. Up
next is Jio Shimizu, who’s work is probably equally conceptual (if
not more so) as JLIAT’s. Then again, the explanation provided by
Shimizu challenges the listener to distinguish between two
recordings, based on exactly the same material, but with silences
inserted at intervals of 1/18000 seconds (of thatlength as well). The
two recordins are cut in such a way that the cuts never coincide. So
basically, we are listening to two completely different recordings,
althoug they sound exactly the same……..Highly intelligent (as
usual) and offering something to think about (as usual). Track twelve
is by Monos, a beautifull combination of concrete and abstract sounds
building up slowly and fading out the same way. The last track is
birds singing and a hum and it’s short…….A very good compilation.
(MR)
Adress: fenton@stonehenge.ohr.gatech.edu
PANICSVILLE/VERTONEN (7″ by Crippled Intellect Productions)
A collaboration between two of the more intelligent noise makers of
the USA. Vertonen is Blake Edwards (who runs the label that releases
this) who plays here metals, springplate guitar, turntable and
electronics and Panicsville, who is Andy Ortmann, playing moog,
packing tape, organ, arp and electronics. The a-side opens up with
banging on metal, which are gradually faded into bubbles played on
analogue synths. The song falls apart in various sections, but still
manages to remain one piece. The b-side finds them in more noisy
areas, with feedback sounds, distorted sounds and more noise added to
the mayhem. Although this is certainly more industrial sounding then
the other side, it’s noise of a more thought out nature. A nice
collaboration altogether. (FdW)
Address: www.crippledintellectproductions.net
BACKBREAKERNECKBRACE – EP6 (CDR by Alienation)
ALIENLOVERS IN AMAGASAKI – BACKBOWL INP 15002 (CDR by Alienation)
DUODECIMO – PHORM (CDR by Alienation)
PHEROMONSTER DISK (CDR by Alienation)
INTERNATIONAL COMPILATION CDR3 (compilation CDR by Alienation)
Alienation is a Japanese CDR label, run by Akihiro Shimizu, who some
may know otherwise as Third Organ. From the outside it seems that
Alienation is mainly interested in releasing new music that is
generated by
Behind Backbreakerneckbrace we find one Michael Haleta and Dawn
Bendick. I am unfamiliar with their background or previous releases,
but this release consists of two CDs, one with sound and one with
visuals. The sound one has eight tracks of what is best described as
laptop music. It hisses, cracks, skips and beeps. It’s hard to tell
how many plug ins are running here at the same time, through how many
patches, live sampling software and all that. For the bigger part, it
seems all be put together in a very improvised and random way, more
haste ‘n paste then clicks ‘n cuts. The video CDR seems like a home
made thing with squares and lines running up and down the screen.
Some of both the visual and music is nice to view and hear, but
overall, it didn’t do much for me.
Besides mentioning a bunch of e-mail addresses, the cover doesn’t
mention much else for the release of Alienlovers In Amagasaki. The
Alienlovers seem to me noise lovers too. I assume that they have
created this release also entirely on the computer, but other then
Backbreakerneckbrace, it’s more one steady stream of noise which
sound very computerized and clinical cold. It’s the kind of noise
that is different from the old school of industrial noise, which
sounded more blurred and fuzzy. One for the diehards.
Totally different are Rupert Cogan and Paul Stone from London,
operating as Duodecimo. Their four track release, Phorm pt. 1 to 4,
was recorded live at Shinjuku Loft Plus One in september 2001. I
assume they work from the laptops too (I think I recognized some of
the plug ins). The opening piece is a slab minimal techno, cool and
clear. The other three tracks hoover around in ambient areas, with
the more rhythmic elements pushed back most of the time. Not a very
innovative release, but altogether a more pleasent listen.
Who is behind Pheromonster DISK? I don’t know. There is an extensive
thank you list on the cover and that’s it. One long piece of 54
minutes, cutting up music into noise and noise into music. What else
is there to say? A steady stream of sound, no beginning, no end, no
structure. Next one please.
The most interesting disc is the compilation Alienation released.
Volume three already in a series. Collected here are various views on
the world of computer music, ranging from noise to ambient. Artists
include William Basinski, Le Depeupleur, Helmut Schafer, Pure,
Billy?, Leif Elggren, Alienlovers In Amagasaki, qt?, s(c)craps, Camp,
Audiotopsy and BAR. As one can see a lot of new names, and some that
gained already fame. The more thought out experiments prevail here,
which is a good thing.
Although one the major problems with laptop music is that it’s so
easy get some sound running and that it sounds all well recorded (as
opposed to the eighties home taper network, which all sounded bad by
recording), but the ideas seem usually half baked. Alienation
releases some of these experiments in a format that is cheap and
offers the possibility to get some of this available. (FdW)
Address: www.ops.dti.ne.jp/~thirdorg/
8 ROLEK – PTAK MECHANICZNY (CDR by Mik Musik)
DEUCE – NOT IN THE KITCHEN (CDR by Mik Musik)
Behind 8 Rolek, there is one Bartok Kuyawski from Poland and this one
is his first release (and second pressing thereof, I am told). 8
Rolek is into playing with rhythms, small portions of sound are being
repeated, and new layers are added. Sometimes these rhythms can be
described as techno or house, but most of the times it’s a little bit
more abstract. It’s a little bit more straightforward then the
complexity found in the Autechre works (hey to mention something),
it’s all more in your face. It seems 8 Rolek combines the best of
elektro and industrial and is able to present it to us is his own
version, which is a nice one.
Another debut is by Deuce, who is Piotr Potoz, also from Poland. He
offers us rhythmic music too, but it’s altogether a different thing.
Much bigger fat beats, loaded with samples and other plunderphonica
(although I didn’t recognize any of the samples). There is a lot of
variety between the songs, from big beat to techno to noisy punk
techno. The influences are many around here, it reads like an
encyclopedia of anything in electronic music since Kraftwerk. Since
everything drives by in high speed, this is a slighty exhausting
record. The sound is professional and one could only dream what would
have happened if he was not from Poland, but let’s say the UK. Fame
might be lurking around the corner probably. (FdW)
Address: www.molr.terra.pl
V.V. – NOTE (CD by Crippled Intellect/Crank Satori)
V.V. is short for Ven Voisey, a sound artist and sculptor from
Oakland, California and has so far been releasing music on CDR and
cassette. On his sound palette we find field recordings, electronics
and acoustic instruments. The latter is something we have to believe,
because I couldn’t hear them. In his dynamic range, V.V. goes from
extremely soft material to very loud noisy bits. Processing all the
sounds he has beyond recognition. There is various linkage to other
in this field: Crawl Unit, Illusion Of Safety, Micheal Prime and
Hafler Trio are a few. This is the kind of music that falls outside
ambient (because there are noisy parts) and outside industrial
(because of the ambient parts). The overall drone character makes
this at times a meditative release, but the louder parts certainly
destroy your senses of the fine tuning. Like I said, this is not some
easy listening, but music that deserves ones full attention before
it will show it’s beauty. Strong debut. (FdW)
Address: www.crippledintellectproductions.net
FEINE TRINKERS BEI PINKELS DAHEIM – HUNGERHAKEN’S SPECKROLLE (CDR by Absurd)
The Feine Trinkers Bei Pinkels Daheim belong to the true German
underground. Every once in a while you hear from them via a CDR
release or a limited piece of vinyl. I don’t know if they play out
live. Here is one new CDR release, on a Greek label in an edition of
157 copies. Indexed as one piece, it seems to me, compared with their
previous releases (or at the least the handful I know) that is a
slightly more electronic and also a more rhythmic affair, using
small, repeating sounds, but this of course doesn’t get danceable or
anything. The Pinkels make sure they have a nice tapestry of drone
sound below the surface, which makes this also more in the areas were
ambient meets industrial rounded of with a dash of ‘modern’ rhythm.
At times a bit like Troum meets Goem. More microsound and lowercase
then overground, I guess. Nice release. (FdW)
Address: <absurd@otenet.gr>
SCOTT SMALLWOOD – DESERT WINDS: 6 WINDBLOWN SOUND PIECES AND OTHER
WORKS (CD by Deep Listening
Scott Smallwood is a composer and performer who is active with such
projects as sCAUGHT, Evidence and the Nyquist trio (in which he
performs extended Trinidadian steel pan with live electronics). As a
solo composer he deals mostly with natural ambience recordings and as
you can imagine from the title of this CD, here he deals with wind
sounds. These wind sounds blow through debris in the desert, wind
tunnels, metal scrap or furniture. Scott composes with the resulting
sounds. Quite an odd release, with lots of deep end rumblings (wind
in the microphone) and all of these funny sounds of wind moving
chairs and metal. Sometimes it seems that he uses loops, but maybe
it’s just an idea, and is it all real time recordings, which are just
collaged and pasted.
The other works mentioned in the title include the recording of
songbirds in an oasis, the door’s of men’s restroom in Berlin (apptly
called ‘Variations On A Door (No Sigh’) and CSU Trojan fans chanting.
These are also straight forward recordings, except maybe the door
piece which seems somehow processed (or maybe it’s the recording of
music happening in the same building, as it was recorded at the ICMC
computer music festival in Berlin). A very fine work altogether. (FdW)
Address: www.pofinc.org
FUJIYA & MIYAGI – ELECTRO KARAOKE/ROT (7″ by Massive Advance)
Although you wouldn’t say, but Fujiya and Miyagi met during a
foorball play in Brighton and are probably uk lads with exotic names.
They shared the same interest in music (electronica, krautrock,
Warp) and decided to get their own thing going. This 7″ is a taster
for their forthcoming debut album. The title track is an uptempo
piece of drums and electronics with half way through short vocal
lines. More Tortoise then Can, but nice. The other side is slower in
tempo and goes around with rhythmbox, vocals and synths. Very much
likeearly 80s underground electronica, which is in their books
probably a compliment. Nice taster, which makes me altogether more
curious for the debut album. (FdW)
Address: www.massiveadvance.com