number 1197
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week 36 ---------------------
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THE LEGENDARY PINK DOTS - ANGEL IN THE DETAIL (CD by Metropolis) * DRONAL - INTERNAL MOTION (CD by Supple9) * COOPER MOORE SESSIONS (3CD by Split Rock Records) TONUS - SEGMENT TONES (CD by A New Wave Of Jazz) * SERRIES & VANDERSTRATEN & VERHOEVEN - IMPETUS (CD by A New Wave Of Jazz) * ASMUS TIETCHENS & DIRK SERRIES - AIR (CD by A New Wave Of Jazz) * KEITH BERRY - VIABLE SYSTEMS 2 (CD by VSM Theory) * NENNE - UNDERWATER DISCO (CD by Gotta Let It Out) * KRISTIAN TONGVIK - NULLPLUSS (CDR by Gotta Let It Out) * WARMBLADDER - 8 (CD by Gotta Let It Out) * WARMBLADDER - CUNK (cassette by Gotta Let It Out) CLAUSTROPHONE - #1 (cassette by Gotta Let It Out) AROVANE & MIKE LAZAREV - AEON (CDR by Eilean Rec.) * MICHEAEL CUTTING - LUFT (CDR by Eilean Rec.) * KLINIKUM - COLLAPSED (cassette, private) * MARIE ROSE SARRI & PHILIPPE LAMY - ACTE DE FOI (cassette by Hemisphäreの空虚) * MATTHEW ATKINS - SPECTRAL TERRACE (cassette by Hemisphäreの空虚) * CARLO GIUSTINI & BANISHED PILLS - BILOCAZIONI (cassette by Hemisphär *eの空虚) * MATTHEW REVERT - THE INPATIENT (cassette by Round Bale Recordings) * PRIVATE ANARCHY - CENTRAL PLANNING (LP by Round Bale Recordings) * GATEWAY - SUMMED-UP-SOUNDS IN PROCESS (cassette by Round Bale Recordings) * THE LEGENDARY PINK DOTS - ANGEL IN THE DETAIL (CD by Metropolis) Already announced in the review of the recent Edward Ka-spel solo CD in Vital Weekly 1195 was the fact that a new release by The Legendary Pink Dots was imminent and is now released. A while ago I had a visitor around close the Dots camp and he gave me a quick sneak peek at a few tracks of this album, saying this was a definite new, fresh break. He wasn't hyping; I know him for a long time. The few bits were surprising and now I heard the whole album, I can safely say that he is right. In these ten pieces, the band shows a refreshed side, through the use of much rhythm, guitars, synths and of course the voice of Ka-spel, the trademark of the band. These rhythms are no longer the result of some driving krauty sequencer beats that they used in the past, but a rather 'modern' rhythm machine version that leans very occasionally towards techno ('Neon Calculators', a reminder of 'Neon Gladiators'?), but just as well rocks away too; sometimes they fiddle around with the rhythm and use dub techniques in their breaks. Erik Drost's guitar also sounds fresh and poppy, such as in the opener 'Happy Birthday Mr President' (which president? And with a pinch of salt, I assume). The Legendary Pink Dots are atmospheric at times, they always are, but here the atmospherics are part of the song, rather than a lengthy piece of atmospherics by itself. These longer atmospheric parts have not disappeared as, hey, this is the Legendary Pink Dots and for them, lengthy exploration of sound, voice and instruments is simply what they do, now for forty years. But throughout there is some great, youthful energy coming from this record, sparkling fresh. No doubt the lyrics are about the sad current state of the world, about love (lost or otherwise) and such, but I am not the person to comment on lyrics. I do know I found this entire release quite captivating and looking forward to seeing them in concert again, and how they bring this new sound across in concert. It looks like I have to wait a few months, sadly... (FdW) ––– Address: https://www.metropolis-records.com/ DRONAL - INTERNAL MOTION (CD by Supple9) Back in Vital Weekly 1180, I had my first introduction the music of Alex Leonard, who works as Ebauche. That was his fourth album as such. Now he announces a new project, which he calls Dronal, a perhaps not so surprising name for something that he wants to focus on 'pure ambient/ drone' music. To that end he uses field recordings he captured primarily in the Bavarian Alps in 2018, along with some from Poland and Ireland. Furthermore, he uses granular synthesis to manipulate these recordings and recordings the Soma Ether, "a wide-band receiver capturing natural and unnatural electromagnetic signals". All of this together becomes the music of Dronal. The sixteen pieces all have individual titles and indeed some of the pieces end with a fade-out, yet these fifty-five minutes surely can also be heard as one long opus of drone music, interrupted by a bit of silence here and there but also with some very dry acoustic sounds, right in front of the microphone and very much in your face as it were. It gives the album quite a nice ebb and flow element. The drones produced by Dronal are, well... drones as you would expect them. Vastly orchestrated sounds that sound like a bunch of cello and violin strung together, with a bunch of additional effects, like reverb. It is well-produced, that much is sure, but you could wonder about the originality of it all. That side may be lacking a bit. Lying in a chair, reading a book, suffering the heat, the sound of Bavarian Alps is more than welcome of course. Virtually escaping a hothouse via some music is surely the next best thing to a real holiday in the Alps. As said, I think this is all some great music. (FdW) ––– Address: https://supple9.com/ COOPER MOORE SESSIONS (3CD by Split Rock Records) This release consists of three very different CDs, filled with improvisations and gospel with Cooper Moore as the main performer. Cooper Moore is a musician with a very long career. In the 70s he became a collaborator with David S. Ware. Later in the 80s, Hamid Drake and William Parker were important companions. Over the years Cooper Moore developed himself into a multi-instrumentalist and instrument builder. The output by this legendary performer is only sparsely documented alas. Most releases with his contributions are from this century. In 2011 he met the guitar player and singer-songwriter Ed Pettersen who is involved more and more in projects of improvised music. Both were involved in the recording of the Guiseppe Logan Project. Together with Larry Roland (double bass) who also was part of this project, they recorded a live set in the studio. It has Cooper Moore playing piano and Pettersen guitar and effects. Titled as ‘Occupied’ these recordings we find on the second cd of this three double bill. Pettersen creates streaming and flowing backgrounds, of ambient like quality, with Cooper-Moore playing nervous jazzy patterns. Track two starts in a very sensitive jazzy mood by piano and double bass. But again when Pettersen starts to add his strange spun out textures, this results in a disorientating tension. As if we are witnessing two musical efforts at the same time that interfere with one other. This aspect defines most of the improvisations on this disc. That same year, 2011, Cooper Moore was invited to visit Nashville for some more recording playing with Pettersen, plus Jerry Navarro and Dylan Simon. Results of these sessions are condensed on the first CD of this box. The first improvisation ‘Sometimes’ impressed me most. Starting as an early obscure krautrock-adventure, with creepy rhythm-based soundscapes with meandering spacey electric guitar in the background in the first improvisation. In the second one, it is synths that improvise on rhythm-based patterns by bass and some strange guitarlike instrument built by Cooper Moore with a deep sonority. This can also be enjoyed in the succeeding improvisation ‘Magical Things’. A great blues! Dylan Simon like Pettersen was a member of experimental unit Nashville Electric that released two works. He is an interesting player of electronics! Together they produce some very odd improvisations of an ambient quality. The way it is recorded evokes a strange atmosphere. There is something mysterious in their sound. On the third disc, ‘The Reverend Eddie Bones’, they turn to gospel. Here Cooper Moore (diddley bo, guit jo, drums, flute, vocals) performs with Ed Pettersen (guitar, vocals), Jerry Navarro (double bass), Freedy Holm (lap steel, banjo), Al Perkins (pedal steel, dobro), Marcia Wilder and Kira Small (backgrounds). With Molly Thomas, fiddle on ‘Looking for You’ and Amy Speace (backgrounds) on ‘Looking for You’. They interpret traditional gospel songs but also a song by Townes van Zandt (‘Looking for you’) as well as a composition by Pettersen (‘Prayer’). On this one, we have Pettersen in a prominent role as the singer. Cooper Moore plays a diversity of instruments. I liked his drumming in ‘Milky White Way’. The cd closes with ‘Little Drummer Boy’. With all differences between the three one can say that jazz, blues and gospel are embedded in abstract textures generated by electronics and electric guitar, uplifting these earth-rooted styles in an almost timeless continuum. Most of all however this release is a unique chance to enjoy the playing by Cooper Moore on diverse (self-built) instruments (DM) ––– Address: https://edpettersen.com/ TONUS - SEGMENT TONES (CD by A New Wave Of Jazz) SERRIES & VANDERSTRATEN & VERHOEVEN - IMPETUS (CD by A New Wave Of Jazz) ASMUS TIETCHENS & DIRK SERRIES - AIR (CD by A New Wave Of Jazz) This is the first part of a review of in total 7 discs, all released by the A New Wave Of Jazz label, a label run by Dirk Serries. Formerly known as Vidna Obmana and Fears Falls Burning, but these days immersed in the world of improvised music. On Friday 18 and Saturday 19 October he organises a festival with many of the people that appear on these seven discs playing a concert. This week I will review the three discs that involve Dirk Serries, and next week, the other four, all by others. These three already show the wide scope improvised music can be in the world according to Serries. First we have Tonus, a group that always contains Dirk Serries and his wife Martina Verhoeven, but otherwise seems to be an open membership group. Today, on 'Segment Tones', it is a trio. Serries plays accordion and soprano melodica (the latter I would believe for the first time), Verhoven is on concertina and cello and Colin Webster on clarinet and alto saxophone. Whatever the line-up of Tonus might be, I do believe they play slow and quiet music; music that is not in any way, shape or form, part of the hectic world out there. It is, perhaps, the music you could believe to be part of some kind of meditation; maybe you already do, if meditation is your 'thing'. It is not for me, but that doesn't mean that I don't think like this or appreciate it. Slow, quiet music asks for some listening and that is something I like. That, and of course the Serries approach to 'I never played this instrument so I am sure I can do it'. They don't use these instruments on all of these pieces. In 'Modulation Grid 1', I would think it is the concertina, melodica and clarinet together in a fascinating interplay of long sustaining tones with irregular intervals. In the title piece and 'Amplitude' the cello plays a big role, striking is slow and low with the microphone close by and the result is that 'Amplitude' is quite a dark affair and 'Segment Tones' only slightly lighter but still also dark and mysterious. Of an entirely different nature is the trio disc that Serries and Verhoeven recorded a month later, December 2018, with percussionist Kris Vanderstraeten (also known for his work with Timo van Luijck). Here Verhoeven is at the piano, where she is often to be found and Serries plays acoustic guitar. Here we have five pieces of hardcore free improvisation and perhaps, even if this sounds negative (which it is not), it sounds exactly as you would imagine free improvised/free jazz music to sound like. Upon superficial hearing, it is three people producing sounds on their instruments in a chaotic and disoriented manner. Verhoeven plays the keys, Vanderstraeten rattles the cages and both instruments sound like you know they do, but Serries plucks, hits, scratches the strings, and effective maltreatment of the acoustic guitar. Your teacher would not approve. However, I am not someone who hears this kind of music for the first time; that doesn't mean I am an expert on this, far from it. I do think I have, in general, a wide interest in matters of new music, and understand a little something of the world of interaction. That is what this is about; this is the music of three people enjoying the total freedom to play together, use the instruments as they see fit, and while superficially it may seem they are just doing something free and wild, I would think they listen and respond to each other in a great way. Responding, acting and re-acting, doing the same thing or doing something completely different and all along keep the listener listening. This is getting close to the area of free jazz, but it is not, I would think, even when trying to distinguish both matters is not easy. Just like this music is not easy, but upon close listening reveals a lot of beauty. When Serries handed me a flyer of his festival earlier this year, I said that Asmus Tietchens seemed out of place in this whole wide world of improvisers, but he responded that Tietchens is very much part of the same aesthetic. Serries and Tietchens worked together before when Serries was active as Vidna Obmana. Back then it was all electronics that were being processed but this time Serries gave Tietchens five recordings to work with, all using a different wind instrument (hence the title). These are clarinet, melodica, concertina, accordion and harmonica; only the clarinet gets two different processes. Tietchens, you should know by now, is the man who works in the best traditions of musique concrete, using the studio to vastly alter sounds that he receives. Over the years he has worked with many other composers, mostly delivering him sound material, rather than vice versa. In the opening piece, 'Air Klarinette 1', one could hear something reminiscent of the opening minutes of the Tonus release, but then a bit stretched out. This is, however, just the gate that goes into the house of Tietchens, as in the five subsequent pieces there is very little that reminds us of a melodica, concertina or such like. As with much of the music he produced in more recent years, Tietchens is very fond of some highly careful constructions in sound and does not give much away from the origin of the sound. 'Air Melodica' is a beautiful subtle composition of a few sounds on an otherwise quiet road. Soft but intense. The wind approach is present in some of the other pieces, slowly drifting but never loud or brash. Tietchens uses classic filters to transform these sounds and not granular synthesis, even when one could think he does from time to time. This is Tietchens at his most refined and that's what we like best. (FdW) ––– Address: https://newwaveofjazz.bandcamp.com/ KEITH BERRY - VIABLE SYSTEMS 2 (CD by VSM Theory) Following 'Viable Systems 1', there is now the second instalment of what Berry calls " a catalogue of moods & textures over the series, that the listener can use as an aid to there [sic] environment" (see also Vital Weekly 1101). The viable system, as explained before, is "a model of the organisational structure of an autonomous system capable of producing itself." Again Berry uses synthesized sounds rather than processed field recordings, which he used at the start of his career, and I am inclined to think this is music that sets itself in motion. Give it a few parameters and then let it explore itself. You could think this would lead to long pieces of slow drifting sounds, but that doesn't happen here. The music is slow indeed, but none of these pieces is overly long. At close to eighty minutes and fourteen pieces, these pieces are average five to seven minutes, with some being longer and some being shorter. The slow arpeggio sound of before is now gone and the music is mostly long drifts of sounds along with occasionally bell-like ringing sounds. I was asked a while ago to explore the various apps that Brian Eno made and noticed that bell ringing sound in several of his apps. I am sure Berry doesn't use these apps, as mister Eno has some more trademark elements in his work that aren't part of this, but throughout it made me think that Berry's music here is in various alike that of the inventor of ambient as a genre. He's not alone in that, of course, but a clear one for sure. The slow drifts of the music can have many purposes I can imagine, relaxing probably the number one there, along with creating a pleasant environment. As I was saying with Stephan Mathieu's music recently, I can imagine that Berry's music would also be a very good generative app allowing the listener to create his version, and have a true viable system going. That way the listener can create something that is even more suited for its aims. Purely as a listener/reviewer, sitting up, thinking what to write (and occasionally look something up), I would think, like before, that this is surely another long CD. That's, of course, me aiming wrong there, I know. Let me shut-up, pick up a book and play this again; that seems to be the most suitable activity for this music. (FdW) ––– Address: http://www.vsmtheory.com/ NENNE - UNDERWATER DISCO (CD by Gotta Let It Out) KRISTIAN TONGVIK - NULLPLUSS (CDR by Gotta Let It Out) WARMBLADDER - 8 (CD by Gotta Let It Out) WARMBLADDER - CUNK (cassette by Gotta let It Out) CLAUSTROPHONE - #1 (cassette by Gotta let It Out) As I am looking at the five releases by Denmark's Gotta Let It Out trying to make up my mind where to start, I think that none of these names means anything to me, nor had I heard of the label before. So, I pick the one which cover says 'you know this isn't Vital Weekly music', showing the two young musicians on the front, usually an indication of a more pop music inhabited territory. In the meantime, I look up what this label is about. "Gotta Let It Out is an independent music label and publishing house established in 2017 in Copenhagen, Denmark by the musician-improviser Tomo Jacobson and the photo-video artist & anthropologist Malwa Grabowska aka. Hipermania. We are proudly genre-less. We are about dissemination of multiple perspectives and landscapes of action & thought through the audiovisual media. We leave full creative control to the artists. What binds our releases are Genuity, true expression, and freedom to explore. Our artists say, that they simply Gotta Let It Out. Gotta Let It Out is also the organizer of Freedom Music Festival the festival dedicated to freedom and improvised music that happens yearly in Copenhagen since 2015. We've already organised over 200 events, all under the umbrella of Freedom Music. And then there is Flat Store by Gotta Let It Out, a carefully curated independent music and printed matter store, located in our flat in Nordvest in Copenhagen, Denmark." That certainly sounds like something we at Vital Weekly certainly would love, even when, indeed, Nenne is not my cup of tea. This is a duo of Lo Ersare (vocals, lyrics) and Albert Karch (music production) and they call their music 'fairy-tale pop', meaning not too distinct vocals set against an electronic backing. The lyrics are in Japanese. It is not bad at all, these sweet melodies and vocals. I can easily this going down somewhere in a big way, some alternative pop market area, but I'm afraid not my thing, even when dream-pop sometimes has my warmest attention. I guess also on the 'pop' side of things is the release by Kristian Tongvik. It arrives on a CDR, but the cover indicates seven pieces on the A-side and the same on the B-side, plus, small print, 'promo copy, not for sale' and 'GLIO40LP', which might be that this is an LP release, and not how we love to receive stuff at Vital Weekly. Check out those 'frequently given answers' page on our website. On the label's website, there is nothing yet to be found about this LP or the musicians, so I have to go by what I hear. The 'pop' music of Tongvik is certainly a lot more experimental than that is on offer by Nenne. These are more like suggestions towards pop songs, with dashes of rhythms, child-like and naive at times, which can also be said of the vocals, but the electronics and synthesizers are dark and play a more abstract thing there than your odd melody. And sometimes Tongvik does just do that as well. Sometimes these rhythms form a more coherent pattern, but just before leaping into a bunch of all too straightforward beats, Tongvik sets out derailing the whole thing, as he does in 'Hommage de 808'. In some way it reminded me of early Der Plan, even with the more sophisticated synthesizers and beats, and perhaps a lesser amount of silliness when it comes to lyrics, sharing a similar naivety. This is pop for the truly alternative pop mensch; I have no idea but I can easily envisage him with a puppet show on the road. I have no idea why that idea popped into my head. I was trying to find some more information about Warmbladder, but Google pointed me towards a direction that I am sure has nothing to with this trio of Tomo Jacobson (midi-ribbon), Jonathan Leland (electronic drum kit & percussion) and Ignacio Nacho Cordoba (electronics). These are instruments that not immediately mean something to me, which is fine of course. The music surely is something belongs very much to these pages, as it is one long, forty-minute piece of improvised electronic music. I would think that this is not one long session (I might be wrong of course), but culled from various sessions and perhaps with some overlapping between them. The music is chaotic most of the time, with sounds tumbling around, like that badly constructed Ikea bookshelf falling apart (again!) but then all of a sudden there is an ongoing melodic thing going, a repeating synth, with the drums being hectic in the best musique concrete; until, of course, it explodes or collapses together and there is some unified chaos again, before things start to shape up with some start of a rhythm, a bit of coherent percussion. It's waiting for somebody getting nervous again. I am not sure if the longitude of this worked for me. I wouldn't have minded a more chopped up version, cut down to individual tracks, resetting the score and start from scratch. In this version, one gets easily lost in the mayhem. The above line-up plus Jonas Engel on alto saxophone and Taus Brechnoi-Olesen (if I read that right on the cover) on what is called "nacho's signal through guitar processing" have two pieces on 'Cunk The Movie OST', which film I could not find online (either). Two pieces here, 'Jazz Terror' and 'Terror Jazz'. These continue some of the hectic of the previous CD but now in a condensed form and, much to my surprise, the additional instruments may not always sound as was expected (but then, how does that nacho guitar sound anyway?), yet the pieces sounded quite coherent in terms of free improvised music. This sounded like it was either planned in some way or mixed in such a way that it sounded like there are two neatly shaped compositions. There is some of the original chaos, but it is now lurking in the background, being ornamental and in the foreground, it is all more or less melodic yet weird and that works very well. Maybe that is the influence of the two additional musicians, so I wondered, but maybe the is something that reflects a different phase of the group? In any case, this is quite a nice release indeed. And finally, there is the c25 cassette by Claustrophone, a duo of Tomo Jacobson in Copenhagen and Dawid Gasiorek in Warsaw. For their tape, they have two pieces that "were made in halves with one of the musicians preparing the first layer of the composition and giving it to the other to finish. There are instruments mentioned, so I have no idea. Maybe Jacobson uses his midi-ribbon, whatever that is, and as I have not heard of Gasiorek before, I have no idea. Due to the abstract level of the music, I found it impossible to even guess what was going on here. Perhaps some heavily processed wind instruments on 'What', some organ drones on 'How'? Maybe percussion through midi-controllers and max/MSP? It is all very well possible, and maybe there are some field recordings hurt in these proceedings as well. There is a nice careful approach to the proceedings, which might be the lo-fi approach to working together. It is quiet and not too outspoken but far from being just vaguely playing around with some sounds. This has a fine mysterious character to it, especially when the organs are in full force on 'How'. Time to unwind after all the pop and heavy free music. (FdW) ––– Address: http://gottaletitout.com/ AROVANE & MIKE LAZAREV - AEON (CDR by Eilean Rec.) MICHAEL CUTTING - LUFT (CDR by Eilean Rec.) Surely I am not the only who, when hearing the name Arovane will think about music with beats. I guess that is where his claim to fame comes from. At the same time, I can easily admit that in more recent years I didn't keep up with his more recent output. The last time I heard some of Uwe Zahn's music was already back in 2013. Here he teams up with one Mike Lazarev, of whom, I think, I had not heard before. The main instrument here is the piano, as played, by Lazarev, in his London studio. Sometimes with the windows open and capturing a lot of the atmosphere around the instrument. These sounds were then taken to the computer for further exploration, and then fed back to the piano recordings; the same ones or different, I am not sure of that. Like the piano playing, the processes applied by Uwe Zahn are very minimal and sometimes very difficult to detect, such as the blend of both ends together. With ten pieces in thirty-one minutes, this is a rather short album with each of the pieces more sketch-like than a fully formed long piece, and that could not be working well, but here it does. Each of the pieces is a brief poem of a few sounds, a tinkering on the piano and this weightless space created around it from the shimmering of electronics, topped with a bit of reverb to suggest a bit more space. All of this makes this very delicate release, ambient music, if you will, of the highest order. Even a bit shorter is the release by Michael Cutting from Salford. I had not heard of him before, which might be explained by the fact that this is first release (according to Discogs). He works with reel-to-reel machines, loops made thereon, but also using the imperfections of the tape. 'Luft' means 'air' in German and that might have something to do with the 19th century he uses in the seven pieces. Also, there is, according to the information, the playing of "an e-bowed violin, fender Rhodes, clarinet, trumpet, sine tone generator and voice", even that is not always clear (not that is necessary to be clear, of course) but sometimes these surely can be recognized. His album is even a bit shorter than the other new release by Eilean Rec, clocking in at just less than thirty minutes. Whatever he plays or whichever method he applies, the music is quite drone-like and for Eilean Records that is not a strange thing, except that this release is a bit more experimental than many of the other releases by this label. The rusty rumble of objects may not always sound original, but for this label is makes a nice change. I was reminded of Coppice from time to time, with that sound that reminded me of being inside a trap organ and hear all the working from close, while slightly more massive sounds work on the outside. And sometimes this sounded like a fine small of modern chamber music. Only 'Seeking Safe Harbour' with its vocals mumbling about didn't do it for me, but otherwise, this is a very fine release. (FdW) ––– Address: https://www.eilean-records.com/ KLINIKUM - COLLAPSED (cassette, private) After a small flood of releases under various names, but ultimately setting upon Klinikum, Egbert van der Vliet took a step back and did a few online-only releases (check out his Bandcamp page) and now has another new cassette. In good ol' fashioned style, respecting his roots the first time he did cassettes in the late '80s, the cover is all black and white and the cassettes are recycled tapes. The music, in total thirty-three minutes, consists of four untitled parts, each dedicated to what we may assume to be friends, sources of inspiration, or something like that. These are Phillip b. Klingler, Frans de Waard, Peter Zincken, M. Nomized, all of whom are also around in the world of cassettes for a bit longer than Van der Vliet, and still play their role when it comes to experimental music, noise and electronics. On the cover, Van der Vliet takes credit for "samples, destroyed music", which left me a bit in the dark, to be honest as to what that might be. The four pieces are quite the consistent approach to using, I would think, samples of skipping records and overlaying a whole bunch of them to create a somewhat dense pattern, that is also quite a noise. It doesn't fall in the pitfalls of harsh noise for the sake of harsh noise, far from it. Klinikim's noise music is, as is to be expected from the noise I guess, quite minimal in approach, but in each of the pieces, there is also room for small changes. Klinikum mixes his various sources in a very intelligent way and never lets it slip into dreaded repetition. He sneaks in voice material from time to time, lurking at the background of the music like a detuned radio. It is, all in all, a very consistent release of raw beauty. Just like we love 'm. (FdW) ––– Address: https://klinikum.bandcamp.com/ MARIE ROSE SARRI & PHILIPPE LAMY - ACTE DE FOI (cassette by Hemisphäreの空虚) MATTHEW ATKINS - SPECTRAL TERRACE (cassette by Hemisphäreの空虚) CARLO GIUSTINI & BANISHED PILLS - BILOCAZIONI (cassette by Hemisphäreの空虚) The three latest tapes on the Tasmanian label Hemisphäreの空虚 fall squarely within the genre of electro-acoustic abstraction. I’m usually into what the label does, but two thirds of this batch is rather too arid for my tastes. Your own mileage may very. First up, a French duo of Marie Rose Sarri and Philippe Lamy with a suite of six pieces for computer-manipulated field recordings called "Acte de Foi". There’s a certain plastic, polite distance to this music; the granular bits weave and duck around squiggling laptop coughs, brief thick tones and sudden silent pauses without much direction; they could have been presented in any order without much change in overall effect. Even with all the apparent motion, "Acte de Foi" seems to be running in place, not lingering long enough in any one sonic area to make a distinct impression. The sections that I enjoyed most are the passages which are allowed to breathe. The track “Clin d’Oeil”, for example, lets its atmosphere alone for a whole two minutes before its underwhelming finale of generic laptop fizzle. The field recordings they used aren’t particularly evocative; I can hear the telltale sonic qualities of an open-air microphone, but can’t tell what was being recorded or why. Whatever this tape's purpose is, I'm not hearing much to bring me back to it. Matthew Atkins’ “Spectral Terrace” album is all about steadily shifting static percussive textures, though (like “Acte de Foi”) it’s rather linear and cold. During a moments when Atkins hit upon an interesting sound, I listened hoping for more of a commitment to it, exploring those elements and digging into them… but, eh, then after half a minute he’d percuss off distractedly into a different direction as if his Ritalin had just run out. Ah well. The two side-long pieces that comprise “Spectral…” are composed of closely-mic’d clusters of small taps and whirrs, the busy clicks of brushes against cymbals, small objects vibrating on a snare, maybe a piano (?) and tastefully low-key processing. The second side, “Lost Time in a Lost Place”, seems to feature eavesdropped conversations and motors spinning on resonant surfaces, though overall it’s not too dissimilar from what came before… there's a point when it eventually builds into a resonant roar that seemed to be signaling a new destination... ah, exciting! But, no. What seemed like a crescendo dissipates as soon as it gets going, pulling back and frustratingly changing the subject again. I’m reminded of a lot of live “free improv” I’ve heard, someone keeping busy in order to maintain an audience’s attention, constantly rushing along to the next idea. The tape that I enjoyed most out of this batch was “Bilocazioni”, by Carlo Giustini and Banished Pills (aka Edoardo Cammisa, who also runs the Sounds Against Humanity label… hang on, is that a label named after a party card game?! Oh dear…) and it’s a good one. Many sound sources/ instruments are listed (including, intriguingly, “plant bio data translated into sound”… not sure what that means… is that what Michael Prime does? Dunno), but its to the artists’ credit that the music transcends its ingredients. Each side was composed by one of the two guys, but it’s unclear whether the sounds were made by both people or if this was a split release. I can’t tell from listening, so I suppose it doesn’t really matter. Giustini and Cammisa burst right out of the gate with a thick fog of tape hiss and droning goo, beneath which some falling clunk seems to shuffle and snore. Giustini’s side is drone-centric and vertical, stacking viscous analog puddles into mushy blobs of rotten cellulose. Cammissa’s side is more event-driven, throwing field recordings together into a collage of microphone fumble, pond water blorp and ambient room hum. The tape sounds dirty, as if it was left beneath a floorboard for a couple of hot summers, then unearthed and released with minimal mastering. (HS) ––– Address: https://hemispharenokukyo.bandcamp.com/ MATTHEW REVERT - THE INPATIENT (cassette by Round Bale Recordings) PRIVATE ANARCHY - CENTRAL PLANNING (LP by Round Bale Recordings) GATEWAY - SUMMED-UP-SOUNDS IN PROCESS (cassette by Round Bale Recordings) Here are two tapes and an LP from the wonderful Round Bale Recordings label, out of Minnesota. All of these releases warrant and reward repeated, deep listening and all of them are quite different from one another. “The Inpatient” is an intense album by novelist/graphic designer/sound artist Matthew Revert. As the title implies, this was recorded while Revert was experiencing what must have been serious physical distress before surgery. These ten songs feature unaccompanied acoustic guitar and improvised songs in Spanish (a language that I’m unsure whether Revert actually speaks), crudely recorded to what sounds to me like a low-bias cassette tape. If I were in pain and about to be operated on, I don’t think I’d get the urge to record some music… but Revert took inspiration from his agony. The uncomfortable intimacy permeating this album is intermittently mitigated by a sense that the whole thing is absurd. Sometimes, Revert’s voice is a growling whisper, though he occasionally breaks out a more sonorous croon, though not for very long. On “Anytime, Anywhere”, his blues shuffle and pained yelp are affecting and strange… “Name the Place” seems to be going after a Kan Mikami vibe, minimal and brittle yet communicating a tightly-coiled anguish that transcends language. More abstract tunes like “A Ghost”, “After All Is Said and Done” and “A Beautiful Balloon” are more atmosphere than song, with Revert hammering the strings and letting them buzz as he whispers/screams vaguely threatening-sounding consonants. If you like Dead Raven Choir or Kengo Iuchi, this is probably for you. It’s difficult, uncomfortable stuff. Another song-based album from the label is the instantly remarkable “Central Planning” by Private Anarchy, aka Clay Kolbinger, formerly of Madison noise/jam weirdos Davenport, Maths Balance Volumes and Second Family Band. I like those other groups, so I was already looking forward to this one and expecting something similar… but holy cow, this is NOT what I was expecting… it’s FAR better than that! “Central Planning” is an album of amphetamine-nervous post-punk and is exciting indeed. Think of the jittery sharp angles of Dancing Cigarettes, the choked yelp of Pere Ubu or Red Krayola, the casual unpredictability of Thinking Fellers Union Local 282 (particularly on “Accumulation”)… those shadows on the wall might be hard to avoid, but Kolbinger isn’t a cover band. Private Anarchy’s songs rush forward in several competing directions at once, an unflagging awkward energy and intensity that’s pretty singular. There are lots of impressively under-stated production moments here, like surprising double-tracked vocals, occasional layers of spliced-tape gibberish or electronic interjection, and a Minutemen-ish naked guitar and drum sound. To be clear, I happen to love late 70s/early 80s post-punk but am allergic to modern bands trying to sound like 1981. Sure, fans of Swell Maps will also love “Central Planning”, but this is not an album of spot-the-reference… it’s seems honest and personal, but maybe has some similar fuel coursing through its veins. This is one of the best albums I’ve heard so far this year. Finally, “Summed-Up-Sounds in Process” is a frothing, symphonic slab by Jason Filer and Tim Gick, who are members of suddenly-everywhere-at-once improv collective Crazy Doberman. The album seems to be rooted in studio manipulations of instrumental improvisations, but is much more than that. In two 15-minute parts, the sounds generated by Filer and Gick are morphed via tape and synthesizer into fluid, psychedelic animations. Saxophones get elongated like taffy, passages pulse and breathe and seem to multiply while you listen. The duo moves confidently sideways, contorting a horn line by surrounding it with loops and manipulations until it transforms into a dense, ecstatic yowl. Other sections are more sedate, a slumbering pulse slathered with syrup that gradually/incrementally becomes a spit-encrusted synthesizer dirge. The manner in which one sonic element converges with another is unclear… even as I listen for the 2nd and 3rd time, I can’t really predict what’s coming, and yet it seems organic and makes sense. Each chunk of reeds and electronics seems to be a distinct living entity, moving inevitably towards its destination but throwing dirt over its shoulder, covering its tracks as it slithers sideways. (HS) ––– Address: https://roundbalerecordings.bandcamp.com • |