\ / | ----- /\ | \ / |== |== | / | \ / Week 6 \ / | | / \ | \ /\ / | | |/ | \ / Number 68 \/ | | / \ |--- \/ \/ |__ |__ |\ |__ | CANADIAN ELECTRONIC ENSEMBLE & TRIO COLLECTIF - SUPERTRIO (CD by Trap/Metamkine) Two trio's, one from Canada and one from France, that have experience is live electronics. Here they jam together and each presents a piece on their own. It shifts back and forth between tons of effect racks and sounds. Highly synthetic, but rather boring if you ask me. Sometimes a tension is there, but bleeps and bloops break up what is a good intro. Highly sponsored to get this out on CD, and I'm not suprised. Address: 50 Passage Des Ateliers - 38140 Rives - France LEIF ELGGREN & THOMAS LILJENBERG - THE CODFISH SUIT (CD by Firework) You may remember that wacky book 'Experiment With Dreams' that came with a CD of two man sleeping? This new CD by the sleepy eyed duo is an extension of that project. Selected texts from the book are read through phonelines and either at the beginning or the end with electronic effects amplified. They don't read it in a normal manner, but with a special intonation for each piece. That intonation can become funny but at times also quite frightening. Or both at the same time, like in the half sung, half spoken 'Odour'. This is not an easy CD, but one that requires repeated listening to. Address: fax: + 46 8188720 STRATES (CD by Collectif & Cie/Metamkine) Collectif & Cie is a sturdy French company and studio where they develop new technology for music making, composing aswell as realizing concerts and the like. Every once in a while they produce a CD to tell the world what they are up to now. 5 composers are present here, of which I knew Alain Basso before hand (he was in Dernier Du Culte and Phaeton Derniere Danse). The CD opens with a great electronic piece by Jean-Louis Belmonte, whose drones are intermingled with percussive sounds. From what I understand from the booklet (obviously everything is in French) Alain Basso's piece is dealing with water sounds, but they have distorted and deformed beyond recognition. The oldest composer on this CD is Joseph Raguin and what he dribbles in French makes no sense at all, I'm sorry. That's not the reason for me not liking his piece, but the waves he produces don't do much for me. Patrick Rutge uses a lot of voices, mainly of people on the phone. Placed in the stereo spectrum . Then the piece moves into a jouney into the mountains where the cows are grazing and bells cling. The voices do return (hey they come from answering machine while the whole family is on a journey!). A strange piece, but a very nice play for the ears. The final piece is by Pascal Liguoro and has synthesized choir in the first part of his piece. He also uses sound objects and environmental recordings. So in all a good introduction of what is going in the eastern parts of France. (FdW) Address: as above ALEC EMPIRE - LES ETOILES DES FILLES MORTES (CD by Mille Plateaux) TERRE THAEMLITZ - DIE ROBOTER RUBATO (CD by Mille Plateaux) Hip among the hipsters are the Mille Plateaux CD's. They combine experimental music with the odd ends of dance music and some have a weird sense of humor to it. Alec Empire is certainly one of those to be funny. He is probably the one to blame for the fact that their distributor (EFA - who do an outstanding job in selling this) sells this as 'electronic music in the style of Stockhausen and the early 50s'. Ja ja. Rather black and doomy, this presents much more a soundtrack for imaginairy films. Musicwise this hints more to 80s music that was released on cassette. In a way some of this is rather clumsy played, but that is just intentional. Warning to all Digital Hardcore fans: this is not Digital Hardcore, but just very wacky synth music. Just very strange, but in a way appealling to me. You probably heard about Thaemlitz' new work, which is Kraftwerk played on the piano. Not an exact copy of the work like Balanescu's interpretation for a stringquartet, but Thaemlitz only vaguely hints at the well-known melodies. I am left puzzled after I played this CD a couple of times (I just couldn't read the liner notes, way too intelligent for me - maybe I don't like liner notes explaining the hows and the whys). It sounds quite alright for piano music, I vaguely recognize Kraftwerk, but maybe I just don't get it... Address: SUGIMOTO TAKU - MYSHKIN MUSICU (CD by Slub Music) SUGIMOTO TAKU - ALTO (miniCD by Slub Music) Taku's CD is subtitled 'for electric guitar', but that was evidentely after I played it. The Jap musician is not following KK Null or any other Jap noise warrior, but in stead he (she?) plays quite introvert pieces on the guitar with gaps of silence in between the two notes. The noise, well no real harm done, is in the 6th track where he is kicking his 6 string thing around with a group. The fifth track, called Guitar Amp II, is what it is. A nice CD, even if improvised music is not your cup. If a full CD is too much for you to handle then his miniCD 'Alto' is enough for you. It contains similar improv guitar stuff that is played with likewise concentration, placing silence all over. More raw this once, more live too. (FdW) Address: Slub Music - 2-21-14 Sakura Setagaya - Tokyo 156 - Japan Vital Weekly is published by Frans de Waard and submitted for free to anybody with an e-mail address. If you don't wish to receive this, then let us know. Any feedback is welcome . Forward to your allies. 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