Avant-Gardening

Earth quake

2011-12-04T10:09:00.000-08:00

Earth is one of those bands I discovered indirectly... I gave them a listen after hearing Boris' Akuma No Uta and Sunn O)))'s Black One, liking what I heard, and reading that they wouldn't exist without Earth. After that I really got into them and I have to say I´m a fan of all their albums... Starting with the pure drone and plate tectonic riffage of the first albums, through to the tumbleweed doom of Hex. And I have to say that The Bees Made Honey In the Lion's Skull is my favorite to date.... I've enjoyed the progression. The new album-- Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light I-- is not my favorite, but it's a good album and again, the artistic progression and choice of players is very nice. I really liked hearing Steve Moore play in Earth, but the cello on the new album changes things up and keeps Earth fresh. Anyway, all this to say that I came across this stream of Earth in concert at the NPR website and thought I´d share...

Earth live @ ATP Festival 2011

Also worth checking out:

Within the Drone (stream google video), a documentary available as DVD with this compilation album reworking some old tunes:

Earth - Hibernaculum (Southern Lord, 2007)

And this live album (also on Southern Lord) from around when I saw them play here is pretty good too:

Sweet dreams.

too busy...........

2011-11-22T05:59:00.000-08:00

I really have too much to do these days and not enough time or energy to do it all. Yes, I´m complaining. So all I can do today is help you be swept up into the mindful cosmos with these jams. Enjoy.

Alguien anidó sobre el vuelo del cuco by El Intruso
A la hora exacta by El Intruso
181_GATHERING by El Intruso
171_Techno kills computers by El Intruso
LAPIEZA CD04 - ANARQUITECTURAS by El Intruso

microbe hunting

2011-10-20T12:38:00.000-07:00

hadn´t listened to this one in a long time, then it came on the ipod while i was cleaning up after dinner just now and blew my mind again. just thought i´d share.

more posts on the way soon. i´m working on the next AVGR mixtape, probably post it next week sometime. some intruso videos and tracks to share, an album review or two coming up....

keepin' busy.

El Intruso presents VIERNES

2011-09-28T12:25:00.000-07:00

This album has been about 2 years in the making, and the physical object is finally available. Since this project has occupied most of my musical energies, it´s only fitting that it receive a proper presentation on my blog.

El Intruso - Viernes

&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://elintruso.bandcamp.com/album/viernes"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;VIERNES by el intruso&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;
Here´s a blurb we put together about the album:

This is their first record and from an artistic standpoint is conceived as a high resolution photograph of the sonic and musical ideas distilled in their improvisatory studio sessions held throughout 2009 and 2010. The result pays homage to the 70′s and demonstrates the exploratory spirit of their collective activities; a robust and personal take on rock with a timeless sound.
The studio process was technically and artistically directed toward the album’s final format as a “Long Play” on 12” vinyl. It was recorded and mixed by Raquel Redel “Raka” and El Intruso at Okoumé Studios, Madrid. Carlos Bratt collaborated on the conception of the vocals. It was mastered by Carlos Koschitzky at MasterStudio, Madrid. The art and design was done by Tomoto. The album was wholly produced and codirected by the following authors:

Qmins (drums, percussion)
Javi (Bass guitars)
Sam (voices, guitars)
DDixon (synths, voices)
Hectruso (guitars, effects)

You can order a copy of the LP (which includes the CD inside) or CD from our bandcamp page and our website: elintruso.bandcamp.com - elintruso.es
We´ve pressed 500 copies of the LP, and 1000 copies of the CD. You can download it for free. Give it a listen and let me know what you think!

New Charalambides............

2011-09-25T03:32:00.000-07:00

Couldn´t contain my excitement and had to post this....
There will be a new Charalambides album out next month on Kranky. Here´s what the label says:

"Exile is the new Charalambides album. Five years in the making, it was recorded between 2006 and 2010 in various locations in New Hampshire, western Massachusetts and New York City, mixed at Black Dirt Studios, and mastered at Sand with Paul Gold. The group remains the core duo of Christina and Tom Carter, with contributions on one track by the string section of Helena Espvall and Margarida Garcia.

Deeply imbued with the full historical spectrum of american folk and blues song form, Exile is a tapestry of suppliant invocations directed at the heart of the unseen spiritual forces surrounding us. Dense arrangements and thickly-overdubbed tracks sit side-by-side with material that ranks among the sparest and most skeletal the group has recorded, giving Exile the psychic scope of their classic Market Square album while building on the refinements of the more recent Likeness and A Vintage Burden releases.

This album quite coincidentally marks Charalambides' 20th anniversary, as it was the fall of 1991 when they first started playing, and they made their live debut in December of that year. Since their last album, Tom Carter has released a series of collaborations and solo works on a wide array of labels, while Christina Carter has been steadily releasing her solo work through labels including her own Many Breaths imprint."

It´ll be out on Oct. 3rd, on CD and 2xLP. If you need convincing, here´s a sample track from Kranky´s Soundcloud page:

charalambides 'before you go' by kranky

El Intruso "Sesión Dinámica Usera" @ Kubik Fabrik, 22/9/11

2011-09-20T08:10:00.000-07:00

El Intruso will be playing with our amplified backpacks in the streets of Madrid for the first time this Thursday.
We´ll start out at the Usera metro station at 19:30 and end up at Kubik Fabrik.

Antilope - VVRM project

2011-09-07T05:53:00.000-07:00

some sample tracks from a music project i´m working on.
using digital and analogue synths, sampler, saxophone, and by the end i´ll probably have some other instruments in there too. the idea is to play with interactions between the instruments, it´s a setup that´s all about exploring connections till i get to a place where all connections sort of dissolve, really a fun way to play. there´s some Terry Riley influence in there, maybe a bit of space raga and Berlin school... these are rough drafts, i´m working out the ideas and setup. eventually there will be a cassette.

VVRM I

VVRM IV

septembering

2011-09-01T01:19:00.000-07:00

Rainbows in three parts:
************************************************************************************

Don´t remember exactly where I saw this as a kid, I must have been pretty young and it must have been on some random trip back to the U.S.A... I must say that my memories of this movie were way cooler than it looks now. I mainly remembered the flying rings, those were the scenes that stood out in my mind. Wouldn´t mind watching the whole thing again, haven´t found it yet though....

Rainbow War! Rainbow War Fansite

**************************************************************************************

Kurt Weisman´s Orange, on Autumn Records, has a lovely little song about rainbows too. It was in the last AVGR mixtape, but it´s worth posting again. He´s a great songwriter, and this album is one of my favorites at the moment............

Rainbow Blues

*********************************************************************************

and you should have seen this one coming....................

homeagain

2011-08-28T07:00:00.000-07:00

back home in madrid. had a nice holiday in holland, was nice to ride a bike. reality check as usual when i get back here.
brought back two records, enjoying them both:

oh yeah, and i got to visit the Hortus Botanicus in Amsterdam............................ (not my photo)

changeling paces

2011-08-18T02:06:00.000-07:00

so The Pope arrives in Madrid today, making for an interesting mix in the streets of Madrid... and we´re off to Holland this evening to visit my wife´s family. hope to get rested and enjoy people. it should be very nice to get out of this HEAT...

i leave you with some fun(ny) intruso jams for the summer. please do enjoy.

El Intruso 171: blu by EL INTRUSO

back from Galiza

2011-08-16T03:26:00.000-07:00

had a lovely little break up north with my girls.
a few pics & a Fern Knight video (just for the ambiance)....

UFO vs I(ntruso)FO

2011-08-08T10:41:00.000-07:00

Just got back from playing at a mini festival in Valencia. Great music, great food, nice folks, sweltering heat....
We played a long floaty set just after dark (analogue drum machine replacing drummer), then Traummaschine summoned the UFO with a fantastic surging of drums, layered guitar, and monotron. I hope we play with them again some time.

In other Intruso news, our LP is ready for assembly finally. We approved the test pressing and the artwork is done!!!!

Here are a couple of exploratory jams from a recent session (the first one made it onto the last AVGR mixtape).........

&amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://elintruso.bandcamp.com/track/ossocuro-ii"&amp;amp;amp;gt;OSSOCURO II by eLiNTRUSO + Modisti&amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;gt;
Elintruso 165 LLORAR ES UNA DIMENSION by EL INTRUSO
&amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://elintruso.bandcamp.com/track/ossocuro"&amp;amp;amp;gt;OSSOCURO by eLiNTRUSO + Modisti&amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;gt;

I´m off to Galicia tomorrow with the family!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

August 1975

2011-08-05T01:41:00.000-07:00

AVGR - Twice Blind (links fixed)

2011-07-29T08:44:00.001-07:00

(*I noticed the first link wasn´t working, so now it´s been reupped and should work fine*)

Summer is creeping along, and we´re a little closer to vacation here.
I´m excited about some trips coming up, with family and with the band.
Looking forward to getting away and reconnecting with what really matters.
Fill up the tank so to speak, get some perspective to bring back home, have fun, and REST.

In other news, El Intruso received the test pressings for our record, and it´s sounding really good. Available soon!

In the meantime, here´s a rather long mixtape, a minivacation in itself if you will. Grab bag featuring a few regulars, some old stuff, and some new... from folk songwriters to rock, new age, psych, improvisation, ambient, post classical, free jazz, electronic.........
Again, it´s about the juxtapositions and feeling the flow, finding the continuity across all the different scenes, times, and voices....

In three parts:
Once Blind
Twice Blind
Third Eye Check
1. Deshominisation II - Alain Goraguer (from Le Planete Sauvage OST)
2. Scales of Scales - Alaudin William Mathieu (from In the Wind)
3. Firewater - Alasdair Roberts (from The Amber Gatherers)
4. Pskovo-Pecora, ringing during the Great Doxology - Bells of Russian Orthodox Churches
5. Meer Technik (Marine Technology) - Jürgen Müller (from Science of the Sea)
6. Key Sparrow - Peaking Lights (from 936)
7. L´Estat (Acc. to the Widow´s Maid) - Ariel Pink´s Haunted Graffiti (from Before Today)
8. Shiva Loka - Alice Coltrane (from Journey In Satchidananda)
9. Bardo Sidpa - Master Musicians of Bukkake (from Totem 3)
10. Ossocuro II - El Intruso (from Session 165)
11. One Fine Morning - Bill Callahan (from Apocalypse)
12. With Lady and Friend - Gilgamesh (from Arriving Twice)
13. To Describe George Washington Bridge - Stephan Mathieu (from To Describe George Washington Bridge)
14. Heart´s Arms - Bonnie ´Prince´ Billy (from Beware)
15. The Voice of Trees 7 - Lubomyr Melnik (from The Voice of Trees)
16. Generator 7b - Keith Fullerton Whitman (from Generator)
17. Axiom (edit) - Antilope (from Idiom/Axiom)
18. Heart Attack - Kurt Vile (from Childish Prodigy)
19. Blues Citation - Eleven Twenty-Nine (digital bonus track from S-t.)
20. Empowerment - Steve Roach (from Empetus)
21. Human Hive Mind (edit) - Antilope (from Human Hive Mind)
22. Rainbow Blues - Kurt Weisman (from Orange)
23. Full Spectrum (Part IV) (excerpt) - Greg Davis (from Eyebright)
24. Mujh Se Pehli Si Mohabbat - Noor Jehan (from Faiz Ki Yaad Mein)
25. Scenes With Curved Objects (excerpt from Side B) - Oneohtrix Point Never (from Scenes With Curved Objects)
26. Crazy One - Ramases & Selket (from CBS 3717 Single)
27. Crystal Harvest - Higuma (from Pacific Fog Dreams)
28. Wherever Two Or More Are Gathered - Michael Stearns (from Planetary Unfolding)

last summer

2011-07-27T06:43:00.000-07:00

doing the impossible

2011-06-19T02:44:00.000-07:00

never to be left alone: curses and blessings from the same source

Wake Up, You Sleeper!

2011-06-14T00:26:00.001-07:00

Here´s are my best "alarm clock" albums at the moment (played at moderate to low volume so´s not to disturb the neighbors):

1. Michael Stearns - Morning Jewel
2. Mountains - Air Museum
3. Higuma - Pacific Fog Dreams
4. Bjørn Torske - Kokning
5. Constance Demby - Sunborne
6. Oren Ambarchi - Grapes from the Estate/Destinationless Desire
7. Ducktails - Landscapes
8. Eluvium - Similes
9. Michael Rother - Flammende Herzen
10. Moebius - Tonspuren

return to me

2011-06-07T14:17:00.000-07:00

Cambridge came and went. It was good to feel out a new city (what a labyrinth!) and see my brother and his wife again. I had some adventures, and got to meet up with old college friends at the magnificent Peterborough cathedral. Tea and scones in Grantchester, ale at the Eagle, etc... Passed up Mick Flower and Neil Campbell though, sorry guys. Next time! Now back to this awkward reality...

I have a few reviews in the pipeline, and El Intruso is aflurry with activity.
Our LP is fast approaching its materialization, all signs point to next month, we´re beginning the mastering now. We also moved to a larger studio/practice space (across the hall from the old one) with more equipment!
Some things to share:

&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://elintruso.bandcamp.com/track/die-kreise-reise-ii"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;DIE KREISE REISE II by El Intruso&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;
(from a not too recent session recently revisited by Héctruso and nicely mixed, you can hear the rest on Bandcamp)
and this Saturday downtown MadRid, free entry:

a short break

2011-05-25T14:36:00.000-07:00

off to Cambridge for a few days to visit my brother & his wife.
first time my wife and i head out without the little ones...

may or may not see Neil Campbell (Vibracathedral Orchestra, Astral Social Club, etc...) and Mick Flower (VO, Black Flowers, etc...) play while there.... would be nice probably, maybe even appropriate. plenty of other stuff to see and do and learn and soak up there though. not to mention relax. hope to write a little.

any comments on Cambridge welcome.

old friend

2011-05-21T06:53:00.001-07:00

this one grabbed me by the throat in the night, but in the morning there was light...

from Damien Jurado´s latest album, St. Bartlett, on Secretly Canadian from about this time last year. i have one of his older lps that i don´t listen to much, but couldn´t let go of for some reason or another. i´ve been giving him a bit of a closer listen lately. my older daughter likes it too.

This from the Secretly Canadian website, thought it was nice:
"Saint Bartlett opens up with a grandiosity yet unheard on a Damien Jurado album. It strips away the many layers of paint from the house down the street where we know Jurado has occupied for the last decade. The new coat is exhilarating. It makes the whole neighborhood shine. It's a modest grandiosity; still homegrown. The mellotron swells, heavenly handclaps ring in stereo and big drums create a sky for the songs to fly in. And the words. Words spring forth from within the volcano of Jurado, full of hope. There's so much hope, in fact, that album opener "Cloudy Shoes" turns into a call-and-response with himself, as though it were a dialogue between two halves of himself.

"I wish that I could float up from the ground / I will never know what that's like"

Heavy stuff. Richard Swift's Spector-esque production is spot-on. He ferries Jurado across the river, where the metamorphosis occurs. He then ferries him back, and it is through Swift's lens that we see Jurado not as a folk singer, but as a mystic -- somewhere between Van Morrison, Scott Walker and Wayne Coyne. Saint Bartlett was made entirely at Swift's National Freedom studio in Oregon, in just under a week with only Jurado and Swift as the performers."

AVGR - State of Mind

2011-05-19T02:06:00.000-07:00

*LINK FIXED*

Maybe why I make these AVGR mixtapes:
"When I sat down to make this mixtape I just let the music flow, choosing tracks intuitively.
It´s a state of mind, an exorcism, a reflection, etc.... in other words, it´s bigger than itself if you want it to be. I spoke the playlist and it spoke to me (or something like that)."

State of Mind
Tracklisting:
1. Finale - Ennio Morricone (Once Upon A Time In the West OST)
2. Walk On - Neil Young (On the Beach)
3. Late Night - Syd Barrett (The Madcap Laughs)
4. How To Make A Flower - Iibiis Rooge (Pink Hybrid)
5. Chemical Fire - Holy Sons (Criminal´s Return)
6. Hüter der Schwelle - Popol Vuh (Herz Aus Glas)
7. Sea Song - Robert Wyatt (Rock Bottom)
8. Easy Does It - Bonnie ´Prince´ Billy (Lie Down In the Light)
9. The Hallucinator and the King of the Silver Ship of Time - Alasdair Roberts (The Wyrd Meme)
10. Riftmusic No. 1 (excerpt) - Richard Skelton (Riftmusic)
11. The Fly - Wooden Wand (Wither Thou Goest, Cretin)
12. Bicinium - Helena Espvall & Masaki Batoh (Helena Espvall & Masaki Batoh)
13. Hausmusik - Harmonia (Musik von Harmonia)
14. The Garden of Earthly Delights - Josephine Foster (This Coming Gladness)
15. When the Fall Is All That Is Left - Ignatz (I Hate This City)
16. Time Has Told Me - Nick Drake (Five Leaves Left)
17. Time of the Last Persecution - Bill Fay (Time of the Last Persecution)
18. Part 2 (excerpt) - Celer (Engaged Touches)
19. The Wind and the Dove - Bill Callahan (Sometimes I Wish We Were An Eagle)
20. Cease To Know - Eluvium (Similes)

Bookcover and poster image found on the always amazing 50watts blog

El Intruso 163: Burbbujulas

2011-05-17T06:27:00.000-07:00

Kosmische-ish jam from a session experimenting with a new Moog Little Phatty & midi syncs...

el_intruso_163_Burbbujulas by EL INTRUSO
El Intruso this round was:
Sam: guitar
Héctor: Moog & more gear
Daniel: synth & midi control
Javi: bass
Pedro: drums

Photo by my friend Christian Cherene.

Northern Spy Review #1: Eleven Twenty-Nine (Tom Carter & Marc Orleans)

2011-05-16T13:18:00.000-07:00

Well, sometimes strange things happen. For good or for bad, you never know and it may not matter as long as it doesn´t matter to you. If it matters that´s another matter altogether and it may mean what you didn´t mean for it to, but two sides to the same word is what make it the same word, and the same world the same world, and that may be what makes it go round.

I got a comment from Northern Spy, and happened upon this album at precisely 11:29 in the morning a few days ago. To be honest, I had just given up on Music, coming to the conclusion that it could no longer occupy the place it had in my life. I´m ashamed to admit it, but it´s true. Such drastic and dramatic days I´m seeing. The coincidence of the name and the hour, not to mention the spirit, convinced me to hope and I gave it a listen.

I listened to the excerpts on the site, and was glad to be hearing it, so glad that I dared to believe again, and here I am writing about what it´s all about again.....

Birds and riversides, clouds and sky, trees and hands with opening eyes, songs of a somewhere, songs of the journey, slow burn drift lift, wing flutters, wind shudders, snow flurries, no hurries, you may have the blues but you got no worries, soul songs, music for your upward tendencies.

Performed with a beautifully unselfconscious patience and restraint that calls to mind some of the best Charalambides moments (think Unknown Spin, Joy Shapes, A Vintage Burden, Likeness....). I´ve been fond of Tom Carter´s music for a few years now and had the pleasure of seeing him play here in Madrid once. I was previously unfamiliar with Marc Orleans, but from what I hear on this album he and Tom are a made match... The "songs" are there, but they´re definitely alive and open, growing and glowing while they were recorded. It´s soul-satisfying; with the inimitable inevitable psych blow out you hope for from Tom, but then it also plods along on acoustic; delays, distortions, slides, and the guitars themselves touched in such an intimate way; a Blues record for the end of days. It´s dedicated to the late Jack Rose.

Out June 14th, Northern Spy Records, CD, 150 gram LP, & digital download.
Engineered and recorded by Jason Meagher at Black Dirt Studios
Original silhouette paper cutting artwork by Andrea Peisch
Mastered by Paul Gold at Salt Mastering

Review: Tape - Revelationes

2011-04-06T01:14:00.000-07:00

Tape - Revelationes (Immune/Häpna - CD and LP - March 7, 2011)

Picking up pretty much where Luminarium, their last album, left off, Revelationes features a more "digital" sound (for lack of a better word). To these ears, Luminarium was very organic, and Revelationes, while completely shimmery, dusty, and creaky, has a more overtly "computer" feel to it.

So, my overall opinion: Lovely, immersive, everything smart and restrained post-rock should be... but not quite as immediately charming as Luminarium.

If you´re not familiar with Tape, it´s a Swedish trio formed by Andreas and Johan Berthling with Tomas Halonsten. They construct their songs out of carefully semi-improvised tunes that carry many kaleidoscopic layers of melody and texture, all with a delicate pop sensibility that always stays light. Comparisons to Tortoise are not off, and you´ll feel a bit jazzed occasionally too. What really completes it for me are those idiosyncratic sweeps of constantly mutating electronics, tastefully filling the sonic space with captivating detail.

Let me recommend a few more personal highlights from the lovely Häpna label:

Oren Ambarchi & Johan Berthling - My Days Are Darker Than Your Nights (harrowing apocalyptic drone to burn a hole in your brain)

Stephan Mathieu - On Tape (uncharacteristically unprocessed electronic drone, absolute treat)

Tape - Rideau (first Tape album I heard, singular pastoral post rock), Luminarium (to me their best album)

Tonight, one night only, El Intruso + Eric Carbonara & Jesse Sparhawk

2011-03-23T02:43:00.000-07:00

Unfortunately, Jesse Sparhawk and Eric Carbonara won´t be presenting their new album:

But it promises to be a lovely show anyway.

El Intruso will be opening the show with their amplified backpacks, though we´ll be playing inside... so movement will be limited. Our drummer will be on stage, the rest of us will be below.

Show starts at 22:00. 7 euros.
El Perro de la Parte de Atrás del Coche, c/ Puebla 15, <> Callao
Madrid, Spain

More For Sale

2011-03-22T02:14:00.000-07:00

I´m adding a few more CDs to the for sale lists, some highly recommended stuff here:

1. Taiga Remains - Wax Canopy (Digitalis Arts & Crafts Editions) 6 euros

2. soccer Committee & Machinefabriek (remixed and covered) - Redrawn
(featuring andrea belfi, holden goldmund, taylor deupree, mark templeton, the puddle parade, nate wooley, francisco lópez, németh, the north sea, steinbrüchel, lawrence english, kenneth kirschner, annelies monseré, the fun years, stefano pilia, peter broderick, xela, etc...) 5 euros

3. Spartak - Sunstrokes EP (HellosQuare CDr) 4 euros

4. Stuckometer - Beta Carotene (Low Point 3¨ CDr, out of print) 5 euros

5. Freiband & Machinefabriek - Oahu (Low Point) 6 euros

6. Mariska Baars, Robert Deters, & Rutger Zuydervelt - Gris Gris (Low Point) 6 euros

7. Fabio Orsi & Seaworthy - Near And Far Away (Low Point) 6 euros

8. p jørgensen - to (Low Point) 6 euros

9. Celer - Brittle (Low Point) 6 euros

10. Tim Catlin & Machinefabriek - Glisten (Low Point) 6 euros

11. Nickolas Mohana - Transmission Hue (Low Point) 6 euros

...plus shipping... leave a comment if you´re interested. everything is in brand new excellent condition. prices are negotiable...

AVGR - "Perceived Journey"

2011-03-07T05:17:00.000-08:00

*LINK FIXED*

Not much to say at the moment, I´m just keeping on keeping on, feeling my way through the end of the winter... So I´ll let the music say it all.

This mixtape was compiled with a specific mood in mind. It goes from rock & prog to ambient and electronic, improv, psych, a little folk and it spans the ´70s to now....... but to me this eclectic mix has a flow to it and something in common. Right now I´d be hard pressed to define it. Maybe it will occur to you.

"Perceived Journey"
Track listing:

1. Down (Like A Movie Star) - Comus (from To Keep From Crying, 1974)

2. Raga Megh Malhar - Charanjit Singh (from Ten Ragas to a Disco Beat, 1983)

3. The Origin of Birds - Sanso Xtro (from Fountain Fountain Joyous Mountain, 2011)

4. Dripstone - Tape (from Luminarium, 2008)

5. Love Thy Neighbour [King Tubby´s Version] - Yabby You (from Jesus Dread 1972-1977)

6. Oivallettu matkalyhty (The perceived journey-lantern) - Pekka Pohjola (from Mathematician´s Air Display, 1977)

7. Fugl Fønix - Elephant9 (from Walk The Nile, 2010)

8. 9 - Enno Velthuys (from Ontmoeting, 1982)

9. IV - Æthenor (from Faking Gold and Murder, 2009)

10. Dormant Love - Charalambides (from A Vintage Burden, 2006)

11. Countramio - Dieter Moebius (from Tonspuren, 1983)

12. Plain and Sane and Simple Melody - Ted Lucas (from Ted Lucas [or The Om Album], 1975)

13. Midday - Michael Brook with Brian Eno & Daniel Lanois (from Hybrid, 1985)

Soundtrack to my perceived journey these days.
Be well.

(artwork: EKTA via 50watts)

El Intruso: banda sonora

2011-02-23T03:01:00.000-08:00

From time to time I´d like to share a bit about my band El Intruso. Even though the band has its own blog, I´ll post specific projects and shows here too.

First, we have a show tomorrow at LaPieza:

El Intruso is kicking off a series of CDrs for sale at our pal and collaborator Tomoto´s art gallery LaPieza here in Madrid. Each month we´ll release a cdr with 5 or 6 tracks from our ever-expanding catalog of work.... These cdrs will function as compilations of our music, an outlet for new and old tracks as well as collaborations with other artists in Madrid. Each cd will feature collaborative efforts with different poets and perhaps a track or two with different sound artists, as well as tracks featuring the core Intruso lineup culled both from our breaking improv sessions each weekend and dusty back-catalog gems that refuse to be forgotten. Hand-numbered limited edition, with individual art-work by Tomoto.

We´ll be presenting the series tomorrow, Thursday February 24th, at LaPieza with a live music session, starting at 21:00. I don´t think there will be any guest musicians or poets with us tomorrow, so it´s a good chance to see what the band itself is about. Entry is free! Stop by and pick up a copy of the first CDr, on sale for 8 euros! You can also order one through our website, and downloads are available via Bandcamp:

You can take a listen to CD01 HERE on last.fm too.

Periodically I´ll be posting stuff from our sessions here too, so I thought I´d start with a megajam from a couple of weeks ago, featuring Bratt (of Cañaman, Mad Sensi, Chalice Soundsystem, who runs Okoumé Studios where our practice space is) on guitar for the second half of the session. Unfortunately the bass didn´t get recorded for some reason, but I´ve tried to mix the tracks so that you don´t miss it too much.

Enjoy.

AVGR - Driftcast

2011-01-26T01:45:00.000-08:00

Here´s a little bit of that "tropical / coastal / nu age / psych / drone / kosmische / drift" vibe for you, like vitamin C for your ears in the middle of this long winter..... guaranteed to do the trick whenever and wherever you listen.

Driftcast - AVGR 26-01-11

1. Iasos - Libra Sunrise (from Inter-Dimensional Music Through Iasos)
2. Herds - Acaso pt. 2 (from 2nd Mynd CDr compilation)
3. Ducktails - Oh, Magnolia Tree (from Landscapes)
4. Hans-Joachim Roedelius - Sonnegeflecht (from Wenn Der Sudwind Weht)
5. The Alps - Telepathe (from Le Voyage)
6. Dolphins Into the Future - Lone Voyager (from ...On Sea-faring Isolation)
7. Antilope - Autumnalia pt. 1 (unreleased)
8. Sun Araw - Deep Temple (from Off Duty + Boat Trip)
9. Arp - Pastoral Symphony: I. Dominoes (from The Soft Wave)
10. Brian Eno - Quartz (from Music for Films)

Total Time: 48:32

Fabio Orsi - The New Year Is Over

2011-01-06T03:37:00.000-08:00

Today I thought I´d just share a couple of new Fabio Orsi tracks from his bandcamp page. This guy is really great, and maybe a little under appreciated....

HERE´s the link for this on bandcamp. And here are a few of my personal favorites from his discography, well worth checking out!

Find Electronica (A Silent Place, 2007) : 3 extended electronic pieces beautifully constructed, slowly developing, with breezy guitar samples growing and collapsing in on themselves... Nice blending of tones, drones, and melodies.

Audio For Lovers (2xCD, Last Visible Dog, 2008) : CD 1 being a series of relatively short (for Orsi) tracks of billowing ambiance, pulsing drones, hidden melodies, and varied samples (nature recordings, guitar, etc...). A few tracks with piano, a bit neoclassical here and there, a little "post-rock" influence if that means anything to anyone anymore... But in my book CD 2 is what this album is all about.... It´s a compilation of earlier material previously released as limited edition CDrs mostly on Students of Decay. These are longer tracks that show Orsi´s more psychedelic side. Drones that grow into forests of sound.... more room for development and more space to wander around and get lost in.

Picture Myself In A Cloud (Ruralfaune, 2008) : This is a really lovely CDr of two drone pieces which throb with endless possibility and lives of their own... Loops and samples are added slowly throughout to provide the melodic development while underlying pulses carry the rhythmic element. Perhaps an obvious formula for drone music, but Orsi´s sound palette and unique vision transcend the ordinary every time.

Faded On The Blowing Of Winter (Akoustic Desease, 2007) : These are two absolutely excellent drones for reveling in the current wintry vibes... Deep stuff, three dimensional music, and beautiful. Apparently the label is "dead due to personal problems"...

interesting bits for the old year

2010-12-31T05:05:00.000-08:00

Hello friends,
Today I´ll be posting some links and videos of random interesting things that I´ve come across on the internet and other blogs. Stuff that has caught my eye and my ear this past year. Hope you enjoy.

This I just found the other day on Jefre Cantu-Ledesma´s excellent Root Strata blog:
Keith Fullerton Whitman - Pyramid Atlantic (I guarantee this is worth sitting through!)

Keith Fullerton Whitman´s "Generator" Cassette on Root Strata with an excellent review from Boomkat.

Steve Moore´s "Primitive Neural Pathways" in Self-Titled Mag (I also enjoyed the interview with Steve on Genesis)

And my album of the year comes from the man Greg Davis and the Home Normal label:

Greg Davis & Chris Weisman - Northern Songs

This album in a manner of speaking saved my life when I was going through a bad time. That´s not something that happens very often (records saving my life that is, there are plenty of bad times, hehe), especially now that I´m in my mid-20´s and a father, more grown-up, responsible, mature, blah blah blah whatever... it´s a special album that helped me put things into perspective a bit and gave me a bit of hope and light when my mind and spirit were dark. It came out on Greg´s Autumn Records first in a limited edition of 100 cd-rs, then the proper CD followed on Home Normal, and I believe it´s still available though only 1000 copies were made. And apparently Autumn Records released a vinyl version of 300 copies but either I totally missed out on that one or it hasn´t been released yet........ hoping for the latter, and hoping I´ll have a little money to be able to get it.......

The next record came out in 2009, but I got it at the same time as the above one, so it goes on my 2010 list:-)

Greg Davis - Midpoint

This is one of my favorite drone albums of all time, ever since I heard this I´ve been dying to go to a Greg Davis show. To be honest, I enjoyed Greg´s early CDs, but didn´t really get into it much (the Carpark days). Then I was floored by his "Mutually Arising" CD on Kranky (2 mega bliss-out drone works) and stumbled upon his Crystal Vibrations blog where he shares his collection of good New Age records and I really started paying attention. Needless to say, he´s been quite inspiring of late. This Midpoint album is two amazing live sets from shows at either side of the U.S. The second track is my favorite thing I´ve heard from Greg: synthesizer drone, new age electronic sounds, gongs, processed voice, tribal drumming, and a sense of depth, development, and evolution within the piece that demonstrates Greg´s intuitive compositional style... ending up with some beautiful arpeggios that will remind you a lot of the Keith Fullerton Whitman video above. A cosmic/organic/electronic immersive experience to settle your mind and soul. And if you haven´t heard his work with Zach Wallace as Sun Circle, you´re missing out. I even have a sneaking hunch that Greg may be behind the whole Eleh enigma.... ?¿?¿?¿?

Oren Ambarchi - Live at Corsica Studios 3.09.10

I´ve been a big fan of Oren´s take on avant-guitar drone for quite a while, and was immensely pleased with this free download from the always excellent Touch label. In the same slowly unfolding and harshly beautiful style as his "Lost Like A Star" album and "A Final Kiss on Poisoned Cheeks" piece.
3.09.10 - Live at Corsica Studios – 25:59 - 192 kbps

And to finish up, here´s a few more things in no particular order that inspired me in 2010 or helped me through the year:

··Rediscovering Nick Drake
··My girls
··My vinyl collection (and sharing a carefully selected few with a very small and rather eclectic audience at LaPieza)
··Playing a solo "show" for the first time
··Popol Vuh and Stars of the Lid (as usual), Brian Eno´s Another Green World, and lots of Machinefabriek
··2010 albums of note: The Alps - Le Voyage, Emeralds - Does It Look Like I´m Here?, Eleh - Repose, Dolphins Into The Future - The Music of Belief, Eluvium - Similes, Barn Owl - Ancestral Star, Sun Araw - Off Duty
··Reading books again
··Green tea
··Seeing a few good shows: Emeralds, Robert Fripp & Theo Travis, KK Null and Tabata Mitsuru, and Seefeel (though I had to pass up a ton more: Sunn O))), Oneohtrix Point Never, Alasdair Roberts, MV & EE, Acid Mothers Temple, Om, Eagle Twin, Nadja, KTL, Carlos Giffoni, Sun Araw, Zola Jesus, Wooden Shjips.... compiling this list just now was torture)
··A few random translation jobs (many thanks to C.G.)
··Omeprazole
··My band El Intruso and our recent/on-going/future projects:

even though we still haven´t finished recording our studio album..... that´s our problem, too many things at once, not enough time for any of it.......

I guess that´s enough random tidbits for now, happy new year everyone. I hope it´s better than the old one.

Another (2) Green World(s)

2010-12-16T01:30:00.000-08:00

Let´s start from the basic principle that this is one of the best albums ever made:

I posted it on my other blo g a while back. It´s one of those albums I keep going back to, it´s just so beautifully and creatively made. It stands out for its time and for today, full of innovative sounds and ideas. I won´t get into further detail because I really just wanted to point out two other albums in reference to it:

This is Eluvium´s latest full length album, and it´s beautiful. Plenty of ambient/post rock soundscapes as usual, but at the first listen I picked up lots of Brian Eno influence that I never noticed in Eluvium´s other albums. The vocals and vocal lines are very reminiscent of Another Green World, as well as other arrangements and sound choices... Great album, highly recommended.

And then we have Arp:

This is more underground than Eluvium I suppose. Arp is Alexis Georgopoulos, also a member of the Alps with Jefre Cantu-Ledesma. This album is obviously Eno-influenced, someone else compared it to the Apollo album, but really I´d have to say it mostly echoes Another Green World. One track is practically a rip-off, but it´s still a great track:-) Spacey electronics and plenty of modular synth work, while still quite "song-based".

So basically, if you just can´t get enough early Eno and you want to spend some more time in other green worlds, give these two albums a listen.

Antilope Show - Otoño @ LaPieza

2010-12-10T02:00:00.000-08:00

Well, I had my show and it went well. It was more a session than a show in the end, but it has inspired me to record more, so that´s good. The prerecorded tape of synth drones and arpeggios couldn´t really be heard very well. However, the tape of nature sounds was very much a success. So, another step forward for Antilope, I´m getting my ideas clearer and clearer. Just need to work some more on the music and setup:-)

Here is the first recording I´ve made based on the pieces I had prepared for the show, to give an idea of the music and atmosphere I´m going for (comments are more than welcome):

Antilope - autumnalia pt. 1

And here are some pics a friend (Mark Williams) took with his iphone.

Antilope Show

2010-11-25T01:57:00.000-08:00

Hi friends,
just posting to let you know I´ll be giving a small performance of some of my music this evening. The show will be at my friend Tomoto´s gallery, La Pieza, c/ La Palma 15, downtown Madrid. It´s part of the Palma Central program and is FREE!

I didn´t know whether to use my real name or Antilope, my musical identity is still under construction, so I´m using both indiscriminately.
The setup will be a couple of cassette players, one blasting nature recordings of frogs, whales, etc..., and the other playing prerecorded floaty synth drones and arpeggios. The idea is to have sort of an installation where the cassettes will be at either end of the room, and in the middle two amplifiers facing each other connected to the mighty microKorg. I know, this little synth is hard to take seriously, but it can make some serious sounds. The best in its price range, and good practice while I develop my sound.

I´m quite excited, it´s my first show by myself and I´ve been wanting to do this for quite some time. This show will be a bit of an experiment, lo-fi and simple setup, I´ll be leaving the microKorg to do its thing and twiddling knobs a little bit, but mostly the idea is to fill the room with an ambience and keep the human element to a secondary plane. I don´t like being the center of attention.
It´ll be something along the lines of Cluster, Eno, Oneohtrix Point Never, and Emeralds leading up to some more meditative minimal moments. Exploring the lines between kosmische and kitsch, new age and psychedelia, digital art and pulp drones....

There will be another art installation involving leaves going on at the same time. The theme for the night is Autumn. My favorite season. And today is Thanksgiving. We´ll see how it goes...

AVGR - Sleepcast

2010-10-29T00:35:00.000-07:00

Here´s another mixtape that I made a long time ago for the Go To Sleep group on Last.fm, but I never posted it on the blog... This was the first AVGR mixtape, and it´s supposed to be ideal for late night train rides, afternoon naps in trees, not necessarily sleeping but you could be...

Sleepcast - AVGR 19-02-09

Track list:
1. intro - edit from "untitled" - Antilope with Christian Cherene (unreleased)
2. Chris Watson - River Mara at Dawn (from Stepping Into the Dark)
3. Bohren & der Club of Gore - Mittelfinger (from Geisterfaust)
4. Steinbrüchel - Interlude 4 (from Basis)
5. Kawabata Makoto - Shii (from INUI.2)
6. Kevin Drumm - Guillaine-Barre (from Imperial Distortion)
7. outro - edit from "untitled" - Antilope with Christian Cherene

(46:21)

CDs and Records for sale part II - vinyl

2010-10-27T08:25:00.001-07:00

And here I continue with a list of vinyl, also all in excellent condition. For these, prices would vary, so get in touch if you´re interested, want to see pictures, more info, make me an offer, etc.... These are 12" albums unless otherwise noted.

1. Iron Butterfly - In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida (ATCO/Rhino, reissue)

2. Gandalf - st (Capitol/EMI, high quality blue vinyl reissue)

3. Chico Hamilton - Chico- The Master (Stax, 1973)

4. The Cure - Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me (2xLP, Elektra, 1987)

5. The Police - Synchronicity (A&M, 1983)

6. Le Scott´s Post-Bop Opera (7", TEA Records, no dates)

7. Jeff Buckley - Forget Her (7", Columbia, blue vinyl)

8. Coheed & Cambria - Welcome Home (7", Columbia)

9. Major Stars - Portable Freak Factory (7", Important Records)

10. Chris Herbert/Felix - Split 7" (Low Point)

11. Blonde Redhead - Symphony of Treble (7", Touch&Go)

12. Sleater-Kinney - Get Up (7", Kill Rock Stars)

13. Pit Er Pat/ Icy Demons - Split 7" (Polyvinyl, orange vinyl)

14. Amon - Nona (10", Amplexus, clear vinyl)

15. Sunn O))) & Pan Sonic/Alan Vega/Stephen Burroughs - split 10" (BlastFirstPetite, limited edition)

16. Wooden Wand & the Omen Bones Band - Horus of the Horizon (10", The Great Pop Supplement)

17. Alog/Astral Social Club - split 12" (Fat Cat split series)

18. Aidan Baker - Letters (Basses Frequences, limited edition)

19. Acid Mothers Temple & The Melting Paraiso U.F.O. - In O to ∞ (Important Records, 2xLP, limited edition yellow vinyl)

20. Acid Mothers Temple & The Melting Paraiso U.F.O. - Glorify Astrological Martyrdom (Important Records, red vinyl)

21. Acid Mothers Temple & The Melting Paraiso U.F.O. - Recurring Dream & Apocalypse of Darkness (Important Records, 2xLP, white vinyl)

22. Les Georges Leningrad - Sur Les Traces de Black Eskimo (Alien8)

23. The Unicorns - Who Will Cut Our Hair When We´re Gone? (Alien8)

24. Sun (Oren Ambarchi & Chris Townend) - I´ll Be The Same (Important Records, white vinyl)

25. Final + Fear Falls Burning - st (Conspiracy Records, grey vinyl)

26. Grails - Black Tar Prophecies Vol. 4 (Important Records, limited edition picture disc)

27. The Skull Defekts - Skulls CM von Hausswolff & The Sons of God Descending The Silver River Of The DFX (Important Records)

and that´s all I´m willing to part with right now....

CDs and Records for sale

2010-10-26T01:27:00.000-07:00

This is a cross post from my other blog.

Hello friends,
Today I´ll be using the blog to post a list of CDs and vinyl that I´m selling. This post will be for the CDs, the next for the records. There are a few of reasons. First, I really need the money (I should say "we"). Second, I just don´t have room for it all anymore, or as much time to kick back and enjoy them all!!!! And last, some of it I just honestly don´t care for anymore. So I´m downsizing my collection just a wee bit. Everything is in excellent condition, I take care of my things (and not all, but most was bought brand new). If you are interested in any of these, don´t hesitate to get in touch for more info, make me an offer, etc... I can do PayPal, and perhaps if you´ve got something really special to trade........ I´ll go marking them off the list if any sell. I guess around 5 or 6 bucks for most of them, maybe a few special ones would be more. Some could possibly go for less. Without further ado, the list of CDs (in bold are what I would consider highlights):

CDs
1. Donovan - Sunshine Superman (Epic, psych folk)
2. Cream - Disraeli Gears (The Cream Remasters) (Polydor, psych garage rock)
3. Spirit - The Best of Spirit (Newly Remastered & Expanded Edition) (Epic/Legacy, psych rock)
4. Comets on Fire - Avatar (Sub Pop, psych rock)
5. Kinski - Airs Above Your Station (hole punch in barcode) (Sub Pop, space rock-indie-psych)
6. Deerhoof - Reveille (5 Rue Christine/Kill Rock Stars, indie)
7. Deerhoof - Milkman
8. Wolf Parade - Apologies to the Queen Mary (Sub Pop, indie)
9. Dirty Three - Whatever You Love, You Are (Touch&Go, instrumental)
10. Various Artists - Tomorrow & Tomorrow & Tomorrow Vol. 1 (A Sound&Fury Records Compilation, ie. Gareth Hardwick, Machinefabriek, Jasper TX, Seaworthy, Aaron Martin, etc...)
11. Kurt Weisman - Spiritual Sci-Fi (Important Records, songwriter)
12. Red Sparowes - At The Soundless Dawn (Neurot, post rock)
13. Transitional - Stomach of the Sun (Conspiracy Records, ?? it´s sealed and I haven´t listened to it... has something to do with Jesu)
14. Circle - Tulikoira (Ektro, NWOFHM/psychedelic post metal)
15. Circle - Tyrant (Latitudes, limited edition)
16. Pelican - Australasia (Hydra Head, post metal)
17. Mastodon - Leviathan (Relapse, Special Edition with DVD)
18. boris with Merzbow - Megatone (inoxia, Japanese import, psych-drone-post metal)
19. Sunn O))) & Boris - Altar (Southern Lord, still sealed, psych-drone-doom metal)
20. Merzbow - Merzbeat (Important Records, noise)
21. Merzbow - Merzbird (Important Records, noise)
22. Merzbow - Amlux (Important Records, noise)
23. Tomas Jirku - Immaterial (Substractif, minimal ambient techno)
24. The Hafler Trio - Á Ég Ad Halda Áfram? (Important Records, mini CD)
25. Machinefabriek - Loops for Voerman (self-released, mini CD with download, ambient-drone-electronic)
26. Brethren of the Free Spirit (James Blackshaw & Jozef van Wissem) - The Wolf Also Shall Dwell with the Lamb (Important Records, minimalist folk)
27. Fox the Boombox - Side Parts (self-released, indie)
28. Orinoka Crash Suite - st (2xCD) (Tumult, now The Ohsees, lofi)
29. Peter Wright - Red Lion (Digitalis, avant-guitar drone)
30. Blonde Redhead - Misery is a Butterfly (4AD, indie)
31. Acid Mothers Temple & The Melting Paraiso U.F.O. - Dark Side of the Black Moon: What Planet Are We On? (Important Records, psychedelic)
32. Acid Mothers Temple & The Melting Paraiso U.F.O. - Lord of the Underground: Vishnu and the Magic Elixir (Alien8, psychedelic)
33. Acid Mothers Temple & The Melting Paraiso U.F.O. - Magical Power From Mars (3D cover) (Important Records, psychedelic)
34. Zelienople - His/Hers (Type, psych-drone-improv-post rock)
35. Seaworthy/M. Rösner - Split 3" CDr (hellosQuare, ambient-electronic-post rock)
36. canyons! - trapdoor/diamonds 3" CDr (hellosQuare, ambient-electronic)
37. Spartak - Ostpolitik Versions 3" CDr (hellosQuare, electronic)
38. Julia Kent - Delay (Important Records, post rock-instrumental)
39. Risil - Non Meters Volume 1 (Important Records, electronic-post rock)
40. Shalabi Effect - The Trial of St-Orange (Alien8, psychedelic-improv)
41. Argil/Saqui - Vecindario Global (Conaculta Fonca, avant-garde)
42. Maninkari - Le Diable Avec Ses Chevaux (2xCD) (Conspiracy, psychedelic)
43. Barbez - Insignificance (Important Records, avant-garde, cabaret-punk)
44. Anahita - Matricaria (Important Records, free folk, psych folk)
45. Arcade Fire - Funeral (Merge, indie)
46. Weezer - Blue Album (2xCD Deluxe Edition) (Geffen)
47. Rhapsody - Symphony of Enchanted Lands II: The Dark Secret (SPV, symphonic power metal)
48. Rhapsody - Power of the Dragonflame (SPV, symphonic power metal)
49. Luca Turilli - Prophet of the Last Eclipse (SPV, symphonic power metal)
50. Haggard - Eppur Si Muove (AMG, symphonic death metal)
51. Opeth - Still Life (Peaceville, progressive death metal)

AVGR - Avant-Gardening Radio - Trumpet Vindication

2010-10-25T02:18:00.001-07:00

Hello my friends, I know this blog has fallen out of use lately, but I do intend to revive it a little. So what better way to start than with a mixtape?!?!

When I was in 5th grade or so I chose to learn how to play the saxophone, thinking it was the coolest instrument I could learn because jazz was the coolest music I knew about. I don´t think I even knew any jazz artists or songs, it was all just an abstract idea in my head. Both my younger brothers, however, decided to go down a different path and learn the trumpet instead. Maybe this has something to do with my aversion to it, along with the fact that I could never get more than two notes out of a trumpet whenever I tried to play it. My dad used to play trumpet too, now that I think about it.... Anyway, so it´s not like I hate the trumpet, but it was always just one of those instruments that didn´t enthuse me too much.

So when I came across mft_jp´s last.fm page and learned of his hatred of the trumpet I was inspired to go through some of my music and purposefully pick out some tracks that contain trumpet in a way that I actually do find pleasant, or where the trumpet is not a protagonist, but it´s presence contributes to the overall pleasantness of the atmosphere of the song. Here is the mixtape that resulted:

Trumpet Mixtape - AVGR 10-24-10

1: Song for the Bearded Lady (edit 1) - Nucleus (from We´ll Talk About It Later)
2: Evening Call - Arve Henriksen (from Sakuteiki)
3. Song for the Bearded Lady (edit 2) - Nucleus (from We´ll Talk About It Later)
4. Movement 3 - Carl Craig & Moritz von Oswald (from ReComposed)
5. War In Heaven - Rhys Chatham (from The Bern Project)
6. Viewing Infinite Space - Arve Henriksen (from Sakuteiki)
7. Lonely Fire (edit 1) - Miles Davis (from Big Fun)
8. Blue Sunshine - Shalabi Effect (from Pink Abyss)
9. Lonely Fire (edit 2) - Miles Davis (from Big Fun)
10. Holy Canyon (Vanquish) - Cloudland Canyon (from Requiems Der Natur 2002-2004)
11. Lonely Fire (edit 3) - Miles Davis (from Big Fun)
12. Storm: Leves Vos Skinny Fists Comme Antennas to Heaven (edit 1) - Godspeed You! Black Emperor (from Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven)
13. After The Red Rose (Remix by Robert Horton) (edit 1) - Rameses III (from Basilica [disc 2])
14. Storm: Gathering Storm (edit 2) - Godspeed You! Black Emperor (from Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven)
15. After The Red Rose (Remix by Robert Horton) (edit 2) - Rameses III (from Basilica [disc 2])

Thrown together in Audacity (apologies for segments of low sound quality;-) on October 24th, 2010. This is actually the second mixtape I´ve made for AVGR, but I didn´t post the first one here on the blog. I´ll be posting it forthwith, check back!

shows

2009-02-04T09:05:00.000-08:00

since i've last posted i've seen so many good shows, and i've missed so many more.....

i've been too busy with work, moving, and fatherhood these days.

to mention a few of the highlights:

Acid Mothers Temple (under several different names including SWR with the best moment for me being Kawabata Makoto's solo section...)
Brethren of the Free Spirit (James Blackshaw & Jozef van Wissem with solo sections from both)
Caribou
LSD March
Ignatz
Paul Metzger
Evangelista
Sir Richard Bishop

and i missed:

Xiu Xiu
Vetiver
Akron/Family
Gang Gang Dance
Bonnie 'Prince' Billy
Simon Finn
Religious Knives
A Silver Mt. Zion
A Place To Bury Strangers
Damo Suzuki
Six Organs of Admittance (kicking myself)
Wooden Shjips
Sic Alps
Eric Chenaux
Aleuchatistas
Low
Arborea
Nadja
Machinefabriek & soccer Committee (while i was in holland for christmas, didn't work out)

and coming up soon:

Josephine Foster (yes!!!!)
Sharron Kraus (and apparently Fursaxa just cancelled, she was going to play with Sharron)

i'm really hoping to get some reviews done this weekend of a few shows and several albums that you must hear!!! i have to catch up on my low point reviews too... so check back soon!

last.fm charts (alchemy)

2009-02-04T09:03:00.000-08:00

new design of my last.fm weekly artist charts:

Manticornio

2008-09-13T17:24:00.000-07:00

new side project with my buddy sam.
psych folk & rock w/ plenty of experimentation and spacey sounds, rooted in some heartfelt melodies... we'll see where it takes us.

Manticornio Family Band Myspace

Manticornio on Last.fm

Concert Review : Peter Walker

2008-04-14T10:43:00.000-07:00

So.... lately interesting guitar players have been coming through Madrid and playing at the Casa de los Jacintos.

Saturday night I headed down there to see Peter Walker. I suppose he's basically a legend... being one of the first to combine fingerstyle guitar with Indian scales and raga forms back in the 60's. He's studied with Ravi Shankar (sitar) and Ali Akbar Khan (sarod)... So it was not to be missed. I had checked out one of his albums from back then, Rainy Day Raga, and it was quite nice... but I wasn't sure what to expect from him solo in 2008... He's toured with Jack Rose and has been as inspirational as Fahey and Basho to a new generation of guitarists such as James Blackshaw...

It ended up being a really enjoyable evening, the atmosphere in the Casa de los Jacintos was great (though a bit too smoky... really...) and Peter Walker was spellbinding. He's been fascinated by flamenco for years, and he was perhaps taking a risk by performing flamenco guitar here in Spain, but he's quite accomplished and he's studied with some great names and everyone was into it.

As the night progressed he switched back and forth between nylon and steel stringed guitars, plucking and strumming styles, and improvisation styles.... by the end of the night he was combining flamenco, raga, and American primitive guitar in really authentic and beautiful cascades of melody. It was like a language and he was narrating his life and travels to us, stories he'd picked up along the way, people he'd met, scenes he'd absorbed into his mind and heart...

The whole night he spoke to us in broken Spanish, introducing his songs and sometimes briefly giving a bit of background, but then when he began to play, it was like he was just continuing with a different voice. After finishing a phrase on the guitar he would pause and look around the room as if to make sure we were following his drift, then continue with the tale.

He's currently on tour in Europe, so if he's playing near you, I strongly recommend you go. It was really one of the most enjoyable shows I've been to in a long time.

Concert Review: Tom Carter

2008-03-09T11:20:00.000-07:00

Tom Carter live @ El Ateneo de Madrid, Saturday March 1st, 2007

Saturday night Sam, Noemi, and I met up outside the doors of the Ateneo of Madrid... those hallowed halls where literary luminaries gathered for tertulias that shaped the written words of the golden ages of Spain... It was really an impressive venue and I couldn't think of a better place to hold avant-garde and experimental concerts...

As the hostess said at the beginning... this would be a bit of a risky proposal for Madrid, but I can't express how happy I am that these acts are making an appearance in a city that has a reputation for an infertile music scene...

The first group to take the stage in the beautiful auditorium was En Busca del Pasto, Madrid's very own. They were an improv band that impressed me but didn't quite convince me. They had a lot of things going for them, but in the end it was a bit too much in that Euro-improv-jazz-electronic vein. That's not to say that there weren't some aurally brilliant moments, and the interpretative dancer was quite entertaining with all her dadaist charm.

They made use of several laptops (which only really did anything worthwhile once--a Fennesz or Tim Hecker-like moment of granulated ambience), a bass guitar, bowed cymbal and a floor tom, occasional electric guitar and vocals, and various ethnic noise-makers like a cluster of goat hooves, rainstick, bowl, cymbals, and the like.

Then after a brief intermission Tom Carter took the stage. The list of groups and artists Tom has played with is endless, but here are some highlights for me: Sky City, Badgerlore, Charalambides, Mudsuckers, Kyrgyz, Robert Horton, etc... His solo works are not always as dynamic in my opinion, but they are always interesting and even engrossing. I recommend Monument (on Kranky records) and Shepherd at Lexington for starters...

Sometimes Tom plays in a folky context, and sometimes it's more noise-oriented, but it's always psychedelic, experimental, and improvisational. This night was a dreamy psych drone work out that put a smile on my face and filled the darkened hall with layer upon layer of warm fuzzy tones.

The first thing he did was ask for the lights to be dimmed. He had two amps set up and started out setting the mood with a metal slide creating tinkling textures on a guitar tuned to an open major chord. He didn't just use the slide on the strings though, he was using it on the edge of the guitar body as well... something I think I'll have to try now;-)

This was abruptly cut short and he jumped into a full-fledged drone. He built up some lovely textures for a while with delays and loops and then began improvising some solos over droning pulses of distortion. The delay decay was the natural propeller between "themes" or "movements" and Tom continued the pattern of building up texture and then developing a bit of melody throughout his performance. He used the e-bow for some really climactic chord-flutters that reminded me of some of Robert Fripp's more abstract solos. Towards the end he incorporated the tremolo pedal for some very nice psych-ambient drone work. Overall it didn't get too loud and was more soothing than rocking. I'd say that some Fripp & Eno tracks wouldn't make bad comparisons actually... Someone started clapping early and a bunch of people joined in, while he was obviously not finished yet. That bothered me. I don't know if he was annoyed or not, but he finished off quickly after that, just letting a solo trickle off to nothing.

It was quite an impressive show, and I've been looking for some more of his solo albums since then. My friend Sam isn't as crazy about the drone as I am, but he was impressed with the depth and texture of Tom's guitar playing. After the show I went to ask Tom about his involvement on the latest Badgerlore album, and he was just telling me "Well, I took these steel strings, and--" when we were interrupted by someone with a phone call for him. So I didn't get to hear what he did on it, but it was something more "electronic" he had said earlier.... Badgerlore has to be my favorite thing he's involved in (free folk), followed by Kyrgyz (improv with a bit of folk and noise), Charalambides (free folk jams), and Mudsuckers (power electronics noise drone improv).

So I hope to be catching more similar artists at the Ateneo in the near future.... I've discovered a great new venue with an excellent program. (Brethren of the Free Spirit will be playing there in early April.... that's James Blackshaw and Jozef van Wissem)

Photo taken by Luis Diaz, lifted from visiones en 50 milimetros (the hostess of the show, I believe) :::::::

I'd like to see his other photos from the night....

Self-promotion: Antilope - Foundland demo

2008-03-07T11:15:00.000-08:00

When I was living in a basement without my papers in Nijmegen, Holland I began my musical identity as Antilope. I didn't know it at the time, but there is another Antilope who makes techno beats. Which isn't so cool, but maybe I can keep the name.

My latest recordings are three tracks that I've called the Foundland demo. They were all improvised. The first two were recorded last fall in the garage of a house my wife and I stayed in for a few months. My computer crashed during the recording of the second track so the levels were not good at all, but fortunately my pal Joe Diaco back in North Carolina mastered them and they sound better. The final track is an electric guitar improvisation, the first thing I've recorded since moving in to my new apartment and since my daughter was born. It hasn't been mastered and I think there are some phantom noise issues. But for now it is how it is. At the end I used my accordion and voice.

You can hear it here:
Antilope – phoenix above and below
Antilope – third green falcon
Antilope – Malleable Moonbeams and the Birth of a Moëss

Some photos I took mostly in Nijmegen that for me represent the beginning and essence of Antilope:

Concert Review: MV & EE with the Golden Road

2008-03-05T10:38:00.000-08:00

Matt Valentine & Erika Elder with the Golden Road - Live @ the Wurlitzer Ballroom, Madrid, Spain

So, Wednesday January 30th at 10 pm I headed downtown Madrid to the Wurlitzer with a couple of friends. I was rather excited, because we seldom get music that I actually listen to (and have albums of) here in Madrid... Though I hadn't heard this incarnation of MV & EE, I have been a fan of them with the Bummer Road and by themselves for a while now. I knew the basic sound to expect: off-kilter singing, psych-folk, heavy on the improvisation....

While these elements were there, what surprised me was the rock & roll and the blues...

The Wurlitzer was definitely not the place to see this band, though. First, it's a long, corridor-like venue where the stage is at one end and is not elevated at all. So it's difficult to see the band, even if there aren't that many people there. Second, the sound guys didn't know how to treat them. This is a venue where loud Spanish indie and punk bands blast it out with everything just pushed to the max. So a lot of the musicality was lost, and there wasn't a very good balance in the mix.

But. It was still a great show, and I had a good time. The Golden Road was an excellent backing band for Matt and Erika's new songs, which were more country-rock and blues oriented... Samara Lubelski played bass, and she was really the perfect foundation for the extended psych/drone jams that most of the songs ended up as. (and you'd be a fool not to check out her amazing solo work, look for some on Sub Pop) They had a good drummer whose name I can't remember, with a fairly simple drum kit that sounded great and fit in with the overall country sound. And then they had what for me was a real treat: Doc Dunn, a pedal steel player from Canada. He really formed an integral part of the band, soloing and adding esoteric space-country touches all over the place. Occasionally he'd put on the echo effect and really make my day:-) If only the mix had been better and we could have heard it more....

And Matt and Erika were great. He sounded like Neil Young never did... Just-off-key high-range wailing with a southern drawl... with some interesting guitar solos and some solid country picking and strumming. Erika played an electric mandolin, with the distortion to the max... Again, the sound guys didn't do her any favors, especially with the vocal mic. Plus, she had a sore throat... though it didn't stop her from a killer performance of "Hammer" which is one of my favorites off their album. "Hammer" and "Easy Livin'" were definitely highlights of the show...

There's a bootleg circulating out there somewheres.... going by the name of "Ringside Seat Nosebleed Tour". It's quite good, but doesn't really reflect the Madrid show's sound. What we heard was much louder, and rocked pretty hard. Which was great, but it would have been nice to be able to pick out some of the subtleties that make MV & EE with the Golden Road magical.

Their album "Gettin' Gone" is out on Ecstatic Peace!

De Affaire pt. 6 - Maskesmachine

2007-07-22T13:37:00.000-07:00

After some Konono bliss, we climbed the hill to the ruin again to hear a female trio from Belgium.... Unfortunately I was unable to make it downtown for the last two nights of De Affaire (meaning that I missed Herman Dune and Z'EV), so this will be the last post from this incredible week of free shows downtown Nijmegen.

Wednesday, July 18, 2007, 22:00 - Maskesmachine
Maskesmachine was rather bizarre. I had never heard of them before, and the description on the flier was rather misleading. However, I did enjoy their show. It was arty with a subtle absurdist punk aesthetic. There were visual aids such as a video projector that was very synchronized with the music, and with the movements of the band. They had developed "fitness routines" to go along with the music. Using keyboards, electric guitar, drums, violin, and very interesting and coordinated vocal interplay between the three members, they achieve a very entertaining sound.
Here you can get a taste, though it was a bit dark:

De Affaire pt. 5 - Konono N° 1

2007-07-19T13:28:00.001-07:00

Yesterday evening was beautiful along the Waal river downtown Nijmegen... The sun was setting over the river and my wife and I were dancing (a little) to some excellent live music thanks to another great group featured in De Affaire. This was the third night in a row we'd made our way through the maddening crowds to the Valkhof park for this section of Nijmegen's week-long free open-air concerts...

Wednesday, July 18, 2007, 20:30 - Konono N° 1
Hailing from the Congo region of Africa, this group mixes a traditional sound with modern experimental aesthetics... Originally this mix, which has gained them so much popularity, was unintentional. Now they embrace it. Three likembe, or thumb piano, players are joined by percussionists to create beautiful grooves. These likembes are all amplified through homemade electronic systems, which distort the sound in the most trance-inducing way... So what you hear is beautiful, otherworldly African music with a slightly psychedelic and noisy twist that will definitely make you start moving. There was a dancer on stage who also helped out on vocals occasionally. The group plays very long songs alternating between a theme on the likembes (treble, middle, and bass) and vocal segments where the likembes do rhythmic backing, with the percussion pounding away the whole time. The bass likembe was incredible, and they played such haunting melodies on the other two... It was really an unforgettable experience there on the river banks in the sunset.

I had heard of this group through a fellow worker (Bo) at Manifest Discs in North Carolina a year or so ago while I was working there. He had seen them live in New York, I believe, and played the CD for us in the store. I remember loving it, but I hadn't heard them since, so I was thrilled to get to see them live here in my own town! This is what I have to share with you:

De Affaire pt. 4 - Machinefabriek

2007-07-19T03:02:00.000-07:00

It seems every single night of the week there is something worth seeing downtown Nijmegen at De Affaire... Two nights ago I went to see an electronic artist whose songs I had heard on the internet. I had only heard a couple, mind you, and thought they were interesting, but it wasn't enough to really capture my fancy. Then I saw he would be performing here and I read his description on the flier, and two comparisons jumped out at me: Fennesz and Stars of the Lid. I must have heard the wrong songs on the internet...

Tuesday, July 17, 2007, 22:00 - Machinefabriek
Machinefabriek is Rutger Zuyderfeldt from Arnhem, here in the Netherlands. He is an electronic artist whose music ranges from ambient to harsh noise, drones, and everything in between. I was blown away by his live performance at the chapel ruins Tuesday night. He was joined by Robert Deters and the vocal assistance of a young lady known as Soccer Committee. Two tables full of electronic equipment, pedals, sound boards, wires, etc... manned by Rutger and Robert started the show off with some nice mounting pulses, which were joined by lovely vocal emanations from Soccer Committee. The vocals were blended into the mix so wonderfully that it took a second to recognize that what you were hearing was a female voice. A beautiful wall of sound was produced with much knob twiddling, so that the many layered textures could be slightly altered in turn. The sound was never still... Towards the end things began to get noisier, and by the very end Rutger had completely phased out everything but noise which he skillfully twisted and mangled a la Merzbow. It was excellent. The beautifully lit setting of the Ruin added the perfect atmosphere. Comparisons to Fennesz were not off the mark, but this particular session was not as ambient oriented as Stars of the Lid. The beginning could have been thought of as ambient music, except that it was LOUD. I'd say the whole thing was like Fennesz and Tim Hecker at their most abstract running into Merzbow. Except that Machinefabriek doesn't use a laptop! Anyway, it was an incredible performance and I'm now a fan. I only wish it had gone on longer... It was rather a short show. You can hear mp3s and check out more about Machinefabriek HERE. Here are my photos and video clips from my favorite performance so far in this week of free open-air concerts:

De Affaire pt. 3 - Animal Collective

2007-07-17T09:33:00.000-07:00

After Leafcutter John wound up I made my way out of the geodesic dome and over to the larger open-air stage nearby, the Saddlespan stage sponsored by Doornroosje (cultural center/concert venue). The band was getting set up, so I was there just in time...

Monday, July 16, 2007, 22:45 - Animal Collective
Animal Collective had a much more elaborate setup... lots of electronic equipment, keyboards, mixers, and gadgetry I don't know much about at all due to my lack of finances... The only acoustic instruments I could see were a floor tom and some cymbals. They started out with a familiar tune, very nice vocal interplay between band members and a great mixture of electric beats with banging away on the drum and cymbals. Of course, vocals were all heavily delayed, and keyboard samples abounded. It all sounded very good, and was really fun, but it was rather different from what I was expecting, having heard a few of their albums. It was sort of like a weird trance or techno concert... deep bass beats and electronic loops. I didn't recognize many songs. But hey, it was good dancing music... They knew what they were doing up there. I was kind of out in the middle of the crowd, so it was hard to get a decent photo, but here they are.

De Affaire pt. 2 - Leafcutter John

2007-07-17T03:19:00.000-07:00

The great lineups for Nijmegen's free week-long open-air music festival again drew me out to that historic hill where a castle keep once stood, the Valkhof park, to hear two groups. The first:

Monday, July 16, 2007, 21:45 - Leafcutter John
Leafcutter John is London-based John Burton, but here he was joined by a redheaded young lady who also sang and assisted with various noises as well as a melodica. Unfortunately I didn't catch her name. Again, the sound crew didn't do the best job... but it was very pleasant nonetheless. A classical guitar, laptop, voices, and an arsenal of noise-making trinkets (including a metal slinky) blended wonderfully, assisted by various loops, to create folk or singer-songwriter based songs. Noisy interludes and improvisational moments brought a special atmosphere to John's beautiful songs. The electronic aspect was nice, but the melodies on guitar and vocals were really what stood out. At times his melodies were reminiscent of Radiohead... Highlights included an improvised song about a horse named Stephen Hawkins at the crowd's request, as well as a moment when they invited a little boy named Boris from the audience to join them on stage and play a slide whistle. Oh, and the slinky of course! I tried to take a couple of videos, but the sound came out very mediocre. At least it looks nice, right? I suppose the photos turned out ok.

De Affaire pt. 1 - A Hawk and a Hacksaw

2007-07-16T06:42:00.000-07:00

I was very pleased to see that several excellent musical entities were on the list for Nijmegen's week-long music festivities. I'm specifically talking about the section of those festivities held in the Valkhof park, called "De Affaire". The greatest part about it all is that it's free and it's held in open tents or just on open air stages...

Sunday, July 15, 2007, 21:45 - A Hawk and a Hacksaw

Last night my wife and I went into town to see A Hawk and a Hacksaw. They were playing under a sort of geodesic dome that was open on the side opposite the stage. I don't think the sound crew was that great, but that didn't stop the duo from sounding wonderful...

A Hawk and a Hacksaw's live sound was very loud. They played a set of traditional and traditional-style Balkan folk tunes on violin and accordion... Jeremy Barnes also had percussion set up that he could play with his feet. The percussion added a lot to their sound; crashing crescendos and booming bass-drum beats resulted in some very dynamic moments. It was all very danceable thanks to the bass drum that resembled a bodhran to my eye...

Heather Trost, the violinist, really added to the atmosphere of Barnes' music, complimenting his virtuosic polkas beautifully. He whistled on one tune, and they both sang on a couple of others. He kept bringing up how great it is that in Holland your tax money goes to things like free concerts instead of spending it on the military like in the U.S....

The highlight of the show had to have been when the power in the dome went out, and they came down into the crowd to play acoustic. Overall it was a great show, slightly different from what you hear on their albums (both on the post-everything Leaf label). I recommend seeing them live, it was great fun.

Here are the photos I got, some better than others....

Low Point Review #6 : Gareth Hardwick - The Danger of Scenic Walks

2007-05-29T14:08:00.000-07:00

Most recent of the Low Point releases. I'm really looking forward to that Chris Herbert and Felix split 7", whenever it comes out... There will be a review here soon after, guaranteed:-)

Gareth Hardwick - The Danger of Scenic Walks
Gareth Hardwick's latest work is released by Low Point as a business card CD-r, containing one 5 minute, 53 second track, called "The Danger of Scenic Walks." Low Point 011 comes with a translucent vellum insert, specially designed by Helene Castro. This excellently packaged CD-r was released for Gareth's European tour in April.

Droning guitar sounds with the articulations totally muffled create the illusion of ambient organs... Warm, rich, low-pass-filtered tones are layered upon each other, with other pulsating textures slowly appearing and disappearing in the meantime. The song is centered around a single chord that drones on solemnly while other notes are added, till it sounds like suspensions are melting down through a body and into a womb. There is a very "interior" sound to this piece; it's not about large, echoey spaces, but warm and close pulsing places. It's like seeing a translucent heart beating in slow motion with a soft yellow light shining through from behind.

Comparisons could be made to Stars of the Lid (Avec Laudenum in particular comes to mind) as well as Oren Ambarchi-- experimental guitar meets beautiful droning ambience. This CD-r is limited to 50 copies, not yet sold out, so be fast!

Hear it HERE (keep in mind that the packaging really makes it worth getting the actual thing though!)

Low Point Review #5 : Last of the Real Hardmen - Darkness

2007-05-29T04:46:00.000-07:00

Low Point recently put out two new releases, both of which are quite good. I will review the first one here, and the second in the next post. Both new releases feature a different sort of packaging from the usual Low Point CD-r, and really from any CD in general. There's some great creativity going on here:-)

Last of the Real Hardmen - Darkness
Chris Summerlin (of Lords and Felix) is a Nottingham, UK guitarist also known as Last of the Real Hardmen. His albums are improv-based, psychedelic, and often noisy. The latest one, "Darkness", was released by Low Point Records (Low Point 010) on an all black CD-r, in a fold-over card sleeve, also black on black. The image to the left appears thereupon, screen-printed in black ink, for a very nice effect. The whole thing comes in a plastic sleeve.

"Darkness" is a series of solo electric guitar improvisations that span 13 tracks. It could be said that they are mostly drone-based, but it is far from just a drone album. Many textures appear thanks to various articulations including glissando, bowing, plucking, striking, sliding, etc... which on the electric guitar create a dark, minimalist sound world, sometimes akin to Loren MazaCane Connors, sometimes sounding like Kyrgyz or some other Jewelled Antler improv group, and at other times even like Earth or Growing. Needless to say it covers a wide range of sounds and techniques.

On this album you will hear ambient noises, dissonances, overtones, feedback, reverb, and distortion, all in an avant-garde context that blends styles, but flows well. A coherent idea emerges, is exposed, and develops over the course of the album, and you could say that this idea is darkness itself as expressed through a guitar.

It's not easy to compare this to other existing acts, but perhaps the Bark Haze would be a good one (Total Joke Era in particular), but "Darkness" is more sparse and meditative than that. Summerlin relies very little on effects and processing, such as delay and looping, so the sound is much more direct. The extent of his equipment is an SG copy and 2 Fender Twin Reverbs.

It may be silly to compare this to a band as diverse as Boris, but some of Boris' more freeform, improv, feedback-laden moments would be very comparable to a couple of tracks here. Plus Boris always has that dark psych vibe that flows through this album too. On other tracks there's more of a loose, free-blues/psych folk vibe that approaches the Charalambides. Overall it features a wide range of improvisational styles held together by the guitar and a pervading dark atmosphere, all in a minor key except for the second to last track.

Limited to 100 copies, hand numbered. Available to hear from Last.fm: (click on the play buttons next to each track)
Last of the real hardmen – Darkness 1
Last of the real hardmen - Darkness 13

Review: Ginnungagap - Remeindre

2007-05-22T05:07:00.000-07:00

Ginnungagap is a project of Stephen O'Malley, famous from doom drone metal band Sunn O))), Khanate, etc... On "Remeindre" he teams up with Anthony Sylvester and Alexander Tucker to cover a broad palette of instruments, including ethnic and folk instruments such as tamboura, harmonium, srutti box, singing bowl, mandolin, and bulbul tarang, as well as acoustic guitars, classical guitar, farfisa, and Juno-106 keyboard.

Ginnungagap - Remeindre
"Remeindre" is released in two formats on two different labels, both of which feature original artwork by Alexander Tucker. The CD is released by Southern Records on their limited edition Latitudes series. It was recorded from 14 to 16 December, 2004, in the Southern studios in London, and is limited to 1000 copies. Unfortunately, it is sold out, so you'd have to find it used somewhere. All Latitudes releases come in really nice packaging, designed by Stephen O'Malley. Other bands that have recorded on Latitudes include Grails, Shit & Shine, Circle, and Sir Richard Bishop.

The LP version was released in the summer of 2006 by Aurora Borealis. The LP comes in two colors, white or clear, and is limited to 700 copies, also already sold out. It features a translucent vellum insert with artwork printed in bronze.

The record opens with Duel Ravens, featuring a poignantly plucked tamboura pattern over a bed of acoustic bowed drone. A periodic chime decorates and completes the ritualistic, slow marching sounds of hooded monks... Overtones grow in complexity as more instruments are added to the mix, contributing texture and depth to the backing drone. A mandolin is added to the tamboura theme and wavering pulses introduce an augmentation that resolves to the central chord and then back repeatedly. Wordless vocals are added at the end in a sort of droning chant. This track introduces the general vibe of the record: meditative, slightly dark, acoustic ambience, psychedelic folk drones. The atmosphere is heavy, something you'd expect from O'Malley, but the acoustic and folk nature of the sounds is surprising. It sounds great though-- something new and fresh and very interesting.

Guenevere of the Ganges is the next track, and it also begins with tamboura interplay which establishes the tonality and a mystical resonance. Harmonium enters to fill the gaps in the soundspace with a three-note sequence that ends up taking over as the theme. A bowed instrument (I'm not sure what) begins a pulsing drone which gives a real sense of movement to the piece. Things seem to be flowing a little more quickly here, very much like a river, as the title suggests. There is an immediacy to the sounds, there's no processing or effects... It's all acoustic which adds to the folk sensibility, even if there is no melody present.

The third track, Black Snow, Blood Mountain, gets going with the familiar tamboura, but soon an underlying vocal emerges; a pulsating hum in a low register which gives a meditative feeling. An acoustic guitar embellishes the tamboura theme as the vocals are sampled and begin to grow, creating a buzzing texture. Improvised srutti box (I think) tinkles in, wandering about over the growing vocal murmurs. The sound is very modal, due to the tamboura's limited tonalities, which helps keep things in drone-mode. The vocals here are similar to what Alexander Tucker has experimented with on occasion in his solo albums.

The record closes with Aurgelmir, which features the only electronic sounds. These are produced by O'Malley's keyboard playing, which in combination with the harmonium produces a dissonant pulsing drone. A thick analogue texture is established before the vocals come in-- a low, guttural, monotone chant and higher pitched wails. Overall a very tense atmosphere exists here, as the sounds get muddier and muddier till it reminds me very much of that eerie vocal piece from the Space Odyssey 2001 soundtrack. The entire track is basically a mass of cacophonous voices over a pulsating, dissonant chord cluster.
Definitely the most unsettling moment of the record here at the end.

"Remeindre" is an album for fans of Stephen O'Malley's many projects, but especially the Lotus Eaters and Aethenor, as well as other folk-drone, doom folk, or ambient drone acts such as Alexander Tucker's solo works, Wolfmangler, or Encomiast. Ginnungagap's releases are all in a somewhat similar vein, but they do not all sound alike. "Remeindre" is definitely the one with the most folk influence. Really the only one. "Crashed Like Wretched Moth" (released as one-sided white vinyl by Conspiracy Records) explores doomy ambient droning sounds of a piano, and the "1000% Downer" EP combines field recordings with atonal ambient noise, dissonance, wandering vocals, and drones. All releases, besides being limited editions and often hard to get a hold of, have been EP length. They have yet to record a full-length album.

Review : Oren Ambarchi - Lost Like A Star

2007-05-06T04:59:00.000-07:00

Oren Ambarchi, an experimental guitarist from Australia, has been around for a while, and interest has slowly been growing... He collaborated with Tim Hecker on a track for Hecker's Mirages album and with Sunn O))) on their Black One album; and then was able to release his own album on Sunn O)))'s Southern Lord label (Triste). Since then he has been loosely associated with the doom drone scene, though his solo works have very little to do with doom (if anything at all). I suppose the association has been furthered by Ambarchi's involvement in the Burial Chamber Trio-- a doom drone trio formed by Greg Anderson (Sunn O))), Khanate, etc...), Ambarchi, and Attila Csihar (Mayhem). Really everything Oren Ambarchi has been a part of sounds quite good, but here I'll focus on his solo work-- Lost Like A Star in particular.

Oren Ambarchi - Lost Like A Star
"Lost Like A Star" was recently released by Bo'Weavil Recordings as a limited edition (650 hand-numbered pieces) vinyl-only album. Each side of this excellent 180 gram slab of vinyl is comprised of one long track. Bo'Weavil, Touch, and a few other mail order websites still have this in stock, so get it while you can....

Side A contains the title track. A lurid, careening drone issues forth, comprised of solid guitar tones, bowed accents, and cymbal rushes... sounding very much like a star tilted on its axis, revolving through space. Near dissonances mount and fall back into place as the drone gains a life of its own. This track was recorded live for ABC, an Australian television station.

Lost Like A Star (mp3 sample)

Side B, The Final Option, starts out with typical Ambarchi sounds-- disembodied, detached, seemingly random or free-form pure guitar tones. These gradually take shape as a motor drone takes over and swallows EVERYTHING (seriously, this is like a black hole more than a star now...), even as something close to melody emerges around the edges. The track fades out till overtones are all that remain. Yes, an actual motor was used in this recording.

The Final Option (mp3 sample)

The two pieces that make up this album have typical Ambarchi elements-- namely the loose, pure guitar tones that gradually come together into a mesmerizing and organic quasi-melody-- but they are somehow instantly more powerful than anything I've heard by him before (especially the title track). There is a coherence and sense of overall direction to these drones, and yet this coherence and direction (perhaps a weaving elliptical path...) only help add to the dizzying and overwhelming power of the album to immerse the listener. These really are pieces to get lost in, and they stand out to me as very special landmarks in Oren Ambarchi's expanding oeuvre.

I've tried to find a digital version (CD or mp3) but have not succeeded so far. That's ok though-- the vinyl sounds AMAZING.

Review : Stars of the Lid ...And Their Refinement of the Decline

2007-04-21T04:00:00.000-07:00

Stars of the Lid and their Refinement of the Decline

The new Stars of the Lid album is a subdued yet emotional affair.... Spanning 6 beautiful sides of vinyl or available on 2 compact discs (with a different album cover), Kranky records' #100 really has it all. Combining the ambient atmosphere of Brian Eno with the rich feeling of Tim Hecker's latest music, SOTL use a richer orchestral palette than on previous albums; from high overtones to grating guitar swells, backwards violins to bass bellows...

"Refinement" is dreamy, like all SOTL albums, and feels like a sweet somnambulant stroll through a pastel-colored park with the sun shining brightly, whitewashing everything and blinding the corners of your vision. It has to be the best Stars of the Lid album to date.

Organic organ and string layers develop drone bases which help to create a richer sound than any purely "electronic ambient" album could ever hope for. It really sounds like the best aspects of every good ambient album I've ever heard, with a true classical sensibility... I hear echoes of Harold Budd and Brian Eno's "The Pearl", Eno's "Discreet Music", Tim Hecker's "Harmony In Ultraviolet", Earth's "Hex" album, Satie, and more.... which adds up to an incredible total sound.

Whereas I feel that Tim Hecker's "Mirages" album has a distinctly nocturnal sound that is paradoxically "not sleepy", "Refinement of the Decline" is comprised of diurnal sounds that are at the same time very "sleepy." If that makes sense....

It is definitely familiar Stars of the Lid territory, but within that territory the listener suddenly encounters new places-- melody plays a much greater role, and there is a slightly unfamiliar edge ocassionally... Grainier and sharper sounds exist and sometimes emerge from within the soft, smooth, pink ambient cloudscapes.

All the aforementioned elements come together to float loosely in a delta wave-filled aquarium from which Adam Wiltzie and Brian McBride carefully pluck, assemble, and restructure to create this masterpiece of an album.... A masterpiece for SOTL standards, but also for modern music in general.

5th DWARS Festival for VPRO : Pt. 2

2007-04-17T01:41:00.000-07:00

Sunday afternoon my wife and I headed out to Amsterdam on the train and metro. Near the Hortus botanical gardens we found the Desmet studios and went inside to experience the 5th Dwars festival for the Dutch radio station VPRO. It was a gloriously sunny day outside, not too hot, the perfect weather for being out of doors... People were strewn about on the grassy banks of the canals sunbathing. During the course of the show several jokes were made regarding all of us festival-goers being inside a little black box of a room with such weather outside....

Nalle kicked the show off after an introduction by Berry Kamer. Hanna Tuulikki, Chris Hladowski (also of the One Ensemble), and Aby Vulliamy (also of the One Ensemble) performed semi-improvised free folk tunes with plenty of drone-based melody. I was quite impressed by their lovely combination of traditional folk sounds with the current "free folk" or even "freak folk" trends... Hanna's voice comes off as a combination of Bjork and Joanna Newsom. Chris played bouzouki in the traditional manner as well as bowing it, striking it, and "feedbacking" it, also playing clarinet and singing. Aby added pleasant vocals besides playing the violin.

After a short break James Blackshaw took the stage. He started out slowly, but soon had everyone mesmerized as he drew us in with his beautifully emotional melodies and hypnotic fingerpicking patterns. He played mostly older tunes, but there were also one or two from "O True Believers" (his latest album). He really gets a special sound out of a 12 string guitar, his fingernails and the repetitive pattern give off some great overtones which fill the sonic space up and create a near-mystical atmosphere around his "romantic" melodies. I use the word "romantic" in the classical sense... some of his tunes and chord progressions were rather reminiscent of late 19th century classical music. Of course it was a live solo performance, so all the marvelous percussion and psychedelic and drone additions that you hear on his albums were absent, but it was still excellent to hear just his pure guitar tones. For this performance all the "raga" descriptions were inadequate; he didn't really play an ragas at all. He also announced that he's got a new album coming out May 1st on the Tompkins Square label, and later on this summer his first three albums (now out of print) will be reissued.

After James Blackshaw there was again a short break, and the One Ensemble followed. Chris and Aby from Nalle joined Daniel Padden and Peter Nicholson to make a quartet of bouzouki/clarinet/vocals/electronics, violin/vocals, guitar/lead vocals/kazoo/clarinet, and cello/vocals, respectively. The One Ensemble is a very intense experience with multiple influences.... Berry Kamer said that he counted at least 18 different styles combined in their sound, but I only counted about 8... There was definitely a folk sound (americana, klezmer, balkan, etc...) and a noise and improv sensibility reminiscent of the Constellation records improvisers, yet completely distinct. Daniel Padden's vocals are brash and loud, and his guitar-playing is rather simple, but his melodies are beautiful and cacophonous at once. Something like the Black Ox Orkestar, Barbez, Helena Espvall-Santoleri, and the Danielson Famile all rolled up together... Eastern European melodies, klezmer music, carnival tunes, punk rock energy, and improvisational noise as well as beauty... the One Ensemble made for a fascinating experience.

And during the break after the One Ensemble my wife and I left because we were missing my mother-in-law's birthday party and we'd started to feel a little bad about it.... so we didn't get to see Thee, Stranded Horse. But it was nice to get back out into the great weather, and away from several chain-smokers sitting around us......

5th DWARS Festival for VPRO : James Blackshaw

2007-04-03T03:04:00.000-07:00

5th Dwars Festival for VPRO
April 15th marks the Dwars Festival for national Dutch radio station VPRO. It will be held at the Desmet Studio in Amsterdam, and entry is free... but you have to reserve a spot via email: dwarsfestival at vpro.nl . Starts at 13:30. I've got two spots reserved, my wife is coming with me, so I'll be sure to write a review afterwards. I'm very excited about this one.

The spectacular "contemporary/experimental folk" line-up consists of Thee, Stranded Horse (parisian Yann Tambour-- also in Encre), The One Ensemble (featuring Daniel Padden of Volcano the Bear), Nalle (Scotland-based trio featuring singer Hanna Tuulikki), and James Blackshaw.

Here's the official page:
Dwars Festival (VPRO)

James Blackshaw
James Blackshaw is a UK acoustic guitarist focusing on 12-string, but he plays many other instruments as well. His style is often described as "American primitive guitar" because he has been influenced by the likes of John Fahey and Robbie Basho. His fingerpicking is sublime. He incorporates elements of Indian raga music, improvisation, drone, and psychedelia to create extended pieces of immense depth and pristine melody. He's like a more virtuosic Six Organs of Admittance or a more densely orchestrated Jack Rose.

A note-worthy selection from his not-yet-unmanageable discography (though sadly some of it is out of print):

O True Believers : CD on Important Records

O True Believers : LP on Bo'Weavil Recordings (limited edition)

O True Believers is a melding of Eastern and Western modes and scales, improvisation and written tunes, simplicity and virtuosity, 12 string guitar and tamboura, cymbala, and harmonium...

Sunshrine : CD on Digitalis Industries (limited to 1000, Sold Out)
Two tracks: Sunshrine, a sprawling improvised finger-picked masterpiece (evoking the most golden sunlight ever to pierce the primeval forest's canopy) that begins and ends with shimmering, dancing, tinkling percussion; and Skylark Herald's Dawn, a shorter tune featuring a beautiful and simple melody that will haunt you forever...

Sunshrine / Celeste : LP on Bo'Weavil Recordings (limited to 525, Sold Out)

The LP version features Sunshrine and Skylark Herald's Dawn on one side, and the two-part Celeste on the other.

Review : Rameses III - Honey Rose EP

2007-03-26T02:17:00.000-07:00

Rameses III - Honey Rose EP
Rameses III is a trio from south London. Their latest recording is an EP titled "Honey Rose", released in an edition of 1000 by Important Records. For "Honey Rose" Rameses III have composed six tracks that make up the soundtrack for a film directed by Jon Spira called "Suityman". Stills from this film comprise the album artwork.

Hearing Rameses III's collaboration with The North Sea ("Night of the Ankou") was more than enough to spark my interest in this drone ambient group, and the folky overtones which really made my day are even stronger on "Honey Rose".

"Honey Rose" is a blissed-out, gently twangy country and folk drone affair. Over the six tracks Rameses III move between a pastoral acousitc guitar theme developed and accompanied by various other instruments (flute, slide guitar, organ, banjo...) and more free-form droning based around heavenly glissando guitar. A field recording or two completes the pastoral ambience of this work. The shorter tracks usually carry the theme, and the longer ones are the droning tracks that carry on the tonalities established by the theme. This EP is short and sweet, but at least it lasts nearly 24 minutes...

It's like Sigur Ros without the rock & roll, Polmo Polpo without the techno, a pinch of Black Forest/Black Sea, and the good side of country music all held together by that wonderful glissando drone-- calling to mind sunny afternoons by a brook, meditations under a tree, daydreaming on a green hillside, country-path wanderings beneath a hazy blue sky....

Review: Low - Drums And Guns

2007-03-23T04:27:00.000-07:00

Low - Drums And Guns
Low's latest album (March 20, 2007), the war-themed "Drums And Guns", produced mixed reactions in me. It is appropriately released by Sub Pop instead of Kranky; I think this one fits in less with Low's other Kranky released albums and Kranky releases in general. It's definitely one of those that takes a couple of listens to really grow on you, and I wouldn't say that it's Low's strongest album to date. That said, it is not a bad album and several tracks are really good.

"Drums And Guns" features thirteen tracks, coproduced with Dave Fridmann. The sound immediately struck me as different from what I'm used to hearing from Low. There is something stripped down about the instrumentation, and the vocals are way in the fore-front with an almost startling clarity. The lyrics are mostly great, dealing with different aspects of war and violence, and while there were a couple of weak spots, Low's songwriting skills do shine on this one. There is even a touch of... anger, bitterness maybe? to be heard on a few tracks... I was suprised to find myself reminded of John Frusciante's wavering falsetto at times. At other times the music was making me think Bonnie 'Prince' Billy with Tortoise... There are also some really great atmospheric moments, so subtle and gentle, but they really MAKE the album for me.

Then there is the rhythm section... understated, sparse, and a little experimental, featuring drum machines and hand claps. This helps add to the stripped feeling and lets the vocals shine. An interesting thing to do on an album with "Drums" in the title, but effective. In keeping with the title, the booklet of the digipak features a series of photographs by Jimi Sides of just that: drums and guns. A painting by Bridget Riversmith also appears just inside the cover.

Some tracks that really stand out and are definitely worth hearing: Belarus, Breaker, Dust On the Window, Violent Past. Most of the others, to me at least, just aren't that important. "Drums And Guns" is a different sort of Low album, maybe marking a new direction, or just demonstrating a bit of a desire to experiment... I hope it's the latter, but at least it's interesting no matter what Low does in the future.

Low Point Review #4 : Apalusa - Small Environs

2007-03-20T03:14:00.000-07:00

Sorry it took a bit long to get to this one. This is the last installment in the Low Point reviews series for now... We'll just have to wait till they put out some more excellent releases. There should be a Chris Herbert/Felix split 7" coming up soon, and a Last of the Real Hardmen CD-r. I'm looking forward to them. So, on to the review...

Apalusa - Small Environs (Low Point 009)
Apalusa is Nottingham, UK based Dan Layton (who also plays guitar in Souvaris). His debut as Apalusa, "Small Environs", has been released on Low Point as a 3" CD-r. In keeping with the Low Point aesthetic, this is another beautifully constructed drone ambient piece. "Small Environs" unfolds across three tracks and 20 minutes, molded out of piano, guitar, and gentle noise.

Part 1 eases into a soft, high-pitched ringing with mounting ambient noises and low end murmurs in the background. Soon you feel like you're in a huge, spacious, abandoned factory that is somehow still working... or the engine room of a massive alien starship. Take your pick. But a 2-chord pulse rises out of the gentle din, shedding layers of itself to claim the sonic space. Beautiful aeolian tones establish a lush ambient environment centered around the original pulse; a very lulling, relaxing sound that manages to maintain simplicity despite its lushness.

Then it's gone, and a sound like a distant wind-tunnel carries you into Part 2. A spacious soundscape like a nocturnal windswept desert develops, and for a while subtle tones waver just out of the foreground. This segment is full of true ambient, abstract sounds before a shifting drone with a bit more definition takes shape while a hovering delayed guitar mingles its sounds. The whole CD is an excercise in subtlety, but Part 2 is definitely the crowning point.

Part 3 begins with stronger sounds, building on where Part 2 seamlessly left off. Layers of tones create an intricately complex drone that continues to grow in volume. This drone is at once pleasing and threatening, with the low end shifting between tones magnificently beneath swirls of guitar. The haziness of sound increases pleasantly before it all fades out.

The sound of "Small Environs" could be compared to Tim Hecker, but is less noisy and much more restrained, dealing less with concrete melodies. There are elements of Brian Eno's ambient works, Stars of the Lid, and perhaps even Francisco Lopez's environmental ambience, but Apalusa is definitely forging a sleepy sound of its own with its debut release. I hope to see more.

"Small Environs" comes in a transparent mini-DVD case with wraparound artwork printed on vellum paper. Limited to 50 copies.

Low Point Review #3 : Gareth Hardwick - Aurora

2007-03-14T12:37:00.001-07:00

Gareth Hardwick - Aurora
Gareth Hardwick is a Nottingham, UK based musician who uses electric guitar and effects to create beautiful, lush drone ambient pieces. At times his music can call to mind the atmosphere of Windy & Carl (though more abstract), or a mellower Growing.

On "Aurora" (Low Point 008) he presents 3 tracks that work as separate movements of the whole piece. Part 1 sets the tone and introduces the main chord and pitches to be further explored. It opens with a fluttering, almost shimmering, chord cluster that lasts for about 3 minutes. The sonic textures Gareth evokes from his guitar here are instantly mesmerizing. This chord then fades into Part 2, where one tone takes the forefront, accented by harmonics, and a lovely pulsating drone is established. Soon other timbres are subtly introduced, and a recognizable guitar makes its understated appearance, strumming the drone chord as overtones and undertones fill the sonic space around it. Part 2 fades into Part 3 with the droning tone clusters gaining complexity. New chords are slowly introduced, and Part 3 turns out to have a very nice shoegazy sort feel to its droning ambience; reminiscent of some of Kawabata Makoto's solo electric guitar work... Tones are added to an established guitar drone and Gareth constructs the most nostalgic chords to alternate back and forth as loops and pulses. If the sound weren't so psychedelic and dreamy things would almost feel busy towards the end... But suddenly, rather abruptly, the volume just drops out and it's over, leaving you wishing it could have gone on forever...

This 16+ minute piece is an excellent example of Gareth's talent for creating beautiful guitar drones, and easily stands with works by other drone and ambient artists like Stars of the Lid, Growing, and Chris Herbert. "Aurora" is released by Low Point on a 3" CD-r that comes in a white mini-DVD case, limited to 75 copies. The hazy photo that makes up the wraparound album cover does a good job at evoking the music's aura.

Low Point Review #2 : Chris Herbert - Diluted

2007-03-13T05:03:00.000-07:00

Chris Herbert - Diluted (Low Point 007)
Chris Herbert is a Birmingham, UK based ambient electronic artist who also works with treated guitar, live sound installations, and field recordings. I first heard the music from "Diluted" as a podcast from the Kranky records website, and instantly fell in love. It was my first encounter with Chris Herbert, and sent me out desperately looking for his debut CD, "Mezzotint," which is similar and also quite excellent-- though it's not based around field recordings. This piece was originally broadcast on an episode of the Wire magazine-associated Resonance fm radio station during October of 2006. Now it has been released as "Diluted," a black-on-black CD-r, by Low Point records so you can add it to your physical music collection as well as your mp3 collection! (yay!)

"Diluted" begins its 57 minute exploration with a resonating vibraphone theme that gives way to field-recording ambience. Subtle electronic drones mount amid shifting, irrecognizably manipulated sounds, and then the recordings of water begin to make their appearance. Beautiful ambient drone segments unfold exposing different melodies and themes, while field recordings involving water are interspersed throughout.

The field recordings and found sounds (recorded around the canals of Birmingham) seem to serve as transitions between musical passages, as well as forming a part of the music itself-- which makes for a very dynamic ambient work. There are moments where the listener is completely engulfed by ambient noises and the sonic space is saturated, and then others when things are very quiet and the sound is very up-front and immediate (rare for an ambient piece, I think). The piece gets better and better as it develops and draws you in, but around the middle there is a really brilliant moment that stands out to me, involving a droning guitar theme around minute 34. The interplay between the sounds of water and the music make for a very enjoyable and rewarding listen.

Though the idea may carry "new-age music" connotations, perhaps calling to mind records with titles like "The Magic of Spring Rain" or "Sounds of the Rainforest Waterfall", Chris Herbert's recordings are more in the vein of Tim Hecker and Stars of the Lid... abstract ambient electronica and experimental drone ambient music. It's no surprise that his debut, "Mezzotint", was released by Kranky records (also home to the latest Tim Hecker and Stars of the Lid albums).

The profits from purchases of the CD are donated to the Moseley Road pool restoration fund. The Moseley Road swimmingpool is a grade II Edwardian building in Birmingham, so get one while you can at Low Point.... Limited to 110 copies, comes in a clear half-size DVD case with nice wraparound artwork. You owe it to yourself to at least check out his podcast from Kranky!!

Low Point Review #1: Stuckometer - Beta Carotene

2007-03-11T13:33:00.000-07:00

The next four posts will be reviews of the most recent releases on UK label Low Point. Low Point focuses mostly on drone and ambient music, with some noise rock thrown in for good measure. Their very aesthetically pleasing limited-run releases so far have been on the CD-r, 3" CD-r, 8" lathe-cut vinyl, and 7" vinyl format. CD-r releases come in appropriately small-sized DVD cases with very nice wraparound artwork.

Stuckometer - Beta Carotene
The first review is for the Manchester-based Stuckometer's 3" CD-r, titled "Beta Carotene" (Low Point 006). "Beta Carotene" is a live recording from 2006, and can pretty much be summed up as a noise-rock freak-out... and yet it's more than just that. Its intense 22 minutes start off with some guitar strangling, and then the spidery drums (reminiscent of Hella's Zach Hill, albeit less virtuosic) kick in, alternating between free-form splatter and discernable rhythms. From the very beginning Stuckometer never stand still, even throughout the more respiteful moments of the album.

About 4 minutes in, things suddenly quiet down and a tin whistle (of all things) can be heard above subdued guitar warbles and drum pitter-pats. It fades out and you can make out an actual chord or two before the guitar noise resumes. Around the 6 minute mark some reed instrument begins squeaking and squawking, adding to the general mayhem... Things build up to a dense wall of dissonance at minute 8 and the drums drop to the background. Then a new theme is pursued starting off with splintery guitar stabs, but quickly devolves beyond recognition and fades into feedback drones and drum pummelling... A voice rises above the din, wailing caterwauls that are soon drowned out by more free-form guitar fuzz and skronk. A minute or so later that tin whistle is back somewhere in there as the feedback momentarily chills things out. All of a sudden after minute 13 -- BOOM -- they start up again with a total noise freak-out, drums grooving away beneath it all. Around minute 16 a jam develops, but within 2 minutes the vocals and tin whistle are back and the guitars are reduced to unsettled muttering and droning feedback. A percussion jam ensues with all sorts of clattery things being shaken and beaten, the ethnic wind instruments break into song again, and things wind down to an uneasy finish.

Stuckometer are definitely one of the more interesting noise-rock bands, very listenable, with great band dynamics evidenced by the "togetherness" of "Beta Carotene," which is after all a live recording. This 3" CD-r comes in a mini-DVD case with very colorful artwork involving skulls, rainbows, a flock of some sort of bird, and what I suppose can only be beta carotene??? Limited to 50 copies, grab one at www.low-point.com. Recommended for fans of Wolf Eyes, Hella, Lightning Bolt, Aufgehoben, and free-form improv bands on the noisy side of things.

Two Related Reviews - Helena Espvall & Anahita

2007-03-08T02:36:00.000-08:00

This post will cover Helena Espvall's "nimis & arx" and Anahita's "Arcana en Cantos", two related releases because they both feature Helena Espvall-Santoleri. Musically they don't have too much in common, but they both hover in free-improv territory and of course the realm of free-folk... And! they both feature excellent cover art by Helena's husband-- artist Paul Santoleri (www.paulsantoleri.com). If you are interested in ordering either or both of these releases from me get in touch.

Helena Espvall - Nimis & Arx
Helena Espvall is the cellist for psych-folk band Espers. But you wouldn't really know it from this, her solo outing split release by Pax Recordings and Fire Museum Records of San Francisco. Nimis & Arx, released in 2006, has little in the way of melody... it is an avant-garde, free-improv, minimalist, noise-folk work of art.

Helena uses the entire cello range, layering sounds, incorporating eerie drones and noise electronics. She makes use of guitar, recorder, voice, harp, and electronics as well as her cello, and is accompanied and complimented by George Korein with electronics and manipulations. If I had to compare this album to other existing sounds I would say it is like a marriage of Colleen and Skullflower, or Aufgehoben jamming with Esmerine...

The album opens with Idioblast-- a grinding cello noise drone workout that sets the tone. The electronic manipulations really add terrible power to this all-too-short track. The second track is more meditative: drones, and an eerie avant-garde classical feel. Then the third and title track opens up with fluttering recorders over plucked harp, definitely wierd free-folk that gets looser and more improvisational as it goes, joined by reverbed bass blasts from the cello. The next few tracks are interesting improvisations mangled by effects or accompanied by subtle noise electronics... She'll lay down some harmonic skree and lumbering bass sawing and then stand back to observe what she's done from a distance, after which she and George will take it apart with electronic manipulations. The eighth track, Mar Amarga (bitter sea), really stands out with its ambient vocalisations and beautiful sparse harp accompaniment-- like a ghostly mist rolling in from the sea... The album continues beautifully with more feverish dissonant cello skronk and eerie harping, and then closes out with Vortex-- noisy cello loops, manipulation, and whining improvised drones that build up to the most sonically dense moment of the album.

Nimis & Arx was a surprise for me, as I was only familiar with Helena in her Espers context, but it turned out to be a pleasant surprise... I'm also a fan of beatifully structured cacophony, you see. And you should REALLY check out the original Paul Santoleri drawing for the cover on his website. It's in the "b/w drawings" section and it's called "Harbinger." Nimis & Arx is limited to 500 copies.

Anahita - Arcana En Cantos
Helena Espvall-Santoleri has worked with many artists, including Pauline Oliveros, and for this release she teams up with Tara Burke (who is Fursaxa). Together they form Anahita. Arcana En Cantos is an official CD-r released by the Irish label Deserted Village.

While Anahita does sound a lot like Fursaxa, Helena really manages to add something different... Instrumentation is what you'd imagine: vocals, cello, guitar, accordion, and Casio. The cello and additional vocals by Helena take the Fursaxa sound even further out into the floating forests of the ends of the galaxy...

The three tracks-- Maidens of Saxony, Koldovstvo, and Annapurna, I-- are droning semi-improvised psychedelic free folk expeditions and they clock in at over 50 minutes, so it's worth your money. Folk themes emerge on the accordion, washed in wavering cello and bathed in breathy vocals, till they give way to melodic droning... Vocal loops and backwards guitar tinkle along in the more free-form segments, but in the end it's all tied down by the Casio and grounded by Helena's sublime cello. Again, amazing cover art by Paul Santoleri-- this one is titled "Search."

Jessica Bailiff on VPRO radio

2007-03-01T14:17:00.000-08:00

I'm listening to VPRO radio's DWARS concert program as i write... pretty amazing to hear Jessica Bailiff describing a similar musical path to mine (as appears in my previous entry). Similar process, as well as just similarities in the way she tells it...

Her live stuff (from November 2002, but just now being broadcast) sounds really nice too. (I'm thinking about posting a review of her latest album on Kranky records sometime soon.) She just mentioned Sonic Youth as one of those major turning points in her listening habits and musical taste. I guess that was probably true for a lot of people, but for me Sonic Youth came quite a bit late and therefore hasn't had much of an influence on me.

Anyway, I'm listening to her play "Fly High" (by Bridget St. John) now... she's got a very nice ambient-noise soundscape fluttering behind her finger-picked acoustic guitar. Now there are some faint backing vocals and the noise is varying and delaying... Her vocals are a really nice blend of poignant and hushed/mellow. When describing her song-crafting methods she says she constructs them as a whole, equal importance on music and lyrics. (I think that's sometimes hard for me. Lyrics aren't exactly my forte, even though i like to write... The difference between poetry and lyrics is something i struggle with, even if they should technically overlap.)

Now she's talking about how she used to rely more on effects to cover up... but now she's "not aiming for perfection anymore" and playing more acoustic as a result of getting into psychedelic folk of the 60's & 70's... (she also mentioned the song "Walk Away Renee" from the Left Banke LP -which i happen to have- as an example of music that isn't "covered up" because it has a really off backing vocal, which i never noticed but will now be on the lookout for!) I think this is a concept i really want to incorporate into my asthetic as well.... not using effects to sort of hide behind. Psychedelic Folk is "honest" music that uses effects for a certain sound. I'd like to move towards that point, as i love psychedelic effects and the atmosphere they create, but in my music up till now i have sometimes used effects to cover up mistakes or sort of obscure the immediacy of, for example, my vocals... I'd like to move a bit away from that i think, at least for now. We'll see what happens.

At any rate, I think there's a 7" out now with Jessica Bailiff's live sessions for VPRO that just ended... I'm definitely interested in getting it after hearing what i've just heard. I really heard that more "folksy" direction she's taking. So, I'll look into that 7" and let you know. Goodnight.

----p.s. just looked up that 7" and found out where i'd seen it. it was released by Brainwashed in 2005 and is distributed by Important Records (link to the right) but i don't know if they still have any. Nathan Admunson (from Rivulets) and Michael Anderson (Drekka) add bass, vocals, textures, melodica, and treated guitar. the 7" features 4 of the songs she performed, not including "Fly High" (which i guess is a little disappointing). you can check out MP3s here: http://www.brainwashed.com/common/htdocs/discog/brain006.html

In the Beginning.....

2007-02-27T07:45:00.000-08:00

Welcome to my new blog experiment. this is where i'll be posting all about music that has been catching my ear lately: labels, bands, albums, genres, instruments, scenes, concerts, as well as my own projects. i hope some day to run my own label, so my journey towards that goal will probably be documented here as well. i also am in need of musical partners for some of my projects. i've got some demo cds of basic ideas and sounds, but i need some better equipment first of all, and second some external input... ie. other participants or band members.

perhaps i should list the sort of music i am interested in and will be writing about here. this is basically where i am today: psychedelic, drone, ambient, doom, folk, progressive, improv, and combinations of all of these without limitation... i have arrived here through a long process that has had many unexpected connections, covered several geographic locations, a job or two, involvment in a few bands and one live collaboration, the internet, a few influential friends, a minor in music performance, a crappy laptop, a crappy digital camcorder, and a lifelong passion that has evolved over the years into an obsession which i try to keep in check.

i was raised on classical music. my parents didn't listen to the radio much, and the only rock i ever knew when i was a kid was my dad's elton john, chicago, and crosby stills & nash piano sheet music. in junior high some friends and i discovered ska, and it was finally cool that i played saxophone (though i first took it up because i liked jazz), and from there we went on to punk. i'd been taking piano for years, and when i discovered Claude Debussy my world changed. in 11th grade i heard the braveheart soundtrack and a life-long obsession with bagpipes began. this later led to my exploration of folk music and also fit nicely with my much later fascination with drones of all sorts. at the end of highschool i was in an Asturian bagpipe and drum band and i dabbled with tin whistle and mandolin. i picked up the guitar (acoustic-- to this day i still have never had an electric guitar) but never got really prolific. my friends and i liked simon & garfunkel, weezer, the cranberries, and somebody introduced me to radiohead. wow. i still really like radiohead. then some friends got obsessed with heavy metal, and so did i for a spell. that and my punk/hardcore phase got me ready for the likes of EARTH, Sunn O))), Boris, Circle, Skullflower, etc... but of course it's all much more complicated than that. metal, progressive metal, led to progressive rock, some of which has been good to get over, but then there's Yes, which i still mostly love, and more importantly it led to the likes of Soft Machine, Can, Amon Duul II, Caravan, Gryphon, Gong, and psychedelia before i knew what it was....
about this time everything began colliding while i worked at a big music store in North Carolina during college. i learned about record labels, got free promos, and had access to nearly EVERY cd i could dream of, including underground and obscure stuff... i started my vinyl collection there too. i played bagpipe, mandolin, tin whistle, accordion, and sang in an irish folk band. the whole freak-folk and psych folk stuff was getting big, and i also started collecting Constellation records and Alien 8 releases. then one day i got a Boris promo, and i was hooked. that led to Earth and Sunn O))), Alien 8 distro led to Skullflower and Circle, Godspeed You! Black Emperor led to Kranky records which led back to Tim Hecker and drone ambience.... psych folk led back to drones and traditional folk, happenstance led to Comets On Fire, which led to Ben Chasny and Six Organs of Admittance. Happenstance also led to the old Satwa LP which led to Time-lag records and Fursaxa, which then connected back up with Acid Mothers Temple who are pretty much connected to everything..... and everything swirls around now as my influences collide and i work on putting together my ideas for a label and a band...

So, that's a little bit of my musical background for you. I think we're done with the introductory post. On to the meat and potatoes. Yummy.