OSSO EXOTICO – V (CD by Ananana)
The career of Osso Exotico started years ago, but their output is not
great. This is the fifth production: a beautiful digipack with book
representing the scores of the various composition. If you would have a
superficial look, then this could Edition RZs next release. Osso Exotico is
a group with three members: Andre and David Maranha and Patricia Machas.
When they start out to make music, they pick a piece of papers and write
the score before they start to play the music (a rarity not often found in
Vital Weekly). There are 16 tracks on this CD, but in fact 4 main sections.
The first 9 are very short, each track is one attack on an instrument.
Present in every piece is the piano, and in some also the clarinet or
violin. Simple by its means but at the same time quite intense.
The following two pieces are called “Ciclo’ and the compositions are
represented by a circle. Long stretched violins make the major part of
this. The final two pieces on this (the 1 piece ‘Fuga Domestica’ and the 4
piece “Corrimao’) include to a wider extent tape manipulations. In the fuga
these are domestically recorded such as water sounds. The Corrimao piece is
composed by Andre Maranha and is a strange low end mixture of collaged
sounds. Overall a varied CD of truly modern classical music. (FdW)
Address: <ananana@esoterica.pt>
JIM O’ROURKE – HAPPY DAYS (CD by Revenant)
To some the wonderkind of our times, and to others overrated. I must admit,
I belong to the first group of people. Jim’s career is one that reads like
a who’s who of modern music, having played with lots of people from
improvised music, producing lost and forgotten bands and a small but
excellent catalogue of solo works. This new CD is his first solo thing
since Terminal Pharmacy in 1995 and moves away from his previous electronic
and musique concrete work. Just one piece that starts out with plucking the
strings of guitar. In the first 8 or so minutes on just hears these
pickings, which slowly built. A minimal opening. Then the ‘phalanx of hurdy
gurdies start out. At first I was irritated by this tone (but maybe it was
the unfamiliarity with the instrument), but alas the hurdy gurdies take
over and evolves into beautiful drones. From then on ‘Happy Days’ is back
in early minimalist spirit. The one name from that old school (the happy
days?) of minimalist that needs to be mentioned is Phil Niblock. Acoustic
instruments are played and layered by multi-tracking them. The result is an
almost electronic work. This goes for much of Niblock’s work as for ‘Happy
Days’. Beautiful, intense droning music. I guess this CD by Jim O’Rourke
belongs to one of his best solo works (next to ‘Disengage’) and will end up
in my 1997 top 10. (FdW)
Address: <revenant1@earthlink.net>
SLIM – 0097 (CD on EMIT)
Famous more for their consistently good artwork rather than for the
contents of their CD’s, Emit, this Nottingham-based label have released
their first product of the year. Once again it is testament to their
unpredictable release schedule. I have a feeling that a couple of the
tracks on this CD may have been included in their last release of 1996,
which was yet another of their usually half-good compilations. Yes, I also
believe, along with many others, that their first release by Woob remains
their best and that much of their output since then has been over-diluted
and mostly vague.
Here’s Slim, conveying some of what she thinks via her ‘unique and
bittersweet notions of the song’ with an album of ‘cinematic narratives and
stories we can all hum, spanning intimate torch songs and tales of
abduction (shame there’s no lyric sheet) to skewed groove maneuvers and
deep, languid dub’. Hmm…
My initial reactions to this CD were mixed…I recognized the work that has
gone into it, but couldn’t help feeling that I’d heard it all before. It
starts with some very tasty breakbeat programming in the first track, which
is followed by what sounds like Mrs Fripp humming while doing the dishes.
Halfway through Track 4 I was momentarily reminded of the atmosphere on ‘My
Life In The Bush Of Ghosts’…a touching piece this, featuring an extract
from an interview with Barbara Tucker who tells about the spirit of song,
crying on stage Andrew .beauty. Track 5 starts with an uncomfortably
familiar voice relating the tale of a clever man, who juggling millions of
balls, remains certain he is in control until he looks for his lucky demon
in the mirror and sees it disappearing. Abandoning his juggling, he goes
off in search for the bad beast. Track 6 has a lovely vocal hook and an
amazing menagerie of sound effects and the last track, perhaps my favorite
of them all, is unforgettably haunting. (Sounds like Tony Banks from
Genesis stepped into the studio for a quick arpeggiation)
On the whole, this is a beautifully recorded CD, the music was created by
another Emit signing ‘miasma’, and their weirdness is scattered across this
silver disc like space dust. (MP)
Address: <emit@msn.com>
VARIOUS ARTISTS – UTOPIAN DIARIES: DOUBLE ARTICULATION (CD on Sub Rosa)
There’s a witty sect in America who declare, amongst other things, that
‘Too Much Is Always Better Than Not Enough’, and I’m usually a firm
believer in this decree. BUT…once in a while I beg to differ…see any of
the reviews I may have penned for any Muslimgauze release, for instance,
and you’ll know where I draw the line. Basically, this is a remix product
…that cute, cuddly group of musicians who have suddenly turned into Sub
Rosa’s most released artists, have struck again. This time they manipulate
each others’ material in a rather pointless exercise of self-indulgence.
The recent live series featuring Robin, Dave, Robert, the Oval Twins, the
Mars mice and did I forget anybody, must surely have saturated the market
by now…I have a strong feeling that this latest CD is the last in this
series, for a while anyway. Good thing too. David Shea’s “Tower Of Mirrors’
CD also on Sub Rosa, remains one of my favorite CDs ever, but I do deplore
his constant recycling of the same sounds…As for the rest, well the Main
track on Part 2 or was it 3 of the Live series remains one of the better
tracks of this bunch…And Oval – well, I think their recipe has worn quite
well, but perhaps it’s now time to change the approach…ach! du liebe
herrenvolk ! Double Articulation is redundant. (MP)
Address: Sub Rosa fax: + 32 2 7343532
STILLUPSTEYPA – THE BEST PET POSSIBLE (Korm Plastics Introductionairy Paperback)
This release comes to you courtesy of the admirable Korm Introductory
Paperback series, whereby you, the lucky punters, get to hear all manner of
unusual material for less cash. And what do you get? “The Best Pet
Possible” offers up a variety of pieces on the ambient/drone/cutup tip not
entirely dissimilar to “Beware the Whim Reaper”-period People Like Us.
Tracks 1 to 4 are just a few seconds long, and seem to be part of track 5.
Mastering room fuck-up or deliberate art policy? You decide. Anyway, what
you get is a threatening drone leading into clashing organ chords with
occasional submerged orchestral phrases peeking through. Tracks 6 and 7
introduce serious bass tones under high bell frequencies. So far so good,
but it ain’t gonna change the world. Things pick up big time on track 8, as
two minutes in the droning ambience is suddenly replaced by easy tune home
organ chords and beatbox, – amazing and quite unexpected. The rest of the
track swaps between these, and other, radically different sound
environments. These hard vertical edits contrast well with the otherwise
softly evolving soundscape in which they appear. The effect is like walking
from one room to another at some party from hell co-hosted by The Square
Root of Sub and Mike Flowers – hmm…kinky. The last track includes mix
input from Andrew McKenzie and it shows. A larger sound palette is in
evidence, the pace is more measures and assured, sounds are intrinsically
more interesting – slurred and lovely, quite disorientating, excellent. I
note with interest that this track was completed before the others –
realizing they were on to a good thing, did they come up with the rest of
the CD to go with this track? Who can say? Anyway, overall this is an
interesting and enjoyable CD – we need more of this sort of thing so check
it out. (RTH)
Address: <staal@euronet.nl>