TOKEDASHITA GARASU BAKO

2:15 AM / Posted by strgzr / comments (6)


















''A really great example of original creative songwriting and music on the interesting, early URC label, that was launched after a first folk boom influence from America, this meant the exploration of an original new japanese identity and sound. Tokedashita Garasu Baku was a super group that featured many members that came from early psych bands. It was led by Takashi Nishioka (vocals,guitar,percussion, words and music), a singer who was part of the early acid/psychfolk band Itsutsu no Akai Fusen in the 60s. After this he would become an important singer-songwriter with a solo career. The band also featured members from Happy End/Apryl Fool/ Yellow Magic Orchestra (the bass player), Jacks (the drummer, flutist, arranger), Blues Creation (the guitarist,the bassist and the keyboard player), Folk Crusaders (guitarist ; -he later will be part of the Sadistic Mika Band-), all early psych bands, besides folk singer Saito Tetsuo. Like in Itsutsu no Akai Fusen and Folk Crusaders there has been some interesting subtle fusing experiments between Japanese folk and psych music, like on the opener or on the fifth track, or some garage pop psych influence like with Jacks, like on the third track. Mostly we hear sad ballads in a specific song style with effects of droning organ, stoned acoustic guitars and subtle stoned overdubs on voice (on the fourth track), fuzz guitars, attractive rhythms and a few subtle folky arrangements, and improvised flute, and here and there a weird electronic keyboard effect. The fourth track has some violin orchestration, especially the last song is fully orchestrated besides simple acoustic guitar. The album has a really attractive sound and shows really subtle the early avant garde experiments of mixing variouis influences together even when the pop ballads still lead the music.''

TOKEDASHITA GARASU BAKO(MELTING GLASS BOX)

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THE DANFORTHS

2:11 AM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)















''The Chris Danforths are not only a three-way high five between 3
incredible musicians, but also an ethereal holy trinity that is
the one real Chris Danforth. Pluralizing his full name and using
it as the nom de plume for his projects eludes to the kind of
musical Schizophrenia that Chris suffers from. His head is filled
with so many sounds, structures and ideas that He is forced to
allow each voice to have its turn at the helm.

In his work, he (the real Chris Danforth) and they (the Chris
Danforths) come to a complete balance between their / his
academic, DIY, and rock 'n roll backgrounds. Recorded between
technically advanced studios and his bedroom with multiple pieces
woven together from 3 piece band tracks and personal sound
constructs to multiple instrument orchestrations featuring members
of his extended Minneapolis family.

"Look out for the Wolves" is the second full length and just like
his first record "Outside Outerspace", he once again twists genres
and moves along with a wide musical vocabulary dancing from hook
to drone and back again. Somewhere between OMD and Faust, this
record finds him honing his perfectly amalgamated quirk-pop to a
more mature place. Combining found sounds, field recordings, synth
and guitar-led songs, he crafts a kind of "lo-fi psych-pop; an
orchestral, angular epic like some long-lost Elephant 6 track
calling in from the twilight zone." Ink 19

His background in experimental music and perfomance yanks any sort
of standard pop-rock record structure out of its element but still
alows him room for straight up undeniable "hits". Old Scottish
electronics are used well beyond their years and pushed past their
potential, forced to do his bidding. Look out for the Wolves has,
singable melodies, a sense of humor, and the eeriness of playing
along with an old-time recording of his grandmother singing a
lullaby. Dying gear, forgotten sounds, found recordings of family
and friends all re-contextualized into one whole. He has a
singular vision, channeled through many internal personalities. He
is the real Chris Danforth. All of them.''

LOOK OUT FOR THE WOLVES

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JOKE LANZ/MICHAEL BARTHEL/RAIONBASHI

1:16 AM / Posted by strgzr / comments (1)

















''7 minutes long sensitive psycho-accoustic edit composition with Joke Lanz (shouts), Michael Barthel (accoustics, tri.angle, mix) and Raionbashi (gröhlstab, masse). Recorded 2006.''

7

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PAAL NILSSEN-LOVE/MATS GUSTAFSSON

1:11 AM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)


















''If the duo is the most conversational form of jazz, the script for I Love It When You Snore could have been written by Samuel Beckett. Paal Nilssen-Love and especially Mats Gustafsson are a couple of the best known players to emerge out of the '90s Scandinavian free/avant jazz scene, having recorded plenty with the likes of Ken Vandermark and Peter Brötzmann. This brief thirty-two minute duo recording is more unusual than most of the other of the already exceptional recordings either has been involved with. Gustafsson really brings it on with his unique vocabulary of abstract, pops, clicks, squeaks, screams, and howls.''

I LOVE IT WHEN YOU SNORE

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CHAS SMITH

1:47 PM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)




















International Record Review
"Musical experiences utterly out of the ordinary. . . Smith's articulately structured music captivates from the start."

New Times (Los Angeles)
"Chas Smith, musician, composer, engineer, metal craftsman and inventor is a classic American original."

NIKKO WOLVERINE

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THE NETHER DAWN

1:43 PM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)

















"Filthy, ragged, drone-damage from Antony Milton, the mastermind behind the insanely credible Pseudoarcana label, and recently crowned third member of Black Boned Angel. Crackle and smoldering fuzz turn over and over on itself at ever more terrifying pace until everything within its gravitational grasp begins to smell of burning plastic. Frightening, shamanic, and dare-I-suggest BLUESY (think Fushitsusha not Gary Moore!) yet set within a down-on-the-farm, Antipodean, post-Xpressway context. The future of drone. The future of rock. The future of goddamn everything!"

O U T E R D A R K

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DAVID EYGES TRIO

2:37 AM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)

















''Eyges has made his mark by concentrating on a heavily R&B-laced approach, assembling tunes with a heavy backbeat and infectious vamps that make use of the cello's flexible timbre, making use of both bass and viola ranges. Though he has a strong arco approach, Eyges has historically tended to focus on pizzicato playing, laying down earthy basslines as well as attacking with a guitar-like facility''

CROSSROADS

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ANTHONY BRAXTON AND ANDREW CYRILLE

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''Even before he started wearing baggy corduroys, sensible shoes, and sweaters with elbow patches, Anthony Braxton's image was one of the enigmatic intellectual. You had to expect his playing to be more geometric than gutbucket. In a meeting at Wesleyan University (where Braxton is on the faculty), however, he and Andrew Cyrille make music that turns that image on its ear. Perhaps the responsibility is Cyrille's, the most instinctively musical of the "New Thing" drummers, whose playing in any setting is subtle, orchestral, swinging and energetic. But if the question becomes who is really playing in who's yard, whether Braxton is moving a little closer to the mainstream, or whether Cyrille is flexing his avant garde muscles, over the course disc 100 the revealed answer is that they meet somewhere in the middle''

DUO PALINDROME VOL. 1

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ANAT-BEN DAVID

6:24 AM / Posted by strgzr / comments (2)


















''...one momemt she's crooning like a gently demented Nico about buying a double bed in Ikea
a Bacharach-ian number accesorised with synthetic snuffling snares,the next moment space and silence are tested by a barrage of aggressive hi-NRG drums and lunatic scaling vocals...''

VIRTUAL LEISURE

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ZOAT AON

1:26 PM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)

















Zoat-Aon is dark ambient project from Finnish label Aural Hypnox.One and only member is Jaakko Vanhala, who is ably assisted by several guests, providing singing bowls, piano and human skull drums(!). By using conventional instruments, various sound generating devices, vocals and other carefully chosen sonic objects Zoät Aon manages to create an unique, dynamic and truly enigmatic, expansive atmosphere that continuously spirals further towards the unknown areas of consciousness.

STAR AUTOPSY

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RAPOON/CENSUS OF HALLUCINATIONS

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''...Robin Storey was a founding member of Zoviet France (1980-1992), and since 1992 has been recording under the Rapoon moniker. Census of Hallucinations, are the space-psych-progressive song maestros headed up by Tim Jones & Terri~B of Stone Premonitions. The music on Industrial Exchange will be more of a surprise for Census of Hallucinations than Rapoon fans. Robin took existing Census of Hallucinations songs and did his sonic manipulations on them to create a very nice set of ambient/sound-art/experimental excursions.''

INDUSTRIAL EXCHANGE

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JUN TOGAWA

1:17 PM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)


















''..As a 20th-anniversary release, this collection of covers makes a great deal of sense. Ranging from lounge jazz to ominous experimentalism, 20th hits on quite a variety in between, and demonstrates Togawa's unique take on things. ''

20TH

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BAXTER DURY

1:14 PM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)


















''...An enchanting folky psych-pop debut from the son of the late, great Ian Dury. Baxter only performed once live before deciding to embark on a recording career, and that occasion was his father's funeral. This is a remarkably realized debut that sounds like early 70s acoustic stuff that would fit somewhere between Syd Barrett and early T. Rex. Fans of Mercury Rev and Flaming Lips will not be disappointed.''

Len Parrot's Memorial Lift

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PROZAK FOR LOVERS

1:05 PM / Posted by strgzr / comments (1)


















''....it's a great album, the tongue-in-cheek and knowing wink overshadowed by the fact that the originals are pretty much respected, and added to as the style is altered and stripped down to melody and lyrics.
That's kinda what everyone else has said about the album, but it's worth mentioning that French bossa act Nouvelle Vague - who are doing great business in a simliar vein - have basically, ahem, 'borrowed' the Prozak idea, several years on. They even do the same tunes as this CD and Prozak II (Love Will Tear Us Apart, Heart of Glass) in not dissimilar style. Not too sure how they've got away with it! About time the Prozak crew got some recognition for their efforts (and I'm sure some advert syndication cash from some forward-thinking ad people?!?!)''

PROZAK FOR LOVERS

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THIGHPAULSANDRA

1:03 PM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)


















''‘Rape Scene’ is the third studio album from THIGHPAULSANDRA and follows on from the hugely successful ‘I Thighpaulsandra’ and ‘Double Vulgar’ albums that were released on Coil’s own legendary Eskaton label. Both albums that literally go way beyond genre categorization.Thighpaulsandra is also a full-time member of both Coil and Spiritualized and also is one-half of the Queen Elizabeth project with Julian Cope as well as being a former member of Cope’s group. ‘Rape Scene’ also features Spiritualized bassist Martin Schellard and Rocketgoldstar’s Siôn Orgon. ‘Rape Scene’ features three lengthy, intriguing, pieces of around fifteen minutes. ‘Joyful Misuse Of The Gomco Clamp’, ‘The Busy Jew’ and ‘His Lavish Showroom’.

"This is difficult music, as Laurie Anderson would say. The 3 Long songs contained here within combine electronics with some of the thought processes of Krautrock/Psychedilic rock, soaring to new dimensions. Thishpaulsandra has also played with Julian Cope with wonderful consequences, Spiritulized, and is now also a member of one of my favorite bands, Coil. Ya gotta love the cover – 3 styles of sit-down toilets in a stark room. This album seems more serious, determined and darker. Minor keys constantly shift and evolve into new sounds. Although these songs are long, you never feel as if you are in the same song as they move all over the place. There is a little singing by TPS, but less than his other albums. Very strong tunes with confidence. This album crosses so many genres everyone will find something they like, be intrigued by what they don't understand, and be amazed with Thighpaulsandra's talent. "(Don Poe)

RAPE SCENE

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RATTO LEHTISALO

12:53 PM / Posted by strgzr / comments (1)

















''...It reminds us a bit of some modern Czech folk stuff, actually, a la Vladimir Vaclavek (as if that's any help to you!). Guitars and harmonica and drums and whistling and whispering and even a typewriter are worked into these songs' arrangements, and there's at least one track that's got that trademark Circle sorta groove, with Neu!-ish rhythms and krautrocky synth. Yeah, it's weird, almost in a "why are they doing this?" sorta way, but a lot of it is also quite beautiful. (Aquarius Records)''
PARI LEPAKKOA TRANSSYLVANIASSA

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ACTE VIDE

5:26 PM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)


















Acte Vide is an open-ended duo project. It consists of a series of improvised sessions that happen spontaneously and at intermittent periods, and involve mainly piano and laptop, but extend to voice, percussion, and any found object in sight.

Acte Vide is also a constant circle of reactivity between two sound sources, two personalities, and two lives. We tend to move around a lot and have often spent long periods of time separated by considerable geographical distance. Our sessions are intimate and concentrated, and they are treated and documented as one-off performances, usually relying on very basic home recording set-ups, with virtually no editing.

Le Nouveau Sans Frontières (Live at Cafe Oto) [2009]

OR DOWNLOAD IT DIRECTLY FROM ACTE VIDE'S WEBPAGE

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UEH & KAWABATA MAKOTO

2:11 PM / Posted by strgzr / comments (1)


















''Ueh are a group from France who must have made quite an impression on Kawabata Makoto somewhere along the way. They first appeared in relation with the Acid Mothers Temple guitar guru on the Swordfish records compilation ?Do Whatever You Want, Don?t Do Whatever You Don?t Want? that was assembled by Kawabata. Ueh opened shows on an American tour with Kawabata (acting as second guitarist for Seattle?s Kinski) this summer. This disc is short on tracks, but long on play-time, with three of the four songs clocking in at over ten minutes. The first two tracks are all Ueh, while the third finds the band assisted by Kawabata on glissando and bowed guitar. The final track is a 22 minute solo composition for guitar, bowed guitar, voice, and electronics by the prolific Acid Mothers Temple figurehead.''

PATAPHYSICAL OVERDRIVE TO MY COSMOS

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TESTBILD

1:51 PM / Posted by strgzr / comments (2)

















''...For his debut album, Malmö based Testbild! conjures up an expressionist fiction of Doppelgängers, deep sea exploration and space travel. The record traces the meteoric careers of inventors/pioneers ENIAC and UNIVAC, whose stories take root in a soundscape where Testbild!’s experiments in noise merge with gorgeous multi-layered melodies. One might speculate that Testbild! spent his childhood in the company of Jules Verne, Kraftwerk, Brian Wilson and Claude Debussy. Unidentifiable electronic noises meet with the gurgling of coffee pots, cascades of rain, vibraphone, glockenspiel, accordion, clicking guitars, vintage synths and Rhodes galore. The resulting album may remind you of Young Marble Giants, Bertrand Burgalat, Louis Philippe, Broadcast, Tuxedomoon, or even This Heat at points, but for us, The Double Life of TESTBILD! is as much a plunge into a parallel universe as the stuff in RK’s “official” imaginary soundtrack series..''

THE DOUBLE LIFE OF TESTBILD!

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CUCUMBER FARMER

1:27 PM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)



















''..Cucumber Farmer is a strange but very cool Finnish band. I reviewed and loved their other CD called Beyond. This new double CD was 3 years in the making. The first CD is the intended CD, while the 2nd CD is the same tracks (given different titles) remixed by Pink Twins, who I have no idea who they are. The band clearly intended on this being a musical experiment with them playing doctor and you the so called guinea pig. One is expected to take the listening experience seriously. No monkey business here Listen, experience some emotionwrite the review r enjoy your next beer Te Absolute Proof starts the CD and it is very spaced out as the band slowly takes you into their strange world, via the secret entrance around the back. Since I ve een Edge and Bono is a crazy mixture of stoned dub reggae and noise rock. I just died in a Las Vegas Nightclub follows and begins very laid back (think Twin Peaks movie) with piano and a strange ambience but it slowly devolves into some sort of distorted post rock nightmare Worng in the USSR begins with some people labouring in the background with jackhammers and stuff as the music slowly builds up again getting quite heavy at the end. Loneliness of Gary Lonely is next and again features some singing. By the time you get to Bigass Oceanliner the record is pretty intense and really beginning to space my head out The C ends with DTM and a Riding Car and it is another mindfuck of a trip.. Be careful as this CD could serious damage your mind.. As fr the remix CD, it is about 10 mins longer than the regular CD and a totally different trip and very psychedelic! Pretty amazing stuff, actually......''

EMPIRICAL RESEARCH ON WESTERN POPULAR MUSIC 1993-2006

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GHOST ROCKET

1:24 PM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)



















"Ghost Rocket are inspired by bands like 13th Floor Elevators, Love and obscure rock 'n' roll and psych from the past 50 years. This 7" is completely fuzzed out!"

DRUG FREEDOM/1 MILLION TIMES

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SARAH PEEBLES

1:19 PM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)

















''Memories of the urban space of Tokyo are deeply rooted in the city's initially overwhelming aural ambience. Rather than smell or look, it is the distinctive way the city sounds that can bring prickles of nostalgia to ex-residents. Toronto based composer Sarah Peebles captures some of the kaleidoscopic richness of the aural environment on her reissued 108 – Walking Through Tokyo At The Turn Of The Century (Post Concrète CD) Peebles recorded a week's worth of journeys across the city in late December 1999. While she is intensely aware of the cyclical and periodic rhythms that underlie the city's sounds, this is very much the sound of a single season and a single moment in time, as fast food joints hawk millennium fries and a rare Christian evangelist threatens commuters with fire and brimstone.

Peebles's journeys took her east from the youthful, neon skyscrapers of Shinjuka to the older, downtown areas of Nippori and Ueno. The sound profile thus moves from the garishly synthetic textures of hectoring jingles from electrical shops and the pop-techno metallic cascades of pachinko parlours to the more humanly grounded rhythms of market hawkers, kendo practice at dawn and a temple bell chiming 108 times to mark New Year.

Between each evocatice street scene, Peebles masterfully creates a palpable sense of the joy of motion through urban spaces – the solid pnematic hiss of the doors on the JR trains, station jingles and the learned nasal twang of a streetcar conductor. Christie Pearson's street photos on the enhances CD add another dimension to an exquisitely sequenced piece of audio verité.''

WALKING THROUGH TOKYO AT THE TURN OF THE CENTURY






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MAQUILADORA WITH KAWABATA MAKOTO

1:16 PM / Posted by strgzr / comments (3)


















''...San Diego based acid psychedelic trio Maquiladora makes a collaboration album with Kawabata Makoto from Acid Mothers Temple. Very beautiful dark downer freak out; sounds like Freaked out Syd Barrett."

KISS OVER

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BOB GELDOF

12:57 PM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)


















''...Bob Geldof is better known for his humanitarian work (Nobel Prize nominee, knighted Live Aid head) than for his few surviving Boomtown Rats hits, such as the killing-spree monologue “I Don’t Like Mondays.” His solo records have been shockingly uninteresting, but this one provokes an unseemly tabloid fascination: It’s his first since wife Paula Yates left him for INXS’s Michael Hutchence, both of whom later died ignominiously. For Geldof, 47, Sex, Age & Death is a midlife-crisis tale strong enough to reward repeated listens. Sir Bob quotes Bob Dylan on the bilious “One for Me” and does a dead-on Leonard Cohen for the elegantly wasted “Pale White Girls” and “10:15.” The personal lyrics make these echoes of Geldof’s heroes sound heartfelt rather than affected....''

SEX AGE & DEATH

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PHIL SHOENFELT

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"I wish I'd taken up Phil McMullen's recommendation and got into Phil Shoenfelt earlier, because this is excellent stuff. With a bleak but resonant vocal, very similar to the great Louis Tillet, Shoenfelt weaves bitter tales of mystery and degradation, populated by weeping shadows, desperate gamblers on the edge of the abyss, and false witnesses. It's a remorseless soundscape, where even church bells ring out of tune BUCKETFUL OF BRAINS

GOD IS THE OTHER FACE OF DEVIL

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WREN/STABBINS/RILEY/SANDERS

1:07 PM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)


















''...Four in the Afternoon is among the first albums that documented bassist Tony Wren's comeback on the British free improv scene. The quartet for this studio date had convened only three times before. When listening to Four in the Afternoon, one often thinks of Mujician. The two groups perform with equal passion and following similar inspiration. Of course, much could be said of the musical relationship between Howard Riley and Keith Tippett ? from their albums together to the way they integrate their jazz background into their approach to free improv rather than choke it. But one can easily argue that saxophonists Larry Stabbins and Paul Dunmall, despite the fact that they both play tenor and soprano saxophones, couldn't be less alike. The same goes for drummer Mark Sanders, more textural and expansive than his counterpart, and bassist Wren, more soft-spoken. And yet, inhabited by these well-defined personalities, Four in the Afternoon holds something of the same. When Riley explores a romantic jazz theme in "Where Are the Snows...," shivers run up and down the listener's spine. The climax halfway into "Game of Two Halves" also provides a magical moment; so does Sanders' light but highly complicated playing at the end of "Blue Dark."

FOUR IN THE AFTERNOON

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COSMIC COURIERS

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''...electronics and disciplined rythmonomy
characteristics of their Teutonic origin and the
everpresent will to experiment including elements that range from classical to world and space rock...''

OTHER PLACES

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MIMETIC FIELD

1:36 PM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)
















"There are many groups who fancy themselves as being at this level of "in touch" with the mysteries of beat electronics, but few who achieve it with such an intriguing sense of twist...''

o V e R r A t E D

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THE JONES BROTHERS

5:14 AM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)
















''In spite of their very long careers in jazz, brothers Hank, Thad and Elvin Jones made relatively few recordings together; this Leonard Feather-produced date got the three of them into the studio and added to the gimmick by including Eddie Jones (no relation) on bass, and performing exclusively works by Thad or Isham Jones (also no relation). The music that's stood the test of time includes Thad's often-recorded "Three and One," which was evidently written for this session, and Isham Jones' best-known works "It Had to Be You," and the perennial favorite "There Is No Greater Love." Thad's rich flugelhorn is as strong as on any date he ever recorded, while Hank's playing is a little more reserved than usual, and Elvin, known for his fierce attack, sticks mainly to brushes.''

KEEPIN'UP WITH THE JONESES

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LEONARD BERNSTEIN

5:09 AM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)


















''This coupling represents Bernstein's second recording of Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue. On his earlier 1959 version(Sony/CBS with the Columbia Symphony Orchestra), his verve and rhythmic elan at the piano is more apparent in the first half of the piece than in this later recording. Here his choices of tempi are fractionally slower; his flexing of Gershwin's steely rhythms a little more indulgent.

However, unlike his 1959 studio version, this recording is from a live concert performance which, allied to more modern recording quality, really communicates the spirit of what must have been a thrilling event. The finale with both piano and orchestra hard on the gas pedal takes your breath away.

Nobody conducted Leonard Bernstein's music as well as Leonard Berstein and the Symphonic Dances from West Side Story are no exception. The pieces are beautifully woven together. In fact, almost all the music of West Side Story is evolved out of an economy of musical ideas first stated in the 'Prologue', making this piece truly symphonic. More importantly, the performance of this music is mesmerising: coiled fury, visceral excitement and real lyric beauty: "Somewhere" has never sounded so touching. Highly recommended. ''

RHAPSODY IN BLUE/WEST SIDE STORY:THE SYMPHONIC DANCES

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RUTHERFORD/VANDERMARK/MULLER/VAN DER SCHYFF

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''This is a great live set from December of 2004 featuring Paul Rutherford on trombone, Ken Vandermark on tenor sax & clarinet, Torsten Muller on acoustic bass and Dylan van der Schyff on drums. Four strong musicians, each from varied backgrounds, both geographically and age-wise. Emanem all-star Paul Rutherford is one the true pioneers of solo trombone playing, as well as a member of a numerous of key ensembles (Iskra 1903, LJCO, SME & Globe Unity). Vandermark has more creative bands and projects than just about anyone in the current Chicago new music scene. Don't know that bassist, but drummer Dylan van der Schyff is one of the most in-demand and creative percussionists to emerge from Vancouver. Spool's Line series refers to the fact that this is an improv session and a grand one at that. Superbly recorded with perfect balance so that each member of the quartet sounds like a most unified project. It is rare to hear Rutherford playing with any American musicians, except for Braxton, but he and Vandermark work incredible well together. It helps that they are playing with an equally creative and fascinating bassist and drummer. Rutherford's playing is extraordinary throughout, he has a unique way of bending his notes so that they become perfect sympathetic vibrations for the other three players. This is a monster session for four strong spirits.''

HOXHA

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STERAC ELECTRONICS

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''Steve Rachmad is a Dutch techno producer, DJ and remixer. By many, he is considered a father of Detroit techno in the Netherlands, respected in the world of electronic music for his deep, groovy sounds that tend to rest on impressive strings, melodies, funk and soul. His career has been reaching its highest peaks from 1996 up to the present time. Yet, it is somewhat less known that he has been in the music realms for over 25 years by now. ''

KEEP ON RUNNING

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THE I LIVE THE LIFE OF A MOVIE STAR SECRET HIDEOUT

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''...sounding both like a little kid dreaming in his bed, making up songs about cotton candy or whatever, and your typical early ‘90s indie-rock star....''

Autumn Girl Archers Horsemen Bring Arrows

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THE GUILD LEAGUE

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''Brilliant debut album from an international parade of popstars featuring 13 wonderfully eclectic songs about love and travel recorded between San Francisco and Melbourne over a period of a year. Heartfelt lyrics and ace vocals courtesy of The Lucksmiths Tali White, paired with music from a truly collaborative cast including members of The Lucksmiths, Sodastream, Poundsign, The Fairways, The Aislers Set, Red Raku, Art of Fighting, The Killjoys, and Blackeyed Susans. Highlights include the jangling-guitar travelogue "Jet-Set…Go!" which takes in Spain, Yorkshire, Las Vegas and Thailand before its joyous finale in San Francisco…"The Photographer," a strum and bass still life memory of a sea-side moment sung over a loping, looping bass line, with layers of acoustic guitars and frantic drums… and "Siamese Couplets", a lazy hip-hop/pop tune with junky percussion, a soaring chorus and lyrics that attempt to capture the sensory overload of south east Asia while maintaining the distinction of being the first and possibly last song on Matinée to be rapped. From odes to breakfast and London to stripped-back heart breakers and instrumental laments, "Private Transport" is a refreshingly diverse album that exceeds the potential of such a distinguished cadre.''

PRIVATE TRANSPORT

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KOJI UENO QUINTETTO

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''...Pianist/composer Koji Ueno first made his mark on the Japanese music scene at the side of Jun Togawa, performing as part of the legendary Guernica. Following the unit's brilliant achievements, Ueno expanded his activities from classical to contemporary, and from jazz to avant-garde, and recently to film soundtracks, ballet suites, and more.
Ueno introduces on this album an orchestra of 15 musicians based on a quintet lineup, turning his focus once again to "jazz." ''

TROPICI DI VETRO

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BELA EMERSON

8:44 AM / Posted by strgzr / comments (2)


















''

Bela Emerson is a Brighton-based experimental musician who has gained praises for her spellbinding live performances during which she improvises pieces on the electric cello, using conventional sounds combined with all sorts of additional noises, all sourced from her instrument, which are looped into intricate layers. Unlike Colleen, who has progressively moved toward more traditional musical forms as she has developed her use of acoustic instruments, Emerson continues to combine electro-acoustic and electronic sounds.

Hespera is Emerson’s fourth solo album, and her first for French imprint Bip-Hop. While her previous three records consisted of tracks recorded live during various performances, this latest offering is her first full studio collection. At once dense, complex and elegant, with streaks of cinematic grandeur and more experimental moments, Emerson’s music stimulates senses and emotions by juxtaposing contrasting elements to create a surprisingly homogenous entity. Great musicality is often thrown off course by arid noise nebulas, but this only adds to the fragile aspect of her compositions.

Carved through layers of sounds and noise, and articulated around swelling recurring melodies or delicate percussive or textural clusters, Emerson’s compositions often evolve from one realm to the next and accommodate various sequences in just a few minutes. The apparent chaotic nature of her work is offset by a great attention to details, from melodies that evolve almost imperceptibly to particularly refined motifs, found at the most unexpected moment. While the range explored here is quite wide, form the beautiful theme of 5HTP or the medieval tones of Cavaquin to the ethereal ribbons of Brandywine Shoal, the textures of Dangerous Friday or the menacing tones of Phosphorous, Hespera remains a very consistent collection throughout, making it a fine addition to the already excellent Bip-Hop catalogue.''


HESPERA

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CENTROZOON

8:42 AM / Posted by strgzr / comments (1)

















''...A significant leap beyond ''Never Trust The Way You Are'' is a genre-defying fusion of Art Pop, Progressive, Electronica and ballad influences, boasting a potent combination of mellow moods, difficult beats, powerful melodies and ambitious musical experiments.
An ideal showcase for Reuter's Touch Guitar dexterity, Woestheinrich's impossible rhythms and Bowness' distinctive vocal style, Never Trust The Way You Are represents a compelling artistic highpoint for all involved....''

NEVER TRUST THE WAY YOU ARE

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POSITION NORMAL

8:39 AM / Posted by strgzr / comments (1)

















''The fact that the pied pipers behind Stop Your Nonsense are complete loons shouldn't hinder your ability to get lost in its juvenile buffoonery. The cover of the fuzzy, lo-fi, sample-based record depicts a tot laying on his side, revving a toy roadster -- that indicates the state of mind you may need to enter in order to enjoy it. Most of these sample-based tracks zip by in the amount of time it takes for a youngster to destroy a pillow fort. Throughout the duration of "The Blank," a children's game show host repeats, "What is the blank?" At the same time, a voice that is alternately stretched and compressed exclaims "Huhahahaho -- no!" The creepy "Jimmy Had Jane" bears a Dr. Seuss influence: "Pickled egg, pickled egg, Jimmy had Jane/ On the back of an eastbound train." Even goofier: on "Rabies," a voice made to sound like a gent on helium croons "Missing her, like I miss rabies." Other characters who pop out of the jack-in-the-box include a surly green grocer, a concerned aunt who leaves a phone message for her niece, and groups of jubilant kids singing about their dancing fingers. Sampled music from children's records and television shows from the '60s and '70s play a prominent role, and that entails lots of whistles, horns, and garden variety percussion, as well as occasional noodling from a cheap guitar. The gleeful regression is an escape hatch from reality into a rumpus room of fun house mirrors -- imagine adolescent versions of Prince Paul and Aphex Twin toying with a clunky My First Sampler. Andy Kellman, All Music Guide ''

STOP YOUR NONSENSE

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EMMETT TINLEY

8:37 AM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)

















''....Dublin's own Emmett Tinley's first album is one he ought to be very proud of. From it's gorgeous musical soundscapes, lush fragile arrangements and ragged choked up vocal; it is a beauty. Songs like 'Christmastreet' and 'Heart Still Breaking' could almost move you to tears such are their sublime delicateness. Fans of Jeff Buckley and Rufus Wainwright will devour this one....''

ATTIC FAITH

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JOHN TCHICAI & TRIOT

8:32 AM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)

















''....This live recording of the quartet’s 2002 Danish tour shows three young, in-demand talents of the Nordic countries and one master improviser dialoguing to create an impassioned set of music that elucidates the closeness of musical and human language. On Sudden Happiness Tchicai and Triot reach the sublime heights of the best poetry, where our everyday language is made to speak with a voice of the heart, where with each listening and each reading the words and sounds resonate more deeply.....


SUDDEN HAPPINESS

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MOUNTAINEER

9:48 AM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)



















"...incredibly complicated and strong...remarkably different..." - Cornell Daily Sun

"A great pop album with elements of folk and bossa nova and no dull moments." - Soundscaping

"The air is warm, and Mountaineer shines brightly." - XLR8R

5* A perfect escape from the daily routine - De:Bug

"...late summer music at its best." - Music For Robots


When the Air is Bright They Shine

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ORCHESTRA DU SOLEIL

9:39 AM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)


















''....combining languid, swirling melodies with generous helpings of echo and reverb, kitschy natural found sounds, and breathy singing to create a soft and inviting ambience that won't necessarily challenge your ears but doesn't sound much like anything else out there, either...''

LABORATOIRE MONDIAL

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PHIL VON

5:27 AM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)



















''....For more than a year Flore Magnet & Phil Von have been writing and directing the performance "Deadline Now" for & with the company Persona in Santa Maria da Feira near Porto.

"DEADLINE NOW" is about "TIME", a contemporary sad tale, the story of people existing in one of our modern metropolis during 36 hours. They walk, they run, they work, they phone, they step, they dream, they stumble, they loop, they bug

Yet we are witnessing the absurdity of their tasks, waiting for the appearance of signs of weaknesses, of tenderness, of love even of simple humanity.

To portray the ambiance of such a modern "time dictature", the music of Phil Von strikes as purely urban, electronic, cold and ruled by a strict tempo code, the most common and the most famous : 120 beats per minute.

This pulse is the master, the implacable reality of a metronomic heartbeat which all the actors follow throughout the performance The "Von Magnetic" choregraphic style will only appear as they stamp their feet "live" stubbornly Untill they find through exhaustion and despair the poetry, the freedom or the craziness towards a final exit to escape

Stretching "time" down to a universal wave of silence...''

DEADLINE NOW


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PATRICK PHELAN

1:00 AM / Posted by strgzr / comments (2)


















''...While Phelan's first album reminds the ear of a minimal rock band like Labradford, only played less powerfully so as to mix well with the vocals and singer/songwriter song-style, ''Parlor'' is a pop record, bringing out the AM pop and Brazillian pop influences that were always probably there but often hard to identify...''

PARLOR

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THE BENEVENTO/RUSSO DUO

1:50 PM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)



















''...Though merely two men, the Duo bring with them a massive array of sound, manufacturing a product far greater than the feat of four hands. Marco Benevento’s slick B3 organ chops and distorted, pedal-fueled Fender Rhodes meet Joe Russo’s colliding cymbals and sampled beats head on, fabricating a sound much deeper than meets the eye....''

Best Reason to Buy the Sun

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UNKNOWN ARTIST

2:30 PM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)


















''...an unknown artist from Greece Thessaloniki
(propably named Argy) offers us a collage of world wide news broadcasts concerning the Athens riots that took place in December '08 spreading over 8 tracks adding some atmospheric music ambience on top of it making it one of the most interesting documents of the events that shocked (and almost awoke) Greece...

ANARCHY IN THE BIRTH PLACE OF DEMOCRACY

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LINDA ALEXANDERSSON

2:01 PM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)


















''..this cd is the audio companion of ''Pure Fucking Mayhem'' dvd and it contains reinterpetions of
Mayhem's songs(and other Black Metal Classics) played by Linda in her piano..Eeerieee!

PURE FUCKING MAYHEM

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I

1:27 PM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)


















''Once again Düsseldorf rescues the world. Mysterious and somewhat new musical terrain for a release on Glitterhouse Records, but certainly something that would be played around the GH HQ during office hours. “i” originally was called “D”, but changed their name due to some UK musicians beating their release date by a few months. The recordings were sent with no information in a nondescript envelope, yet miraculously they survived various demo-filters we implemented.

When we contacted them they chose to remain anonymous, no names, no photos, no background info. No contact-address (save for an e-mail account), no interviews, nothing. Complete denial. A handshake deal without actually shaking a hand. Not exactly what we prefer, so we had to downshift the sizeable Glitterhouse promo machine to just a mail-out. Hoping, for once, that the music would do the job.

If you are a follower of the Düsseldorf school of music you will find a direct lineage from Neu!, La Düsseldorf, Cluster to “i”, maybe with a higher handmade factor. If you are not, just believe us.

But they are not far away from other Glitterhouse artists that released instrumental music in the past either – be it Hugo Race´s ambient-noise album “Wet Dreams”, Höst (the Scandinavian/American cooperation), the beauty of Dakota Suite, Friends Of Dean Martinez and the mighty Sub Oslo (8-piece with instru-dub from Dallas).

But “i” are “i” – an old/new sound from Düsseldorf. Kosmische Kuriere, indeed. ''

I

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GERRY HEMINGWAY QUARTET

9:07 AM / Posted by strgzr / comments (0)


















''....Together this established ensemble navigates Hemingway's compositions with supreme skill, managing both his labyrinthine melodies and his sudden, seismic shifts in tempo and mood. More important, the group plays without apparent strain, dashing through tunes like "If You Like" with an intense but ultimately freewheeling air. Fans of Hemingway's output will recognize most of the tunes assembled, but these interpretations are effectively a breed apart. More accessible but no less adventurous than most of his previous efforts, Devils Paradise should be of interest to any listener with a yen for the sound of surprise.''

DEVILS PARADISE

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CHAPPAQUIDDICK SKYLINE

9:02 AM / Posted by strgzr / comments (5)
















''....So, unless your bookshelf is stocked with Sylvia Plath and the gas in your oven is turned on, why bother listening to Chappaquiddick Skyline? Because Pernice's blue mood is equaled by his ability to write stunningly beautiful songs. His breathy voice is lovely, his melodies uplifting, his sparse arrangements evocative and haunting. Depression has never sounded so inviting. --Tod Nelson ''

CHAPPAQUIDDICK SKYLINE

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