Apologies...

Sorry for the lack of posts, various things in life got in the way of me posting (but not in the way of my record buying, funnily enough...). (ab)Normal service will be resumed pretty fuckin' soon.

Emptyset: Medium (Subtect)

Be careful what you wish for, 'cos this is fucking dark. Emptyset are a pair of Avant-techno Bristolians with an ear for texture and atmosphere. To describe this album properly, I first need to give you the backstory:

Medium is the first non-studio-based production by Emptyset, recorded on location in the remote Woodchester Mansion in Gloucestershire. The collection of tracks explores the duo's preoccupations with the elemental properties of sound and bare, rhythmic structures and overlays it onto the textural possibilities of space and material. The project marks their first act of adapting their analog-based studio system into an architectural intervention, pushing extreme bass and feedback into the irregular spaces of the unfinished building. The rural mansion, which remains an incomplete remnant of the Gothic revival and a place studied by both architectural researchers and psychic investigators, provides a rich source of texture as the sparse palette of sine waves and noise is adorned with the intricate details of the space. Medium emerges as an act of translation, remodelling the house through sonic impulses into a state of audio, a fluid, transformative gesture and a process mirroring the sonar impulses of the bats residing within Woodchester's rooftop sanctuary. The project, supported by the Woodchester Mansion Trust, was provided technical support by the renowned Bristol-based sound engineer Mat Sampson, who managed the array of vintage microphones and preamps distributed within the building along with the central monophonic sound system.

So, what does it sound like? Great monoliths of fuzzy reverbed electronic steamhammers knocking nails into the air around you, occasionally feeding back to increase the intense pressure. Dark matter creeping between the speakers echoing around the room.

Needless to say, I like it very much.

Lockerbie: Olgusjor (Kapitan Platte)

A long time ago, I had to interview a Norwegian band called Lorraine and I spent a great deal of the interview telling them what a misguidedly ugly name they had - the only Lorraines i had ever know were Lorraine Chase, a girl at school and the title of a really shit Bad Manners record. They didn't agree and, in fact, I think I lost them after telling them that all I knew about the Norwegian music scene was that it was famous for 'church burners and murderers'.

Anyway, Lockerbie - an Icelandic band on a German label with a name that brings to mind a terrorist atrocity that killed 270 people. I think you can guess what my first question would be.

Ok, on with music but let's get the lazy comparisons over first. They are from Reykjavik and have a vocalist that sounds, at times, rather like Jonsi. But they are not a Sigur Ros tribute band - they have a much better sense of instrumentation for a start, using trombone and a myriad of strings to give a joyous uplift to this lovely melodic pop music. Perfectly crafted and with a sound that bridges the gap between post rock experimentalism and the commercial side of things, this debut album is an absolute pleasure. Most of the music I listen to is decidedly downbeat in nature and so it makes a welcome change to hear something that oozes vitality like this. 

Make no mistake here - this is NOT light throwaway music but something with incredible depth that manages to sound like a celebration whilst still retaining a serious air of incredible musicality.

Now, make way for some more downbeat stuff....

Strategy: Super Awareness is Fruit (Under The Sire)

Lovely clear vinyl 12" in clear sleeve - promised so much before I even placed it on the turntable. It is a single 20 minute piece split over the two sides and is the most exceptional piece of dub-techno-underwater-electro-psychedelia i've heard since the reissue of the first Porter Ricks album on Type a few months ago. It throbs away like a submerged heartbeat and, once it hits it's stride you just find yourself locked in and getting off on the depth of it all. I know nothing of Strategy - I bought it as part of a batch from Under The Spire recently after hearing a brief edit but, if this is anything to go by, I need to investigate further. Beautifully produced and deceptively intricate - this is wonderful music to drown in.

Concessionaires: Artificial Interface (Under The Spire)

Brad Rose is shaping up to challenge Steve Moore for the crown of renaissance man of analog electronic music - what with the Digitalis label, The North Sea and, of course, the utterly fucking amazing Charlatan. This is a collaboration with Pete Fosco playing barely-recognisable-guitar and appears to be edits and re-assemblies of much longer pieces to produce a seven track album of dark angular beauty. Each track is underpinned with a steadily undulating melody line over which is heard the rising and falling of effects-covered chords and notes and a sprinkling of other sounds over the top. 

The elaborate reconstructions of these pieces succeed in producing perfectly realised snatches of  atmosphere slowly unfolding before enveloping your senses. They are at their most gorgeous when the guitar is less evident (especially on 'Gazelocked') as the guitar sound is often metallic and sharp whereas the synths are much warmer in the main. 

I find that this is a very visual album and can't help myself hearing it as a soundtrack to a movie about a doomed space mission, there are moments of genuinely unsettling music ('Skeleton Summer' sounds like something Throbbing Gristle based their whole career on trying to create) and these are the most cinematic and also work as a counter balance to the more melodic pieces. I know that it's a cliché to compare electronic music to sci-fi soundtracks but, fuck it - i never promised to be original.

Minus Pilots: Hitting Up The Heavens (Eat, Sleep, Repeat)

My first piece of writing on this blog this year is ironic as i began 2011 with writing about The Minus Pilots and their bass/electronic/crackle odyssey 'Superior Proof of Cinema'. This one is a CD-only job but i will try and suspend my obsessive vinyl opinion for a while, and concentrate on the sounds that come out of the shiny little silver disc instead. In today's World of  individual tracks being given far more importance than complete albums, it is heart-warming to hear a multi (13) track album that works perfectly as a complete experience rather than being reduced to bite-size morsels of sonic frustration - to say that I hardly noticed where one track finished and the next began is certainly not doing it a disservice, as the overall feeling it conveyed was far more powerful for this fact. 

And this album is all about feeling the music rather than hearing it. The quiet textures of the tracks ebb and flow between your ears creating a sense of serenity and each ear will also occasionally catch a sound peculiar to its own channel like the music is wrestling with itself to gain your attention. 

It is a real struggle to describe this music as it is so rooted in it's own Universe - there really is nothing like it, no easy reference point to align it to, which makes it something rare and special indeed. 

No apologies really.....but a breezy look towards the future

Well, it's already February 2012 and I, unfortunately, failed in my goal to write about every record i bought in 2011.

Why?

Well, my friends, it would seem that life got in the way and i ran out of time to accomplish my stated goal.

Yesterday i conceded defeat and filed away about 50 of the albums that were still awaiting write-ups and vowed to return to this blog with earnest and start again - but this time to make no promises about writing about everything. 


I have also decided to link to samples of music where necessary - but only to officially sanctioned pages - needless to say, i will not be uploading stuff onto here. My goal is to support the musicians and the labels so i will not participate in anything that stops you giving 'em your money. Support them - they deserve it and it may make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside. In short, stop stealing.

Now, let's get on back to the music.

Pink Skull: Psychic Welfare (RVNG)

A strange record this - it veers from the LCD Soundsystem in space of 'Hot Bubblegum' to the more experimental instrumental excesses like (deep breath) 'Either the Luminescent wallpaper goes, or i do' and back again numerous times. Stylistically all over the shop but retains a sense of electronic splendour that is always enjoyable. 

EDM: Night People (Western Vinyl)

There is a Dreamers of the Ghetto connection here, although i'm not sure exactly what it is, so this album immediately got my attention. On first playing it i was immediately struck with the quality of the songwriting  and the restraint shown by the rhythm section. These songs could've worked well as faster paced rockers but the sense of restraint gives the songs ample room to weave their way into your head - and for this EDM should be commended. Occasionally they remind me of early Wilco but then this is only when they're not producing absolutely beautiful stretches of music like the truly lovely 'Open Bar' which, to be frank, Jeff Tweedy would've killed to have written. So, in short, when they're not really trying too hard they remind me of Wilco. High praise indeed.

Apparat Organ Quartet: Polyfonia (Crunchy Frog)

Johann Johannsson normally produces gorgeous neo-classical work of an incredibly high standard, so this 'electro-futurist' album promised to be a very interesting listen indeed. Taking direct influence from Trans Am's masterpiece 'Futureworld' album, this rocks along like a speed-stuffed Kraftwerk mixed with Mogwai's old dedication to the fast/slow/fast ethic. Occasional vocodered vocals add to the Trans Am connection and the live drumming help ground the ferociously squealing aged synths.

Absolutely fucking brilliant.

Machinefabriek & friends: Bridges (Sub Rosa)

I have no idea what to write about this, as it is an audio-visual piece - as much about the design (created before the music) and the ethos of the concept (Machinefabriek creates 4 field recordings on four bridges, sends each recording to a different pair of improvisers - who then send their individual pieces back). The music is mixed together and, here is the result.

Simple really.

What does it sound like?

Hmmm, like a bridge really - well, four different bridges actually for all you pedantic bridge watchers out there.

It does look amazing though - the pictures discs are made up of film images to produce a zoetrope like film if you stare at 'em whilst they are going round.

Hildur Gudnadottir: Without Sinking (Touch) / Hildur Gudnadottir & Hauschka: Pan tone (Sonic Pieces)

                                                                                                                                                                           

Hildur Gudnadottir plays the cello to produce a soundtrack for the rising of the Sun or dying of the  Earth. I'm aware of exactly how wanky that sounds but the rising and falling of the notes throughout these albums signify (to me) beginnings and endings. And it is not always easy to work out which are the beginnings and which are the endings - such is the dichotomy of the imagination when coerced into sensory moods by music of creative power like this. Listening to this in alternate states and situations and in the extremes of day/night create new thought patterns - although you always find yourself becoming entirely encapsulated by it. I frequently feel like i'm drowning in the music and it is a sweet way to go, i can tell you. There have been many psychological studies regarding drowning/near drowning and all have found that, once somebody lets go of the impulse to fight (or to survive), they are overtaken by a deep calm and sense of inner peace. 

Not unlike the music contained on these two albums, although the (almost entirely) solo 'Without Sinking' is by far the masterpiece here, the Hauschka collaboration (which, weirdly enough, is an improvisation inspired by the pantones of the ocean - more water metaphors), whilst incredibly beautiful, is slightly derailed by the percussive elements provided by Hauschka. This is in no way a negative point - just negative when compared with the solo album, which may well be my album of the year - if only i could pronounce her surname when asked for recommendation in the pub.

Wooden Wand: My week beats your year (Great Pop Supplement)

After all this electronic music that has infected me this year, i've gotten behind on listening to simple singer-songwriters and appreciating the stunning beauty that can come from a few choice words and a simple tune. Shit, I used to be a writer for fucks sake - you'd think i'd remember what a man can do with a few letters of the alphabet and some rudimentary punctuation, even without all that fancy-schmancy post production nonsense. 

The 10 tracks here are a collection of home recordings/demos from 2000-2010 and need no extra polishing, roughneck country-blues rarely sounded so bitter-sweet and so heartfelt. This music touches me in a special way and I'm really happy to reconnect with music that sounds so deceptively simple and yet is so obviously carved out of genius.

John Chantler: Automatic Music for Erik Griswold (Inventing Zero)

A true labour of love this one - ltd numbered edition of 110, signed by the artist and packaged in a lovely silk screened sleeve, the whole thing screams 'piece of art' before you even remove it from the sleeve. I bought this directly from John Chantler (one of the things i love about buying stuff online is that you can often go straight to the source, it makes the whole thing a beautifully personal experience) and am totally enchanted by the 2 sidelong pieces on offer here. The title track is a piece for modular synth whereby glassy sounds fall out of the amp like electronic rain. Behind these droplets is an occasional bass rumble that grounds it and gives the whole thing a sense of perspective. Not a lot happens, to be honest, but the repetitive simplicity is its strength here - focussing on the depth of sound rather than any notion of melody, or rhythm.

The second side is a piece for two organs, whereby the gently undulating tones flow along nicely - each one rising and falling in tone occasionally (and very subtly) to give the whole thing a sense of movement.  I wanted this to carry on for a very long time as it soothed me and made me feel secure and warm - long after the fire had gone out and before i realised that the temperature in here had actually plummeted. Central heating for the soul eh?

Imaginary Softwoods: S/T (Digitalis)

Originally released as a triple cassette in 2008, the vinyl reissue has been remastered by James Plotkin - spreading the 12 tracks over 4 sides of droning metallic near-beauty. Being that it was recorded before the last Imaginary Softwoods LP i reviewed previously, it would seem that it is a bit darker than that one. This has harsher tones and does not emanate with lushness as much as the other - but this harshness serves as a wake-up call to someone such as i, who has dined out on so much analog beauty this year. It's an occasional electronic kick up the arse for me and a reminder that John Elliott's power lies in his ability to manipulate his sounds into definitive moodscapes, not just in his ability to produce lilting beauty.

There is nothing wrong with having music challenge your preconceptions, in fact it is vital that music does this in order to side-swipe us out of mundanity and medoicrity. As each track drifts into earshot i am frequently surprised and equally frequently elated as to the pulses of sound that pour out of my speakers. 

A hugely rewarding listen that, at times, unsettles me but never ceases to en-thrall me and leaves me hungry for the whole back catalogue, in order to see where he will take me next.

C-Schulz & Hajsch: Untitled (Sonig)

Reminding me very strongly of fellow German Thomas Koner's near-perfect 'La Barca', this exercise in sound art crossed with (often) acoustic ambience is hugely effective. The field recordings of street noise, voices and the surrounding areas mix closely with the synth drones as the other instruments (guitars, melodica, accordion, harmonium, piano, clarinet, flute, horn, sax, tuba, percussion) weave in and out of the mix. Add to this the impressive array of non traditional instruments (we have three separate people playing window shades on here - as well as bricks, fire and 'concrete sounds') and the result is a spell-bindingly hypnotic mix of the familiar and the utterly unpredictable.

Other reviews have likened this to some Nurse With Wound releases but i feel that's an unfair comparison  as this album often feels far more musically constructed than the average NWW and this musicality mixing with the minutes of sounds is what gives it its dichotomous strength.

Junior Varsity KM: Fourshadowing (Darla)

Well it was 49p and it was on Darla - what could possibly go wrong? Darla, well known for their bliss-outs and shoegazey indie loveliness seem to have released this record of mixes whereby said bliss is covered with breakbeats and sounds rather horrible. Maybe i'd enjoy it better if it didn't sound so bolted together - although the B side has a much more effective percussive rhythm going down that i could probably learn to love if i played it another dozen times.

Which, to be frank, is pretty damn unlikely.

The Silent Type: Kneel (Kids)

I love a 10" record - it seems so much more interesting than a 7" and yet more mysterious than a 12". This was a Norman records cheapie that i'm glad i invested the 99p (still available at that price - if you're quick) as it is an exceptionally lovely midpaced song with hooks and chiming guitars and harmonic vocals. Sort of like how sigur ros would sound if they had more traditional vocals and allowed themselves to write (deceptively) simpler songs. Reminded me of 'Lips and fingers' by Submarine - who nobody remembers and a little bit of the fabulous album by Dart on che, who also suffer from the same forgotten fate as submarine.

RxRy: Alpha (Sweat Lodge Guru)

The mysteriously anonymous RxRy have created here the sound of techno falling apart into the dust. At times rumblingly ambient and at other times glitchy and, at the beginning of side 2, the most godawful fucking noise i've ever heard in my life - this album is certainly a journey through the graveyard of techno. There are beats dotted around the album but they rarely stay in one place (or at one rate) for long - but they do appear they pulse along in time with your heart as your brain tries hard to get to grips with what is happening musically alongside the rhythmic patterns.

A massively engaging album this, with no clear idea as to what each track will bring to the table, but one that sounds like a deconstruction of the last 20 years of electronic music - and a creative phoenix rising from the ashes of the remains.

Nils Frahm: Felt (Erased Tapes)

Recorded on microphones perilously close to strings heavily dampened by the material of the title, this makes for an incredibly intimate experience. The background noise, creakings, foot movements, breathings and the sound of the environment add acres to the already atmospheric music. This is piano playing when the piano is a living thing - the sound of life around the instrument increase the effect of the pianosaurus, whereby it is playing Nils as much as Nils is playing it (him). Allegedly recorded in the dead of night, this is music to be heard up close and personal, in order to really experience the surrounding noise as well as the musings of the pianosaurus. I feel that Nils is a tool in the process here - merely a part of the machine, and certainly not the leader in the normal sense of musician leading the system of notes and rhythm. Similar to Keith Jarrett's solo improvised work (but much more so) these tracks lead Frahm into areas he had probably rarely thought about - i believe the process created a link between pianosaurus and his thalamus and, when they were locked together, produced the wonderful (seemingly) spontaneous music heard here.

Or maybe Mr Frahm is just a beautiful, emotionally resonant, musician.