Editorial news: we have decided to stop reviewing MP3 releases. Please do not send any discs with MP3 releases. Just send me an e-mail with a link and a short description, so people can download it. The amount of releases pile up every week and I can no longer devote time to MP3s. Whatever you see coming in the next few weeks are the last ones. Please do not send anymore. Also: releases that do not contain the original artwork will most likely be no longer reviewed. The real thing is necessary for a real judgment. If you wish to send us not the real thing, please contact us first. <vital@vitalweekly.net>
COLIN MCLEAN & ANDY MOOR – EVERYTHING BUT THE BEGINNING (CD by Unsounds) *
MIKA VAINIO – BLACK TELEPHONE OF MATTER (CD by Touch) *
VOLCANO THE BEAR / LA SOCIETE DES TIMIDES A LA PARADE DES OISEAUX – THE SY VOLCANIC SOCIETY AND THE BIRD PARADE (CD by Beta Lactam Ring)
WILL THOMPSON QUARTET – WATIV_ (CD by Wativ Music)
EGG3 – BUTCHER RED (CD by CCAP KNIRK)
FJORDINE – THE SETTING SUN (CD by Kitchen) *
XVI REFLECTIONS ON CLASSICAL MUSIC (compilation CD by Universal Music)
JOHN PILCHER & MARTIN MCKELVEY – A BUN DANCE (CD by Dungeon Taxis) *
LALAKERS – SILK LETTUCE WITHNEY HOUSTON (CDR by Dungeon Taxis) *
LALAKERS – WHEN (cassette by Dungeon Taxis)
E.M.M. (LP/CDR by Motok) *
ADAM PACIONE – DOBRANOC (LP by Elevator Bath)
DALE LLOYD – AKASHA FOR RECORD (LP by Elevator Bath)
RUSSIAN TSARLAG/LESSON LESSON LESSEN RELEARN (split 7″ by West Palm Beotch Records)
POLLEN TRIO – 230509 (CDR by HelloSquare Recordings) *
OLAF HOCHHERZ – ORNITHOLOGY (CDR by Theme Park) *
MARC BARON – UNE FOIS CHAQUE FOIS (CDR by Theme Park) *
PIPELINE ALPHA – DAWN OF APOPHIS (double 3″CDR by Verato Project) *
PHILIP SULIDAE – THE BLACKEN SOLVER (3″CDR by Dontcaresulidae)
PHILIP SULIDAE – UNKNOW (3″CDR by Dontcaresulidae) *
EVOL – FART SYNTHESIS (cassette by Presto!?)
DICTAPHONIA MICROCASSETTE COMPILATION VOLUME 3 (Microcassette by HalTapes)
MP3 releases
Announcements
COLIN MCLEAN & ANDY MOOR – EVERYTHING BUT THE BEGINNING (CD by Unsounds)
With all his playing in the areas of improvised music one could easily forget that Andy Moor started his career with the Dog Faced Hermans and later on in my favorite punk band The Ex. Its through that connection that he learned to improvise with the best in their field, like Han Bennink, Tom Cora or John Butcher, and these days he’s one of the more energetic free players of the guitar. This CD brings the circle to a close, as he teams up with his old band made Colin McLean, also also played with the Dog Faced Hermans, but turned to do sound for The Ex as well as organizing event for Amsterdam’s OT301, in which music and dance are combined. Here he plays computer and Moor guitar and cassette machine. Nine of the eleven pieces were recorded at OT301 and the booklet shows some images of dances, but this music stands well by itself. Its hard to say wether McLean picks up and processes the sound by Moor, or he plays some motifs of his own. I somehow suspect the first. The beginning is cut of, where Moor starts feeding the computer with sound (hence the title of the CD), and as soon they are in some form of interaction the tape starts rolling. Only in a few instances, Moor goes wild out with free play, but in most cases he plays quite strict. Strumming a few sounds and continuing to do that, while McLean adds all sorts of processed sounds thereof to it. In ‘Mingiede’ this even leads to a dance (pun intended) rhythm, at least for a while, and its one of the strongest pieces of this CD. Its, come to think of it, hardly sounding like a CD of improvisation, save for a few places, but more of compositions made out of elements from improvisation. One of the best CDs I heard which involved Moor – apart from the much loved The Ex of course – as an improvisor. (FdW)
Address: http://www.unsounds.com
MIKA VAINIO – BLACK TELEPHONE OF MATTER (CD by Touch)
Over the years Pan Sonic’s Mika Vainio delivers with certainty new work. Either with Pan Sonic, or as ø or under his own name. The latter is used when things are not rhythmic, but beyond that anything is possible. I saw various solo concerts by him in which he used relatively sound sources and some sound effects, but offered quite a bunch of noise with that. On his fourth solo CD for Touch, he goes however in an opposite direction. Not that there isn’t any loud music on this, but it isn’t the orgy of noise that we sometimes hear live, but in these seven pieces there are moments of silence. Vianio uses the methods of collage in each of them. Sounds fade in, fade out, cut in or cut out from a variety of electronic and acoustic sources. The latter are hard to trace back to their origins, although there is some metallic rumble to be spotted, but the electronic part is no doubt all analogue, Vainio’s big love. Like the form of collage is used and makes a pretty intense listening. Long, monolithic blocks are cut off with a few, sparse sounds here and there, loud versus silence, high frequencies and low frequencies. If you don’t watch the CD player, like I normally don’t do, then there might be one objection against the CD. This approach that seems to go on for almost the entire CD (perhaps not in the last piece ‘Hengitytaja/The Breather’), then one could easily believe this is just one long piece. That however I thought was not really a problem. The material is strong enough to keep the interest going for the entire disc. Strong compositions, a great selection of sound material, and effectively a fine disc of modern musique concrete. One of his best solo works so far, I reckon. (FdW)
Address: http://www.touchmusic.org.uk
VOLCANO THE BEAR / LA SOCIETE DES TIMIDES A LA PARADE DES OISEAUX – THE SY VOLCANIC SOCIETY AND THE BIRD PARADE (CD by Beta Lactam Ring)
A split CD containing five tracks from Volcano the Bear and four by STPO. The French group STPO is a long existing and very underestimated group with limited releases over the years. Their history of dadaist and experimental music started in 1984. Beta-lactam Ring released and re-released some of their older material. For this release they choose four tracks that were recorded in 2003 and were not included on earlier releases. These tracks again illustrate their very odd musical universe. I admire them for staying close to their unique musical vision and language. For Volcano the Bear things are opposite in at least one aspect. Namely, they released already a bulk of records in the past. Less bizarre then STPO Volcano the Bear refer in their experimental music to folkmusic. Their compositions stay somewhere in the middle between song-structure and soundcollage. Also they are one dimensional compared to the compositions of STPO that are structured along the inimitable logic of their musical fantasies. The same for their carefully worked out arrangements. The over the top and very expressive vocal work by Pascal Godjikian is the heart of most of the tracks on this CD. Can’t get enough from them. (DM)
Address: http://www.blrrecords.com
WILL THOMPSON QUARTET – WATIV_ (CD by Wativ Music)
A few years ago I was pleasantly surprised by the CD “Bagdad Music Journal” by someone called Wativ. A release from the sympathetic High Mayhem label. Behind the name of Wativ Will Thompson was hided, a musician from New Orleans, doing his military duty in Iraq. Impressive how he managed to record a CD during his four year stay in Iraq. It was a remarkable and musically interesting if not innovative document. Now Thompson is back in the US, and circumstances are now easier for him I suppose now for devoting himself again to music. With this self-released CD Thompson presents his quartet that is made up of Tommy Sciple (bass), Chris Alford (guitar), Simon Lott (drums, electronics) and Thompson himself on Rhodes and piano. All recordings were done on one day in march this year and found their way to this CD without overdubbing. I expected and hoped Thompson would further develop his unique mixture of jazz and experimental music as he did on his first one. However everything is more straightforward here and also a bit retrospective. Spun out themes that are gradually developed in lengthy pieces in a style we know from the old Canterbury-groups and fusion in general. These pieces are interrupted by two totally free improvisations. The strength of Thompson are the deep pastoral atmospheres he evokes through his compositions, like in “Rach B”. Also I like his personal and recognizable style of playing the rhodes-piano. (DM)
Address: http://www.wativ.com
EGG3 – BUTCHER RED (CD by CCAP KNIRK)
From the norwegian label CCAP KNIRK comes this
release by the british-norwegian trio EGG3. Vidar Schanche wrote all the compositions and plays guitar. Simon Kaylor plays baritone sax, Stale Birkeland drums. As a member of the Leeds_based music collective LIMA, Schanche got an idea for a trio that he now realized with Egg3. It is a powertrio with an explosive mixture of jazz and rock that has similarities with bands like Mr.Bungle, Fantomas, Naked City, a.o..
All three players participate and engage on the same high energy level. In the opening title track “Butcher Red” however they seem not really awake, as the piece moves forward in a plumb and sluggish way. But with the second piece “Revenge of the Chicken” they pick up speed and the music becomes more aggressive and powerful. But this speed metal jazz is only one face of the trio. In “Easteregg” they show themselves from their lyrical and friendly side with what sounds almost as an traditional folkdance. A very surprising combination. And it works. Another contrast is reached with the closing piece “The Chickens are not what they seem”, a short but superfluous Tom Waits-like ballad. Egg3 do a well crafted job with some very convincing tunes (“Dr Bucket”) and an original concept. (DM)
Address: http://www.checkpoint.no/
FJORDINE – THE SETTING SUN (CD by Kitchen)
Although this is the fourth album Fjordine (with previous releases on Ryoondo Tea, Dynamophone Records and U-Cover) produces, this is my first encounter with his music. Fjordine is from Tokyo and ‘The Setting Sun’ is inspired by Dazai Osamu’s novel of the same name – which I haven’t read either – which is about ‘an aristocratic family in decline and the moral lapses of its members’. Apparently this is Fjordine’s push into more classical music, using piano, guitars and strings but all covered with lots of glitchy, computerized processing. Sounds of the instruments are well to be recognized here, but are at times a bit stretched out in through ambient glitch tradition. Then there are lots and lots of clicks to be spotted, which are, naturally of course, warm. Quite a good album, I think. Lying on the couch, coffee and smoke within reach, watching summer shades pass outside. I am listening and thinking about the music. Yes, this is all fair and good, but the feeling gets to me that I could easily play something similar from last year, the year before or even older. As such there is not much ‘news’ happening on this album. Solid might be an inappropriate word, but rather for the well crafted production and not for the lighter, atmospheric qualities of the music. (FdW)
Address: http://www.kitchen-label.com
XVI REFLECTIONS ON CLASSICAL MUSIC (compilation CD by Universal Music)
Its not a daily event to receive a CD that is released on a major label, Universal in this case. But I got it from Me Raabenstein, also known as Slowcream (who have a new MP3 release at http://www.nonine.com), and also the man behind this compilation. He spotted the disappearance of boundaries between various musical genres, especially between classical music and electronic music. Its of course always a bit hard to define the word classical music. What is that makes something classical? A question I can’t answer, nor perhaps anyone else. So this compilation then deals with how these musicians regard classical music from whatever era, from Baroque to Cage. The notable thing is the presence of lots of strings and piano’s, not many wild Varese like percussion or wind-instruments. Strings and piano’s seem to add up to melancholiac music. No wild polka dance in Bartok tradition. A large, loud orchestral piece like Bruckner. The common thread to these sixteen pieces however is melancholy and atmospheric tunes. Tunes to fit a good quality television drama. Tunes with a clicky rhythm like with Alva Noto or Murcof to make that perfect cross-over between techno and classical music that goes so well with a more upmarket stage for new music (I must admit I am a bit cynical here). I believe from the sixteen tracks only three are exclusive to this compilation (Lawrence, Hauschka and Slowcream), but we also have tracks here from Gas, Alva Noto & Ryyuichi Sakamoto, Philip Glass, Akira Rabelais, Sylvain Chauvenua, Gavin Bryars, Greg Haines, Murcof and such like. Perhaps a nice introduction to a wider audience? (FdW)
Address: in recordstors all around?
JOHN PILCHER & MARTIN MCKELVEY – A BUN DANCE (CD by Dungeon Taxis)
LALAKERS – SILK LETTUCE WITHNEY HOUSTON (CDR by Dungeon Taxis)
LALAKERS – WHEN (cassette by Dungeon Taxis)
The start of the CD by one John Pilcher and Martin McKelvey sounds like the start of a typical lo-fi, homebrew work from downunder. A reel to reel tape is hand spun, some lo-fi electronics and oh funny, Neil Armstrong from forty years ago about small versus big steps. Then I read the press text only to learn that this work was created no less than forty years ago in New Zealand – where else, I’d say – using TV footage on the first trip to the moon and a bunch of musique concrete like tape manipulations, of that hand spun reel or manual spinning of a bit of vinyl. Lots of hiss come to think of it, but I guess that is in New Zealand usually no problem. ‘Stellar tapezones joyously light years ahead of time’ the label raves and they are right. This is not some rigid, tightly composed work along the strict lines of composing. Here are two guys playing around with a bunch of reel to reel machines, a record player, a beaten up microphone and whatever sound object they could find to create some weird music. No doubt their own words. Weird music is what we did. That is of course: if the whole story is true of course. We live in dangerous times, where whatever you read, whatever claim might not be true. Maybe Pilcher/McKelvey are two youngsters, who saw the 40th anniversary of the moonlanding as a good excuse to make up some story about an old record recorded from 1968-1972 (which means, if true, they started the recording before Armstrong landed in the sea of Tranquility, the skeptical me thinks), with some photos their daddies in the sixties for the cover? Nay, that is not likely. This must be old, true old. I think.
On the same label, two more releases, both by La Lakers. Or is that L.A. Lakers? Both releases don’t tell much. The cassette nothing at all, the CDR just a bit where some of the pieces were also releases, and who the art did. No website for label or band. Its not easy to say what La La Kers (another option) do, soundwise. They seem, I think be interested in drone like qualities of music, using, perhaps perhaps computerized techniques to achieve. Perhaps perhaps the input is a bunch of field recordings, some organ like sounds? Who knows. Perhaps perhaps they use a lot of plug ins to create that glitch effect that runs almost central to this release – ambient glitch versus clicks ‘n cuts. Although probably from New Zealand, lo-fi is a word that is not in place here. La Lakers are firmly digital, firmly glitch and most likely inspired by Fennesz.
The label website has some description for the cassette though: “Live to air in Lyttelton in May 2009 when the musician pretended to be a duo from Kaiapoi and conducted a fake interview with its revenant participants. Ominous mists embraced the surrounding hills, before creeping toward the quiescent harbor. Apologetic rainbows.” Hard to believe this is the same band, as this cassette is a much more low brew of electronic sounds, flutes and mild distortion. Two long pieces with a much more free form approach towards playing music than the twelve relative short slices served on the CDR. I must admit that this did less for me, following listening to the CDR. Maybe I should have switched that. This is not bad either, but perhaps all bit too loosely improvised. (FdW)
Address: http://dungeontaxis.blogspot.com/
E.M.M. (LP/CDR by Motok)
For O.R.D.U.C. everything started in 1980 when they bought time on a 7″ record by Plurex to present their first composition ‘Crazy Computer’. Then the One-O-Seventh Royal Dutch Underground Company started their own label, New Bulwark Records & Tapes to release various cassettes and one LP ‘Pink & Purple’, which is still available (and which I still recommend as a great example of home-made electronic music). Towards the end of the 80s, the label sparked as IF Records releasing a bunch of compilation LPs along the original Plurex principle (for a certain amount of money you get one or minutes to fill on the LP or CD) and the very first LP by Kapotte Muziek. After that things went quiet and Nico Selen went doing whatever day job he had, taking care of the kids and such like, only to find out a couple of years ago that he still liked doing music, had all his equipment (and probably some more) and started again. He still uses a variety of names, like The Bearcage, O.R.D.U.C., Ilo Istatov, NoNotes and Electronic Minimal Music (short E.M.M.) and with that latter moniker he produced a LP in an edition of twenty-nine copies, lathe cut by Peter King, while at the same time producing a CDR version of it. Great, I love lathe cut vinyl, and the music doesn’t let me down either (which is not always the case with lathe cut). The band name is the program of the music. ‘Inspired by Silent E, a composition consisting of only one-note- an E’ it says for the track that bears the band name. ‘Cubism’ is a piece for the ‘C’, banged on a piano, and follows the same structure as an earlier piece by O.R.D.U.C. That’s another nice thing about this record: things hark back to older work, like a fully updated version of ‘Crazy Computer’, which sounds much better than the slightly naive 1980 version. E.M.M. plays really nice mood music. ‘Pearl’ has nice ambient synth, swirling percussion with a bass synth playing a note every now and then and the result is a gorgeous piece of atmospheric music. Piano and synths plays the major tune on this album, all in a very minimal style. Music seems to be hardly progressing but that’s only deceiving: it does change, but very gentle, very slowly and this music takes it time. Only ‘Cubism’ seems to me a bit too long but otherwise a great album. All of this great music is soon to be followed by a new single by O.R.D.U.C., a new LP by them a little later, an EP of older work by them and perhaps a LP by Enfant Terrible. No doubt some of this is also limited, so those who love the old heroes to re-surface I recommend keeping an eye and two ears open. (FdW)
Address: http://www.motok.org
ADAM PACIONE – DOBRANOC (LP by Elevator Bath)
DALE LLOYD – AKASHA FOR RECORD (LP by Elevator Bath)
Following the two picture disc LPs from last year by Jim Haynes and Rick Reed, Elevator Bath now follows this up with two new albums, with very limited information but looking just as great again. First in rotation is Adam Pacione, of whom we reviewed music before. He’s a fine master of very ambient-like sound environments. Here he presents two new pieces of likewise drone beauty. Two austere, monolithic blocks of sound. The press message talks about the use of field recordings, guitars, shortwave radio, analog keyboards and moog filters – which made me wonder: where on earth do I hear all this? Is that all here in this these two pieces? Wow, that is amazing. I would have never guessed that. I would have thought this would be just say a guitar and a bunch of analogue or digital effects. There is one side that is pretty much out there and one that is somewhat more ‘reduced’. Two sides of the drone sun. Nothing new under that drone sun, but this is quite good.
Dale Lloyd has always been known for his ongoing work in the area of field recordings. It has been quiet for some time now, his last release was three years ago. Here no instruments are mentioned, just the notion that it was especially recorded for vinyl. Over the years your copy will gather dust and that will change the way it sounds. Which will be different from the way my copy will sound in a few years. The music is very stretched out and uses a lot of silent passages – of course I guess with the intention of gathering dust. If these are field recordings, and I expect so, then they are heavily processed into warm lush textured soundscapes on one side and rumbling, dark and drone based at the start of side two. That side is of the two the more experimental one in approach. Lloyd’s record sees more different passages than the more uniform approach of Pacione, which doesn’t make it better or worse, just different. The Pacione record is perhaps the one to play at night, and in the earlier parts of the evening the record by Lloyd, who has a more subtle, horror movie approach – a ghostly voice pops up! Scary but beautiful material.
Be sure to put the right album back in the right plastic sleeve! No information on the platter itself. (FdW)
Address: http://www.elevatorbath.com
RUSSIAN TSARLAG/LESSON LESSON LESSEN RELEARN (split 7″ by West Palm Beotch Records)
The letter that came along with this 7″ said there would be two copies of this 7″, though there was one, which is alright of course but also two Lesson Lesson Lessen Relearn CDRs. They weren’t included, so my apologizes to the label and band which is actually one and the same person for not reviewing them. Behind both bands there is one person only, and they know each other for quite some time, working under a variety of aliases (none which are mentioned here). Russian Tsarlag offers a track that is quite hollow in terms of recording, guitar chords and a monotone voice. It sounds like a rehearsal space song and perhaps that is an esthetic quality, but for me that’s not necessary. A bit muffled this recording, but it has that no wave quality of the early 80s. Which I guess is not bad.
Nelson Hallonquist’s Lesson Lesson Lessen Relearn is on the other side of this record and his piece is more interesting. A bunch of analogue synthesizers and some creepy voices (which is a found cassette of ‘two men discussing the body transcending effects of sports via metaphysics’). Here too I am reminded of the early 80s but more in the direction of Throbbing Gristle or Cabaret Voltaire. Actually quite a nice piece. A pity that those CDRs weren’t enclosed to check out some more music by Lesson Lesson Lessen Relearn. (FdW)
Address: <nelson.hallonquist@gmail.com>
POLLEN TRIO – 230509 (CDR by HelloSquare Recordings)
By now HelloSquare Recordings is a full on label for improvised music. Gone are the days of microsound and glitch, welcome improvisation, preferable played by trios. Pollen is no different. Its a trio of Austin Buckett on piano and preparations, Chris Pound on double bass and objects and Evan Dorrian on drums and percussion. They released before a very limited release with Seaworthy, but this is their first major release. Recorded during a three hour session, using multi-track with label boss Shoeb Ahmad at the controls, who mixed this and proved to be a new way of working for the band. Mystery guest C.S.K.A. adds some ‘electronic interventions’, but they are kept to a minimum. The album is quite good, just like 3millions or Spartak, all from the same house. Sometimes a bit (free-) jazz like, or totally free in approach, with the six pieces (lasting twenty-seven minutes) precise and to the point. Funky and groove, with an excellent production, displaying much depth. An excellent work. I wish there would be more like this, but then on this side of the earth. Is this the new jazz way from Australia? (FdW)
Address: http://www.hellosquarerecordings.com
OLAF HOCHHERZ – ORNITHOLOGY (CDR by Theme Park)
MARC BARON – UNE FOIS CHAQUE FOIS (CDR by Theme Park)
It seems that Herbal started a new side label to replace their old series of live recordings in paper sleeves, called Theme Park. The paper sleeve stayed. I am not sure what Oliver Hochherz’s release ‘Ornithology’ has got to do with birds, but I do recall that the only time I built something from an electronic kit was a mechanical bird. It sounded like the sounds I hear on this release. However it might be so that these are real birds: I am no ornithologist. The tracks have ’round’ lengths, 1:00, 2:00 or 19:00, which might be something conceptual I may not understand. There is anyway something conceptual about this release which I may not understand either. A 3″CDR would have been sufficient.
Marc Baron plays saxophone and the recording and mastering of his ‘Une Fois, Chaque Fois’ release. Here too some conceptual is done with the lengths of the pieces, as all eight pieces last seven minutes (why not seven pieces, I then wonder). I have no idea who reads the Russian text at the beginning, with some sparse saxophone sounds, but its a nice track. That can also be said of the other tracks. Baron plays saxophone, edits the material along with some field recordings (restaurant?, streets), which suggest the saxophone is played there too. Track seven seems to me a case of plunderphonics of baroque music. That might not be the case, although that’s hardly relevant I would think. Quite rudimentary in compositional approach I would think, but at least the whole things is more musical than the Hochherz release. A very strange release indeed but nevertheless quite nice. Radical some would say. (FdW)
Address: http://welcometothemepark.tk/
PIPELINE ALPHA – DAWN OF APOPHIS (double 3″CDR by Verato Project)
The package of this release is scented. Like a love letter, but it itches my nose. Perhaps I am too much a lad to care about a nice scent? I never heard of Pipeline Alpha, no information enclosed, just the usual myspace page. One Marcel, from, perhaps, Germany, who also has a label Amid The Waves, with various noise makers and drone meisters on their roster. Perhaps this release should be playing simultaneously, as on each disc the tracks are 9.35/9.32 an 10.01/10.02. But unfortunately I only have one CD and no DJ set up. Its hard, as always, to spot what this guy is doing, instrument wise, but I detect the presence of some cheap keyboard samplers and some effects. It seems to me that Marcel hasn’t quite made up his mind yet what he wants with his music. Or rather, I wouldn’t be surprised to find out that he rather would create drone music but that his machines fail him somehow. The methods to create ambient/drone music are simply said a bit raw to create a finer, dense but not muddy sound. And that’s what this is. Perhaps I am barking up the wrong tree, and is it Marcel’s intention to create the more industrialized version of ambient music. I am not sure. I thought these four pieces were quite nice. Crude, but played with some care and consideration. Not original either, but still with something of his own. (FdW)
Address: http://www.verato-project.de
PHILIP SULIDAE – THE BLACKEN SOLVER (3″CDR by Dontcaresulidae)
PHILIP SULIDAE – UNKNOW (3″CDR by Dontcaresulidae)
Two 3″ CDR releases, nicely packed in a sort of hard fabric cover by someone of whom I never heard, Philip Sulidae. He is from Australia. Both releases have three tracks. ‘The Blacken Solver’ has three tracks of great ambient drone quality. They are created with field recordings, organ and synthesis. Highly drone based of course, but with a bit of noise to it, especially in ‘Baralku’, it borders almost on the edge of distortion, but it doesn’t. Slow moving music, shady dark textures, deep atmospherics. That kind of thing.
For ‘Unknow’ it says ‘constructed from samples, keys and synthesis’, and also has three tracks (though in total a few minutes shorter), and its hard to point out the finer differences between both releases. They are there, ‘Unknow’ seems a bit more reduced in approach I think, but then its not difficult to hear that they were recorded by the same person. Good fine ambient music with a touch of dark drones woven neatly into this. Nothing new in that area, but done with utmost care and precision. Nice covers too. (FdW)
Address: http://www.philipsulidae.com
EVOL – FART SYNTHESIS (cassette by Presto!?)
Another professional cassette release on Presto!?, and perhaps not a surprise that its by Roc Jimenez de Cisneros, whom we better know as Evol, but also as the labelboss of Alku. That label recently also went back into the production of cassettes. Since 2003 Evol works on the ‘Punani’ series: “algorithmic composition, noise, psychedelia, system trajectories and the musical application of fractal geometry and other mathematical phenomena”, and over the years others have contributed to the project, such as Ruben Patino, Jakob Draminsky Hojmark, Joe Gilmore and others. ‘Fart Synthesis’ is the 8th installment in this series and contains two thirteen minutes edits from compositions played live in Osaka, Kiev and Toulouse from the last two years. ‘All sounds were synthesized on the fly on various computers’ and later on re-assembled generative algorithms to splice and re-arrange the files. Its quite an odd release, to say the least. Much of the time it sounds like those farting sounds old analogue synthesizers can, but then created entirely with digital means. They last somewhere between just a fragment of a second, to several seconds. Sometimes they sound like a rhythmic piece, also for a few seconds. Its hard for me, a non mathematician I guess, to discover the composition behind this, and it seems more like a whole bunch of separate sounds, presenting in rather a random order. More like a music release it sounds either like an exercise in random sound or like a twenty six minutes of raw sound material for a possible Evol remix project. Which of course is all the more funny to present in the format of a cassette. I thought it was quite nice, if perhaps a bit tiring. (FdW)
Address: http://www.prestorecords.com
DICTAPHONIA MICROCASSETTE COMPILATION VOLUME 3 (Microcassette by HalTapes)
In all 23 tracks on this release of various material, the better I think realizing the nature of the media which in this case plays a significant part of just what is going on. Those interested can still buy the recorders to play this series, which raise a number of questions, one regarding modernism and what has subsequently followed, even to the extent that post-modernism is seen by many now as passé – we might be in a period “after theory”. Certainly the microcasstte raises McLuhanish issues (theories!) which are/were “modern” – the alter ego of the present virtuality where even the medium has disappeared, perhaps the message has returned but its now empty theory-less and floats in MP3 MP4 Voc Ogg MOV flak. whatever – computers will automatically find the codec. but what is left in the virtual is the idea of a virtual and so non-existent individualism of Stirner (via iphones which make farting noises) who appears on this comp and who predicted the future and all this freedom, via torrents, posted on blogs, etc. I have been more concerned with wasps this summer than swine flu. Not w.a.s.p.(s) but something like that did for Stirner. this tape remains a tragic reminder of rationality and sense – and also property and object. (jliat)
Address: http://www.halmcgee.com
MP3 releases
From: Kestutis Boyev <otolathe@otolathe.com>
“Otolathe has released POST, his latest album, featuring over one hour of music. It includes the epic CTULHU CHOWDER, which will test your subwoofers to the utmost for upwards of 28 minutes.”