Blogiarhiiv
12/02/2010
12/01/2010
Oathless Standing Where Our Paths Shall Meet (Hawk Moon)

For sure, the British have been having a proud tradition of ambient music veered from the conceptions of Brian Eno and David Toop to the later and recent works by the Caretaker, Cousin Silas, Phillip Wilkerson and Simon Housley. Simon Housley is a young musician from Stoke-on-Tent having been releasing music since 2007. His first tracks were played out as spacey neofolk/chamber folk-drenched pieces, which soon evolved into a more melancholic space music approach, completed strongly with the ingredients of modern classical/symphonic progressions and dark ambient/dystopbient, and infused layers of musique concrete as well. Besides an array of singles, however, Housley has self-released three albums being as an obligatory task for every serious ambient music lover to be listened here and now. Those issues are Seen Through Reflection, Lambent Amber Winds, and Zephyr.
No doubt, his new release of 8 tracks continues to move along those aforementioned ambient characteristics. In principle, it is slow, minimal yet extensive, and hypnotic based upon the phase changing-alike methodology. Though it is an austere sonic example it does evoke a lot of emotions, for instance, extraditing the sense of still life, as if foretelling us about the forthcoming cold and snowy winter. In fact, the season is arrived exactly in such kind of embodiment and the emotion is mightily up here to be became much more dinstinct. Vis à vis with Housley`s previous releases it does seem to be a bit more solemn yet remaining its status as a somehow joyous oeuvre, though.
Listen to it here
9.1
Sildid:
Ambient,
Bandcamp,
Hawk Moon,
Minimal,
Modern classical,
Musique concrete
Vincent Lillis The Singularity (Rack & Ruin)

The last album of the Rack & Ruin being overviewed on this blog was Teacups` Song about Yarn, an off-kilter blend of magnificient chamber pop/baroque pop and abrasive chiptune beats. Thereafter my spot has drifted away from the doings of the label involuntarily and unfortunately. Now it is time to come back again, and hopefully having no possibilities for further apologizes anymore.
The irishman Vincent Lillis is an extraordinary young musician, having released his third album in two years already. His previous albums Purple Magpie, and Neb Nub offered a off-the-wall blend of artistic guitar music with a kind of alternative dance appeal. You could hear The Fall-esque skidding bass strokes, Ian Brown`s electronic touch, kinds of inbalanced and unfixed somber backdrops, even some world music elements which altogether was being perceived a bit arty-farty in some sense. In any cases, it did need quite much attention to hold up your concentration to be fixed upon this.
The Singularity seems to be his most mature release (read it: purposefully channelized one) to date. The opening Mind Your Mind is a loud cacophonous track with heavy drum breakbeats, gorgeous bass pulsatings, and a funny sunbeam-named looping synth effect, all in all it recalls Primal Scream`s the 90`s second half/00`s beginning (albums Vanishing Point; Xtrmntr). However, the following tracks continue to drive on similar way in principle, besides it recruiting tabla drums, dynamic bass lines, spacey vocal chants, programmed beats, also finding the support from the 70`s post-punk movement as well. The tightness of ambience under and around the conception is an interesting matter to follow, for instance, discovering some underpressure-overpressure fluctuations at times. Consequently the result underlying spiderwebbing mesh work seems to function per excellence. Indeed, an solid alternative dance/madchester/baggy set evoking pleasant memories of good old times. A nostalgic slap, in fact.
Listen to it here
9.3
Dark Souls Day X-Lives (Af-Music/Jamendo)

I have listened to the Thessalonikian (Greek) band Dark Souls Day`s debut album X-Lives for a while having really been enjoying it. On the first place, because of being stilistically categorized as gothic/dark rock its topics and characteristics are inevitably common to the abovementioned genres consisting of dark-sided lyrics, low-key guitar chords and extended riffs, exhilarating combinations of post-punk-esque rigid bass and full-packed drum cadences, and dark-shrouded synth figures. Besides it, Nikos`s lead vocal (reminiscent of Peter Steele) is thoroughly resignated but not only driving on monotonous gears and wheels though, offering enough key changes and dark-spirited variations. Secondly, when the roles will be inverted for the sake of Pepi`s singing times then the accents will be getting up otherwise, finding out closeness to hardcore-alike indie/alternative rock (The Breeders, The Pixies, Dinosaur Jr etc). No doubt, you can hear a watershed having drawn alongside the borders of post-punk and alternative rock, the 70`s ending/80`s beginning and the 80`s second half/90`s beginning. Yet, it has no disturbing effects. Outspoken in advance, the album is fulfilled with great numbers, though, the special favorite of mine is epic Electrify, one of the best songs of 2010 on an album being one of the finest examples in the gothic/post-punk area during last years.
Listen to it here
9.3
Sildid:
AF-Musik,
Alternative rock,
Dark pop,
Gothic,
Gothic metal,
Jamendo,
Post-punk
11/30/2010
Felipe Casey Cardona Casio Nightlife (Noise Horror)

Having a speak about Felipe Casey Cardona`s 4-track cassette single Casio Nightlife it is not realistic to ignore a nowadays musical situation, this kind of which was rooted by Ariel Pink`s low-tech doings in the middle of the 00`s having attracted so many attention and (re-)launched a new home recording wave, developed mostly into chillwave/glo-fi/stargaze, or witch house/drag/haunted house music nowadays, which relies on a blend of the roughness of the do-it-yourself aesthetics and dream-alikeness of the bedroom music. However, the situation is greatly changed to date and the greatest of them (Ariel Pink, Devendra Banhart, Wavves) are being signed up by well-known labels, moreover, the aforementioned artists have managed to move on toward the centre of pop music, though.
Cardona takes his path in a direct and downright way. Low-end synths and noir-alike vocal sequences with some sense of violet-y colorings are ready to be instantly thrown to the forefront from the very start to the end. The opening and self-titled track seems to be a tribute to the erotic music, on the other way, the finishing Subjective Paradoxical Argument is a deep inner space noir. Two tracks in between do conjure naivistic synth chords and merely discernible distorted backcloth, by having the singing in English and in Spanish. In fact, he does prevalently drift in a lucid and high spirited mood, yet, in the ending phase his conception is used to seem a little bit monotonous and weary. But he is a talented guy anyway. Lets wait what will the sophomore issue bring with.
Listen to it here
7.7
Sildid:
Bedroom pop,
DIY,
Electronic pop,
Lo-Fi,
Noise Horror,
Synth,
Synth noir
[Old but important] 8bit Betty Too Bleep To Blop (Hippocamp)

If to check out for the legendary Manchesterian label Hippocamp`s (being on hiatus at the moment) download rates at Archive.org you can see Bryan Teoh`s album Too Bleep To Blop sharing bravely the second place with more than 40 000 times (not included the other download sites and servers to this sum). Vox populi vox dei, as it is used to say nowadays. Although five years have already passed since the release date, however, Teoh`s magic powder have been very refreshing up today yet. 7 tracks, based prinicipially on the numbers of chiptune/8-bit/chipbreak/tracker music, being part of this (those) genre (genres), within it recent computer music was started off approximately two and a half decades ago, and maintained previously (cult) popularity to date as well. Teoh is obviously one of the most ardent musicians I have had the privilege to listen to. Indeed, ablaze breakcore rhythms, subtle pace changes, great harmonic sweetness coming forth through autotuned vocals and elements of lollipop and shibuya-kei - even more else, the echoes of indie/shoegaze music can be heard therein. The American's ante is performed on the covering of 8bit`s very technical nature with a lot of emotions and life sense. If to mention all of those extraordinary tracks like And I Know That You're Happy (Ballad of the Lonesome Spaceboy), Reading Rainbow, Nikoma's Theme (Extended Mix) Spooky Loop, the Green Kangaroo, Blast Off!, it might be viewed as a tautological array because Too Bleep To Blop consists actually of 7 tracks only. Teoh`s comeback with his new releases would be very recommended in any case.
Listen to it here
[Old but important] Replicast The Wallstreet Compound (Obliq/Cryptophonics)

Replicast, Colorado-based octet`s (one of the persons behind it is Eric Allen, also known as a member of The Apples In Stereo) sophomore album, being released in the end of the previous year, reveals the next steps after the debut album Replicast-X. The follow-up, consisting of 9 tracks is full of mixed music (recorded in live and made without overdubs), i.e krautrock-esque hazy jams (remembering CAN`s early period loosely-leaded session sonority), tingling guitar glides, meditative rhythm sections, extending guitar riffs, eager experimentations with drum kits, and all of it is hardwired to a caustic soup of psychedelic Oberheim synthesizers. In a nutshell, this is a huge improvisation set, except Radio Nippon sounding like a tribute to Sonic Youth, though. The whole is mostly instrumental, hovering between outer space and earth, spinning up a lot of every kind of dust on variable sonic elements. No doubt, it may at times be seem as a bit inbalanced or swaying plateau, however, not because of being somehow imperfect, instead of it rather searching for new sonic possibilities through dense interplay of certain instruments, thereafter changing them and finding out for new combinations with others.
Listen to it here
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