The dedication and worship and legend that this band inspires, even years after the end of their brief career is amazing. Not undeserved mind you, just surprising. Cult legends in the bayou's sludge scene along with Eyehategod, Crowbar, Down, etc... Acid Bath called it quits after the death of their bass player, and members went on to join Crowbar and Goatwhore after recording their post-Acid Bath masterpiece (and one of our favorite records) as the Agents Of Oblivion. But Acid Bath -were- amazing, melding furious grinding almost-death metal, buzzing hardcore, and super melodic hard rock ala Alice In Chains or Soundgarden. And writing amazing songs, evoking mystery and death and salvation and nihilism. It's sort of a crime they weren't HUGE. But maybe they are right where they should be, underground. Here's how we described our favorite Acid Bath record on a past list: "Imagine the sheer brutality of Eyehategod, the bluesy grind of fellow bayou residents Soilent Green, the stoned sabbathy swing of Trouble, and the melodic flair of late era Corrosion of Conformity or Alice In Chains, all forced onto one cd. Sound confusing? It is. But somehow, it gels perfectly, striking a pefect balance between catchy and heavy." While this is probably not the place to start for Acid Bath virgins (that would be their second full length cd 'Paegan Terrorism Tactics') this is a godsend for Acid Bath fans (like us) and an amazing document. Features multiple live performances of all their best songs from Boston in 1996, New Orleans in 1994, Metairie, Louisiana in 1994, Milwaukee Metalfest in 1994, Hollywood in 1996, Breux Bridge, Louisiana in 1996, Lafayette, Louisiana in 1996 and St. Petersburg, Florida in 1996. Also includes a video clip from 1994, rehearsals for their first demo in 1993 and a practice in their barn/practice space in 1992. Most of the video looks/sounds pretty good. All of it's interesting, and if you already love Acid Bath as much as we do, you already know you have to buy this!
A huge Barry Adamson fan, I still maintain that he hasn't surpassed his first two albums, but nonetheless The King of Nothing Hill, his eighth proper album, is worth a listen or two. It's just that ex-Bad Seeds Adamson's musical trajectory (which involves the scoring of non-existent -- and on two occasions *existent* -- films) has evolved from the delicate, shiveringly evocative art noir scores Moss Side Story and Soul Murder to... well... these slightly more bombastic productions more suited to blockbuster status. I mean, the James Bond franchise should just give him a go already. He'd do a fine job. Anyway, here we've got smoky atmospheres laced with groovy vibes (RIP Lionel Hampton btw!) and Adamson's lounge singer / circus barker croon. Hovering helicopter noises punctuate the tension. At its worst it's like the soundtrack to Rocky XVII or something, but on the other hand at its best he'll pop out with, for example, a *gorgeous* song with pretty Chicago-style trumpet on it ("That Fool was Me"), definitely the album's highlight. Occasional samples include those borrowed from Ike Turner, Archie Shepp / John Coltrane, and Bob James, and Cypress Hill.
It's a little hard to say who or what the Aeolian String Ensemble is, but a few references point toward the Nurse With Wound emcampments, as Christoph Heemann takes some credit for this album (as both a contributor to the ensemble and as the cover artist), as David Kenny (longtime Nurse With Wound / Current 93 collaborator) produced and engineered the album, and as United Dairies was originally scheduled to release this album. Yet the most intriguing reference came from the Audion Pages of the Nurse With Wound site at Brainwashed (http://www.brainwashed.com/nww/words/audion.html), which pointed to Steven Stapleton himself as being the man behind the Aeolian String Ensemble. While all of these personnel details are interesting puzzles to attempt to solve, they shouldn't distract from an exceptional album!
Presumably the source material for the Aeolian String Ensemble is the aeolian harp, an antique instrument which gained popularity in the nineteenth century in English country gardens. The aeolian harp is fitted with a number of strings with different thicknesses but all tuned to the same key on top of a resonator box. Wind sets the strings in vibration in such a way that their harmonics are heard, rather than the fundamental note; thus creating an impressionistic chorus of droning sounds. From these harps and the subsequent post-production of judicious delay pedals and sustained reverb, the Ensemble coaxes some of the most beautifully immersive drones from these harps, on par with the Andrew Chalk / Jonathan Coleclough "Sumac" album, any of the Troum recordings, and the score to Tarkovsky's "Stalker." A truly fantastic album that is fortunately enjoying its second pressing!
Afflux is the musique concrete collaboration between Eric La Casa, Eric Cordier, and Jean Luc Guionnet, but these folks add a unique twist to the normal electro-acoustic tricks learned from INA-GRM (i.e. Pierre Henry, Luc Ferrari, Michel Chion, etc.). This trio employs "an on-site electroacoustic device" (my guess, a laptop) to allow them to improvise with the landscape, while simultaneously recording and filtering their source material (inclement weather, faulty drainage pipes, rising tides, the resonance from long stringed instruments, the communication from a maritime navigation post, etc.). Amidst the rustling textures and swooshing environmental din, Afflux uses nearly every trick in the musique concrete book (flanging, parabolic eq-filtering, granular synthesis, razor sharp editing, stereo field spatiality, etc.) For all of its austere recordings and pristine production techniques, "Azier St. Martin-Sur-Mer Dieppe" is more of a theatrical document, capturing just one of the residues from Afflux's perfomative activity and sounding more like one of Michel Chion's laborious constructions than a live documentation.
On local / Santa Cruz-based label Galaxia comes this supergroup of sorts. Amalgamated Sons of Rest is Will Oldham of PALACE, Jason Molina of SONGS:OHIA, and Alasdair Roberts of APPENDIX OUT. These guys have basically written the book on broken-voiced, broken-hearted, hollow-eyed, lovely back porch indie twang. A one of a kind 5-song session. Nice. Vinyl is one sided with a marine-life themed etching. CD available Sept 10, 2002.
Australian avant-guitarist Oren Ambarchi wrangles with some Max / MSP patches to craft this single of looped mantras of chopped guitar buzz and dissonant noise drones.
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
SORRY.
Will our love affair with Finland never end?!?! I sure hope not. And there doesn't seem to be any reason to worry. Certainly not with what seems to be more and more undiscovered AMAZING music cropping up all the time. First we discovered Circle and Mieskuoro Huutajaat and Keuhkot and Aavikko and the baffling and completely awesome Bad Vugum label. Then we learned of the dreamy clattery folk of Kemialliset Ystavat and their hippy percussion jam side project Anaksimandros. And let's not forget drone-doom lords Skepticism and Rapture and Tiermes. And now we have discovered Avarus and the adventurous Lal Lal Lal label. Avarus and Kemiallisett and Anaksimandros all share at least one member and definitely share an aesthetic, combining folk and Krautrock and free jazz and modern noise ala the Dead C into a totally mesmerising modern noise/folk. Avarus, while less percussive/clattery than Anaksimandros, is also less folk than Kemialliset, situating them in a unique musical position, unfurling lengthy meandering almost funereal jams, desolate and mournful, but dreamy and pastoral, motorik and hypnotic at the same time. Strummed acoustic guitars frame distant throbbing caveman percussion, dreamy soundscapes are punctuated by occasional clang and clatter, all swaddled in the warm drone of amp buzz and ambient hum. Wander into their dark forest and join the tribe.
A warning: as with their prior 3" cd-r release, this is a SUPER LIMITED EDITION CD-R. We may not be able to keep these in stock for long, so if you want one don't dawdle. Sorry, you'd think that because they're cd-rs they *wouldn't* really be limited 'cause they could just burn more, and xerox more covers, but apparently not. Oh well.
Earliest ever recordings of legendary British free improv guitar dude Derek Bailey playing solo, circa '66/'67. Those who only know (and love or hate) Bailey for his later, freely improvised, spidery abstractions will find that these unreleased (until now) private practice tapes reveal more melodic, composed moods to Bailey's playing than you might expect, although "sparse" and "difficult" are still terms that would apply here. Really this is primarily of historical interest to Bailey fans, giving a window thru which knowledgeable, interested observers can perhaps see how his musical development at the time incorporated his disciplined jazz-based background, the new, free music of the day, and his obssession with the not-so-free music of Webern (as detailed in Bailey's liner notes). Others may find this interesting as well, as sorta pretty, kinda spooky, lo-fi guitar noodling.
Bellini is a math-y post rock quartet featuring the insanely complex kickass drumming of the fearsome Damon Che (Don Caballero, Thee Speaking Canaries), shredding guitarist Ago from the Albini-favored Italian group Uzeda, throaty vocalist Giovanna also from Uzeda, plus a bass player not from a "name" band. Crisply recorded by Steve Albini, this super group's sound is all furious angsty aggression. The guitars and drums work together exactly the way you'd think they would given the personalities involved here -- it's Shellacky, Caballero-y, Uzeda-y angular epic stuff. Overlaying the whole thing (and I mean the whole thing) is Giovanna's impassioned narrative -- half sung half spoken, sorta Kim Gordon-style -- which sounds okay, I mean it gets in the way of what could otherwise be a nice instrumental record, but then lots of folks are gonna like her vocals. I'm not sayin' it's *bad.* Maybe just un-necessary.
Editor Mats Gustafsson (no, not the improvising saxophone player, although THAT Mats gets interviewed by BF's Mats in this ish!) comes through with yet another issue of his psychedelic indie folk pop journal, packed full of reviews and interviews as usual. There's talks with Piano Magic, Six Organs of Admittance, Double Leopards, Rafael Toral, New Zealand's Metonymic label, and others, quite a few AQ-fave artists among 'em. The Broken Face has always had a bit of the Ptolemaic Terrascope about it (they have many contributors and readers in common) but BF tends to focus more on the current scene rather than delving into the psychedelic past, although this issue does include a rare treat -- an interview with Bill Holt, the mastermind behind one of our favorite early 70s psych pop records, The Dreamies album! (You'll be interested to learn that Mr. Holt is running for Congress now...). The zillions of reviews, of everything from Kemialliset Ystavat to Kilowatt Hours, from Acid Mothers Temple to Simon Wickham-Smith, will allow you to while away many pleasant hours. There's a rating system but since everything seems to get between 3 and a half and four and a half stars, I'm not sure why they bother. A good source, though, to find out about a bunch of obscure releases, especially those on specialized cd-r labels like Last Visible Dog and Jewelled Antler!
Another fine installment of what's on its way to becoming an institution, and, as we said, definitely one for Terrascope fans.
From our pals at Lal Lal Lal, the Finnish label that introduced us to the mighty Avarus, and has released records by AQ faves Kemialliset Ystvat and Anaksimandros, who are kind of like the Finnish No Neck Blues Band, comes a limited 12" from the Vibracathedral Orchestra's Neil Campbell. And it's definitely some of his nicest stuff. A gorgeous shimmering ambience of burbling and bubbling tones and melodies. Dreamy and hypnotic. A bit more soothing and 'ambient' than Vibracathedral but still with the same ur-drone aesthetic. There are couple tracks that stick out though, one is a rhythmic Krautrock workout complete with pulsing drum beat and looped guitar, and the other is an almost-techno track that sounds like with a little less resistance it could've become a house track! Another gorgeous drone record and another fine addition to the Lal Lal Lal catalog. Be warned, this is very limted and won't be around for long!
Yes, this is exactly what you think it is. That is, if you're thinking this is Camper Van Beethoven's complete song for song remake of Fleetwood Mac's classic album Tusk. And not surprisingly, it's already received extreme positive and negative response when played in the store, and some of the frowns did come from CVB fans. Sounded like some fond memories were sullied by this release. Doesn't it seem like a strange thing to do? But the outcome is actually pretty unremarkable... rather docile and ho-hum at times ("Save Me A Place"), and at others, it seems to be stuck in the trying-real-hard-to-be-different'n'weird trap (for example:"Sara", "Brown Eyes" and the title track). The initial recordings took place back in '87, but additional work was done in 2001 to bring it to its present state. After thirteen years, whose idea was it to dust off those old tapes anyways? Their versions of "That's Enough For Me" and "Think About Me" made me think about what it'd be like if Wilco took a turn at it instead. Now, that's a pretty neat thought! Perhaps highlighting their own influence on later bands, their take on "That's All For Everyone" would not be at all out of place on the recent Ugly Casanova record with its ramshackle percussion and hollered Isaac Brock-y vocals. After listening to it, all I'm left with is the thought that... gee, this must've been really fun to record. While it could be something truly inspired, it just sounds like a late '80s / early '90s college radio band doin' something wacky, and doesn't really do the original justice. Me, I found it to be somewhat annoying. Of course, you might feel altogether differently about this subject, so give 'er a listen.
Candiria are extraordinary for so many differnt reasons. They play a mix of stop/start death metal, hardcore, hip hop, and jazz fusion which is weird enough. They do it well, which is even more weird. And strangest of all, they have managed to become fairly popular playing this obtuse hybrid. Especially since most metalheads don't like hip hop or jazz fusion. And vice versa. And Candiria don't play "hip hop metal", their hip hop shit is REAL, as is their jazz fusion. They are fronted by a vocalist as comfortable howling his guts out as he is flowing on the mic. And this band has some of the most serious chops EVER. Think Naked City stop-on-a dime, switch-genres-every-10-seconds kind of chops. The fusion shit they spit out is SO REAL, it's almost cheesy, like Mahavishnu Orchestra or Stanley Jordan. But at heart, they are a metal band. And a pretty unbelievable one. Fans of Meshuggah and other super technical death metal will have a field day with the ridiculous time signatures and insane song structures. But like I stated earlier, an open mind is a must 'cause you never know when the metal will drop out and a funky hip hop groove will take over, or a horn section and some skittery 7/8 jazz licks will take the spotlight. A few things have changed this time around. On earlier records, the hip hop tracks were completely separate from the metal tracks, but on a few tracks here, there is some rapping on the metal tracks which brings them dangerously close to 'nu metal' territory at times. And their jazz-fusion obsession is in full effect, with at least two thirds of the tracks sporting some crazy skittery fusiony breakdowns (as well as some full on metal-free fusion tracks). And in the process Candiria come up with some occasional totally wacked death-metal-vocals-over-fusion-rhythm-workouts. Crazy! Disc two is 6 tracks of hip hop/electronica, 2 straight up hip hop jams, with the other 4 running the gamut from jazzy drum and bass to trippy skittery noodly ambience. Weird but pretty cool. Definitely a difficult band, and certainly an aquired taste, but I think most Aquarius customers are up to the challenge.
Hurrah for yet another dose of Neko Case! Yes, along with her new album Blacklisted which we just reviewed in AQL 144, there's this special collection released by the lady herself (also just released on vinyl by her friends at Lance Rock Records). There's been plenty of conflicting reports on the status of the cd even from those very close to the source. Initially a tour-only cd, it seems to be in a very nebulously limited pressing - most likely it'll continue to be in print just as long as the Lady Pilot fancies. That said, doncha think it's high time you had your very own copy!? Anyways, let's get to the actual music, shall we? She recorded these songs in her kitchen while reportedly clad in her trademark flannel pajamas and fuzzy slippers. Her dear Boyfriends are notably absent, although she did get a bunch of her pals to join her refrigerator-side for these intimate recordings. Her partners in crime? Tom Ray, Jon Rauhouse, Andy Hopkins, Robert Lloyd, Brett Sparks, Chris Von Sneidern, Kathleen Judge and Kelly Hogan. Much more spartan than her two previous albums, yet still so rich and haunting with some gorgeous banjo, accordion and an impressive array of guitars. There's stirring renditions of the classic "Poor Ellen Smith", Neil Young's "Dreaming Man" and Hank Williams' "Alone and Forsaken" as well as covers of tunes by her Canadian friends Mike O'Neill of The Inbreds, Sook-Yin Lee, Lisa Marr of cub, Buck and The Beards - each an amazing songwriter him/herself - showing once again what a knack she has for choosing great material to cover. And to top off all this goodness, she reworks two of her own lovely songs "Make Your Bed" and "Favorite". Her voice is an unquestionably mighty force unto itself, but her singing performance is so far beyond mighty lungs and vocal chords. Seeming effortless, it flows from somewhere deep within and beyond, which makes listening such a wonderful, deeply moving experience. Pure, honest and powerful!
Johnny Cash is finally released from prison, so to speak. Previously unreleased, this 1969 live recording finds Johnny performing to a packed crowd of non-incarcerated fans in New York City. The concert is presented in its entirety, with all of Johnny's remarks -- both rehearsed and off the cuff -- included, retaining the live feel of this concert recording that's so often lost in most efficiently trimmed and crossfaded live albums. As well as being accompanied by his band, the Tennessee Three (Marshall Grant on bass, W.S. Holland on drums and Bob Wooten on electric guitar) there are several guest appearances from The Statler Brothers, Carl Perkins, The Carter Family and even Johnny's younger brother Tommy. The resulting 26 songs on the setlist have a running time just under 80 minutes, so you're getting your money's worth in time alone. Along with all this are included a couple reviews of the concert, including one that appeared originally in the New York Post three days after the performance.
1965 concept album (his first?) resulting from Cash's growing obsession with the stories of the old west. Along with several originals by Johnny Cash which were inspired by historic tales, there are plenty of standards like "I Ride An Old Paint", "The Streets of Laredo", "Bury Me Not On the Lone Prairie" (but not "Cool Water" oddly enough), as well as several tunes from such heavyweights as Carl Perkins ("Ballad of Boot Hill"), Ramblin' Jack Elliott ("Mister Garfield"), Harlan Howard ("The Blizzard"), June Carter ("The Road To Kantuck") and much more. The choruses, strings, guitar, bass, drums, the occasional banjo (or "five-string lute" as it's diplomatically called here) and heaping helpings of reverb on Johnny's voice might be a little too rich of a production for some people's blood. The lush mid-sixties production sounds more like what one would expect from an Eddy Arnold or Marty Robbins record. But for those who enjoy the occasional over-produced country record, this is definitely worth checking out. The omni-present pulsing bass is a warm accompaniment to Johnny's sometimes singing, sometimes narrating voice. Along with all the session musicians involved, there are appearances from Johnny's family of friends The Carter Family and The Statler Bros. Includes two bonus tracks not included on the original LP.
The newest exercise in plunderphonia comes from merry old England in the form of Cassetteboy! Taking cues from People Like Us, Negativland, Tape-beatles, and John Oswald, Cassetteboy excel in the art of making people say naughty things. As such The Parker Tapes is probably not the best disc for those who don't enjoy the baser and more puerile forms of humor (or channel surfing style editing.) But for those who do revel in such things, Cassetteboy is the best source for your plunderfix. Unlike most of the artists who work in the realm of media reappropriation, Cassetteboy is decidedly un-musical. Which isn't a rib against them. Though there are bits of music sampled in the course of events, it's the narrative of television and radio voices that are the primary focus of Cassetteboy's wrath. The 98 tracks crammed onto this disc don't lend themselves to much in the way of instrumental interludes. But goddamn is this stuff funny, from subtly changing Bowie's lyrics to "here I am shitting in a tin can.... and farting in a most peculiar way...." to Bill Gates admitting that Microsoft gets in to schools to control our kids... to an awesome monkey themed montage to... well, you get the idea. Relentless and stupidly brilliant. EVERYTIME this is played in the store, customers are either silently chuckling, laughing uproariously or coming up to find out what the hell we're listening to! This is the party cd/mix tape/answering machine message record of the year!!
Music for fans of Coil, made by fans of Coil, and released with the blessing of Coil. "The Plastic Spider Thing" is a remix of Coil's past works by Drazen from Black Sun Productions, a Swiss outfit that follows the Coil's aesthetic with incredible precision (often to the point of losing their own personalities to Coil's spell, when Coil themselves emphasize the necessity for individual expression). Originally, this piece was a soundtrack to a sexually explicit performance between the members of Black Sun Productions. Drawing mostly from the lunar ambience of modern Coil (i.e. post "Love's Secret Domain"), Drazen ran Coil's occultish ambience through multiple delay machines and re-sampling techniques to attain a fractured collage of pulsated loops that point back to the original Coil numbers. The lack of John Balance's whispered vocals (which were once Coil's biggest strength on early albums like "Horse Rotovator," but now are the band's weakest link) is welcome for "The Plastic Spider Thing;" but, this album never strives to escape its orbit around Coil's little black sun. If you love Coil, here's another fine album for you. If you're only curious, try the aforementioned "Love's Secret Domain" first.
While many would cry "over-rated flavor of the month Brit pop band!!", me thinks there's more to this band than the hype. They're certainly not bland, nor are they formulaic radio-fodder. Their last full length Parachutes was replete with a number of passionate, glistening'y poetic songs. Coldplay possess a knack for composing the loveliest of complex heartstring-pulling melodies and performing them in a lushly artistic, deluxo-produced fashion (check it out in headphones - nice!). Aww heck, its sounding good should just be a given these days - what with Capitol Records footing the bill! Most likely they had abundant access to the toppest notch recording technology, but obviously good production doesn't necessarily equal good record. Case in point, that damn Planet of the Apes movie remake. Looked amazing, but ugh, what a stinker! Alright alright, I digress, but lemme just say that's not the case with this album. It's more than a little bit folky and down to earth, laden with highly emotive lilting male vocals and subdued piano, just as their last album was. Very pretty and well-crafted. And also just as their last album did, I think A Rush Of Blood is gonna grow on me.
One of Aquarius's favorite drone compositions, Jonathan Coleclough's "Period" was originally released early in 2001 as a limited edition piece of vinyl on Anomalous Records and has now been reissued with an extended mix of the title track that is better suited to the CD format. Coleclough began collecting field recordings and transforming them into emphathic dronescapes back in 1989, around the same time he began corresponding with Colin Potter about his ICR cassette projects. Since then, Potter and Coleclough have worked closely on a number of projects starting with Andrew Chalk and Darren Tate in Ora, and culminating more recently with their well-received "Low Ground" collaboration. "Period" again finds Coleclough employing the production / engineering talents of Potter (who has also been working quite intently with Steven Stapleton in Nurse With Wound). Throughout his career, Coleclough has defined himself as a sound organizer, modifying acoustic events and field recordings to enhance the emotional resonance that he finds in those sounds. Here on "Period," Coleclough draws all of his sounds from a Bluthner grand piano, surrounding the spartanly placed clusters of impressionistic notes with a complementary set of delicately fluctuating drones. Coleclough does well to accentuate the sublime reverberant decay that follows the piano's sustained tones. Furthermore, Potter offered his interpretation of the source material entitled "Periodic" which effectively erases the obvious references to the piano and leaves behind a densely tangled web of calm reverberations. As a whole "Period" stands as an amazingly rich and balanced piece of work on par with Brian Eno's "Thursday Afternoon" and the Cindytalk piano improvisations.
Aquarius has also gotten in a limited number of the double CD sets of "Period" which features a third mix of "Period" by both Coleclough and Potter, and a gorgeous track called "Summand," which is a re-working of some of the source material that Coleclough brought to the "Sumac" sessions with Andrew Chalk. There's only 300 of those double CDs in print. Don't blame us when they sell out!
Reissue of a long-time Aquarius favorite. Not just of AQ metalheads Andee and Allan, or our metal-lovin' customers, but others on the staff here too -- for instance, Byram, not normally a big metal consumer, ranks this as one of his favorites amongst the Nordic hordes. In fact, it's one of the few metal cds in his collection -- it's that good (he was a music student y'know). It came out originally in '94, and now sees a digipacified re-release with bonus tracks from their out of print Where Dead Angels Lie cdep. With Storm of the Light's Bane, Dissection perfected their melodic, blackened Swedish death metal approach -- that means TRUE, original metal, with elements of everything from Morbid Angel to Mayhem to Iron Maiden, suped-up and super-grim, with raspy vocals, wicked drumming (the guy is AMAZING), truly memorable, majestic melodies, and tons of cold winter atmosphere. They take long breaks to let their acoustic guitars gently weep, then tear back into the brutal, razor-edged rifferama. Serious stuff, seriously great. This was to be their last album, and Dissection is no more -- front man John Nodtveidt ended up in jail as accessory to murder -- but their tangential role in any of that over-sensationalized Scandinavian black metal true crime stuff has nothing to do with why you should be interested in this band. No, regardless of their unfortunate history, Dissection was a brilliant band, and Storm of the Light's Bane is a classic that belongs in every metal collection. If you haven't already gotten this album, here's your chance.
A reissue of these long-defunct Swedish black/death metallers' debut long-player, recorded in 1993 at Dan Swano's studio. It's melodic, with majestic riffs and folky acoustic interludes, but also quite fast, heavy and brutal. Here Dissection established their "blackened" style of Swedish Melodic Death Metal, a sound that they perfected on their next album, the classic Storm Of The Light's Bane. That's the one to get first, and then when you're hooked on 'em, you'll want this one as well. Why is Storm Of The Light's Bane better? It's just the subjective choice of the AQ-staff. Superior songs, we feel. But this is a fine effort too. (By the way, unlike the Nuke Blast reish of Storm, there's no bonus tracks to be found here.)
Those of you who missed out on the most recent DNTEL full length should really be kicking yourselves. Or at least trying to remedy the situation by running out and picking it up pronto. Probably the most fully realised melding of bittersweet perfect pop and buzzing, staticky, glitchy electronica. This single features a handful of different versions (including the original) of what most of us consider to be the best track, with AQ faves Death Cab For Cutie's Benjamin Gibbard providing the lyrics and vocals. A totally heartbreaking, slice of wistful, whiny-boy-pining-for-unattainable-girl, emo pop, but slathered in a thick coat of hissing static and stuttering gzzzzzzzzzt. Just gorgeous. This single, while a fine introduction for those of you I was admonishing at the beginning of the review, is actually quite worth the ten bucks for those of you who have the full length too, 'cause God knows, how could you ever have enough of this song?!?!? The track that makes this the keeper is definitely the mix by Barbara Morgenstern. She keeps much of the original intact, maybe adding some extra space, but sings the first verse herself, later joined by Gibbard in a totally sexy sad duet. So perfect. This is some serious mixtape material!!!! The other tracks are no slouches either. Safety Scissors, add their own West coast Kid606/Lesser/Kit Clayton glitchy techno vibe with deadpan vocals by Erlend Ore of Kings Of Convenience. Superpitcher turn it into a 4/4 German dancefloor classic with that instantly recognizable Kompakt sound. And AQ faves Lali Puna turn it into a swelling, dreamy electronic post rock excursion. Plus one unreleased track called 'Your Hill.' Good stuff.
"Grotesque" is the 1980 album by the legendary Manchester art-punk band The Fall, who have always been and will always be fronted by Mark E. Smith. Of course, the snarling half-sung / half-cracked vocals of Mr. Smith are central to "Grotesque," swimming drunkenly in acerbic cynicism and alcoholic bitterness about the ugly state of affairs of English society. Behind Smith, the rest of the band (Craig Scanlon, Marc Riley, and the Hanley brothers) matches the intense vitriol of their vocalist's rantings, with a ramshackle collision of thuggish basslines, scratchy rockabilly guitars, and primitive yet effective percussive grooviness. Though coming out of the Fall's raw, shambolic earlier years, "Grotesque" contains a slight glimmer of the pop accessibility later realized in the Brix Smith years, which might endear this album even to those who are convinced that "This Nation's Saving Grace" and not, say, "Dragnet" is Mark E. & company's pinnacle acheivement.
The Flaming Lips return with yet another gem and it's beginning to look as if they are only getting better with age. We used to think that about Tom Waits, Stereolab, and (some here think) Radiohead, but all those folks have released mediocre (perhaps bad?) records, whereas Flaming Lips' career-long consistency through 12 albums is pretty amazing. Certainly many of their indie rock, pre-Warner fans have long since abandoned their current efforts just as many who discovered them via their hit "She Don't Use Jelly" (or possibly more recently with "Waitin' For A Superman") probably don't find much to enjoy in their early drug addled, psychedleic bombast. But with such a continually evolving yet uncompromising sound, they're bound to alienate some. There's a striking resemblance on Yoshimi to the recent works of Radiohead, but then again there's definitely much that parallels the Lips' career with that of our faves from across the Atlantic. Like Radiohead, The Flaming Lips have chosen ever more increasing studio experimentation, combining electronic music elements with lush arrangements and cohesive album-oriented productions. But more significant perhaps is that Yoshimi, a semi-concept album, shares a similar paranoid and alienated angst that Radiohead has been honing these last several albums. But where as Radiohead takes a decidedly maudlin Orwellian-like approach in their song writing, the Flaming Lips work in an absurdist, comedic fashion more akin to Philip K. Dick. "One More Robot / Sympathy 3000-21" could have been cut straight out of a P.K.D. story: "Unit three thousand twenty one is warming / makes a humming sound -- when its circuits duplicate emotions -- and a sense of coldness detaches as it tries to comfort your sadness..." All this arranged about as close to a Sade song as Coyne and the Lips can conceivably get (which I also see as a friendly jab at the sterile audiophile machinations of modern "soul".) The humanization of machines vs. humanity stripped of love and hate is the theme that's mulled over throughout. Most of the songs on the album are in direct reference to a painful breakup (either real or concocted) and the fictional battle between Yoshimi and the Pink Robots is more of a parable for struggling in the aftermath of having one's heart dashed to pieces. The two themes are intertwined on the album, but loosely enough so that you aren't forced into a Pink Floyd Wall of a concept album. While not as completely rife with hits as The Soft Bulletin, there's a lot to be warmed up to with Yoshimi. At first listen it seemed as though the Lips and Mercury Rev-ifier Dave Fridman had produced nothing but 45 minutes of studio wizardry and ear candy, but continual listens finds these songs opening up like a veritable flower blossom. "In the Morning of the Magicians" with its recurring, heart rending instrumental bridge will even bring a tear to the most desiccated of eyes. And "Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots" (Part 1, *not* part 2) will have you singing along in your best cracked falsetto soon enough. I imagine the bean counters at AOL/Time Warner had a hard time listening to this more than once, if at all, as they neglected to print up enough copies in the first run and now we -- and stores everywhere I suppose -- are struggling to find a distributor with remaining copies on hand. And we're not sure of the significance or if the title and her appearance on this record are mere coincidences or -gasp- something more, but AQ fave/crushworthy drummer/vocalist Yoshimi of the mighty Boredoms is a musical guest!!
Released in 1956, Forbidden Planet was MGM's attempt to bring the science fiction genre into the main stream by pouring tons of cash into its production. Nominated for an academy award for special effects and featuring a robot cast member, Forbidden Planet was about as futuristic as one could get in the mid fifties. So it only followed that the score for such a lavish, futuristic science fiction film should be on par with Robby The Robot and the rest of the show. Louis and Bebe Barron were just a couple of upstarts in the burgeoning field of electronic music. As it happens, the score for Forbidden Planet is often touted as the very first to use no orchestral instruments. Indeed nothing but electronically synthesized sounds and tape manipulation are used, period. Knowing that the original working title for the film was actually "Fatal Planet" makes sense when one listens to the soundtrack sans film. The series of dark bellows, squeals, bleeps and farts that are the textural aural landscape of Forbidden Planet are as creepy at times as any horror film soundtrack or any release by Barron-contemporary Vladimir Ussachevsky. It was most certainly unlike anything any Hollywood film had ever used for a soundtrack and listening to it today, it remains a truly strange and wonderful anomaly in film music history. Highly recommended.
This sure ain't no disco for fans of Stephin Merritt's Future Bible Heroes. Nope! Unlike their last release, this is isn't about high BPM boogie fever at all. In fact it's such a departure that maybe it'd be best saved for the latenight party wind-down (as opposed to the party kick-off). A lot more varied, languid, electroni-glitchy and atmospheric, it sounds like Christopher Ewen - the man behind the music of FBH - got some neat, new music equipment and software since the "I'm Lonely (And I Love It)" ep. And as if to showcase this, every second or third track is a brief under-a-minute instrumental interlude. On the downside, it seems like the lyrics got shortchanged this time around especially on songs like "From Some Dying Star" and "I'm A Vampire" (one of the only upbeat dancefloor numbers). A few excerpts: "It's your blood I crave / I am your bitch goddess / from beyond your grave" and "Damn, I am what? I am what I am and I am impossibly glam and I am happy as a clam cause I'm a vampire." Huh??? I mean, sure, it's not by any means a serious song, but when you've come to know and love the razor-sharp Merritt wit, this comes as something of a serious perturbance. The rhymes are alarmingly and almost painfully simple: "Your eyes are blue on blue / You're too good to be true" - as opposed to his trademark romantic lyrical twists. Even with Claudia Gonson delivering them in her alternately droll and sweetly sing-song voice, the words come off somewhat clunky. Filled with lots of pleasingly pretty melodies and textures, but overall, this cd is rather boggling to say the least.
Every now and then we like to spring some crazy '70s Italian prog on y'all just to see who can take it. We're not just talking Goblin (though we love Goblin), or any of the more "mainstream" Italian prog acts of the period (PFM, Le Orme, Banco), who were cool but didn't go far beyond the Yes/Genesis/King Crimson template. We're talking weirder stuff like Museo Rosenbach, New Trolls, Osage Tribe, I Teoremi, and Area. We hope to soon have some copies of the cds by an amazing band called Osanna (possibly Allan and Andee's all time favorite prog band!!) but while we wait for those, we did manage to bring in a few of this, the 2nd album by another fave Italian group of ours called Il Balletto Di Bronzo. Sure, their nutzoid sci-fi keyboard attack will bring to mind ELP, but you'll also think of Magma (and their descendants Shub-Niggurath and Koenjihyakkei as well). Complex, powerful, heavy, precise yet darkly psychedelic, Ys (from 1972) is one of those timeless pieces of rock n' roll art that's definitely very '70s yet not entirely dated: you could imagine a Laddio Bollocko or Tarantula Hawk kicking out these jams, that is, except for the occasional operatic vocal chorus. This album's five long songs (plus a bonus track), with their acid guitar action, haunting female vocals, droning keyboards, martial drumming, baroque/classical motifs, and weird changes, are just about as good as over-the-top Italian prog can get, and that's pretty damn good. That is, if you are willing to get into it like we are. A top ten prog album (if Aquarius had a prog top ten, and please don't ask us for one, we'll be arguing for weeks).
The Strokes, Andrew W.K., The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The Liars, and now Interpol are part of a recent rash of New York punkish bands birthed from the music hype machine as the great salvation of rock 'n' roll. Strange that these bands would garner such praise, since none of them operate outside of the arena of the homage -- either as ironic hyperbole in Andrew W.K. or as The Strokes' downward mobility to blue collar rockisms. Of all the aforementioned bands, Interpol seem the most interesting as they've managed to successfully resurrect Ian Curtis, a task that hasn't really met with much success in other bands. I mention just Curtis, as his persona seems to resonate much more strongly with Interpol than Joy Division as a whole. Sure there are ghosts of Factory's post-punk jaggedness and mororsely bleak temperament; but Interpol's forceful minor keys offer other roadstops past The Strokes' take on brightly-colored, guitar jangle and the sublime washes of fuzzy feedback heard in the early '90s shoegazer bands (MBV, Ride, Slowdive, etc.). Musically, Interpol's debut "Turn On The Bright Lights" is an excellent marriage of those aforementioned styles; but like Joy Division, Interpol is driven by a charismatic singer with a flair for dramatic bombast and a predilection for angst. Paul Banks, Interpol's singer, is a rare breed in the contemporary world of depressed vocalists who have typically followed the emo-centric whimper and scream approach of Sunny Day Real Estate to infuse any lyrical content with immediacy and passion. Instead, Banks can actually really sing, his nervous vibrato echoing the musical accompaniment played between depressed weariness and urgent conviction.
Much of Interpol's aesthetic choices and lyrical content (love / hate relationships, urban isolationism, and sexual dependency) have already been done to death, but few have been able to do them as well. "Turn On The Bright Lights" is a fantastic record and actually lives up to all of the hype that has surrounded it.
The year between the recordings of his masterpiece of introspective depression "The Blue Corpse" and "You Walk Alone" must have been a pretty good year for the Texan mysteryman. This 1988 album is surprisingly celebratory in tone; but as the title implies, "You Walk Alone" is a purely solo project for Jandek, who multi-tracks drums (with a more controlled meandering across a drum kit) and additional guitars onto the archetypal Jandek sound of his ghostly voice and avant-blues songs. The points of interest for this album are the advanced finger picking techniques which haven't previously found their way onto Jandek's albums and the return of a couple of contemporary Jandek themes: the Quinn Boys (who were sung about on "The Blue Corpse") and melting communication devices (mirroring the album title "The Telegraph Melts" with the song "The Telephone Melts").
Recorded during their live performance at the May 2002 electronic offshoot of the Moers Jazz Festival in Germany, "Soaked" brings together the talents of AQ-favorite, avant-turntablist Philip Jeck and the relatively unknown artist Jacob Kirkegaard, who is a member of the Danish multi-media ensemble Aeter. The lumbering drones, tiny textural ornamentations, and radioactive vinyl crackling that we've come to expect from Jeck are certainly present on "Soaked." Yet, Kirkegaard's contributions for electronics, samplers, and possibly some laptop synthesis act as interesting digitized counterpoint to the analogue antiquity normally associated with Jeck. Alongside Jeck's slow-motion fluctionations of old ballroom orchestrations (just a guess, all of his sounds have been blurred well beyond the point of recognition), Kirkegaard interjects non-repeating melodic phrases and digital glitchiness. As this 35 minute composition progresses, both Jeck and Kirkegaard incrementally push towards more jagged and abrasive sounds beyond Jeck's ghostly collages, into rather dissonant elements that sounds like gasping ventilators, clattering bicycle wheels, and straining diesel motors. A bit of a detour for Jeck, but nevertheless a very worthwhile experiment!
If you've enjoyed the deeply moving music of Michael Gira, Mark Lanegan and Golden Hotel, you just might want to add this new offering from Mike Johnson (ex-Dinosaur Jr) to that list. Very much in a similarly slow, somber vein. A dark downer album of mid to slow paced, psych-tinged country blues with Johnson's low, slightly hoarse voice pulling you down into the despair. One point of contention though sez Byram, the intro to "Dirty Hands" is a straight-up shoplift from Yabby You's "Conquering Lion" (Vivian Jackson and The Ralph Brothers) - very odd.
Numero uno Japanese long-haired avant-hippy Kawabata Makoto and Acid Mothers Temple compatriot Cotton Casino were just in town to play a sadly under-publicized show, and were kind enough to stop by and sell us a few of Kawabata's latest cd-r release, volume seven in his "Private Tapes" series. Limited (of course) to just 200 copies, this disc sees Kawabata in solo guitar instrumental mode, doing a single 38 minute track called "I Want You To Want Me" (but it's not actually a Cheap Trick cover, as far as we can tell). It starts off quite blissfully, and that's the mood of the entire piece, although it builds in density as it goes along, getting quite a bit louder towards the end. Kawabata's guitar subs for a full string section as he uses effects to create a shimmering backing drone (shall we call this Kawabatatronics?). He proceeds to pick out fragile, repeating melodic phrases, layering them over the pulsing textures of what's come before. It's quite nice. You can imagine Kawabata sitting in his room recording this, as shafts of heavenly light beam down upon him from on high. If you liked his soothing Infinite Love cd on Ochre you'll dig this, as will those into the mellow psychedelic trips of Krautrock guitar/synth explorers like Ashra's Manuel Gottsching.
Those partial only to Kawabata's noisy, freak-out side should perhaps look elsewhere, although this might be the one to convert you to enjoying his more gentle moods. Note: as we said, this limited, and we only were able to get a few, so when they're gone, they're gone...
It's possible that all we need to say is "limited to 300 copies on trippy colored vinyl." (And "only 5 in stock" too.) Putting aside our sarcasm about the massive output that drives the collector's market for Kawabata Makoto and his Acid Mother's Temple, "I Wished You Were Here Again" is a solid release for Kawabata, who's by himself layering piercing feedback and amp melting distortion on top of his trademark blissful washes of cosmic guitar noise.
It's definitely a good thing that adulthood doesn't follow the bully / wimp social dichotomy of high school; but if it did, everybody on Tigerbeat 6 would have received a number of serious beatings by now, starting with the Kid, then Cex and followed by Canadian laptopper Billy Pollard aka Knifehandchop. "TKO From Tokyo" mashes up vocals from Dancehall toaster Bounty Killer and RZA's Bobby Digital persona on top of big dum-dum Rotterdam techno beats, and also features remixes from Venetian Snares, Kid 606, Noize Creator & DJ Aneurysm, and Joseph Nothing. Very stupid yet very infectuous.
This amazing album was originally issued in 1997 but it sounds so incredibly fresh even today -- I readily admit that I didn't recognize its true brilliance until now. Most of the members of the now-famous Solesides crew pitched in on this self-titled debut statement from Latyrx (MCs Lateef and Lyrics Born), including DJ Shadow who produces four stunning tracks, Chief Xcel, and Blackalicious. The two MCs often let their rhymes flow forth right on top of each other, a cool textural effect is produced, as if the production efforts weren't interesting sounding enough -- overall you're hearing Mo'Wax-style groove, smart samples, and advanced apocalyptic scariness that today's El-P and Cannibal Ox have perfected. Recommended!
Well, here we have another band mining the whole 99/Y records arty disco punk legacy (see also: !!!, Rapture, etc). In this Mute re-release of their Gern Blandsten debut (a sign, perhaps, of blow-up potential), Liars certainly aren't trying to hide their influences; hell, they make a whole track out of putting lyrics over ESG's "UFO." Now that would be a criticism- only the Liars are really fucking good at what they do. Vocalist Angus Andrews has the perfect super tough shout/growl to pull of the hefty dose of bad attitude spewed by their abstractly funky tunes, home to the requisite dance beats and heavy bass alongside cold noise and drum machine. The short album of ass-shakers is topped off with a 30-minute looped epic, which is either hypnotic or dreadfully boring, I'm not sure. Anyway, "They Threw Us All In A Trench And Stuck A Monument On Top" will find a cozy place in your record collection next to the Pop Group and Liquid Liquid, as well as a place in magazine articles about new hot shit bands from NYC. And hey, they deserve it.
Little Wings' Kyle Field has this warbly, almost on the verge on breaking voice -- similar in a way to Will Oldham, although they don't actually sound alike -- which he lets go into huge, room-filling fullness when playing live. On record, far more restraint is exercised, which is unfortunate, but what's lost in immediate impact is replaced by gentle subtlety and the added textures of instruments besides Field's trusty kid-sized nylon string guitar --a bit of bass, soft drums, a melodica melody here and there. All of the songs on this record feel incredibly intimate, although not in an annoying emo sharing-my-pain way. Rather, these songs are comforting and real, like a gathering of your closest friends. Several of Little Wing's friends (including Hugh from the Lowdown) are gathered here, in fact, to lend backing vocals, in (& out of) varying degrees of tune, but always with warmth & enthusiasm. The songs on "Light Green Leaves" aren't as super catchy as some on his last record "Wonderue," but they are still fine examples of Field's songcrafting skills. Included is perhaps the final chapter of the "Shredder" saga, truly heartbreaking tales of the obsolescence of an old school skater. This is sweet, charming stuff, fans of Little Wings pals Microphones as well as of the sunnier Palace & Bonnie Billy moments should check it out.
For those of you who gobbled up the wistful, pretty pop stylings on Loquat's recent Penny Drop cdep, here's another similarly tuneful offering. Four mellow songs in all (including an alternate version and a remix of "Swingset Chain" from the ep) that come in the form of a 10" record that's part of a Bay Area artists series from the Dreams By Degrees label. Rounding out the other three seasons are Colophon (spring), Sappington (summer), and Coastal (winter).
Quirky, fun, eclectic pop that brings to mind the playful, sassy female and droll male vocal interplay of groups like the B52's, StereoTotal (similarly multi-lingual albeit less sleekly cosmopolitan), and even the Human League (particularly on the song "Forever"). Their instrumentation runs the gamut: slinky violins, mariachi trumpets, lush synths, oompah-pah brass. In fact, funnily enough, the final track called "Western" made me think it was Oktoberfest! A rollicking good time.
This has all the wunnerful markings of another Uwe Schmidt project (aka Senor Coconut, Los Samplers, Atom and Tea Time, Midisport, Geez 'n Gosh, Lisa Carbon, Datacide, Dandy Jack, LB, Bund Deutscher Programmierer, and more!), although we're supposed to think it's a couple of his compadres. Complete with an almost-believable bio that's just a little off [as in "he already set standards very high for the complete genre of Latinotronics" and "In search of t(r)opical sounds beyond power (Kraft) and plant (Werk) they have intuitively recognized and consolidated the affinity of both styles not only to each other"], the music is similarly just a little off. It's mambo and other Perez-Prado-inspired tunes, yes, but smoothly dance-ified with tinny sampled drums, Kraftwerky synth burbles, all of which are cut up, spiced with ping pong percussive thwacks 'n woozy horns, and reassembled into a most pleasant listen that's nicely accessible despite its blurpy loopiness. A strong listen all the way through, no filler. Recommended, especially for fans of Senor Coconut and Perez Prado!
The highly anticipated follow-up to Ms Mann's marvelous Bachelor #2 album has arrived. Now, first things first, the title: Lost In Space? Surely she's not referring to herself 'cause on this album, she's sounding more grounded and self-assured than ever. The intimacy, emotion, and integrity she conveys through each song reminded me a lot of Lucinda Williams and Tom Waits. While their music is nothing alike, each artist straddles that fence between the mainstream and for lack of a better word the 'indie'. They've each retained their own sound and unique voice within the 'industry', although unlike Williams, Mann's music hasn't been overly glossified in production. Her wonderful, distinct voice is in top form, and the songwriting's super-solid with some immediately hummable melodies, full warm instrumentation and nerve-touching lyrics. Features a comic book insert illustrated by Seth.
Let's settle this bullshit once and for all. The best Merzbow record of all is of course the Merzcedes -- the legendary (perhaps to the point of being mythical) conceptual artpiece of raw Merzbow noise permanently fixed into the cassette deck of a Mercedes sedan. No, we haven't actually had the pleasure of experiencing the Merzcedes; but the Merzcedes is the best Merzbow album regardless of all comers!!. It's not "Amlux" (which was claimed to be the 'definitive' Merzbow album), it's not the "Merzbox" (the massive, ridiculous 50 cd retrospective), and it's not "24 Hours - A Day Of Seals" (hyped as the 'most satisfying' Merzbow album). It's the Merzcedes. End of argument.
This illogical rant is not to say that any of those aforementioned albums are bad; but, it should illustrate the point that any quantification of the Merzbow's massive catalogue into generic superlatives is not only stupid but also useless to any critiques about Merzbow. "Most satisfying"? How could you ever know? But, this new mini Merzbox is indeed a fine addition to his canon.
As has been the case for many of the contemporary Merzbow albums, the four-CD set "24 Hours - A Day Of Seals" centers on mechanical loops of volatile grindings, ugly digitalized flanges, and cascading white noise. Is it manipulated field recordings of harbor seals? It could be. It could also be a guitar, or a vibrator, or just some analogue synth twaddle, or a seal playing a guitar! Whatever it is, it should "satisfy" your Merzbow/noise jones for at least as long as it takes to listen to all four cds. Those partial to heavy guitar-based drone noise rock a la old Skullflower or Ramleh might find portions of this particularily enjoyable.
Record number three (duh) from this WEEN sideproject and their first for Mike Patton's Ipecac label. Just like their other two. BIG DUMB COCK RAWK!! With a pinch of metal. A sick mix of AC/DC, the Dwarves, ZZ Top, Antiseen, Judas Priest and Loverboy. Or something like that.
And featuring inspired WEEN-ish lyrics like:
"Smelly like a cheesy meal
Got some poopy on your heels
Monkey on the gag reel
Tell me how you really feel
Driving down your burger brains
Standing in the pissy rain"
Weird and stupid and rocking and pretty fun(ny).
Split between east-bay ethno-rockers Mono Pause and Icelandic organ power-trio Aavikko, with each band covering the other's work. Mono Pause takes a mighty fine stab at "El Cebo", slowing down the tempo and filling out the arrangement with guitar, ud (mandolin? other ethnic-lute-thingy?), whacked synths, drums, bass, trumpet and more. After a Kraftwerk style vocoder intro, Aavikko, for their part, do almost the opposite with their arrangement of their chosen Mono Pause tune: stripping it down to fit their organ, organ and drum format and speeding up the tempo to a lively jaunt. Very purdy cover art on this Seeland release, makes it worth the slightly steep 7" price. We wonder if Seeland has designs on possibly reissuing some of that out of print Aavikko stuff.
Well executed avant minimalist stuff from Motion, a one-man project whose 40 minutes of barely-there atmospherics bring to mind an early summer evening, near silence except for the sometimes-distant, sometimes-near whirr of metallic insects, organic buzzes, shimmering soft clicks, warm bass tones, lush as velvet. All at a pace slower than heartbeat. Like I said, barely there. In a good way. I'd recommend this to fans of Taylor Deupree's 12k label who released this record, and fans of the Raster Noton label.
This is a send-shivers-up-your-spine record, and I mean that in a couple ways -- it all depends on where you stand opinion wise in regards to Nico's talent, in or out of the context of the Velvet Underground. I personally beleive that Nico is an artist of some great depth, as evidenced by this immeasurably cold and beautiful record from the ultimate ice queen. On "Desertshore," originally released in 1970 and now repressed on vinyl by the good people at 4 Men With Beards, the primary instrumentation is Nico's harmonium, with additional backing from John Cale. The harmonium, Cale's viola, and Nico's distinctive voice blend to create multiple layers of incredibly dark, extended, buzzing drones. The overall picture is mysterious and bleak; it's not only my favorite Nico record, but also one of the best post-Velvets records by any former members.
Neil Gust and co. return with their second full length. While their debut No Memory from 2000 was an impressive collection of lovely, emotive, pop songs that got the thumbs up around AQ, this album falls a little short of that mark. Not a bad album by any means, but pales in comparison to its predecessor. It's alternately more rocked-up and more twangy, and a bit less infectious. Full of crunchy guitars and those classic college radio, sensitive male vocals. Check out their song "Traveling" and see if you agree... Bob Mould crossed with Elliott Smith? Yeah, I know it's easy to compare Gust with his former Heatmiser bandmate, but the similarities do exist. Heck, that group boasted a triad of amazingly talented songwriters (Quasi's Sam Coomes being the third point in the triumvirate). So it is a bit surprising and equally disappointing that this sophomore release for No.2 is less than stellar.
The overt rebellion of industrial culture icon Boyd Rice (aka Non) against mainstream American culture through occultish symbolism and a rhetoric of hate parallels the punk movement's call for social upheaval. Yet, Rice has polarized himself between the extremes of American culture, espousing on one hand the Church of Satan, rightwing totalitarianist warmongering, and general amorality; and on the other, the sickly sweetness of Barbie, the Partridge Family, and '60s girl groups! Rice has never claimed to change the world, but instead revels in social detritus as the means to accumulate personal power and strengthen his own claim of self-determination against any authority structure.
To those familiar with the unholy noise, apocalyptic prophesies, and machine-gun spray misanthropy that have riddled Rice's recordings for the past quarter century, his "Children Of The Black Sun" album is a surprisingly calm composition, but one that doesn't detour from Rice's manifestations of free-will. For this album, Rice has drawn from the ancient apocryphal texts of the Greek Gnostics, who believed that the knowledge of God (and thus the ability to be God) was possible to attain through the rigorous study and existential self-discovery. Lucifer, Cain, the Nephilim, and the Archons have all been the central figures for Gnostic studies, as all have willfully separated themselves from the authority of God in favor of their own pursuits. Rice's "Children Of The Black Sun" traces some of the mythologies of Cain after he had been banished from God's Kingdom for murdering his brother. Yet, just as many of those myths are shrouded in a poetic mystery, Rice has constructed a mostly instrumental affair of blearily sustained drones: hunting trumpets, violins, harp, and dissonant guitar noise, not unlike the massive orchestrations of Hermann Nitsch. Like all manifestations of Gnosticism, Rice hides the true content (perhaps because it's a lie?) but creates a spellbinding atmosphere.
"Children Of The Black Sun" has been released as a double disc with one disc housing the audio in stereo, and the other disc being a DVD with audio only for the surroundsound, 5.1 platform. Nope, no visuals on the DVD.
Fans of Japanese avant-drone guitarist and electronic experimentalist (and sometimes heavy metal dirge-master, when playing in his band Zeni Geva) Kazuyuki K. Null are a happy bunch of late, as his recent "Datacide In Year Zero" cd-r on Crucial Blast (reviewed here last time) is now joined by another new K.K. title, a collaboration with Seattle musician Bill Horist. Null recorded much of the disc's source material, then gave it over to Horist to manipulate and structure (and add to as well, as Horist himself is a textural guitarist akin to Null). The results are, to go along with what Beta-lactam Ring has been saying about this release, kinda in the IDM vein: skittery, bleepy instrumental electronica with crunchy, squeaky (guitar-generated, we'll assume) noises and beats. Like Null's sci-fi sounding GeV cd on Staalplaat, this isn't nearly as "ambient" as some of his past work, though it has its mellow and mysterious moments, amidst many fairly chaotic ones. Indeed, at times this can be harsh (the heavy, grinding "Gravitation"), at other times quite lovely (the acoustic-y "Luminous Lullaby"). In general, you get pulsating, bleeping soundscapes out of which some recognizably human guitar playing will surface, which is what makes these pieces more interesting than your average IDM, I'd say. Null and Horist aren't really breaking any new ground, but they've created a varied and enjoyable disc for fans of quirky computerized electronic music and avant guitar utilization. Pretty cool.
