Ah now this is more like it! The ACR retrospective that Soul Jazz / Universal Sound released a year or two ago was an honest, if partially flawed overview of ACR's occasionally problematic sound, developed during the height of the post-punk movement in the late '70s up through the mid '80s. Where I believe ACR really succeeded was in their earliest recordings documented here on The Graveyard and The Ballroom, which was originally released as a cassette on Factory and later through the Rev-Ola subsidiary of Creation. On these early recordings, A Certain Ratio struggled to balance the two dominant personalities of the group. On one hand there was Simon Topping with his grim poetry barked in a desperate baritone voice, on the other was self-professed Parliament fan Donald Johnson behind the drum kit. Johnson may have ultimately won whatever aesthetic battle took place ACR, but during these early recordings the band thrived on the tension between Topping's bleak vocals and Johnson's amazingly deft grooves. During that time period, ACR -- like many Factory bands including Section 25, The Wake, and Crispy Ambulance -- was accused of being Joy Division imitators. The skeletal Martin Hannent production and the similarity bewtixt Topping and Joy Division's singer Ian Curtis certainly enflame such accusations; yet the music of ACR with its choppy guitar angularity and percussive dexterity lent itself far closer to comparison with the post-punk grooviness of James Chance or ESG. Explosively groovy tracks like "Do The Du," "Crippled Child," and "All Night Party" put all the current roster of post-punk enthusiasts to shame.
This has long been one of my favorite recordings, and I'm very glad it's been reissued. That said, the choice of bonus tracks are a bit disappointing -- the first of which the excellent "And Then Again" appeared on The Old and The New, and the second of which "The Thin Boys" is a throw-away demo track.
Wow, we've been blowing through these new Air cds so fast that it doesn't even seem like we need to bother to review it, it's like "here's that Air cd that you're already buying" would do. But, in case you're curious, the consensus here is that Talkie Walkie is really nice, not quite another Moon Safari thinks Allan, but Andee thinks otherwise. Gorgeously shimmery, reverbed piano and handclaps, sweet angelic vocals, lilting melodies, lush harmonies, and surprisingly catchy songs. If you didn't know this was Air, you'd be forgiven for thinking it was some new indie-rock / Elephant 6 / Notwist / psych-pop record. In fact the Notwist is an apt comparison, as is the Postal Service. Sweet indie rock fused with skittery electronica. And the results are so sublime. They even quote "I'm Not In Love" by 10CC in one song, complete with the heavy breathing! Remember the amazing music Air did for Sophia Coppola's Virgin Suicides. How the music managed to be as gauzy and sweetly innocent and emotionally charged as the film? Well, imagine that same sort of vibe but in a totally pop context! So good. Thankfully Air seem to have finally shed their loungy / exotica / kitsch for good in favor of this new, lush, much more satisfying sound. And I for one can't wait to hear more. This limited edition comes with a bonus DVD featuring a 35 minute live film with behind the scenes footage and other bonus stuff.
British free improv pioneers AMM were recorded live in August 1972 at a festival in London called the International Carnival of Experimental Sound (its theme: Myth, Magic, Madness and Mysticism!). Now, over thirty years later, their set has been released for the first time ever as the debut in a cd series documenting the festival recordings! As ICES '72 featured over 300 performers from over 21 countries, we're bound to be in for some interesting surprises as this cd series unfolds. Starting off with AMM is a good solid choice, as they've certainly met the test of time, active and excellent even today. At this '72 show they consisted of just percussionist Eddie Prevost and saxophonist Lou Gare, along with what the press release accurately terms "their famous AMM silences". When not silent, they're VERY not silent however. Definitely more overtly "free jazz" than some of AMM's other, more meditative drone efforts. 47 minutes, one track.
We raved about the last Armpit record (they were known then by the more regal monicker Thee Armpit) which demonstrated the Armpit as being one of the few outfits boldly and successfully carrying on the rich NZ noise rock tradition of bands like the Dead C and Gate.
This record continues in the same vein, mining the past for reusable noise artifacts while giving things their own unique spin. Murky, dirty rumbling riffs, spread out all thick and nasty like hot tar on toast, with yelped indecipherable vocals, bound and gagged by filthy sheets of white noise, droning amp buzz, ominous soundscapes dotted with scattered percussion and obscured sheets of wild feedback WAY in the distance, slow motion sort-of-garage-rock with hardly-there melodies and impossible-to-tap-your-foot-to rhythms, gritty crackle and hum with gutteral frog-like vocals, and warm walls of thrum and fuzzz, like a more lo-fi Sunroof! So nice.
It's that time again. When AQ regulars start coming in every day like junkies looking for a fix, "Do you have it yet? C'mon man, when are you gonna get it?" And in fact, they are junkies, only they're looking for their HEAVINESS fix. That fix that only Japanese sludge/doom gods Boris can provide. We were pretty into Boris' recent Akuma No Uta cd ep, that added all sorts of sonic weirdness to their new found super-charged Stooges, stoner rock sound (a la Heavy Rocks). But some of us were still longing for a return to the glacial, slow motion doom/drone days of old: Amplifier Worship, Absolutego (sadly now out of print) even the comparatively serene Flood (Allan's favorite). And while we can't tell you this is entirely that return, it's darn close, and we'd say it's easily one of their best records yet. At Last (aka Feedbacker) is a breathtaking, 50 minute epic, split into five movements. Things start with a slow slow build, drones and rumbles and huge sheets of distorted guitars, weaving a heaving tapestry of sonic unrest, a static buzz that towers over you like an ancient stone wall, threatening to heave forward, bricks of sonic sludge crushing you beneath their suffocating weight. The big surprise though comes in the second movement as the wall of sludge dissipates into the ether, leaving a smoky hazy gauze, through which Boris emerge, as an almost-pop band, simple spare drumming, heavily reverbed shimmery chords, subtle muted wah guitar with a distant swirling backdrop of wind tunnel effects and howling feedback. Then vocalist Takeshi joins the fray with mumbled, keening sad boy vocals reminding us of Greg Dulli in his Afghan Whigs days, and then drums get all dubbed out, and suddenly everything is druggy and trippy, like the whole record was soaked in cough syrup. All the while Boris' guitar goddess Wata spits out super distorted leads, all melancholy and emotional, strings bending, feedback threatening to overwhelm the notes. The mellow parts definitely remind us of Codeine, which is a VERY good thing. Also, Windy and Carl, the Wipers a little, and even that eighties Homestead records sound. But it wouldn't be Boris if things didn't get HEAVY. And they do. Really heavy. The rest of the record is an aural tug of war between Boris' Earth/Sunn 0))) doom tendencies and their gorgeous, shimmery, druggy psychedelia. Imagine Godspeed You Black Emperor, raised on doom metal and seventies psych, and fronted by a female Hendrix! It's that fucking amazing.
Of bands that we at Aquarius would LOVE to experience live, Boris would certainly be near the top of the list. We eagerly await the day they come (back) to San Francisco (yes -- apparently they did play here once before, like way back in 1995, but we didn't know about 'em then). So of course this brand new live DVD by Boris is a big thrill for us, and we're sure for many of you too. Finally, we get to see Boris in action, the powerhouse trio backed by a wall of Orange amplification, tearing the house down on one night of their "Black Summer Tour", July 12th 2003. And one thing this film reveals that perhaps not all Boris fans know is that guitarist Wata is a girl, cute as can be even as she wrenches the most doomed-out distortion from her axe. Meanwhile vocalist Takeshi attracts some attention wielding his trademark double neck bass/guitar, whilst Atsuo bashes the hell out of his drum kit.
For some reason this DVD doesn't seem to have a menu screen, it just starts up and goes. First a black screen, then some faint titles fade in and out, feedback builds, and out of the blackness -- BORIS! Devastating a packed, smokey club full of metal-crazed Japanese fans, fists and devil signs aloft. Shot with multiple cameras and edited MTV-style this is a real pro production. After the black hole gravity of the first song ("Huge" from Amplifier Worship), Boris rip into some more uptempo material, stoner rock thrash outs from Heavy Rocks and their recent Akuma No Uta ep. There's about an hour of live performance, ten songs total, from punk mania to brutal psych dirge. And it's not all straight concert footage, there's some backstage shots and arty compositions of almost-stills about a half-hour in.
Following the show, the DVD continues with four Boris videos. Two are taken from Heavy Rocks: a black-and-white-and-orange "Korosu" and a live-montage clip for "1970". The other two are from Akuma No Uta, both animations, one a frenzy of CG techno-weaponry, the other a low-tech cartoon made from smudged sketchbook art a la the cover to the Akuma No Uta cd. Pretty cool both of those, as is the entire DVD! ----* ----* Two New tUMULt Releases : ----*
Boy, we sure had a lot of trouble getting these boxes. As did lots of other stores we'd imagine. It's a shame too since this would have made an amazing Christmas gift (as it was released right before Christmas). But we have 'em now, and the good thing about it not being Christmas anymore is you don't have to feel guilty about buying it for yourself! One hell of a kick ass box set. Of the five discs that are housed in this cloth-bound volume, four of them are of unreleased material. Three of those are out-takes from the various Cash American sessions and the other an entirely new album of gospel songs from John's mother's hymn book. As a bonus to this material one is also rewarded with a best of disc compiled from the entire Johnny Cash on American series. Of course those already owning the original issues may not find much use for it, but it might come as a further tempation to fence riding erstwhile Cash fans. The cherry on the top as it were is a 104 page (hardcover cloth-bound) booklet with photos and Johnny's personal comments on each and every song. Don't hesitate lest it disappear again!
Cool 5 song collection from Japan's serial killer obsessed stoner sludge rockers Church Of Misery. The first four tracks were recorded over the last few years and of course concern all your favorites, the Boston Strangler, Ted Bundy, the Candy Man, and El Topo. Crunchy and fuzzed out loping stoner rock ala Fu Manchu, Nebula, Heavy Rocks-era Boris. Fucking great stuff. The fifth track is tagged on to track four and is ostensibly an improvisation. Titled Invocation Of My Demon Brother. Not sure if it's some sort of homage to Kenneth Anger, but to these ears it just sounds like more of that sweet sweet crushing tarpit sludge.
Okay, so Circle Takes The Square may not be the best band name. In fact, it's pretty dumb. It also gives no clue as to what an intense and amazing record As The Roots Undo is. But as with monikers like the "Flaming Lips", or even the "Beatles", the name will grow on you, which is good, because you're gonna be telling everyone you know about this record. Trust us! From the cover, a gorgeous gold and silver metallic digipak that folds together IPR style, to the music, a bizarre hybrid of old school crusty hardcore complete with shouted boy/girl vocals, modern metalcore, indie/post rock, seriously complex and innovative prog, and even some weird ambient electronic bits, you won't know what hit you. Sounds like it could be a mess, but somehow it all falls together perfectly. Emotional and intense, alternately heavy and intense, melodic and melancholy. Massive Neurosis-style riffery gives way to weird clean guitar breakdowns, spoken word parts and blooping electronic programming. Buzzing grindcore splinters into jangly, rhythmic almost-pop. Definitely schizophrenic. But in a good way. The core of the record is a thrashy, complex grind metal, but the vocals are so distinctive and emotional and the arrangements are so creative that it turns what could have been a run of the mill punk rock record into one of our favorite new records, period.
We raved and raved about the new Coheed And Cambria record a few lists back. It even made a couple of our best of the year lists. Totally epic and proggy emo metal core. Heavy on the prog. With ridiculously amazing vocals somewhere between Geddy Lee from Rush, Freddie Mercury, Jeff Buckley and the guy from Shudder To Think. 10+ minute songs, ridiculous time signatures, hooks galore and that distinctive wail. So fucking great! Andee and Jim still listen to it in the store all the time! Andee and Jim -also- loved it enough to go to Bottom Of The Hill and check them out in person. And it was so awesome. Not only was it all ages so the place was packed with kids in their best emo finery, but EVERYONE was singing along to EVERY song at the top of their lungs. Even the kids in the pit. Every 'Woahhhh' and 'La La' was a deafening roar. The best part was the band though. Sort of drunk, a bit sloppy, they were a dishevelled, bearded, un-emo looking mess. Every between song break was met with screams for more, and the band would just deflect the requests with the explanation "We're fucking old. And tired. Let us take a fucking break. I can barely breathe up here." It was so satisfying, being old guys ourselves. The singer even had to go get his glasses to read the set list. So cool! But the real point of this story is, they played a bunch of songs neither of us recognized, but that instantly got stuck in our heads, all of which are thankfully on this here record, and all of which kick serious ass. Not nearly as polished or well produced as the new one, but it hardly matters because the songs are so goddamn good. If you haven't bought the new one, In Keeping Secrets Of Silent Earth: 3 maybe start there, but you certainly won't regret starting here either. Hell, buy both. You won't be sorry.
Milo is back where he belongs, fronting the mighty Descendents. 'Merican is a 4 track blast of that classic Descendents pop punk sound. A sound that has been borrowed by a million other bands and turned into boring MTV pap. There was just some sort of magic with the Descendents and while it may not be as magical 20 years down the line it's still pretty fun and catchy and great. Two tracks of hyper speed, in your face punk rock, and two tracks of that heart-on-your-sleeve, pop on punk's clothing that the Descendents do so well. Can't wait for the upcoming full length. If you've never heard the Descendents, get Milo Goes To College or Enjoy and you'll know what we're talking about.
For those who've only just surfaced from the daze imposed upon them by the sonics of Doktor Kettu's previous three cd-rs, well the Doktor is back and your therapy can continue! For those new to Doktor Kettu, be aware that the Doktor's drug of choice involves hazy electric guitars and stumbling drums improvising organically, like some Fushit-Thuja hybrid, to make a punny and obscure reference. From Finland, the mysterious Doktor is a group that may or may not include members of AQ-faves Circle. What we do know is that so far DK discs have been the sole output of the Super Metsa cd-r label, partly run by Circle's Jussi Lehtisalo. All five cd-rs so far seem like installments from some massive on-going jam still happening right now in a dingy Finnish basement, or perhaps outdoors under the ever-dark winter sky. Their music is the murky drone of armored seagulls, flying over electric waves of distortion and hiss.
High Revolution features three long tracks, all in the lo-fi, low-key freakout mode we've come to expect. Lonely caverns are slowly filled with an unknown gas. Distant apes play with sticks and then pass out. Jurassic cries emerge from deep beneath rocks and stones. Moss talks to moss. In similar fashion, I Really Like Diamonds consists of but one track ("Severed Minds") stretching out for 43 minutes -- and don't ask why a one-track album has a different title than the track itself. Like a lot of things to do with this band, we have the feeling that it's a Finnish drug thing you wouldn't understand. Each disc limited to 100 copies, fyi.
For those who've only just surfaced from the daze imposed upon them by the sonics of Doktor Kettu's previous three cd-rs, well the Doktor is back and your therapy can continue! For those new to Doktor Kettu, be aware that the Doktor's drug of choice involves hazy electric guitars and stumbling drums improvising organically, like some Fushit-Thuja hybrid, to make a punny and obscure reference. From Finland, the mysterious Doktor is a group that may or may not include members of AQ-faves Circle. What we do know is that so far DK discs have been the sole output of the Super Metsa cd-r label, partly run by Circle's Jussi Lehtisalo. All five cd-rs so far seem like installments from some massive on-going jam still happening right now in a dingy Finnish basement, or perhaps outdoors under the ever-dark winter sky. Their music is the murky drone of armored seagulls, flying over electric waves of distortion and hiss.
High Revolution features three long tracks, all in the lo-fi, low-key freakout mode we've come to expect. Lonely caverns are slowly filled with an unknown gas. Distant apes play with sticks and then pass out. Jurassic cries emerge from deep beneath rocks and stones. Moss talks to moss. In similar fashion, I Really Like Diamonds consists of but one track ("Severed Minds") stretching out for 43 minutes -- and don't ask why a one-track album has a different title than the track itself. Like a lot of things to do with this band, we have the feeling that it's a Finnish drug thing you wouldn't understand. Each disc limited to 100 copies, fyi.
Who knew so much pure evil lurked deep in the depths of (supposedly) sunny California, especially right here in San Francisco. The legendary Weakling (R.I.P.), the ungodly blackened evil of Leviathan, the blazing, bleak torment of Crebain (also coming soon on tUMULt), and now the grim, funereal, majestic savagery of Draugar's From Which Hatred Grows.
Haunting and atmospheric, brutal and buzzing, blighted and black. Fingerpicked acoustic guitars explode into roaring, soul-shearing riffs, pounding drums demarcate hazy blackened soundscapes of misanthropic brutality and gorgeously melodic impurity, damaged and demented arrangements underpin hellish profane howls of utter anguish. Yeah, black metal at its best with nary a glacier or fjord in sight. Yet, as Burzumically brutal as it all is, you could be listening to this and suddenly forget and mistakenly think you've got some fucked up experiment in lo-fi ambient drone psychedelia on your stereo instead. Keyboards warble WAY above the mix, drums and vocals and guitars are whipped into Merzbow-ic blasts of white noise, blast beats are obliterated into gentle expanses of delicate acoustic guitars and droning ambient hum, the whole thing a gorgously perplexing blast of bizarre blackened sonic experimentation. Much like the infamous Benighted Leams confused and astounded us once upon a time with its outsider genius, Draugar transcends black metal musical norms, making truly abnormal, artistic sound with unknown boundaries. Like Leviathan and our other favorite California black metal act Xasthur, it's the one-man-alone, far from the "scene" aspect that seems to foster a creativity beyond that of many ordinary black metal bands. From Which Hatred Grows is one of those rare metal records that manages to be true and grim, buzzing and black, but also a truly unique sonic vision that should find its way into the collection of every adventurous music lover.
Been sensing a little buzz lately about this band from the U.K. You might've spotted these four women recently when they toured the U.S. with fellow Brits Broadcast. Having seen their performance here in S.F. and now, having heard this their second full length, we'd say they're much stronger on record. Live, they came across rather stiff and unprepared. On The Power Out, they reveal intriguing and adventurous ideas a-plenty -- mostly rooted in brooding propulsive rock laced with organ, piano and even a saxophone on one of the later songs. On occasion however, they lack the chops to truly lock it all together. The unpolished, loose quality of both the recordings and the performances may be appealing to some, but overall it makes for an uneven album. When they do hit the mark though Electrelane can really shine. For an example of this you need look (or listen) no further than the album's third song. A bit of a black sheep among the rest of the more straightforward guitar-driven songs it's a film soundtrack-y choral number called "The Valleys". Glorious! We'd wish for more of a similar ilk, but only one other (the eighth song "This Deed") comes close. One reason for this is the presence of additional vocals that accompany those of lead singer/multi-instrumentalist Verity Susman. They really flesh out the two songs, making them more expansive, more enveloping and a stark contrast to the rest. Actually the prominent and varied vocal presence on The Power Out is a marked change from its predecessor, the mostly instrumental, more krautrock influenced Rock It To The Moon. So, with this increased focus on the vocals what's the in-store response been like? Well, it's run both hot and cold ranging from those who dug Susman's voice quite a bit to those who thought it was grating and a bit sour. She definitely tackles a number of different vocal deliveries that range from gutsy grrrl hollerin' to a low Chrissie Hynde-ish throatiness to droll Pastels-ish sing-song not to mention some odd non-verbal bird-call sounds (check out "On Parade"). Definitely seems to be a matter of taste.
Usually, when a friend of yours slowly begins to sink into a druggy oblivion, you do everything in your power to help them, and keep them from that fate. But when that druggy oblivion is musical and that friend is Greg Weeks, you wait anxiously for the descent to bear musical fruit. Thus we have the Espers. A modern classic of shimmery psychedelia and seventies inspired pagan folk (and the drugs are sonic, not narcotic, so fear not Mr. and Mrs. Weeks). Sweet and melodic, but with a subtly dark and utterly creepy underbelly. The sound is heavy on the Incredible String Band, Pentangle, Fairport Convention and hippy folk of that era, but with elements of the sweet pop ballad and with a dash of Comus, that's right, Comus! And we don't invoke the name of Comus lightly. But don't let all this talk of folk and prog put you off. Espers beautifully tread paths of indie rock shimmer just as deftly, offering much to love for fans of Windy And Carl, Landing, and all things Ptolemaic Terrascope. Sweetly angelic female vocals float and hover alongside Weeks' warm sweet croon, over spare lilting folk, woven from delicately plucked steel string guitars, haunting violins and cellos, sweet swirling flutes, and the distinctive zing of dulcimers. Occasionally distorted guitar leaps wildly from the haze (two members are credited with "acid leads" after all!) lending the whole thing an acid soaked vibe. Weeks' last full length solo record was an AQ Record of the Week way back in 2001 with its mournful introspection, fuzzed out melodies and dreamy cloudy ambience. Espers follow a similar path, a lonely, meandering, path through the ancient forest, sunlight filtering faintly through the canopy. Travelling minstrels sing sadly, softly, offering sweet sounds to seek safety in those darkened, timeless glades.
Falconer's third is another solid power metal album from the medieval-minded Stefan Weinerhall (ex-Mithotyn) and company. And it's really a more ambitious effort than their others, as it's a concept album based on some rather obscure (to us) history, telling a complex and detailed story of political scheming for the Swedish throne circa 1290! As always, we're big fans of Weinerhall's triumpant songwriting and distinctive heavy metal guitar tone, but just a little disappointed that Falconer now has a new singer. Actually, though, he's not too different from the original guy so I'm sure we'll get used to him.
Mike Patton's musical terror squad returns. Or should we say medical terror squad, judging by the graphics: photos taken from Max Aguilera-Hellweg's "The Sacred Heart" book of surgery pictures, images both clinically compelling and quite gory (the likes of "Irrigating Wound Before Closing" and "Organ Donation For Cornea Transplant" are not for the squeamish!). Drs. Patton, Lombardo, Osbourne and Dunn here perform an operation both physical and psychological, as befits those cd graphics. It's dark, grim chamber music for rock instruments and electronics. Some of this is almost-ambient, delicate and beautiful. Other parts are bombastic and spastic as you'd expect. Slayer drummer Lombardo exercises much restraint, but gets to roil and toil at times. Patton of course displays a range of vocals, including some truly sweet singing in fact. This hour-plus composition (expansive yet claustrophically, it's but one long track) almost seems like a DJ set constructed from the darkest, artiest LPs in Patton's collection. Indeed, Fantomas' list of acknowledgements gives some clues as to what this sounds like: Bohren & Der Club of Gore, Matmos, Nitsch, Messiaen, Komeda, stethoscopic heart recordings... We're also definitely reminded of Jonathan Bepler's scores for Matthew Barney's Cremaster films -- there's even a passage with buzzing insect sounds not unlike Lombardo's cut on the Cremaster 2 soundtrack.
Fern Knight is not a person's name as we initially thought, it is the moniker for this duo from Rhode Island whose hushed folk pop songs take a number of haunting instrumental twists, turns and detours into atmospheric soundscapes. Heavily reverbed and tremoloed guitars are interwoven with strummed and plucked acoustic guitar as deep somber strings and an occasional accordion wind their way around the unmistakable warm sound of a Fender Rhodes keyboard. So heart-baringly bittersweet and intimate, much like a cross between Julie Doiron and Mirah. Absolutely lovely!
Eleanor and Michael Friedberger, the brother and sister duo known as The Fiery Furnaces have certainly drawn lots of comparisons to the plethora of other boy/girl, brother/sister duos of late (White Stripes, The Kills, The Raveonettes to name just a few), but hang on a sec! Don't dismiss them as a bluesy, garagey raw rock copycat pair. 'Though there's definitely waves of low slung slouchy blues, garage and rock flowin' through their veins, there's also plenty more goin' on here. While The Fiery Furnaces are definitely not silly, they are full of whimsy, wit and carefree spirit. Gallowsbird's Park begins at a frantic pace of descending xylophone and piano lines while snarky guitars and thumpin' drums elbow their way through the fray. Eleanor's delivery has a distinct saucy devil-may-care tone to it. She seems to be having a blast kicking out each verse and chorus with such sass. This album is a rambunctious freewheeling jumble, however that's not to say it's by any means messy. What it is is a darn good time! Recommended.
One of two double disc sets from Diamanda Galas, Defixiones, Will and Testament is the song cycle that Galas has performed around the world, set to texts from various poets, rembetika singers, and blues musicians. As with her infamous trilogy of release, the Plague Mass, Litanies of Satan, and The Masque of The Red Death which focused upon horror of AIDS, Defixiones takes up another deadly serious topic, genocide. Galas offers her own definition of genocide, as "an attempt to brutally crush and erase a civilization by any means necessary in its entirety.ïAlso, this work concerns those who must live in exile as a means to escape and the desire to document one's existence -- to leave behind proof of life." For these recordings, Galas sings to those forgotten in the Armenian, Assyrian, and Anatolian Greek genocides which occurred between 1914 and 1923. With minimal arrangements of piano and windswept electronic tones, Galas belts out her highly stylized demonic shrieks, operatic falsettos, and tortured blues, always pointing towards the pain and suffering of her subjects.
Diamanda Galas' La Serpanta Canta is a collection of live recordings from 1999 - 2002 that celebrates her numerous influences, a veritable Diamanda songbook, tunes by Hank Williams, Ornette Coleman, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Screamin' Jay Hawkins, and John Lee Hooker. Each song is hammered out on the lower regions of the piano's keyboard, with her incredibly stylized vocalizations churning out shrill falsettos and diabolical growls. Compared to the conceptually grim Defixiones album released at the same time, La Serpenta Canta opens up to a slightly wider range of emotional expressionism. Diamanda's own ragtime ditty "Baby's Insane" is a notably comic moment (intentional or otherwise), where her comparably uptempo, spry piano chords drive her faithful vocal rendition of a standard blues progression. Yet, the declarations of damnation and vocal gymnastics caught in the grieving process are more typical of many works found on La Serpenta Canta.
Really nice packaging here -- the all-white embossed digipack is utterly gorgeous and tactile and very appropriate for the Zen-like simplicity of Japanese trio ISO's music. ISO consist of Otomo Yoshihide, Sachiko M, and Yoshimitsu Ichiraku, all of whom are probably familiar to followers of the Japanese underground improv avant garde, with Otomo of course being the best known. Unlike the mayhemic turntable/sampler cutups of his former outfit Ground Zero, or the free jazz with which he's also identified, here Otomo and co. concentrate on the minimalist soundscapes typical of the emergent "onkyo" genre. It's subtle, barely-there electronics and percussion, enhanced by the ambient sound of the place where this was recorded, outside in a 500-year old temple garden. Apparently the members of the trio were positioned where they couldn't see one another, and it's hard to understand how they were able to hear each other either, unless they were playing at volumes much louder than what seems appropriate for playback at home. Yet the centrally located stereo mic has captured a oneness of sound, a delicate performance that is truly beautiful, not boring. Less stark and harsh than his Filament duo with Sachiko M, but more minimal than his larger Cathode ensemble, ISO is one of our favorites of Otomo's many projects and we're happy to have this 40 minute live document!
Somewhere right now Thom Yorke is blushing, now that this 1973 soundtrack has been reissued. Well, that's our speculation anyway, 'cause the main theme sounds SO MUCH like a Radiohead song (which one, we haven't quite figured out. Not "Paranoid Android" but close.) At any rate, this was either a big inspiration to Radiohead or it's just a marvellous coincidence. You'll hear it for yourself we're sure. Thom certainly needs to hear this if he hasn't already (as we suspect). And it's not just the melody of this soundtrack's main leit motif, but the singing voice itself. A French female doing wordless ah ah ahs -- play it back to back with Radiohead and you'll swear it's Mr. Yorke's famous falsetto. But that's only part of the reason this soundtrack is so fascinating. It's also a very very early electronica effort by a young Jean-Michel Jarre, later in the '80s to become well-known as a New Age superstar famed for spectacular multi-media shows. In the seventies, though, his output could be considered credible electronica pioneering. 1977's Oxygene is a pretty cool album after all. But this was before even that, and it's way more extreme. Truly jarring electronic sound that's hard to reconcile with the idea of "background" music in film! And Les Granges Brulees was not, as far as we're aware, a horror or science fiction flick where such might make sense. As far as we can tell, this Jean Chapot directed movie was a mystery / romance (staring Alain Delon btw). Certainly the vocals are romantic, and much of the rest of Jarre's crankier-than-Kraftwerk electronics are suspenseful, a la Goblin. One track breaks the mood a little bit -- "Zig-zag" must be from a scene where the characters visit a circus or something, as it's got that Jean-Jacques Perrey zaniness to it. But most of this is interplay between the haunting theme and freaky electronic fx. A very cool, out of the blue reissue, forshadowing Kid A some thirty years ago!
Genius or madman? Both? Neither? It's going to be tough to decide as you delve into Ecstasy (sic) To Frenzy by Rodd Keith, the second Keith release in Tzadik's "Lunatic Fringe" series. Unreleased and unknown until now, Keith's studio epic "Shome Howe Jehovason Plays" takes up the bulk of this disc. There's two versions presented, each over a half-hour in length, the second playing in reverse. It's sheer lunacy from a man best known for his for-hire song-poem compositions like "Beat Of The Traps" (which, along with the title track and "Little Rug Bug" appear here as boni, although they also were included on The American Song-Poem Anthology released last year by Bar/None, so you might already have them.) However crazed and wonderful those examples of Keith's commercial songcraft are, they won't prepare you for "Shome Howe Jehovason Plays". His "cool cat" persona flies out the window, replaced with something altogether more alien. Wandering organ and maddening Vince Guaraldi Peanuts piano meets wordless, backwards Magmoid vocal babble. If you told me this was some Fluxus piece, or an Italian avant-garde prog experiment gone wrong, I'd believe it. We're not sure what Keith was thinking back when he recorded this opus (we don't know when that was exactly, but he died in 1974), but we do find it weirdly enjoyable. Outsider art for sure, completely cracked in fact. It certainly goes to prove that Rodd Keith was the right guy to tackle all those crazy poems folks sent in to have set to music, he was obviously feeling where they came from!
These two records were born from an experiment undertaken by Lambchop frontman Kurt Wagner. The experiment? To try and write a song every day for a year. Apparently, the experiment was a success and the song-a-day regime was easier than expected. These two releases represent the cream of the crop of those..um...365 songs?!?! Phew, could've been a 20 disc set! The Lambchop sound is in full effect. lush, and sweet, lots of strings and big arrangements, with Wagner's distinctive and lugubrious drawl. For those of you unfamiliar with Lambchop, imagine Vic Chesnutt fronting the Tindersticks. That gives you a rough idea. But Wagner's arrangements aren't always dour and dark. His songs evoke afternoon tea in the parlour and lazy mornings on the porch as much as they explore loneliness and despair. A sort of big band / lounge / no depression / Gone With The Wind / redneck musical. Played impeccably. Wagner's caustic wit seems to have mellowed with age, but it suits Lambchop's ever mellowing smooth sound to a T. While the two parts of this set -are- different, they are similar enough that, we're not sure what to say. They exist as a sort of call and response, one complimenting the other. So it seems unlikely that anyone would buy just one. And needless to say, if you're a Lambchop fan, you're definitely gonna want both.
These two records were born from an experiment undertaken by Lambchop frontman Kurt Wagner. The experiment? To try and write a song every day for a year. Apparently, the experiment was a success and the song-a-day regime was easier than expected. These two releases represent the cream of the crop of those..um...365 songs?!?! Phew, could've been a 20 disc set! The Lambchop sound is in full effect. lush, and sweet, lots of strings and big arrangements, with Wagner's distinctive and lugubrious drawl. For those of you unfamiliar with Lambchop, imagine Vic Chesnutt fronting the Tindersticks. That gives you a rough idea. But Wagner's arrangements aren't always dour and dark. His songs evoke afternoon tea in the parlour and lazy mornings on the porch as much as they explore loneliness and despair. A sort of big band / lounge / no depression / Gone With The Wind / redneck musical. Played impeccably. Wagner's caustic wit seems to have mellowed with age, but it suits Lambchop's ever mellowing smooth sound to a T. While the two parts of this set -are- different, they are similar enough that, we're not sure what to say. They exist as a sort of call and response, one complimenting the other. So it seems unlikely that anyone would buy just one. And needless to say, if you're a Lambchop fan, you're definitely gonna want both.
Solem, folkish "spirituals" from a band about which we know just a few things: they're from Balitmore and include members of the very-different-sounding Oxes, and they spent some time last year on tour opening for Will Oldham, who was apparently taken by Long Live Death's "incantory" aspects. Their music is melancholic and stately, not quite of our world, though clearly with an indie-rock pedigree. A short little album (just over 25 minutes) of some power and grace. And, along with voices, cello, gongs, flute, bells, and violin there's musical saw on it, which is always a plus!
Can't say enough about Longmont Potion Castle. Perhaps the best, funniest, most bizarre series of crank calls ever. There's the always popular picking fights with strangers, but Mr. LPC does it so much better than most with his Steven Wright deadpan and his ridiculous non-sequiters. Constant references to deliveries of peacocks from Lithuania, offers of free manure, and an endless litany of nonsensical recommendations, bizarre suggestions, and problematic overtures, all delivered in that likeable guy-next-door deadpan. Always does raise the question WHY DON'T PEOPLE JUST HANG UP?!?! Lucky for us they don't. We also get a dose of Longmont's metal obsession with the occasional freaked out death metal interlude. This may be the last Longmont record too, as according to LPC himself, he went through all his tapes and collected everything he had left. So don't miss out. So dumb and funny and brilliant. Be sure and stick around at the end for a truly distrubing call, that goes from funny to really fucking sad in a matter of minutes, between LPC, a depressed suicidal goth teen and his overbearing fucked up dad. Wow.
This live album starts out promising enough, presenting selected recordings from three scaled down, intimate Microphones' shows (in comparison to his last few cds which have been considerably more grand productions), but swiftly descends into awkward, near-cringe territory. Granted he's playing all new songs which often seem unfamiliar even to him, but without the trippy glorious lo-fi indie pop orchestrations of his recent recordings to compliment and contrast his frail, emotive vocals in the live setting, mainman Phil Elvrum ends up fully exposed. You might recognize the deeeeep voice that pops in to help out as that of Calvin Johnson, but that's only on a few occasions. There's that fine line where deeply heartfelt, unrestrained singing meets off-key yowling-at-the-moon warbling... and that line gets crossed a few times on Live In Japan. Also for some reason "Silent Night" and "These Are A Few Of My Favorite Things" make their lyrically revised way into his live repertoire. Why?! We guess it's a case of 'you had to be there' which in this case was Kyoto, Nagoya, and Tokyo. Only for diehard Microphones fans. All others seek out The Glow Pt. 2 for a much better slice of Microphones music.
Another beautiful, deeply moving album from longtime AQ faves Mountain Goats! Sounds like it was a pretty intense recording session -- Mr. John Darnielle along with Franklin Bruno (piano and organ), Peter Hughes (bass), Nora Danielson (violins), Christopher McGuire (drums) holed up in the studio for just ten days! -- resulting in sixteen completed songs, thirteen of which make up We Shall All Be Healed. Whew! By the way, has anyone else noticed that Mr. Darnielle's singing voice is sounding more and more like that of Daniel Bejar (of Destroyer and New Pornographers)? It used to seem the other way around, but perhaps it's simply the works of two kindred spirits drawing closer (although we've heard that Mr. Bejar has taken Destroyer in a radically different direction with his forthcoming album). There's certainly an affinity between the two fellows' songwriting -- poetic, earnest, and at once both starkly observative and richly imaginative. There's so many fine moments on this album, many of which glow even brighter with the pianowork of his Extra Glenns' partner in crime Mr. Bruno. Check out "Home Again Garden Grove" and "The Young Thousands". Seems like Mountain Goats have found a well-suited middle ground between his beloved bare bones early recordings and those that make up their more recent higher-fi 4AD releases. Wonderful! Produced by John Vanderslice (who also has a dandy new album out now!). Very recommended!
Scary Swans 'chanteuse' Jarboe has been getting into the collaborative thing of late, doing a tour and live DVD with Italian post-rockers Larsen, and now getting together with the Bay Area's very own Neurosis, the reigning kings of underground art metal. Jarboe's idiosyncratic but compelling vocals -- a whisper, a pant, a drawl -- get dynamic backing from the Neurosis horde. Their sinister tribal drone-psych heaviness is a churning, seething thing, a perfect backdrop for Jarboe's dramatic lyrics and vocal style, which can range from rather lovely and melodic to total throat abuse. Rather than being a metal juggernaut, Neurosis here sound more akin to their Tribes of Neurot alter-ego, a spacey industrial darkness capable of spells of delicate beauty that seem always about to crumble or explode. Especially effective is the 11 minute apocalyptic country-folk dirge that closes the album. But all ten tracks are powerful, psychological. Definitely a downer listen that should appeal to fans of both sides in this collaboration.
Huzzah! This absolutely wonderful album is now, at long last, back in print. If you've already got one, well, let this be a reminder to go listen to it again if you haven't in a while, it's still as lovely and poppy and psychedelic and well-crafted as it was when first released in 1996 and became an instant AQ favorite. If you don't have it, and especially if you haven't heard it, be thankful that it's available again!! The OTC's masterpiece, Music From The Unrealized Film Script Dusk At Cubist Castle (to give it its full title), is just about as perfect a slice of home recorded, neo-psychedelic pop as you can find. Beach Boys inspired harmonies. Lysergic Sgt. Pepperisms galore. Great, glorious songs. Unlike some of their other, experimental or ambient efforts, here the Olivias didn't obscure their songwriting smarts with unnecessary weirdness. Sure there's surreal interludes (and surreal lyrics) but the pop remains paramount. Next to the output of Neutral Milk Hotel (with which really few things can compare), certainly a classic in the Elephant 6 discography.
Three extended tracks of improvised free-form avant-noise drone from this LA outfit. Imagine the Dead C, slowly crumbling from the inside out, all vestiges of 'rock' and 'composition' are now a viscous puddle in front of your speakers, leaving just a splattery, skeletal clattery clank of a record. A huge cavernous space, a player in each corner, sending pipes and guitars and drum sticks and plectrums careening across the floor, raising an unholy, but pretty damn pleasing racket.
The meeting point between country rock/Americana and emo is this San Francisco 'Highway! Although they formed back in '96, and have garnered a loyal local following as a live band, this is their first full length. Our Lady Of The Highway quite often bears a striking resemblance both in voice and word to Mountain Goats' John Darnielle and the Weakerthans' John Samson (and come to think of it, the title's pretty similar to the latter's Left And Leaving album too, isn't it?). This is by no means a bad thing - that's some quality company to be in, two AQ faves who pour their heart and soul into every note! - but it truly is uncanny at times. Key ingredients are Dominic East's heartfelt songwriting and unrestrained, empassioned vocals, Andrew Gerhan's sunset-perfect acoustic guitar strummin', Joshua Housh's mournful languid bass fiddle, and the subtly dynamic drumming of David Clifford (a side note: he is neither the David Clifford who drums for Pleasure Forever nor the man of the same name who drums for Fish of Marillion!). An aching sense of loss and loneliness permeates each of the eleven songs, and it weighs heavier and heavier as the album progresses (even when they kick up the tempo a bit), perhaps peaking at the tenth called "Come Clean". It's such barebones melancholic loveliness laden with generous reverb, it sounds as if it were recorded in a cavernous vacant church or in a big ol' pub long after last call. Offering some glistening solace like the warming amber glow of a freshly poured pint. A fine debut!
The fifth installment of Papa M's audio tour diary series finds him in New York City on April 11, 2003. Quite possibly the lovliest of the bunch thus far, it's comprised of two collaborations with vocalist/multi-instrumentalist Christina Rosenvinge (Two Dollar Guitar) whose willowy voice adds more misty-eyed, introspective dreaminess to David Pajo's already world-weary, poignant music.
Gentle lilting SF roots rock weighted by a heavyheartedness is what this full length by Mr. Danny Pearson is all about. Joining him on one tune "Be Here Now" is Mark Kozelek (Red House Painters/Sun Kil Moon), and you might say that The Oblivion Seeker is very much in the same vein as Kozelek, as well as American Music Club. In fact, Pearson covers the Mark Eitzel penned tune "Vulture And Hyena", and Sun Kil Moon/AMC's Tim Mooney recorded the album. See, it's all connected! And yet, we may also mention how akin to the lush earthy prettiness of The Czars this is too -- particularly on the songs graced by warming strings, Hammond organ, and ghostly harmonium, but even more so on the two which feature some very soft velvety female backing vocals that offer some light in Pearson's world weary atmosphere. Indeed it's this pair of songs along with the Kozelek-accompanied number mentioned above that are the highlights of this album. Very nice!
This amazing series of books seems tailor made for AQ customers and music obsessives (oh wait, those are the same thing right?). Each book is about a single album. Not the artist, but the record, and all the stuff that went on before, during and after. Music geek nirvana eh? Not sure if everyone's familiar with Mojo, a British magazine that combines the best elements of the Wire, with the best parts of Rolling Stone. Mojo manages to publish articles that are so interesting and readable it almost doesn't matter who they're about. The most recent issue had a huge article about Primal Scream that had Andee and Allan thinking maybe they should re-investigate a band they both considered crap. Also in the same issue, there was an article about the decline and disintegration of the Doors focusing on their dismal final album The Soft Parade. But somehow after reading the article, we were all dying to hear it! These 33 1/3 series books kind of have the same effect. They are totally readable and really fascinating. Especially if the subject is a record you love. But it's not necessary, you might just find yourself suddenly interested in a record you never cared about. That's pretty cool. We'll try to list all of them as quick as we can, but we have to read 'em first! The first batch includes books about seminal albums by the Kinks, Love, Dusty Springfield, Pink Floyd, Neil Young and the Smiths. Future volumes will cover My Bloody Valentine, Prince, Abba, Velvet Underground, Joy Division, Radiohead, Jethro Tull and more. This here is the fifth in the series and the one most folks have been asking about, the Smiths' Meat Is Murder, written by Joe Pernice of the Pernice Brothers, Chappaquiddick Skyline, Old Tobacco, and the Scud Mountain Boys. Unlike the rest of the series, Pernice chose to write a novella. That's right, fiction. Some of you might be bummed to not learn all about studio squabbles and guitar tone and all that juicy stuff, but this is a pretty great little chunk of fiction. Awkward adolescence, unrequited love, crushes and first bands and how punk rock and the Smiths changed everything. Recommended.
Markus Schmickler has enjoyed a long career of artistic reinventions, and his Pluramon project marks yet another with the highly acclaimed album Dreams Top Rock. Back in the early '90s, Schmickler began his musical career with a number of obscure electro-acoustic collaborations including Kontakta and Pol; but Schmickler's first major productions came with his first Pluramon record Pick Up Canyon, an album on which Schmickler worked with with Can's drummer extrordinaire Jaki Leibezeit. Outperforming much of the contemporary post-rock of the mid-90s (i.e. Tortoise, Stereolab, etc.), Pick Up Canyon brought an exceptional use of electronics to the always amazing clustered grooves of Leibezeit. Since then, Schmickler also released painterly electro-glitch collages as Wabi Sabi and an overlooked orchestral album that accurately reflected the ideas of such 20th Century avant-garde masters as Ligeti, Arvo Part, and Xenakis.
Schmickler's return to his Pluramon project finds him re-investing in the sublime beauty of shoegazer pop on Dreams Top Rock. As with Pick Up Canyon which hinged upon the percussive prowess of Jaki Leibezeit, Dreams Top Rock revolves around the ego of another. This time it's the David Lynch dream-girl Julee Cruise. Yes, there's plenty of My Bloody Valentine to go around; but to these ears, Dreams Top Rock is also a pastiche of A.R. Kane's very early singles dotted with melodies lifted from the Angelo Badalamenti songbook. Cruise's breathy vocalizations and hushed etherial whispers work incredibly well with Schmickler's adept reinterpretation of the shoegazer sound. Unlike Slowdive or My Bloody Valentine, Schmickler doesn't present himself as a brilliant songwriter. His songs are certainly better than most; but he tends to overwhelm the songs with his flawless production of that narcotized guitar sound.
Especially for anyone who bought the recent M83 record, Dreams Top Rock is an essential album. However, one non-music related complaint: Whose bright idea was it to put a sticker on the front of the digipak with the artist name and album title? I mean, sure, leave that info off the artwork, put a sticker on the cd case, or on the shrinkwrap. But if you decide to leave it off the artwork, then why would you put a sticker (that you can't peel off) directly on the cardboard of a digipack?! It makes no sense. GRRRR!!! ARGGHHH!!!
At last, the long-anticipated release of Probot -- Dave Grohl's teenage metalhead fanboy wet dream come true. Yep, before Grohl was famous as a Foo Fighter and former member of Nirvana, he was kid fully into hardcore and metal. So now he's gone and done something that just not enough rich and famous people seem to do -- he wrote a bunch of metal songs and then sent 'em to a dozen of his favorite metal vocalists for them to sing over! (Maybe he got the idea from the Iommi album he himself guested on a while back.) As a result, you could look at this as more of a compilation/tribute than an album by a band called Probot.
So, gimme the AQ-review on this you ask? Well, in short, it's definitely a cool concept, not necessarily a great album, but one that fans will definitely dig! We're talking fans of Mr. Grohl and/or the roster of singers: Cronos (Venom), Max Cavalera (Sepultura, now Soulfly), Lemmy (Motorhead), Mike Dean (Corrosion of Conformity), Kurt Bretcht (DRI), Lee Dorian (Cathedral and old Napalm Death), Wino (The Obsessed, etc.), Tom G. Warrior (Celtic Frost), Snake (Voivod), Eric Wagner (Trouble), and King Diamond (Mercyful Fate/his own self). Not a bad line-up, eh?
Each track sounds like a mixture of the Foo Fighters and a pastische of whatever band the singer was from. Among the best are the Lee Dorian doom epic "Ice Cold Man" and the one with Eric Wagner, "My Tortured Soul". That one might be the best on here 'cause although all the vocalists are cool, Wagner is one of the few who both has a rad voice and is also actually a REALLY GOOD singer and so is capable of adding his own vocal melody line and making the piece just that much more of a song. Almost everyone else is stuck singing along with the basic riff or rhythm, which Grohl kept fairly simple on account of how the singer was going to have to sing it sight unseen (and also because he's saving his songwriting oomph for the next Foo Fighters opus?).
Making this even more drool-worthy for true metal freaks, Away of Voivod did the cover art, and the packaging overall is top-notch, with photos of the singers (the one of Lee Dorian, looking all of 16 years old, is the cutest!), and the nice touch of little graphic symbols representing each singer's original band. Oh and one more thing: there's an unlisted bonus track featuring famous metal voice Jack Black of Tenacious D!! It's one of the best cuts too.
...Ok, since you asked, herewith follows the list of singers whom Andee and Allan would select for Probot vol. 2 (or for similar projects of their own when they get rich and famous):
Scott Reagers (St. Vitus), Abbath (Immortal), Paul Di'Anno (Iron Maiden), Gerrit Mutz (Sacred Steel), Dax Riggs (Acid Bath, etc.), Bobby Liebling (Pentagram), Eric Adams (Manowar), Jeff Walker (Carcass), Danie Powers (Powers Court), Joey Belladona (Anthrax), John Bush (Armored Saint/Anthrax), George Criston (Kick Axe), Paul Shortino (Rough Cutt), Claude (Smack, if he was still alive, of course), Mike Monroe (Hanoi Rocks) Ronnie James Dio (Elf, Rainbow, Black Sabbath, Dio), Phil Mogg (UFO), Steve Grimmett (Grim Reaper) and I imagine we could go on and on. Maybe ours will have to be a triple cd, or quadruple cd or....
On a European tour about ten years ago, a curious 7" was unearthed in a used record store. It had an amazing black and white cover, a painting of Golgotha, with the cross lost in a cloudy haze and surrounded by watercolored trees. The band was called Professor, their logo in splattery hand drawn Olde English. And the record was called The Academizer ep. One of the tracks was "Into The Auditorium". Suddenly thoughts of an evil black metal band made up entirely of doctoral scholars leapt to mind. Sort of the whole Carcass medical student thing, but with academia. This was just getting better and better. The record sat unplayed until returning to the States, where it finally made it onto the turntable. And holy shit! It was as good as the cover suggested it could be. A sloppy noisy blackened slab of Carcass worship. Blast beats and grinding guitars, howled gutteral vocals, and crushing heaviness. Over the course of the next decade, several more copies were discovered and hoarded like the treasure they were. Until a random series of circumstances led to tUMULt discovering the man behind Professor and the quest to make that amazing, out of print 7" available to a wider, turntable-less audience.
What happened, was that an unsolicited package was sent to tUMULt HQ, with some new music for the tUMULt overlord to check out, but the sender also included a cdr of his old bands. A cursory listen was blasted to an immediate halt, when the hauntingly familiar strains of Professor came screeching from the speakers. Oh shit. Is it possible? Could it be? And what do you know? The sender was none other than a real live living member of Professor. After much convincing and cajoling, he agreed to let tUMULt re-release the Academizer ep. And even now, a decade later, this shit is so good. Fierce and furious, stumbling and blasting drunkenly like a grinding blackened metallic juggernaut. Four tracks of crushing grind, pummelling crush and grinding pummel. Heavy and noisy and fucking great! Rumour was, that Professor was maybe a joke. But if that's true, this is some sick joke. Fans of Carcass, Drop Dead, grindcore, black metal, and all things heavy owe it to themselves to enter the auditorium, and bow before the Professor!! In the form of a 3" cd packaged in a mini jewel case.
Ah, happy day. Time to kick back with the thirty fourth fine issue of the Ptolemaic Terrascope. As always, lots between these covers, many narrow columns of text pertaining to psychedelic, folky, spacey sorts both old and new: United States Of America, Jennifer Gentle, Electric Prunes, Steven Wray Lobdell, Clive Palmer, Verdure, Quicksilver Messenger Service, Eleventh Dream Day, Comets On Fire, Kaleidoscope (US), and much more. Reviews galore, interestin' ads even, and lets not forget the bonus cd compilation, this time, with Bevis Frond, In Gowan Ring, Davis Redford Triad, amongst others.
The weirder-than-thou Argentinian trio Reynols have made a lot of records. That much we can all agree on. Some are conceptual (Blank Tapes, ten thousand chickens, even a 'dematerialized' cd) some are more rock -- messed-up, primitive, psychedelic rock. And this is one of those. It's also two other things: one of the best Reynols we've heard (which, from us, is high praise 'cause we love Reynols) and unfortunately quite limited in availability. We've got six (6) of these, dunno if we'll ever be able to get more, fyi. Fans should consider rushing down here pronto, in other words. From track one, side one (ok, it's a cd so there's only one side, but with Reyols you never know, there could be an imaginary 2nd side) it's a blissful marriage of Miguel's gentle soul singing and a throbbing bed of percussion, heavy amp-drone and stabbing, soothing guitar-skronk. Detours (like the very 2nd track) are made into celebratory, shambling grooves, like Reynols are busking for 'change' in the way I'm writing this review. But most of Sosina Arada Mica could be a Reynolisan religious ceremony, totally spacey and effects-laden. The drone-quotient is high, and so are you.
A lot of people have been dying to hear this stuff for a long time now. As the legend and legacy of NYC dance music pioneer Arthur Russell grows, so has the demand for his out of print wax. Now the Soul Jazz label comes to the rescue as they so often do, with this collection of Russell produced and/or penned cuts. (And, happily more A.R. just got released by another label, the Calling Out Of Context collection on Audika, soon to be reviewed by us as well).
We won't go into the whole story of Arthur Russell here, but a brief introduction is in order. Russell started off as a high brow musician, a cellist, with training in Eastern modes as well as the classical music of the West. But after moving to New York in the late '70s he became involved in downtown NYC's vibrant underground dance culture, producing 12" disco tracks for others (like Loose Joints) and himself (under the guise of Dinosaur L as well as his own name). His productions are light, minimalist examples of disco funk, not quite yet house or garage but its own early, original, and influential sound. You won't hear a lot of cello on these tracks -- just a little at the start of Arthur's "Keeping Up" for instance -- but you will hear what we can only describe as an angelic sort of dub disco, in perfectly blissful extended mixes, certainly clubby and campy as well (the disco diva vocals date this for sure). Sadly Russell died of AIDS in '92, but he's not forgotten. If you've heard and loved his cuts on those Disco Not Disco comps or Soul Jazz's more recent New York Noise collection, you probably want this!
The excellent split LP that Six Organs Of Admittance recently did with Charlambides really whet our appetite for this disc, the third full-length album from Ben Chasny (Six Organs, on record at least, is pretty much just him). Actually, we've been eager for
It's been simply ages since we last heard from Sluta Leta. 'Twas way back in 2000 when If You Like Champagne On Ice? came out and pleased our ears (it was a particular fave of Windy's). Now four years later what are these folks up to? Very much the same dynamic, eclectic multipersonality music!
A sampling of just how wide Sluta Leta's stylistic pendulum swings? Track 9 "Super Swede" swoons along with super sultry female vocals atop accordion and electronic allsorts. Then, on the following track called "Wirbla" Sluta Leta delights with bouncy playful yet severely squidgy digital goo.
Who else here owns a crappy fuzzed out fourth generation video dub of every episode of The Ben Stiller Show? I know I'm not the only one. It's almost like watching a watercolor rendition of a comedy series. But now you can own the whole thing (a mere ten years after its demise) legit, with crisp image, on this two DVD set. With a cast of uber-comedians: Ben Stiller, Janeane Garafolo, Andy Dick and the other half of Mr. Show, a.k.a Bob Odenkirk, it's hard to believe that the Ben Stiller Show has remained unavailable all these years. Possibly its cult status was guaranteed by the cast's truly fucked up and obscure choice of parodies like the Lassie recreation which supplants the lovable dog with a haggard, non-sequitur spewing Charles Manson (played to the hilt by Odenkirk). Or Stiller's own reccurring celebrity roast skit in which he impersonates Robert Evans and tortures the likes of Casey Kasem, Herve Villechaize and others. Those already intimately familiar with the show will be glad to hear that, along with all the original episodes, there's a plethora of bonus material including: unaired sketches, an alternate version of the pilot episode, two early parodies from MTV's version of the show, a behind the scenes special and, of course, commentary (including a hidden "easter egg" of Bob and Ben doing commentary for Melrose Heights). This two disc set is region 1, NTSC. ----* ----* In Stock, Not Yet Reviewed : ----* If you want to order one of these, just cut and paste the info into the comments area on the order form, or just email mailorder@aquariusrecords.org. !!! (CHIK CHIK CHIK) / OUT HUD "Lab Remix Series Vol.2" (Gold Standard Laboratories) cd ep 6.98 ACID MOTHERS TEMPLE & THE MELTING PARADISE UFO / ESCAPADE "A Thousand Shades of Grey" (Funfundvierzig) cd 16.98 ALLIEN, ELLEN "Remix Collection" (BPitch Control) cd 18.98 AMPS FOR CHRIST "The People At Large" (5RC) cd 14.98 BIRGE, JEAN-JACQUES / FRANCIS GORGE / SHIRAC "Defense De" (Mio) 2cd 30.00 CALLA "s/t" (Arena Rock) cd 12.98 CARTER, TOM / SCORCES "Beats For The Beast" (Free Porcupine Society) cd 14.98 CAVANAGH, JOHN "33 1/3 Series: The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn" (Continuum) book 9.95 CLINE, NELS / DEVIN SARNO "Buried On Bunker Hill" (Ground Fault) cd 11.98 COLECLOUGH, JONATHAN & COLIN POTTER "Bass Communion" (ICR) 2cd 24.00 CONNORS, LOREN & ALAN LICHT "In France" (FBWL) cd 19.98 CORNELIUS "Five Point One" (Matador) dvd + cd 14.98 CRAMPS "Live At Napa State Mental Hospital" (MVD) dvd 19.98 CRIME IN CHOIR "The Hoop" (Frenetic) cd 13.98 CURE, THE "Join The Dots: B-Sides And Rarities 1978>2001 The Fiction Years" (Fiction / Elektra / Rhino) 4cd 82.00 DMZ "s/t" (Sepia Tone) cd 12.98 EINSTURZENDE NEUBAUTEN "Perpetuum Mobile" (Mute) cd 16.98 EXUMA "s/t" (Repertoire) cd 15.98 FAHEY, JOHN "The Best Of Vol. 2: 1964-1983" (Takoma) cd 16.98 FLATLANDERS, THE "Wheels Of Fortune" (New West) cd 16.98 FLESH EATERS "No Questions Asked" (Atavistic) cd 14.98 FLIES INSIDE THE SUN "Burning Glass" (Metonymic) cd 15.98 FLYNT, HENRY & THE INSURRECTIONS "I Don't Wanna" (Locust Music) cd 14.98 FOG "Hummer" (Dinkytown) cd 12.98 FURSAXA "Mandrake" (Eclipse) lp 14.98 GERRARD, LISA / PATRICK CASSIDY "Immortal Memory" (4AD) cd 14.98 HAFLER TRIO "No More Twain, Of One Flesh: 11 Unequivocal Obsecrations" (Nextera) cd 17.98 HANCOCK, HERBIE "The Spook Who Sat By The Door" (UAR) lp 16.98 HANOI ROCKS "Twelve Shots On The Rocks" (Liquor And Poker Music) cd 15.98 HARKONEN "Dancing" (Initial) cd 10.98 HULTKRANS, ANDREW "33 1/3 Series: Forever Changes" (Continuum) book 9.95 HUMAN TELEVISION "Orange" (Soft Abuse) cd ep 6.98 IMAI, SAYAKA "Mahiru-no-yume" (Detector) cd 9.98 INGLIS, SAM "33 1/3 Series: Harvest" (Continuum) book 9.95 INTERFACE "Recordings Field, H" (Deep Listening) dvd 17.98 ISAN "Meet Next Life" (Morr Music) cd 16.98 JONES, NORAH "Feels Like Home" (EMI) cd 16.98 KERRIER DISTRICT "s/t" (Rephlex) 2lp 19.98 KING OF BLUEGRASS : THE LIFE AND TIMES OF JIMMY MARTIN (Straight Six Films) dvd 23.00 KINGDOM COME (ARTHUR BROWN'S) "Journey" (Sanctuary / Castle) cd 12.98 KINGDOM COME (ARTHUR BROWN'S) "s/t" (Sanctuary / Castle) cd 12.98 KINGDOM COME (ARTHUR BROWN) "Galactic Zoo Dossier" (Sanctuary / Castle) cd 12.98 KYLESA "No Ending / A 100 Degree Heat Index" (Prank) cd 6.98 LONELY SAMOANS, THE "Here Come..." (Rainbow Pig) cd 9.98 LOVE, COURTNEY "America's Sweetheart" (Virgin) cd 16.98 LUBELSKI, SAMARA "In The Valley" (C.O.M.) cd 14.98 LULL "Collected" (Manifold) cd 13.98 MANGESHKAR, LATA "The Queen of Bollywood; Bhajans and Raga-based Filmi" (Rough Guides) cd 14.98 MAZUREK, ROB "Sweet & Vicious Like Frankenstein" (Mego) cd 16.98 MILLER, ANDY "33 1/3 Series: The Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation Society" (Continuum) book 9.95 MORRISON, BILL "Decasia: The State Of Decay" (Plexifilm) cd 21.00 MR. AIRPLANE MAN "C'mon DJ" (Sympathy For The Record Industry) cd 14.98 MUSIC A.M. "A Heart & Two Stars" (Quatermass) cd 14.98 NEGATIVE REACTION / RAMESSES (psycheDOOMelic) cd 13.98 NOTWIST, THE "Different Cars And Trains" (Domino) cd ep 10.98 NUMBERS "In My Mind All The Time" (Tigerbeat 6) cd 13.98 ONEIDA "Secret Wars" (Jagjaguwar) cd 14.98 OOIOO "Kila Kila Kila" (Thrill Jockey) cd 15.98 PALAST, GREG "Weapons Of Mass Instruction Live" (Alternative Tentacles) cd 14.98 PIXEL "Display" (Raster.Post) cd 16.98 QBERT, DJ "DJ Qbert's Complete Do-It Yourself Volume 2: Skratch Sessions" (Thud Rumble) dvd 26.00 RAKU SUGIFATTI "Futatsu" (Improvised Music From Japan) cd 24.00 RUSSELL, ARTHUR "Calling Out Of Context" (Audika) cd 15.98 SAJIKI, TENJO "Den'Em Ni" (Swax) cd 38.00 SAJIKI, TENJO "Throw Away" cd 34.00 SALVATORE "Tempo" (Racing Junior) cd 14.98 SAVATH & SAVALAS "Apropa't" (Warp) cd 16.98 SIBILANCE "s/t" cd-r 9.98 SONIC FLOWER "Heavy Sonic & Flower Groove" (Leaf Hound) cd 13.98 SOUL POSITION "8 Million Stories" (Fatbeats) cd 16.98 STALK FORREST GROUP "St. Cecilia: The Elektra Recordings" (Rhino) cd 19.98 SUPERCHUNK "Crowding Up Your Visual Field" (Merge) dvd 16.98 SWARM OF THE LOTUS "When White Becomes Black" (At A Loss) cd 12.98 TANAKH "Dieu Deuil" (Alien 8) cd 14.98 TERMINAL LOVERS "Drama Pit And Loan" (Shifty) cd 10.98 TRAPIST "Ballroom" (Thrill Jockey) cd 14.98 TROUBLE FUNK "Live / Early Singles" (2 13 61) cd 12.98 V/A "African Rap: Rappers, Rebels and Ragamuffins" (Rough Guides) cd 14.98 V/A "Philippines : Musique De Luth En Pays T'Boli" (Buda Records) cd 14.98 V/A "Zen TV" (Ninja Tune) dvd 22.00 WALKMEN, THE "Bows & Arrows" (Record Collection) cd 14.98 WEIRD WAR "If You Can't Beat 'Em, Bite 'Em" (Drag City) cd 14.98 XIU XIU "Fabulous Muscles" (5RC) cd 14.98 YOSHIDA, TATSUYA & SATOKO FUJII "Erans" (Tzadik) cd 16.98 YOSHIHIDE, OTOMO / PARK JE CHUN / MI YEON "Loose Community" (Improvised Music From Japan) cd 17.98 ZANES, WARREN "33 1/3 Series: Dusty In Memphis" (Continuum) book 9.95 _______________________________________________________________________ ABOUT MAILORDER Please place your order via our website. [1] We will contact you to verify your order and let you know when it will be shipped. Please note that occasionally it may take a day or two for us to reply. We are not a faceless bunch of computers replying to your order -- we are human beings! [2] If we are out of some of your items and we think we will get them within the same week, we can wait to ship. Or... If it's going to be more than a few days to complete your order, we will ship what we have and then will contact you as the remainders arrive. [ note ] Due to the everchanging nature of the independent record business, we are not responsible for listed price changes (due to supplier price changes) and often cannot update our site fast enough to reflect these changes, but we will always try to let you know of any differences.
As if a twenty five cd box set wasn't enough, here's box number two, the cryptically titled TG+. from seminal industrialists Throbbing Gristle. Where the first box was a digital reissue of the 24 hours of Throbbing Gristle cassettes, TG+ features TG's final 10 performances. All remastered and gussied up. The first box came packaged with buttons and patches and wax seals and all that, but this box really takes the packaging cake. Five credit card sized metallic rectangles, with various TG symbols stamped out, and all set in a velvet lined cover, hiding the cds beneath. All packaged just like the first set in a grey, fabric covered box. NICE!
Imagine a post-rock version of The Darkness. That's kinda how Trans Am started off (hence a name like Trans Am), full of indie irony even as their instrumentals rocked pretty hard. Then, exchanging one variety of '80s kitsch for another, they evolved through a major Kraftwerk phase. Various other avenues have been explored by the band over the years, but they basically remain a Tortoise you can rock out to, or do the electric boogaloo.
Back and broadcasting from our nation's capitol with this kinda politically-themed album (judging by the titles, graphics, and the soundbites), Trans Am continue to kick out the hard-hitting, electro-wired grooves. Heavily rhythmic or synthsationally atmospheric, these 14 tracks oughta do most Trans Am fans right. However, some of the sampling perhaps should have been reconsidered: firstly, the track with President Bush plunderphonically telling the truth about the Iraq war is something we've basically all heard before on the internet, as right-on as their anti-Bush message is. And then what's with the sped-up weather report we're treated to couple songs later? Some of these tracks do sound like they need something added, but sampling isn't it. Real liberation is going to require some new ideas!
Despite the oversized package and the dedication to the amazing Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky, this is not a DVD. Rather this is a collection of sound artists and archivists who were comissioned to create a piece inspired by the work of Tarkovsky. The majority of the artists in question have composed their pieces as an homage to Tarkovsky's slow, but revelatory pacing of the narrative. The atmospheres of the sublime, the psychologically horrific, and the melancholic -- which all run through Tarkovsky's work -- speak boldly with Another Kind of Language as thick dronescapes molded from various field recordings of rain, wind, and surf. There isn't anything overt about this comp that screams out "TARKOVSKY!" with no obvious samples or quotations to be found within; rather, this is a humble dronological tribute to the Russian filmmaker's amazing sensibilities. The contributing artists run the gamut, from familiar AQ faves Mnortham, John Hudak and Kiyoshi Mizutani, to lesser-knowns/unknowns Jon Tulchin, Yannick Dauby, Dale Lloyd, , Rsudin, V.V., Madali Babin, Duul_Drv, Josh Russell, Philip Pietruschka, Sawako, and Logoplasm.
