SOGAR – STENGEL (CD by List)
PHILIP JECK & JACOB KIRKEGAARD – SOAKED (CD by Touch)
GREG KELLEY – IF I NEVER MEET YOU IN THIS LIFE, LET ME FEEL THE LACK
(CD by Rossbin)
DAVID LEE MYERS – DYED SMEAR LIVE (CDR by Generator)
KILN – One (CD by Contemporary Art Production)
KILN – WITH CHRIS SACKER (CD by Contemporary Art Production)
KILN – WASSERTURM (CD by Contemporary Art Production)
GEN KEN – 1981-1990 THE CASSETTE YEARS (3XCDR by Generator)
ASTHMATIC WORM (CD compilation by Mobile)
CORNUCOPIA – VIBROACUSTICA (CDR by Generator)
BEN SWIRE – EQUILIBRIUM (CDEP by The Foundry)
VAGUE TERRAIN RECORDINGS – A VIABLE ALTERNATIVE TO ACTUAL SEXUAL
CONTACT (CDR by Piehead Recordings)
COLLIN OLAN – REC01 (3″ CD by Apestaartje)
JOE COLLEY – ANTHEM STATIC FOR EMPTY LIFE (3″ by C.I.P.)
FORTDAX – AT BRACKEN (LP by Static Caravan)
STENDEC – PYAT/AUCHINEK (7″ by Static Caravan)
VOLCANO THE BEAR – GUESS THE BIRDS (10″ by Beta Lactam)
JAD FAIR & R.STEVIE MOORE – FAIRMOORE (CD by Old Gold)
KLANGKRIEG / GUNTER ADLER (split LP by Staubgold)
NORIKO TUJIKO – I FORGOT THE TITLE (12″ by Mego)
RECYCLING BUZZ (CD compilation by Amanita)
PITA – GET DOWN (LP by Mego)
COLOUR AND PATTERN (CD compilation by Apestaartje)
MIROSLAW RAJKOWSKI – THE PRIMARY PRINCIPLE (10″ by Beta Lactam)
RICK REED – MUSIC FOR THE ROTHKO CHAPEL (10″ by Beta Lactam)
SOGAR – STENGEL (CD by List)
Sogar’s latest seems to take a slightly different direction: there
are more melodic elements, although they are still covered in thick
layers of crackles and glitches. Not unlike Stephan Mathieu or
Ekkehard Ehlers, Sogar weaves patterns of similar samples, thus
creating warm and full pieces of gliding sounds. As said before,
melodies trickle out more explicitly than in earlier releases, but it
would go to far as to say that these are songs or dancefloor
material. Sogar hovers somewhere in the middle between all this:
ambient, rhythmic and melodic, but avoiding the obvious. I would
guess that this is excellent stuff for the more adventurous DJ’s, but
also at home, on a warm summer night, this is great listening music.
Not that this is sheer easy-listening: there are enough moments that
stir one up and keep the focus on the music. Within the ‘glitch’
genre (if I may still call it so), Sogar has a place of his own and
rightly so. (MR)
Address: info@list-en.com
PHILIP JECK & JACOB KIRKEGAARD – SOAKED (CD by Touch)
Not really hot on th heels of ‘Stoke’ (we were just late with the
review two weeks ago) is an album which Philip Jeck recorded with
Jacob Kirkegaard. The later is a member of Aerter, a Danish mixed
media group, which I unfortunally never heard of. He plays samplers
and electronics and here in combination with Philip Jeck’s
turntables. The recording was made at the Moers Jazz festival in
Germany in May 2002. Their duo improivsation falls apart in seven
pieces, combining the rhythmicalities of Jeck’s vinyl work and
Kirkegaard’s samples. I can’t help to see this is as a very free form
improvisation. Darker ambiences most of the times in which it is easy
to search for a form and then building up from there once a bunch of
nice sounds is determined, such as in the sixth piece. Good, sturdy
improvised electronic music, but also one that doesn’t have those
great moments. If five stars would be great, I’d give it three stars.
(FdW)
Address: www.touch.demon.co.uk
GREG KELLEY – IF I NEVER MEET YOU IN THIS LIFE, LET ME FEEL THE LACK
(CD by Rossbin)
Greg Kelley is mostly known in the world of improvised music for his
work with people like Pauline Oliveros, Anthony Braxon, Le Quan Ninh,
Phil Minton, Gunter Muller, Eddie Prevost, Kevin Drumm and Bhob
Rainey as Nmperign and many many more. As a trumpet player he
produces some un-trumpet like sounds. I am not sure, but this might
be his first solo recording that is available for a wider audience.
The one piece on this that spans over 36 minutes is for trumpet solo,
but upon playing it, it’s something that is hard to believe. It opens
and closely with pans falling on the floor, which are the loudest
sounds on the CD. In the first part that follows one might detect
some blowing sounds in the trumpet (which are interrupted by what
seems defaults in the recording process), but in the longer second
part nothing as such can be heard. Here the trumpet is stretched out
into long drone. I assume Kelley has been recording his trumpet
playing and then carefuklly edited the piece by cutting out all
blowings. A bit like Phil Niblock does on ‘Four Full Flutes’, but
Kelley goes further and nothing of the trumpet is to be recognized
here. Not being a particulary big fan of trumpet sounds, I think this
is a great CD. The sheer minimalism is an absolutely beauty, even if
you are no fan of either the trumpet or of improvised music. An
excellent work. (FdW)
Address: www.rossbin.com
DAVID LEE MYERS – DYED SMEAR LIVE (CDR by Generator)
One may have noticed: David Lee Myers is back. In the late eighties,
early nineties he gained fame through his work as Arcane Device,
working on his self-built feedback machines. Operating them with
great care, Arcane Device was never a noise act. Sometimes things
were wild, but Myers played his machines with passion. Rhythmical,
ambient or more up front, he always took us by surprise. In the 1995
he resumed working in art, but in 2001 he returned with a
self-released disc and works with Asmus Tietchens (with whom he
worked before) and soon collaborative works with Thomas Dimuzio and
Vidna Obmana. Upon clearing the dust of his machines, he played a
live to disc feedback piece in early 2001, which is now available as
a CDR. A bit unsure he feels as sometimes the machines take too much
control themselves and the music is lost, but most of the times he
has the right feel. It’s hard to tell what he changed in his line up
of feedback machines, but this live release captures some really nice
moments. Up front music, less ambience and rhythms fill the space. A
good re-introduction or maybe an altogether new one for the younger
generation of a visionary musician. (FdW)
Address: www.generatorsoundart.org
KILN – One (CD by Contemporary Art Production)
KILN – WITH CHRIS SACKER (CD by Contemporary Art Production)
KILN – WASSERTURM (CD by Contemporary Art Production)
I’m not sure we have a new group here. The label is, as the
catalogue-numbers go from 1 to 3. Kiln is Jon Corbet (trumpets), Tony
Moore (cello) and Colin Potter (sound manipulation). Chris Sacker
(voice, text, body sound) contributes on the second cd as a guest.
Pete McPhail (alto and sopranino saxophones, flutes and electronics)
joins the group on ‘Wasserturm’.
‘Wasserturm’ refers to the Water Tower in Preston where Potter has his studio.
Corbett, Moore and McPhail, all played a lot with a great diversity
of english jazz and improvised music combo’s. Corbett for instance
played a lot with Pete Dunmall. McPhail played with the London
Composers Orchestra, MoirÈ Music, Talisker, Resound (with Tony Moore)
and many more. All three of them are advanced improvisors.
Colin Potter needs no introduction for Vital readers I suppose. He
built up a considerable output of solo work over the works and is
known for his work with Nurse with Wound, Ora, Jonathan Coleclough,
Andrew Chalk, etc. I have no information on Chris Sacker.
Anyway, together they make up Kiln and what is Kiln about? What we
hear is intense and concentrated improvised music on cello, trumpet,
saxes and voice. But all sounds are transformed, mutated, altered
etc. by Colin Potter. I have no idea whether he did this live or
afterwards in the studio. What we hear is the interaction as it was
played. So the dynamic of live improvised music remains in tact. It
is only that the sounds are heavily processed. Not to an extent that
the instruments are beyond recognition. Far from it. But Potter
definitely adds a new dimension to the music. I guess he did this
live and that makes Kiln a very interesting marriage of live
electronics and improvisation. Never heard something like it. (DM)
Address: www.i-c-r.freeserve.co.uk
GEN KEN – 1981-1990 THE CASSETTE YEARS (3XCDR by Generator)
Music from the far away past. Gen Ken Montgomery, now a known artist
and owner of the Generator Sound Art label, is somebody who has been
working since the late seventies in the field of electronics. He used
to run various labels and artist spaces and is probably a walking
encyclopedia of electronic music. He released his own music on
various cassettes (the cheap alternative to LP’s, when there was no
sign of CDRs) in the eighties and these are now re-released, how
appropiate, on CDR. The first disc has ‘Gen Ken & Equipment” and
contains some of the early experiments with electronics, rhythmboxes
and voice. Although the songs are raw, they very much sound like so
many of the old electronic popmusic. We hear bits of ancient Human
League in his music and is almost true nostalgia. ‘Kalkreuth Keks’ is
dedicated to Conrad Schnitzler, with whom Gen Ken recorded his next
cassette release in Berlin. The music is an extension of the previous
release, but the ideas are worked out better and instrumentation is
more complex (probably due to Schnitzler’s studio, I guess). The last
release that is included here is ‘Drilling Holes In The Wall’, the
Berlin wall that is. Also recorded in Schnitzler’s studio and Gen Ken
only uses an old modified Casio Ms 10 synthesizer, but all sounds
modified by the best Western equipment. On this work the Schnitzler
influence is most strong. The four seperate stereo layers were
recorded to cassettes and then mixed, very much alike Schnitzler’s
Cassette Concerts. The two lenghty pieces are abstract sound
paintings of sound swirling in and out, moving around and turning
away. Quite a move from the older works, but an interesting step
forward. This is a highly interesting historical document of a
history unnoticed and that needs documenting. (FdW)
Address: www.generatorsoundart.org
ASTHMATIC WORM (CD compilation by Mobile)
A compilation for the hot summer days, just like today. This
compilation has twelve electronic accordion and melodica tracks. The
melodica I regard as one of the more nicer instruments of reggea
music. The accordion has a likewise melancholical feel to it. So we
are offered here twelve dubby pieces based around melodica and
accordions. Summer music really, as they are quite laidback and easy.
They work best if they closely connected to reggea music, such as
Hey’s ‘Sans Toi’ or the poppy Maerz piece ‘Bars 1,2,3,4’. However
most tracks are instrumentals and they all share the melancholical,
darker sides of music. Besides the aforementioned pieces, highlights
include the Atom Heart piece, Burnt Friedman & Jaki Liebezeit and the
very laidback Wechsel Garland. Music to be played on the beach on a
nice hot summer day. (FdW)
Address: <info@mobile-rec.de
CORNUCOPIA – VIBROACUSTICA (CDR by Generator)
A highly political release here. Cornucopia are Jorge Castro and
Claudio Chea and they hail from Puerto Rico. The USA use an island
called Vieques nearby Puerto Rico for militairy exercises. People
living on the island deal with deafening noises, and develop a
disease called ‘Vibro Acustica’. The music on this release was
created by various analogue synths, digital processing and location
recordings (including a domestic amphibian known as the ‘Coqui’,
which only grows on the island). The two guys blend all of these
elements finally together in this eleven piece release, which hails
from darker ambient, glitch related music and some more noisy
fragments. Luckily the latter is kept to a strict minimum (and will
not cause any Vibro-acoustica with the listeners) and the other
styles prevail. At times I thought the pieces were a bit long and
could have been shorter in order to be more effective. Some of the
pieces simply dwell on not enough ideas, such as the cosmic piece
‘Cristal’. But overall this is a nice release that fights a good
cause. (FdW)
Address: www.generatorsoundart.org
BEN SWIRE – EQUILIBRIUM (CDEP by The Foundry)
An EP is an extended play that holds middle between a short play
(single) and a longplay (euh LP), and is something is that is either
just right, or a cry for more. In Ben Swire’s case I’d just it’s just
right. Ben Swire’s background is drumming in a band called Bode and
studying electronic music. In the period living in London he released
a 7″ through NTone and playing in Minus, “crafting live experimental
and improvisational music”. His four cuts on this EP shares his
interest in ambience and rhythm. The tracks are loaded with washes of
synths, all in your face with a huge dose of rhythms and combines the
best of Hypnos and The Foundry on one site (which is not surprise if
you see who released this EP) and the melancholy of rhythm oriented
music of Morr Music, Arovane or City Centre Offices, but less
straight forward techno then is usual on those labels. It might occur
to you that this is a strange combination but it’s one that works
well, at least in these four tracks. I wondered if I’d fancy a whole
CD on this. Probably not, because I find some of Swire’s approaches
too cliche’s, especially his use of the synths is kinda like much of
the kind of presets that come along from the factory. So, the medium
of an EP is just right here. (FdW)
Address: www.foundrysite.com
VAGUE TERRAIN RECORDINGS – A VIABLE ALTERNATIVE TO ACTUAL SEXUAL
CONTACT (CDR by Piehead Recordings)
In the Piehead series two well known gay musicians with a soundtrack
to a film. No, Coil fans can stay at home, for it’s another well
couple. They are from the USA, record for Matador and worked with an
Icelandic girl of fame. This is the soundtrack to a gay pornography
film, “primarily fetish oriented” and includes sounds taking from on
set dialogues… Moans moans, sigh. The music here is pretty straight
forward, dare I say, pumping techno stuff, not really up tempo (even
kind of slow at times) and quite minimal. It lacks the complexity
that their other main project has, and that is a pity. Some pieces
were nice, such as the funky ‘In The Master Bedroom’, but overall I
thought it was a bit tame. Nothing really happened, but that’s my
usual impression from any pornography anyway. (FdW)
Address: www.pieheadrecords.com
COLLIN OLAN – REC01 (3″ CD by Apestaartje)
Apestaartje, the fine US label with the Dutch name, starts a series
of field recordings and ‘other non overtly musical audio’ called
‘Listen’. Probably inspired by composer Bruce Naumann who would take
his audience somewhere, say a factory, stamp their hands with the
word ‘listen’ and declared the sounds of the factory to be his
musicpiece. On this first release, Collin Olan, a Chicago
artist/improvisor, freezes two microphones inside a 10″x10″ block of
ice and then the ice is put into water and the entire melting process
is recorded. Of course it’s added that no procession has been use.
There is some soft crackling going on which gets less and less as the
piece evolves, until the sound has disappeared and the block of ice
is melted (I wonder why the water makes no sound, because I assume
those two contactmicrophones are loose in the water after the melting
is over). A nice conceptual approach however, resulting in a very
nice work. For those who love the crackling minimalism of Lopez or
any basic soundscape stuff. (FdW)
Address: www.staartje.com
JOE COLLEY – ANTHEM STATIC FOR EMPTY LIFE (3″ by C.I.P.)
In the current trend of changing the name from a band to a person,
Joe Colley joined ranks. He worked up until now under the monniker of
Crawl Unit. I don’t believe Joe changed his musical style a lot now
he works under his own name. He plays mostly dark droning music that
dwells a lot on the use of overtones. It’s hard to say but I guess
it’s mainly guitars at work here. The last few minutes are rather
noisy bits, in a rather rhythmical mood. It harks back to the old
days of industrial music. I think they could have been left off and I
would have preferred some more drone music to fill the entire disc.
But that aside, this is a pretty strong work of unearthly, unworldely
drones. But, may I carefully raise the question: what’s next, Joe?
Address: www.crippledintellectproductions.net
FORTDAX – AT BRACKEN (LP by Static Caravan)
STENDEC – PYAT/AUCHINEK (7″ by Static Caravan)
Two newies from a label that I love a lot. Usually they send that
extra bit of information on those obscure artists of them, but not so
with Fort Dax. Clueless wether they are a band or one person. Their
LP is a very nice mixture of warm analogue synths, playing poppy
tunes and simple yet effective rhythmboxes. Mostly instrumental,
except for some wordless singing on the second side. Music that is
sweet. Inspired by anything from the early 70s when synths played
cosmic tunes to the current waves of techno, Fort Dax combines easily
the best of all. Very nice warm electronic music.
Likewise I don’t know much about Stendec either. I believe they are a
duo. The A-side ‘Pyat’ is kinda dark electronic music with a mild,
melancholical tone to it. The flip is ‘Auchinek’ and is even more
melancholical and more laidback. A desperate tune, really. Both are
nice pieces, and both are nice works in the overall nice Static
Caravan catalogue. (FdW)
Address: www.staticcaravan.com
VOLCANO THE BEAR – GUESS THE BIRDS (10″ by Beta Lactam)
One may know Volcane The Bear as the first band in years to make it
to Nurse With Wound United Dairies record label. Besides that they
have some more releases of their own, which are lesser known, and
they have this 10″ in the Lactamase series. I must admit I never
heard much of their other music, but it’s hard for me not to see the
Nurse With Wound connection. Their music has some of the same quality
as the Nurses: vaguely cinematic, with various sound sources being
put together in what seems a random way. Voices (well, more like
somebody who is asleep), piano tinkles and some wind instruments. The
B-side has several shorter tracks, which are much clearer in
approach, probably due to the fact that they are concise. Some of
these are single minded, a voice, some violins, and don’t hold the
attention very well. But overall this is a nice record, and one that
could have come from the home of Nurse With Wound themselves. (FdW)
Address: www.blrrecords.com
JAD FAIR & R.STEVIE MOORE – FAIRMOORE (CD by Old Gold)
Can’t help it, but listening to this one, I feel a strong inclination
to interpret ‘old gold’ very symbolic. Twisted genius Fair and home
taping legend Moore made their points in the past and maybe even
nowadays. No question about that.
I don’t know any of their more recent works. But I hope ‘Fairmoore’
is not indicative for their standards of this moment as it is an
uninspired work. It is all there: the characteristic guitar sounds of
R.Stevie Moore. The voices of Moore and Fair. Captured in 21 songs.
But it never works…..(DM).
Address: http://www.oldgold.org
KLANGKRIEG / GUNTER ADLER (split LP by Staubgold)
Another record from that nice, incestious Hamburg music movement, a
fine split LP between Gunter Adler and Klangkrieg. Adler is the alter
ego of Jurgen Hall who is together with Reznicek a member of
Groenland Orchester. That orchestra is up many electronic pop alleys
but in his solo work Adler goes out to the world of experimentalism.
He plays around with analogue synths and concrete sounds in a partly
serious and partly funny way. Quite academic on one hand, but always
with a twist.
On the other side you’ll find Klangkrieg, which is Tim Buhre and
Felix Knoth, the latter being in another life also Felix Kubin. They
exist since god knows how long. For their various musical projects,
Klangkrieg is also the vehicle for the more experimental side. Unlike
Adler, they bring in much more dynamics in their work. Music wise it
ranges from sheer ambient silence to quite noisy bits. Another
difference is that Klangkrieg seems to be using more treated
acoustical sound elements. It’s been awhile since I heard Klangkrieg,
but I must I very much like this record, and especially their side of
it. Both artists poke fun in a serious way with the serious
avant-garde and luckily they found the right designer to do a cover
that is appropiate. (FdW)
Address: www.staubgold.com
NORIKO TUJIKO – I FORGOT THE TITLE (12″ by Mego)
Being enthusiastic about Noriko Tujiko’s second CD (her previous
release on Mego, reviewed in Vital Weekly 278), I was quite curious
about this record. It contains four pieces from her now rare first CD
aswell as a live recording from the Rhiz in Vienna. I must say I like
learning about people’s previous works, but maybe not in this case.
Electronic popmusic of the worse kind, with vocals that don’t sound
appealling at all. I hope her next one will be a follow up to ‘Shojo
Toshi”… (FdW)
Address: www.mego.at
RECYCLING BUZZ (CD compilation by Amanita)
Glitchworkers of the world unite – or so it seems on this compilation
CD. It features eleven of the lesser known, in most cases, of the
world of laptop trickery. It’s not really a homogenous sort of music
here, but it moves into various places. From the techno inspired
piece from Retina.It to the darker ambiences of Formatt (the opening
piece of the CD is very nice) and the more rhythm and noise approach
by Un Caddie Renverse Dans L’Herbe. Sometimes the tracks are a bit
vague or too loose, such as in th Alejandra & Aeron, in which not
much seems to be happening and it’s over before you know it. One
track seemed firmly out of place, which is the Eardrum piece. A kind
of fucked up drum & bass which just didn’t appeal to me. However in
general this a nice compilation, introducing new names (Act, Idoia,
Forestopper, Voodoo Muzak, Retina), so if you are fed up with
household names there is certainly something new to explore. (FdW)
Address: www.amanitarecords.com
PITA – GET DOWN (LP by Mego)
It has been remarked before, Pita might be a busy bee, playing every
corner the world (at least some time back), but his solo recordings
are not many in number. Pita has not lost any of his power. Armed
with “just” a laptop, he goes about and unfoldes a sonic blast.
Playing on the fringes of noise and techno, Pita also adds some more
subdued moments in his otherwise abstract sound work. Pita’s music
defies any categories, really. It’s all over the place and certainly
sets the standard for any glitch core click cut microwave. The music
is always very much in y’r face and is another fine landmark for
Pita. (FdW)
Address: www.mego.at
COLOUR AND PATTERN (CD compilation by Apestaartje)
This is an interesting compilation of sorts with three artists and
four tracks in total, “each emphasizing subtle variation of melodic
form”.
The CD opens with Minamo, a Japanese electroacoustic quartet,
including people as Tetsuro Yasunaga, Keiichi Sugimoto and Namiko
Sasamoto. They improvise around organs, saxophone and guitar. A
beautiful pattern is enrolled in which both acoustic and electronic
play a fine game together. They mingle together very nicely.
I Sound is of course mostly known for his work with To Rocco Rot, but
here he teams up with Daniel Raffel, a New York multi
instrumentalist. Their piece, the shortest of the four, is a kind of
dark piece, which ends more sunny when marimba’s tinkle in. A nice
piece, even when it is also the most full piece, soundwise.
Jorg-Maria Zeger is the guitarist of Perlonex and the only one to
offer two tracks. His works of repeating guitar motifs reminded me of
‘Violin Phase’ from Steve Reich. A small motif is played, repeated,
repeated and new motifs are added and repeated over the other ones.
Although Zeger’s guitar sounds a little bit more metallic then
Reich’s violins, he nicely plays around with the ideas of traditional
minimalism. Especially in ‘Ikut’ the overtones start singing their
own song.
All four artists have succeeded well in keeping a minimal piece with
a fair amount of variation in both the soundcolour aswell as
melodies. Nice compilation! (FdW)
Address: www.staartje.com
MIROSLAW RAJKOWSKI – THE PRIMARY PRINCIPLE (10″ by Beta Lactam)
This is my first encounter with Miroslaw Rajkowski, a Polish overtone
singer. He plays, or rather sings, here ‘The Primary Principle’ in
fourteen small parts. There is an obvious connection to the Tuvan
throat singers in some of these pieces, but there are parts in here
where the voice sounds remotely away, giving more space to the
atmosphere in which this was recorded. Rajkowski takes his time! This
10″, normally lasting between 20-30 minutes, clocks in at some 50
minutes here. Eerie singing and eerie atmospheres is what he invokes.
Maybe a bit too eerie at times. It’s too experimental to be slagged
down as ethno new age (luckily), but at times maybe too minimal and
single minded. Maybe when stripped down to a real 10″ length, things
would improve. But nevertheless a nice record anyway. (FdW)
Address: www.blrrecords.com
RICK REED – MUSIC FOR THE ROTHKO CHAPEL (10″ by Beta Lactam)
The painter Mark Rothko remains an inspiration for many musicians,
from Morton Feldman to Bernard Gunther and now also Rick Reed. There
is a chapel in Houston, Texas, which has some of the last large scale
paintings by Rothko: strong colour field paitings, monochromatic with
just purple and black. If one looks closely, one can see all the
various small movements inside one colour. Reed recorded in 1985,
more as private thing, then as something to release. Unlike Feldman’s
music for the same chapel, Reed works with guitar feedback in a loud
way. Building the piece layer by layer, adding more feedback to the
work, it’s a hermetic closed work. It’s both a violent aswell as a
contemplative work. It works on the same scale as Rothko’s large
paintings: big and maybe because of it’s size aggressive, but at the
same time giving a lot of beauty in sheer minimalism. (FdW)
Address: www.blrrecords.com