Cyclic Defrost Magazine |  |
- Library Tapes - Sketches (Home Normal) / Celer - Engaged Touches (Home Normal)
- Higamos Hogamos - Higamos Hogamos (DC Recordings)
- Doom - Born Like This (Lex/Inertia)
- Speech Debelle - Speech Therapy (Big Dada/Inertia)
- Nicola Ratti - Ode (Preservation)
- Various Artists - Nagore Sessions (Earth Sync/ Planet Company)
- Kid606 – Shout At The Doner (Tigerbeat6/Valve)
- “Pro-Antipodean Concepts - with special guest Roger Mills” - Extended Playlist 080609 - www.2ser.com 107.3FM
| Library Tapes - Sketches (Home Normal) / Celer - Engaged Touches (Home Normal) Posted: 10 Jun 2009 04:57 PM PDT
This label evokes the consistency brought on by a sense of home through the contradictions that accumulate in the hearth of its first two full-lengths. Sketches conveys intimacy on account of its being cold to the touch, on account of the fact that, although it is besieged by a cool atmosphere, the subdued piano passages of David Wenngren’s keep vigil over the outside. The album is thus well-rooted, a space for integration and contemplation. Most pieces display a meditative engagement with sound, where they know a certain security, but where they also seem ahead of themselves, which both adds to their sense of nostalgia but also renders them vulnerable and unstable. It’s here that they’re also sensitive to the brush of the wind, be it in the form of Danny Norbury’s cello caress or faceless sonic touches (static, distant groaning of machinery, etc), both of which, however paradoxically, lend a russet warmth to Wenngren’s cold piano vignettes, like a wind through hollow hills. The album lasts only some twenty-odd minutes, but it is a fine foray into temporal dissolution. So too is Engaged Touches, though in a vastly different way. Where Sketches was settled and somewhat sedate, finding enjoyment in a certain isolation, Engaged Touches is tentative and exploratory, secure and adventurous, and lives through its combinations of memory and imagination. Danielle’s field recordings of places far and away crop up intermittingly and seem the core of the work. The atmosphere that seems to charge them positively comes from an array of instruments that are meticulously treated. Although a common path for the group, it leads somewhere a little different on this occasion, as the duo manage a pleasurable tension that arises from an elasticity between the ancient and modern. The rich, swelling strings have a tincture of classic ambient about them, which often disappears into a sonorous burr or rippling, droning undercurrents. With the second section, this order gets reversed, the volume giving way to a restraint of amplification, to a slow seep of dark that grows lighter as the disc comes to a close. Together these sections form two bodies that shelter and exchange intimacies through separation and create through recollection. Max Schaefer |
| Higamos Hogamos - Higamos Hogamos (DC Recordings) Posted: 10 Jun 2009 05:01 AM PDT
Steve Webster and Toby Jenkins have already bought us Black Neon, Squire Of Somerton and Fort Lauderdale, now bringing us their new project of krautrock and post-punk enfused Higamos Hogamos. Theres so many reference points here, vocal from Bolan, The Jesus & Mary Chain, or even the fragile pop vocals of The Church, and musically from Can, Harmonia and Neu! Its such a diverse album, managing to place itself ‘between’ genres, with its influences laid bare, unashamedly traversing psychedelic sounds, garage and glam rock, with motorik krautrock grooves, retaining a futuristic sound squarely aimed at the more eclectic dancefloors. Standouts for me are Major Blitzkrieg, also released as a single with some very tastey remixes, as well as The Illuminoids, showcasing their obvious love for a tripped out motorik kraut sound. Wayne Stronell |
| Doom - Born Like This (Lex/Inertia) Posted: 10 Jun 2009 04:50 AM PDT
So its no longer MF Doom, reamerging after four years without a solo album as Doom, this time on Lex, and you know the maverick of hip hop will return with a boundary pushing album, both in production and lyrically. Known and respected for his often diabolical and off the wall lyrics, he does not dissappoint here, plying us with his flow of conciousness and the absurdity that make his poetry so infectious. He has handled most of the production on the album this time around, only leaving room for Jake One and J Dilla to produce a track each. None of the press I have read on the album mention the co-production on a handful of tracks by Mr Chop, UK psych beatsmith, who obviously has come to some peoples attention (finally) after releasing an EP recently on Stones Throw/Now Again in the US. Anyone familiar with Mr Chop would know his recent work, or his material from a decade ago, will add another cosmic level to Doom’s eclectic sampleadelia. Mr Chop also features on a few of the tracks he has co-produced, a stroke of genius to get these two in the same room. Doom has returned, and its hit the mark once again, with exquisite artwork too, but I’d expect nothing less from Lex Records. Wayne Stronell |
| Speech Debelle - Speech Therapy (Big Dada/Inertia) Posted: 10 Jun 2009 04:36 AM PDT
A new signing for legendary UK hip hop label Big Dada, Speech Debelle has delivered her debut album in fine style. Travelling to Melbourne to work with Wayne Lotek of Lotek Hi-Fi, who has relocated there, and Plutonic Lab of Muph & Plutonic fame, on the production duties. Seeming to be an Australian affair, but retaining that UK edge arising from Britains post-grime era. Wayne Lotek completed most of the production, enlisting local musicians he’s met along the way, while Plutonic Lab produced The Key and Better Days, Lotek working on the editing and mixing while Speech returned to the UK. Upon her return she approached fellow vocalists and musicians to contribute to the album. Roots Manuva wrote and sung a chorus for Wheels In Motion, giving a melancholy edge, Micachu was guest on Better Days. Mike Lindsay from future folkists Tunng heard the demo’s, becoming heavily involved with the tracks Spinnin and Love & Learn. Sometime collaborator Dread Keys created an acoustic slow burner that became Go, Then, Bye. Speech has added her very personal style to her lyrics, taking personal events, stories, heart breaks, humour and soul searching to create a rich lyrical content, she is wearing her heart on her sleeve. Speech Debelle has alot to say, and its worth listening because of the honesty and sincereity you can hear in her voice. One of the most interesting releases on Big Dada for some time. Wayne Stronell |
| Nicola Ratti - Ode (Preservation) Posted: 10 Jun 2009 04:05 AM PDT Italian Nicola Ratti’s music on Ode is subtle, with only vague structural outlines, a push in a certain direction and its up to the listener to join the rest of the dots. On the opening piece White Morning, the double bass just appears periodically unannounced for a few note run, like it’s making an important statement and then disappears again, meanwhile the guitar strums gently along to its own meandering rhythm and everything feels comfortably out of place, meaningfully meaningless or perhaps more to the point meaninglessly meaningful. His music feels loose, some sort of abstract refinement of electroacoustic music, semi improvised, the piano, guitar, double bass and sparse percussion, trading on their jazz ancestry, yet played like half the ensemble didn’t show up, with a rare kind of space that forms new melodies, new structures, new textures. The music possesses a stillness and grace despite some occasional electronics and experimental techniques. The final piece Tropical Malady seems to use looped environmental field recordings, drones and experimental guitar to weave together this highly textural electronic piece that feels earthy, somehow organic. It’s the loose fragility of the music that affords Ratti the ability to imbue these new forms with an incredible amount of emotion, with much of Ode resonating with a slight yet tender melancholy. Ode provides an insight into film music could be if it wasn’t so caught up with itself, not only is it rare, dignified, and new, in just a few seconds with minimal means he conveys much more complex emotional information than most composer could hope to touch upon in a lifetime. Bob Baker Fish |
| Various Artists - Nagore Sessions (Earth Sync/ Planet Company) Posted: 10 Jun 2009 04:03 AM PDT There’s an underlying feel of exploitation, of cultural colonialism when western artists utilise traditional, often religious chants , blending music that has been handed down for centuries with a few oscillations from their mini moog, or cool breakbeats crafted in Ableton. The problem is often this kind of cultural cherry-picking can produce some really compelling results, being musically adventurous, and creating this netherworld fusion between the two cultures - and it’s difficult to know where to sit with it. Nagore Sessions is a unique collaboration by three south Indian daragh devotional sufi singers who sing in the local Tamil language, alongside Middle Eastern percussion, electronics, and contemporary Western and Indian instrumentation. The way it overcomes the aforementioned problem is by listing itself as various artists and you have to dig into the fine print of the liner notes to discover that it was all arranged by Israeli producer Patrick Sebag who also contributed programming, keys and Rhodes to the project. Also buried in the mix is India based Earth sync founder Yotam Agam who mixed and mastered the project. This release comes on the heels of Laya Project where they travelled through 6 countries affected by the 2004 tsunami recording unknown artists so there’s already a certain amount of goodwill present. The results are compelling to say the least, the production is lush and the percussion and the evocative chants fit together like they have existed that way for centuries. What’s perhaps more interesting is how the use of strings manages to work to create this propulsive forward momentum, melodies of flute exist and disappear, and the keys create these ethereal drones. It coalesces to create this new tradition, new devotional music, suggesting that it’s easy to get caught up in our little divides, yet when you decide to take away all the arbitrary rules, we’re left with one world and one music. Do I sound convinced? I want to be, this music is incredible, Bob Baker Fish |
| Kid606 – Shout At The Doner (Tigerbeat6/Valve) Posted: 10 Jun 2009 02:37 AM PDT
Californian producer Miguel Depedro’s more recent albums as Kid606 have seen him increasingly moving away from breakcore / hardcore in favour of a more accessible approach that reeks of nostalgia for classic house and rave, and this latest album ‘Shout At The Doner’, his first since 2006’s ‘Pretty Girls Make Raves’ sees him determinedly continuing that stylistic trajectory. As the both the addition of the umlauts and cover art reminiscent of Radiohead’s ‘terror bear’ suggest however, this is a considerably heavier and more freaked out collection than its predecessor, and where ‘Pretty Girls…’ took its cue from Chicago house and punk-funk, ‘Shout…’ reaches far more towards the bass-hoovering, distorted likes of LFO, Joey Beltram and Two Bad Mice. Indeed, ‘Mr. Wobble’s Nightmare’, a tongue in cheek homage to 4Hero’s parent-scaring rave classic ‘Mr. Kirk’s Nightmare’ gives a good indication as to the sort of chaotic mood here as floor-rattling bass drops roll beneath the spoken voiceover ("it seems the other partygoers ran out of food and drinks and, er…ate your son, sir"). Elsewhere, ‘Samhain, California’ drags things out into dark mutant electro that’s strangely reminiscent of a more narcotised Chemical Brothers, while ‘Hello Serotonin, My Old Friend’ sounds like the sort of furious plastic handbag rave AFX would probably unleash if he programmed a room at something like Q-Dance. ‘Dancehall Of The Dead’ meanwhile offers up what’s easily one of the biggest highlights here, tossing the old "hands up who wants to die" sample over a wobbling backdrop of bleeping off-centre house that manages to pack in a sampled chunk of The Breeders’ ‘Cannonball’ in there before flaming out, before ‘You All Break My Heart’ goes off on a diva-house tangent complete with Chaka Khan-style rnb screams, the original sampled vocal being cut-up into some hilariously nonsensical phrases. While for the most part things stay in uptempo dancefloor territory for the majority of this album, the last quarter sees the pace dropping for an ‘outro’ suite of sorts, ‘Great Lakes’ gliding fusion of glistening IDM synths and motorik drum machines offering a suitably calming counterpoint to the preceding madness. An excellent album from Kid606 that manages to edge out its predecessor – at 79 minutes and 17 tracks though, there’s the occasional sense that he could have perhaps trimmed things down a bit here and there. |
| Posted: 10 Jun 2009 01:15 AM PDT Idea of South is a unique radiophonic composition by Roger Mills, comprising three simultaneous broadcasts performed live over two radio stations and the Internet on Sunday 14 June - 22.30-23.00pm Sydney time - www.eartrumpet.org/ios. ————————- Raven - Amphorae Papiro - Leaving The Building Jon Hopkins - Vessel Inch-Time - Snow Jewel Andrew Pekler - Dust Enforcer Lonely China Day - Thou Heiner Goebbels/Alfred 23 Harth - Berlin, Q-Damm 12.4.81 David Toop & Jon Hassell with Spirit World - Wing Beats Barbara Morgenstern - Camouflage (featuring Robert Wyatt) Roger Mills - Idea Of South (Edit 1) Adam Trainer - South China Sea II Strategy - Sines Of Life Do you like our playlists? |
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