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>
ASMUS TIETCHENS – EINE MENGE PAPIER (CD by Auf Abwegen)
RHODRI DAVIES & GREGORY BUTTNER – 3 HARP TREATMENTS (CD by Anthropometrics/Auf Abwegen)
BRUCE GILBERT – OBLIVIO AGITATUM (CD by Editions Mego)
KERNEL – D.R. (CD by Recordings Of Sleaze Art)
KERNEL – KERNEL #2 (CD by Recordings Of Sleaze Art)
P. JORGENSEN – TO (CD by Low Point)
MACDONALD & FUIJ & DAVIDSON & TAMURA & BANCROFT – CITIES (CD by Nu-Jazz)
SOON KIM & TETSUYA HORI – NON-TRANSPOSED SENSE (CD by Konnex)
SUI (CD by ZUFALL3177)
THEME – VALENTINE (LOST) FOREVER (CD by HCB Records)
HISTORY ALWAYS FAVOURS THE WINNERS – SADLY, THE FUTURE IS NO LONGER WHAT IT WAS (3CD set)
CURSE OV DIALECT – CRISIS TALES (CD by Staubgold)
NORSQ – GELATINOSA SUBSTANCIA (CD by Staubgold)
WOODRING – SCARED OF FERRET (CD by Silber Media)
LOST KISSES – MY LIFE IS FUNNY & SAD (DVD by Silber Media)
REMORA – DERIVATIVE (CDR by Gears Of Sand)
MIRKO UHLIG – GYOKURO (CDR by Gears Of Sand)
RICHARD LAINHART/HAKOBUNE (10″ by Tobira Records)
EDWARD SOL/ANLA COURTIS – SUBBURST LUX (7″ by Quasipop)
BAS VAN HUIIZEN – FIDUCIEFRET (CDR by Etherkreet)
TAKLAMAKAN/GNAWED PARALYSIS – RUST AND BONE (CDR by Spit & Cus)
PIVIXKI (CDR by Sabbatical Records)
DRONAEMENT – FIELDBOX (3CDR by Field Muzick)
JAN KEES HELMS – 5 (3″CDR by Lor Teeps)
New MP3 releases:
ASMUS TIETCHENS – EINE MENGE PAPIER (CD by Auf Abwegen)
RHODRI DAVIES & GREGORY BUTTNER – 3 HARP TREATMENTS (CD by Anthropometrics/Auf Abwegen)
Perhaps I may have this before, but I love the format of a 7″, except that I don’t think its suitable for a lot of music that lands on the desk of Vital Weekly. Music by the likes of Asmus Tietchens. He released ‘Papier Ist Geduldig’ in 1996 on a 7″ on the Syntactic label (which, I just checked their catalogue, could do a great compilation CD of their 7″ releases). Paper is patient is what the title means and it refers to the soundsource used: paper. There was supposed to be another 7″ on the same label, but that never happened, however he released a piece made out of paper on a compilation CD, also for the same label. This mini CD, lovely on a big size with a transparent outer ring, collects all the ‘relevant’ pieces, leaving ‘P.I.G. 1’ and ‘P.I.G. 3’ in the archive, but the other five pieces (two from the released 7″, two from the unreleased 7″ and the compilation) are collected here. As said, how much I love the format of a 7″, the music of Tietchens comes better across on a CD. The rustling of paper can sometimes be heard here, while the treatments are crisp and clear. This was recorded in 1996, so it doesn’t have quite yet the more silent treatments that Tietchens in his later work uses, and ‘P.I.G. 2’ is quite crude and loud. The use of reverb is extensive there. Five fine pieces of electro-acoustic treatments, of Tietchens in great shape.
Something else I may have noted before, is that Gregory Büttner from Hamburg might be seen as a student of Tietchens (among others). Its hardly a secret that Tietchens is a teacher for sound and perhaps – I am guessing here – Büttner was a student from him. But if not, then he stands in his tradition of sound treatments using a single sound source. Whereas Tietchens learned his trade in the analogue school, Büttner is the digital man. His single source here is the harp playing by Rhodri Davies. He recorded three short improvisations and mailed them to Büttner, who used them to create three lengthy excursions in sound. The harp as such is something which we no longer recognize as such, but perhaps we can sense a bit of the tonal qualities the harp has, that high ringing sound and the deep end. But perhaps that’s just my imagination running wild on hearing these pieces. Büttner too uses quite some reverb, occasionally that is, but we can find him for the major part in the land of microsound. Low humming sound, fine and delicate processings (especially in the third part). As such perhaps not the CD to set out a new course in music, but one that builds on the tradition that is already there. (FdW)
Address: http://www.aufabwegen.de
BRUCE GILBERT – OBLIVIO AGITATUM (CD by Editions Mego)
Its been a while since we last heard a solo CD by Bruce Gilbert, former of Wire, and with an almost forty year career span in rock bands, electronic music and art installations. His previous solo CD was ‘Ordier’, released in 2004, but recorded in 1996, so ‘Oblivio Agitatum’ is his first CD in the new millennium. His mid 80s solo-albums, made for choreography, are what some call his best. Some of the later, more noise based works, were not that interesting I thought. So with much anticipation I heard this new one, and was not disappointed. Three pieces, two quite short and one much longer, of electronic sound of which the origin is hard to be spotted. Some sort of synthesizer? Just effects? Electro-acoustic sounds? Its all hard to say what it is. Obscure music, that’s probably as vague but as clear as it can get. In the title piece this is some sort of tape-loop like repeating sound, and in ‘Zeros’, a drifting ambient like piece of dark electronics, that slowly starts unfolding in various shades of darkness. ‘Isopyre’, the closing piece is perhaps the most musical piece of the lot. Throughout are these three pieces quite dark and highly atmospheric. Great music, and perhaps for Gilbert a new path to follow, but not as ‘new’ as some of his earlier has been. Nevertheless, a damn fine release. (FdW)
Address: http://www.editionsmego.com
KERNEL – D.R. (CD by Recordings Of Sleaze Art)
KERNEL – KERNEL #2 (CD by Recordings Of Sleaze Art)
Two CDs at once by one band… isn’t that a bit much? Perhaps it is. Kernel is a trio of Eryck Abecassis, Wilfred Wendling and Kasper T. Toeplitz. They play laptop and perform compositions, rather than improvisations. On ‘D.R.’ they play two compositions, one ‘Dust Reconstruction’ by Toeplitz and ‘Drowing Report’ by Abecassis. ‘Kernel #2’ is an older composition by Toeplitz, which they played quite a bit already a bit over the years and of which they thought it would be good to see how a new interpretation sounds like now. The compositions are written out but not as musical notes, but rather as instructions. On ‘D.R.’, the Toeplitz piece is quite nice, moving from the very quiet to quite loud, piercing sounds. ‘Drowning Report’ however is more noise based, although the dynamics are present here too. Quite a fine work.
‘Kernel #2’ is also a fine work, but I admit playing both CDs is a bit much indeed, although there are some differences. It seems to me that ‘Kernel #2’ lacks the noise outbursts that the more recent compositions have and this one moves in a more natural way, touching both the high and low end of the sound spectrum. When noise arrives it’s from a logical thing that happens before and not through some sudden outburst. Obviously I can’t judge this to be a ‘better’ performance than before, but its certainly a nice composition. As said, playing both of these in a row is a bit much. Both discs contain heavy weighted music and aren’t simply to digest. (FdW)
Address: http://www.sleazeart.com
P. JORGENSEN – TO (CD by Low Point)
Maybe I heard the name and music of P. Jørgensen before, but then I don’t seem to recall where and when. Maybe its that ø thing in his name that makes it difficult to find in the old issues of Vital Weekly. Apparently he is from Copenhagen, Denmark and works as a sound artist and composer for ensemble. For his ‘To’ CD he played, recorded, composed and processed all the sounds himself, save for some material delivered on bells, cymbals, clarinet, accordion and ‘whatnot’. Although the CD is indexed into various pieces, they flow into each other and create, as far as I’m concerned one piece. The press text talks about one piece, which I fail to hear. The music is great however. Drone music of the highest order, which deals a lot with acoustic instruments, maybe some field recordings (they are mentioned, yet not easily be heard), which are processed so that form long sustaining notes, slowly building up yet never seeming to reach a big dramatic climax. While in a crescendo they are cross faded to the next movement, and then to another one. As said, a fine album, of which one could only say: damn only thirty minutes? This could have easily been say forty-five or more. If you love Stephan Mathieu’s delicate music, then I strongly suggest seeking out P. Jørgensen. (FdW)
Address: http://www.low-point.com
MACDONALD & FUIJ & DAVIDSON & TAMURA & BANCROFT – CITIES (CD by Nu-Jazz)
This one leads us to Glasgow. To an improvising combo with recordings dating from 2005. Saxophonist Raymond MacDonald, guitarist Neil Davidson, plus drummer Tom Bancroft are joined here by pianist Satoko Fujii and trumpeter Natsuki Tamura. A meeting of japanese and scottish musicians on the universal platform of improvised jazzy music. From what I can say, all of them are fantastic players and understand their skill. The music is often intense and inspired, with a good interplay between the musicians. They surely built interesting structures. But although everything is okay here, it didn’t really talk to me. But that may be a matter of taste. I only liked it for some bits and pieces. Where the improvisations are most far out, I really liked them, as in ‘Into the Diversion’. However where the music becomes very jazzy and romantic I hate it. As is the case in ‘Overload’ due to the playing by Fuji. (DM)
Address: http://www.nu-jazz.net
SOON KIM & TETSUYA HORI – NON-TRANSPOSED SENSE (CD by Konnex)
Tetsuya Hori is musician and composer from Japan living in Berlin. For this project he joined forces with Soon Kim, who also lives in Berlin. Kim plays sax, Hori laptop, beer bottle, toy piano, melodeon. Before moving to Berlin Soon Kim lived in New York since 1987 where he took lessons from Ornette Coleman in harmolodic theory. In 2007 he released a CD containing pieces of his trio and quartet. Hori moved to Berlin in 2003 and in the years before he got his education in Japan (composition). In 2008 he released a solo-album. He has a love for waterlike sounds. The four pieces we find on their CD were composed, arranged and produced by both musicians. Their music is hard to describe. They paint captivating atmospheric soundscapes. The saxplaying is effectively embedded in nice soundtextures that come from Hori. The music sounds very transparent and spacy. Sometimes however it is losing itself in space and it is leading nowhere. The second piece is built around a spoken (japanese) voice, and we miss the point here if you don’t understand japanese. Hori proves himself as an interesting and capable soundmagician with a good taste for how to color and combine sounds. Kim and Hori move along very well together, leaving room for each other, and taking time to develop a conversation. Their conversations are never boring, however it is evident that both musicians come from very different musical backgrounds and speak with very different musical vocabulary. (DM)
Address: http://www.konnex-records.de
SUI (CD by ZUFALL3177)
Zufall3177 is a very young label, with only two releases by now. The label started with the recording of Coincidenzia, a collaboration of 24 musicians from Rome who never had played together before. This is also the leading concept for ‘Sui’. So ‘Sui’ does not refer to a band, but to a – by definition- one of project. Of course there needs to be an organizer behind this, a genius who coordinates this formula. Otherwise it is difficult for it to come into being. Also I can’t imagine the musicians were invited purely on a at random base. So there must be a mastermind behind this project who pulls the triggers. From the information included I cannot conclude however who this person is. Probably the folks who run this label. It is evident that these people are charmed by the concepts of coincidence, synchronicity and I Ching. Through these principles they search for “the essence of music” in their projects. For ‘Sui’ this exercise is executed by the following musicians from Germany, Swiss, France, Italy and USA were invited: Agathe Gizard ( violin, voice), Chad Popple (drum), Frank Szardenings (guitar, bass, sax), Gastone Lagaffe (tenor sax, guitar), Hans Hartmann (doublebass, chapmanstick), Jeff Gburek (guitar, mixer, laptop), Jean Hervé Peron (voice, guitar, bass, trumpet, psalter, bohrhammer, chain, horn), Mat Pogo (voice, mixer radio station set), Peter Schlewinski (drum), JD Zazie (CDs, turntable, mixer), der Himmel (bass, voice, drum, horn, bohrhammer, chain). Only the of Peron (Faust) did ring a bell. In many different small line ups we find them at work in 21 short musical escapades. All of them recorded in two days in february 2007. Although a wide range of music emerged in these two days, there is some mysterious unifying factor at work. The music ranks from song-structured pieces, sound and noise collages, free rock and improvisations. Some of the pieces sound very tight, others are a collage of loosely assembled ingredrients. Of course one piece is more successful then another. Maybe because of all musicians vocalist Agathe Gizard is involved in most pieces, it is that I’m impressed by her vocal acrobatics. Whether the essence of music is captured here, I don’t know, but it is a successful concept resulting in a multisided whole of very different improvisations. (DM)
Address: http://www.zufall3177.com
THEME – VALENTINE (LOST) FOREVER (CD by HCB Records)
The review of the previous CD by Theme ‘Our Angels Dislocated’ started with “And some people just take their time. A lot of time. And why not? Theme’s first album ‘On Parallel Shores Removed’ was released in 2001 (see Vital Weekly 247) and after that things were mostly quiet”. That was in Vital Weekly 527 and, alright, the gap between that CD and ‘Valentine (Lost) Forever’ is not as big as between that CD and the first, its still quite some time. The band is now Stuart Carter, Richard Johnson an Jeanne Boyer (Hassni Malik is gone) and the instruments are computers, guitar, sitar, voices, percussion, found sounds, keyboards, tamboura, violin, singing bowl and other objects. The first two CDs did show an interest in sampling, abstract rhythm, ambient and mixed it together into great atmospheric music. I guess the mood of the new CD is still atmospheric, but there has been a major change: Theme sets out to play ‘songs’, rather than ‘pieces’. Vocals start to play a big role, and I must say I have a bit of a problem with those vocals. Its that same kind of nagging voice that David Tibet has, the preacher like voice. The music also takes us to Current 93, with drums like a mighty bang such as ‘An Answer To All Life’ (which as title says enough). How much I liked the first CDs by Theme, and how much I appreciate bands changing their approach, this new CD is definitely not well-spent on me. I guess I’m just very allergic to this kind of singing, these kind of lyrics. While the music is still OK, I think, its not something I can relate too. Despite a Steven Severin (Siouxsie fame) remix. (FdW)
Address: http://www.HCBrecords.com
HISTORY ALWAYS FAVOURS THE WINNERS – SADLY, THE FUTURE IS NO LONGER WHAT IT WAS (3CD set)
The press text for this release is long, very long, and its hard to grab the essence. Leyland Kirby, I guess formerly known as James Kirby when he was called V/Vm, and then the Caretaker (whose ‘Persistent Repetition Of Phrases’ is apparently very good, but not heard by me) and now History Always favours The Winners. Recent changes in his life, good as well as bad, forced him to create music, ‘music which made myself cry at times’. This led to a flood of releases, of which I have here three CDs. The Wire compared it with Angelo Badlamenti. Wow? V/VM’s Kirby? Well, true, the music on these three discs is highly atmospheric indeed. Almost like new age music. Machine music, Garage band tunes perhaps, with some additional reverb here and there? Well, perhaps its not, but I found it very hard to listen to these CDs of kitsch music. It didn’t made me cry, or sad, or happy, or cheery, it did nothing. The only thing I could think of was that Kirby pulls another joke on the listener. To create something that people could actually like, but which was perhaps created in a couple of minutes with some software running. It drifts about, semi-musically, but never demanding, strange, with compositions just not being that good. And that times three. Its been a long night. (FdW)
Address: <vvmtest@gmail.com>
CURSE OV DIALECT – CRISIS TALES (CD by Staubgold)
NORSQ – GELATINOSA SUBSTANCIA (CD by Staubgold)
No bullshitting here: I don’t like hip hop music. I don’t like rap music. Curse Ov Dialect does play that music, and even when I like Staubgold branching out to music that isn’t mine, I don’t see a point in sending it to Vital Weekly. While sometimes (!), the music is alright, throughout the CD ‘Crisis Tales’ there is so much rap that I couldn’t play until the end. Despite the fact that there are rappers from Macedonia, Germany, Poland, Indonesia, Switzerland and the USA – so what I ask myself.
Norsq is started The Grief in 1984, which is one of those bands that I always missed out to hear – I don’t recall why. He also worked with Von Magnet, Quattrophage, Mimetic Field, Black Sifichi and Negative Stencil. This new work under the name Norsq is the soundtrack for a movie directed by Veronique Ruggia, which I haven’t seen. Its a bizarre soundtrack that warps the listener back and forth in musical history. Electronic music, sound collage, hip hop (oh no not again, but its minimal here), orchestral bombast, guitar solos, Magma, electro-pop are just a few of the things that fly by. Quite bizarre indeed, but it did keep my attention throughout, and wanting to play it again straight away. The true musical melting pot if you are looking for one these days. An excellent CD… or download? Available as an official download, but Staubgold pressed a bunch of real CDs – the official CD bootleg. Reverse music industry tactics at work here – might be the call for their future. (FdW)
Address: http://www.staubgold.com
WOODRING – SCARED OF FERRET (CD by Silber Media)
LOST KISSES – MY LIFE IS FUNNY & SAD (DVD by Silber Media)
REMORA – DERIVATIVE (CDR by Gears Of Sand)
Apparently there was a bidding war between three labels to release this CD by Woodring, which was won by Silber Records. A three piece of Mae Starr (vocals, keyboards, loop, kaos pad, effects), Monte Trent Allan (bass, effects, hand percussion) and Jesse Stevens (drums, flute), with the help of Micheal Braun Hamilton when recording this CD. ‘Proto everything rather than post anything’, the label says. I am not sure if I find that true. To me this music seems to be the result of long spaced out jams, high on anything, and see what was recorded afterwards. Psychedelic music with the capital P, if it had not been the opening word of this sentence. Very hip music, I’d say. Music that is very free, Smegma like (must be that Portland, Oregon air). Also very American music. Not bad, I think, but perhaps also not that much my cup of tea. But then inhaling the right substances is not what is done when writing reviews, so that might be a bit problematic when judging this music. I’ll see tonight.
Behind Lost Kisses is Brian John Mitchell, who is a zinester/cartoonist, who somehow had some sort of deal to get his cartoons on TV, but in the end it didn’t happen. I’m sure it would have been with a different soundtrack, as the music is pretty abstract, minimal, sine wave like and somehow don’t fit the ten stories. The drawings are very, very simply and tell a story. The simple drawings tell us something and beneath there is the overall narrator. Stories about a funny and sad life, and the stories are sad and funny. I wonder if I would want to watch this more than once though, but perhaps I’m not that kind of cartoon guy. The music however is pretty nice, played on guitar, ringing and buzzing in my ear. Not bad, a bit much to watch all at once.
Behind this Remora is one Brian John Mitchell (the same as before? Its not told), who has been inspired by Tom Verlaine, Roy Montgomery, David Pearce and Hayden. Apparently his last record was from 2005, which I didn’t hear, nor the ones before that. Mitchell uses the loop device and his guitar, and he feeds to the device, short hooks from his favorite songs, but the likes of Journey, Blue Oyster Cult, Pere Ubu, Hefner and Warrior Soul. I must admit I fail to hear these hooks, except for Joy Division’s ‘Wilderness’ but somehow I am glad. Or perhaps I wouldn’t need this information at all? This label is best known for ambient and drone music (see also elsewhere), and somehow it seems that the music of Mitchell only fits in there partially. With some good will one could call this ambient, but of a more ‘aggressive’ kind. The guitar comes in ‘loud’, piercing perhaps through the use of reverb. Like John Fahey going electric, or perhaps Michel Henritzi’s take on blues music. Slide like, ebow like, and endless solo. I thought about five songs were fine enough, still not great, but then boredom leaped in. A repetition of an idea gone too far. You know the drill after five pieces, and wish for something out of the ordinary to happen, but it doesn’t come. Turn off that reverb, would be one advise to start with. That would make a difference by itself. (FdW)
Address: http://www.gearsofsand.net
MIRKO UHLIG – GYOKURO (CDR by Gears Of Sand)
It has been remarked in the pages of Vital Weekly before, but the man to watch when it comes to producing some interesting drone music is Germany’s Mirko Uhlig. Recently he did a 7″ with [N], and already has a small catalogue of works (of which the great ‘VIVMMI’ will soon be re-issued on LP) and ‘Gyokuro’ is the latest in a series of these works. Again he works with relative minimal means to generate the pieces of music. An organ perhaps in ‘In The Gardens Of Gyokuro’? That seems to be it. Maybe the processed bird call in ‘Do Birds’ (actually the title for these six pieces can be read as one sentence: ‘Do Birds Practice Their Songs While They Sleep In The Gardens Of Gyokuro’). Uhlig knows how use a few sounds and still create a great piece of atmospheric music. And, you may ask, does it sound like anything else, or is it completely new? Well, no. In this particular line of music, nothing much new is done. That is perhaps also not the goal of this kind of music. Does it produce a great piece of music? Yes, it does. Whereas some of the current drone artists take too much time or use too much sounds, Uhlig knows how to play a few delicate sounds and set the tone right. Short pieces, each with their own character, yet as a whole, the album has a great distinct sound, an uniformed entity. Another fine work. (FdW)
Address: http://www.gearsofsand.net
RICHARD LAINHART/HAKOBUNE (10″ by Tobira Records)
The work of Peter King, the man who cuts those nice plastic records called lathe cuts, is probably well-known. But it seems if not all music fits the format quite right. Take for instance the side by Richard Lainhart, who performs a piece for electric guitar and real time computer processing. It might that hole of the record is a bit too big, but it sounds a bit false, which is a pity since the piece sounds great: a harmonious drone piece of a lighter nature. Moody and nice. Or perhaps its intended like this? Maybe that bit of false sound is part of the piece? I couldn’t quite work that out. The other side has music by Takahiro Yorifuji, who calls himself Hakobune. His piece is for acoustic guitar processed with pedals, and also recorded in real-time. Quite a curious piece of music, in which we recognize no guitar, but a very reduced sound that is quite densely layered, that make out to form some kind of drone. Here too the quality of the material works a bit against the music. May be ask for a CDR version to be released, preferably with no longer versions too? (FdW)
Address: http://hakobunemusic.web.fc2.com/tobira.html
EDWARD SOL/ANLA COURTIS – SUBBURST LUX (7″ by Quasipop)
Analogue sounds rule on the Edward Sol side. He uses cassette tape loops, polyvox and pedals, all recorded to a four track cassette machine. A crude piece somehow, but it works wonderfully well. Sounds roll over eachother, like a rusty rollercoaster rolling at night. Small thunder storms are depicted here, an industrial site at night, desolated. Nice stuff, great noise.
Anla Courtis on the other side just uses geyser sounds for his piece. It doesn’t say what he does to process those sounds, but likewise this could very well some sort of analogue treatment. Over the course of six minutes sounds well until they are cut when reaching their peak. An effective treatment and imaginative piece of the violent forces of nature. (FdW)
Address: http://www.quasipop.org
BAS VAN HUIIZEN – FIDUCIEFRET (CDR by Etherkreet)
Hopefully, perhaps, Bas van Huizen is no longer really unknown, for his releases on his own Etherkreet label. He plays guitar of his own making, voice and a Chinese gourd flute, which he feeds through ‘spectral manipulation software’, which is funny, since upon my first listening I thought Van Huizen used some old analogue synthesizers and many sound effects. His previous, MP3, release ‘Ontgalman’ seemed to dwell a bit too much on prog rock guitars, this one harks back to the cosmic music of the seventies, but then the pitch black nightmare variation. Dense walls of layered sounds, scraping of objects, mucho reverb create dark atmospheric music – remember the cosmos is black? Van Huizen has the perfect soundtrack for it. Its good to see him changing direction, almost with every release; or rather perhaps he is exploring various lines of possibilities he has set out, before deciding on which direction to go. In either case this particular line of investigation is a great one. Think again Asmus Tietchens, Nurse With Wound’s drone excursions, Mirror, but then a bit more spiced up. And where on earth does he get those strange titles from? I tried to think of an appropriate translation for the title, but failed. (FdW)
Address: http://www.etherkreet.com
TAKLAMAKAN/GNAWED PARALYSIS – RUST AND BONE (CDR by Spit & Cus)
Taklamakan = Harold Gojani from Croatia 28 minutes of slowly fading in what is termed brown noise which is on the blog or somewhere is termed HWN. Gnawed- delicate gongs hanging in static silence which fades into white noise- each mirroring the form!. There is a type of conflation by which in mathematics a sequence of non-equations ends up proving that 1=0. Its everywhere, a recent example operating at multiple levels in a book entitled Noise & Capitalism where in the main neither is discussed and meanings are again and again replaced with whatever is convenient. A superb example is “Genre is Obsolete” by Ray Brassier – the article seems to wish to adulate two neo-fluxus performers – under the heading noise, though neither considers themselves to be noise. So the definition is shifted to include neo-punk/pop antics and then the conclusion is asserted that noise is just as comodifiable as anything else. Well a colander is a saucepan if you fill in the holes and attach a handle. Elsewhere Edwin Prévost claims that all music save religious is commercial, discounting the illegality of downloads- which of course might be illegal in his art-sphere but free and open downloading, production at a loss or to swap, is apparent with many who make noise. The very simplicity and anti-elitistism serves as such. What has this to do with the above, simply put if noise is not conflated it is the very thing the sad Marxists want – a non comodifiable artform, but unfortunately the above miss the point by assuming anything can be called noise. To put it even more bluntly – a slow fade = form, bells = sonority. Both are stuff that’s possible to flog – unlike noise as dead horse. And to a perceived objection- to buy noise is likewise to indulge in an ironic (anti) capitalist act..(jliat)
Address: http://www.spitandcuss.blogspot.com/
PIVIXKI (CDR by Sabbatical Records)
Busy bee Anthony Pateras, whom we know from various excellent improvised music releases teams up as Pivixki, where he plays the piano and meets up Max Kohane, who is a ‘punk/grind royalty from Agents Of Abhorence, Cut Sick, George W Bush and Far Left Limit’ – none of which rings any bells here. They cut eight tracks together of total improvised mayhem. Loud for sure, but not throughout. Insane playing but these boys know what they are doing. There is some excellent timing between them, where one plays something and the other responds in a great, making room for a new change, a sudden movement, or a dramatic built up. At just twenty-four minutes, this is the perfect blast of music. They are touring Europe soon, sadly not very around where I live, but maybe in your area? I’d imagine this to be very good live wise. The disc is already a fine appetizer. (FdW)
Address: http://www.sbbtcl.com
DRONAEMENT – FIELDBOX (3CDR by Field Muzick)
Packed in a handsome metal box with booklets, in an edition of 50, comes this 3CDR set by Dronaement, the musical project of Marcus Obst. There is the piano saga photo story by Marie Elisabeth Ince ‘which completed the work […] her photos tell a similar story, of music that living outside and a needful farewell’, but its a bit unclear what ties in these recordings. A historic overview perhaps? All the music seems to be dealing with field recordings of some kind, but there are some differences to be noted. ‘Fields 1’ has eight tracks which deal with some kind of rhythm, even some sort of ‘dance’ rhythm at times. This is entirely absent in ‘Fields 2’, which only has three long tracks. These are mainly to be found in the world of drones and lots of field recordings (birds twitter a lot around here). Curiously ‘Fields Bonus’, the third disc is the longest here (almost seventy five minutes) with raw mixes of two pieces found on the other two discs and throughout some long pieces. I must say its all a bit to digest at once, but maybe that’s just a reviewer’s perspective. A long night of moody, minimal electronics and field recordings may lie ahead of the listener. (FdW)
Address: http://nauzemuzick.net
JAN KEES HELMS – 5 (3″CDR by Lor Teeps)
Another short album by Jan Kees Helms, who is pretty active since his come-back earlier this year. Here he presents five pieces created for a fashion show. Fashion with a ? meaning perhaps its not fashion. Inspired by skin covering by water, sand and ash, and the five colors of the Tibetan flag, he created five short pieces. We hear bird calls, water, marbles, fire and other acoustic sounds of which I can’t trace the origin easily being processed into five short delicate pieces of music that is somewhere in between ambient and industrial music. Helms uses computerized effects, but its too raw and roughly shaped to be thoroughly microsound, and that’s perhaps a fine thing: it sets him apart from the other lot. Things could have been a bit longer and maybe a bit worked out, but again its a small step forward. (FdW)
Address: http://www.jankeeshelms.nl
New MP3 releases:
From: Nheap <info@nheap.com>
my name is Massimo Discepoli, and I’m a musician from Italy, producing my own music under the Nheap moniker.
I’ ve just released my new album, Skymotion, whose music is a mix between jazz and electronic, ambient and avant-garde, experimental and melodic.
I’d be glad if you could review it, you can download it at http://www.nheap.com (direct link: http://www.nheap.com/nheap_skymotion_(2009).zip ) or at the Acustronica netlabel website http://www.acustronica.com (direct link: http://www.acustronica.com/releases/nheap_skymotion_(2009).zip )
Maybe you could prefer to listen to some tracks at first….so have a go here :
(feel free to use these , or any others tracks, on blogs and radio airplay)
this is one of the more jazzier tracks: http://www.nheap.com/audio/nheap_hldrrr.mp3
this is one of the more straighter, melodic tracks: http://www.nheap.com/audio/nheap_gravitational_assist.mp3
my album will be freely downloadable until October,30; then it will be available on iTunes and others online vendors, and of course on http://www.nheap.com and http://www.acustronica.com