============ VITAL WEEKLY ============ number 393 ------------ week 42 ------------ contents: MARSEN JULES - LAZY SUNDAY FUNERALS (download album from Audioplate) THE MITGANG AUDIO - THE VIEW FROM YOUR NEW HOME (CD by Suction Records) MUSLIMGAUZE - RED MADRASSA (CD by Staalplaat) OHNE - 020503 (CD by The Egg And We) OHNE - 020510 (CDR by Spirals Of Involution) BUDAPASTIS - La bouche fermée (CD by Heyermears) ANTI ACTION TRIO - (CD by Heyermears) HANS TEUBER / PAUL RUCKER - OIL (CD by Jackson Street Records) PAUL RUCKER - HISTORY OF AN APOLOGY (CD by Jackson Street Records) FORMATT: CONNECTIONS / SAMULI ALAPURANEN : APINAVIDEO (CDR by Abflug) VERHAVERBEKE KRZYZOSIAK : IKKUNA / VYGANDAS SIMBELIS : IN ARMY OF LOVERS (CDR by Abflug) HINTERLANDT : SITTING, GOING PLACES / KARRI O. : DEPARTURES AND ARRIVALS (CDR by Abflug) COMFORTER VS LEFTHANDEDDECISION (CDR by Spirals Of Involution) COMFORTER - BLATNOJ CHANSON (CDR by Spirals Of Involution) HOW TO USE YOUR FRIENDS AS ORGAN DONORS (CDR compilation by Spirals Of Involution) TELEPHERIQUE VS ALIENLOVERS IN AMAGASAKI - GLOBALISERUNG (CDR by Spirals Of Involution) PAUL WIRKUS/MARCUS KUERTEN - HEBAN (CDR by Authorized Version) EVERY KID ON SPEED VS EVERY KID ON ACID (CDR by Retinascan) NEBOGEO - PRESENTS: 0 (CDR by Retinascan) YANNICK DAUBY & CHRISTOPHE HAVARD (CDR by and/OAR) XV PAROWEK - KILOGRAMY (CDR by XV Parowek Records) TOSHIYA TSUNODA/CIVYIU KKLIU (2xminiCD by Bremstrahlung) RADU MALFATTI/ILYA MONOSOV (2xminiCD by Bremstrahlung) FCKN BSTRDS - TOTAL SECURITY (CDR by Hondenkoekjesfabriek) PEETALL - RMXS 2 - FOR JEFF SURAK (MP3 by Earlabs) DO MAKE SAY THINK - WINTER HYMN COUNTRY HYMN SECRET HYMN (CD by Constellation) MARSEN JULES - LAZY SUNDAY FUNERALS (download album from Audioplate) While playing this CD, I was thinking that it is really music for an occassion. It says 'lazy Sunday Funerals', but as far as I know nobody is buried on a sunday - at least not in christianity. But there is a contemplative sadness on this release which makes it indeed music for funerals. Martin Juhls, also known to be part of Krill.Minima (see Vital Weekly 390) and Falter, samples classical music, mainly opening sequences played by a solo instrument, loops them, and then starts to fiddle around with it. He's not hiding away his sources - not that I recognized any of them (I wish my father was here, he would no doubt recognize them), but they stem from the romantic, nineteenth century tradition I'd say. It's all in a sadder mood, like funeral music. This music is not about a nice song, or a great melody, it rather captures the atmosphere, the brooding atmosphere of a graveyard, or a nineteenth century barely seen streets in a small town, the atmosphere of an Edgar Allen Poe story. A haunting soundtrack. If there is a need to compare this with anything, I'd say it's the missing link between Ekkehard Ehlers' 'Betrieb' album and Wolfgang Voigt's 'Gas' albums. And the good thing is it's all available for free. (FdW) Address: http://www.thinnerism.com THE MITGANG AUDIO - THE VIEW FROM YOUR NEW HOME (CD by Suction Records) Over the years that Suction now exists it remains a small label. Their releases are mainly centered around the label's own bands, Lowfish and Solvent, but occassionally they come up with another band, like The Mitgang Audio. Of course an one-man band, being this time Ray Sweeten, who nows lives in Brooklyn, NYC and who apperentely works for Sesame Street and who is a member of The Plantains, a synthpop/multimedia-performance band. With his debut album he comes up with something that is strangely enough perfect for Suction Records, but at the same time is also something different. It has electro, robotic pop classics like we would expect from Suction, but also an electronic baroq piece in the form of 'The Escape'. The baroqy Italian style also comes back in no less then four of the seven songs which are sung in Italian: Ray Sweeten lived in Italy for two years, so go figure. Sweeten takes his inspiration from the golden age of electronic popmusic (early 80s in pieces like 'Minor Causes', 'Binary Life' or the early Depeche Mode inspired 'Tokyo Scope'), but it's much more - a track like 'Forme' shows his interest in Giorgio Moroder and the ambient pieces are likewise 70s inspired. The ten tracks on this CD are one varied bunch and it makes this record enjoyable from beginning to end. Quirky uptempo pieces next to songs filled sadness, like 'Passenger Perspective'. It's the various styles of electronica that makes this into a highly inspired debut album - a true blast. Each track is great and there isn't a single boring moment. Given the right promotion and attention, this has classic stamped all over it. (FdW) Address: http://www.suctionrecords.com MUSLIMGAUZE - RED MADRASSA (CD by Staalplaat) Having produced more than 150 albums, the flowing stream of interesting sound material from Bryn Jones seems endless despite his death almost five years ago. Red Madrassa belongs to some of the harsher sides of Muslimgauze heard for quite a while. Abrasive soundscapes similar to albums like "Azad", "Keffeen Head" and "Hafaz Al Assad" (the last albums being part of the Box Of Silk And Dogs-release) have been mixed with minimal and repetitive textures similar to albums like "Fakir Sind" and "Hand of Fatima". The tracks have been divided into two sections weaving into each other. One section containing five tracks all titled Rhodesia roughly built around the same sound texture though still expressionally quite different. Rhodesia represents the main part of the album especially thanks to the opening and closing tracks each lasting almost 20 minutes. Both tracks are repetitive with a bunch of samples of city noises, crowd yelling, voices of children and women. Intricate tabla rhythms and strange melodies are stretched into repetitive soundscapes, echoing of both a mythological Far East and, more in the distance, a damp western city. The other section is titled "Rya ba mutant" containing three shorter tracks that are generally more aggressive in style and rhythmically faster. Those tracks belong to the danceable part of the album in a great ritual style. Red Madrassa is a great exploration into Eastern atmospheres what this might carry of beauty and ugliness. Highly recommended! (NMP) Address: http://www.staalplaat.com OHNE - 020503 (CD by The Egg And We) OHNE - 020510 (CDR by Spirals Of Involution) Ohne is a performance/music group which include Tom Smith, Daniel Loewenbrueck (of the Tochnit Aleph label), Reto Maeder (of Domizil) and Dave Phillips (of To Live And Shave In LA), who play noise music on a laptop, electronics, contact microphones and singing. In 2002 they played an one-off gig in Minsk, in the Republic Of Belarus. That performance is documented here in both audio and video format. The video is particular fun: it sees them travelling to Minsk, setting up for the gig and parts of the concert. If you never witnessed such a thing, it's fun to see. There is certainly a rock n roll element to this music, especially when Dave Phillips is (trying) to sing a wacky song. The audio part is of course more complete, but certainly if you watched the film first (like I did), elements return, but in a less chopped up way. Ohne goes through their material in a rather lo-fi way, cracking up sounds (a ballon and tin foil belongs to their musique concrete pastiche) and crancking up volume. But this is not y'r typical over the top noise event - it's not an ongoing brutal noise attack. It very much fits the tradition of Schimpfluchgruppe - a strict personal view on both musique concrete, electronica and rock and roll. This document tells you all, both in audio and in vision. Only one day after I wrote the review of this CD, I received another Ohne release, also from Russia and also with a live recording. I have been thinking about the Ohne titels and it seems to me that it's year, month, day. This means that this CD was recorded on May 10th, 2002, a few days after the one on The Egg And We. I must say that by and large this Ohne release contains similar material as the one on The Egg And We. I find it hard to appoint a winner in this competition: both releases are good showcauses of the Ohne sound, but two them in a row is a bit too much. The cover of '020510' bears a sticker saying 'contains audio and video', but the copy I reviewed only contained audio... (FdW) Address: http://www.eggandwe.org Address: http://soi.yoll.net BUDAPASTIS - La bouche fermée (CD by Heyermears) ANTI ACTION TRIO - (CD by Heyermears) Budapastis is a french-hungarian collective with the following members: Lore Bargès (voice, Zsolt Kovacs (guitar, objects), Franq de Quango (percussions, contact mic) and Zsolt Sores (Viola, objects). Bargès and de Quengo record together under the name Dragibus. Like his mate Zsolt Sórés, Zsolt Kovács (improvising musician, composer, performance and conceptual artist) has built up experience in the past with numerous experimental bands like SoKaPaNaSz, Talesco and Spiritus Noister. In the last few years Sórés and Kovács are active as members of the Abstract Monarchy Trio(Austria-Hungary) and Izo-fr. Since 1994 since they work together as an improvisational duo named S.K.Y. They have an cd out on the Avult label. His mate Zsolt Sórés (violonist) is into experimental and improvising music, performance and conceptual art as well. Both performed also with numerous musicians like Franz Hautzinger, Erno Király, Phill Niblock, Thomas Lehn, Voicecrack and AMM, a.o. So the activities of Sórés and Kovács parallell in many aspects. Also concerning their musical influences they share the same interest. Both are deeply affected by the music of Edwin Prévost, Morton Feldman, Morphogenesis, Organum, Kapotte Muziek, etc. In 1999 they met Dragibus and a friendship grew. Somewhere in august 2001 they it was the right moment to go into the studio and record some music. They recorded two lenghty improvisations that are now available on ‘La bouche fermée’ (total time: 72 minutes). From time to time the music is a little self-indulgent for me. But there are also several beautiful moments where there is real communication between the players. Strings are plucked and all kinds of little objects are used. The drummer plays constantly but in a non-dominant way. With a soft voice Lore declaims a text on few moments during the trip. Yes, together they make an interesting brew or pastiche of electro-acustical music. Really intense music from time to time. This group has potential. But if my information is correct Budapastis is not meant to be a permanent group. Alas. Also of considerable interest is the cd by the Anti Action Trio. In this hungarian-canadian cooperation we have again Zsolt Sórés, now playing with Laura Kavanaugh and Ian Birse. Kavanaugh (sampler, digital effects, mixer, microphone), Ian Birse (guitar, contact pick-ups, mixer feedback and sampler) and Sórés (viola, digital effects, cymbal, ebow, contact pick-up, flotsam & jetsam) also like to travel in electro-acustic environments. They playing is more tight compared with Budapastis. Kavanaugh and Birse have been collaborating since 1997 on audio and/or video work. Kavanaugh is a performance artist interested in real-time sound and image creation. The same for Birse who employs real-time video manipulation and electronic sound in immersive environments for his art. In 2001 they toured Eastern Europe and I suppose that on this trip they met Zsolt Sórés and decided to spent some time in the studio to create some audio work. Another nice cd of electro-acustical music is the result. To conclude the Heyermears label, that is associated with the Kassák Centre for Intermedial Creativity in Slovakia, is an interesting outlet for experimental music from eastern Europe. Hope to hear more from this label (DM). Address: http://www.k2ic.sk HANS TEUBER / PAUL RUCKER - OIL (CD by Jackson Street Records) PAUL RUCKER - HISTORY OF AN APOLOGY (CD by Jackson Street Records) Out of nowhere (Seatlle to be more exact) come these two recordings from the new Jackson Street Records label. For more background information surfing to their address is not of great help at the moment. Most of it is still ‘under construction’. To start with ‘History of an Apology’, I’m surprised to see such a varied company of musicians. Bill Horist and Bill Frisell. Two very different guitarists. Amy Denio on accordion. Veteran trombone-player Julian Priester, who played with Sun Ra for some time if I’m not mistaking. Farko Dosumov a popular bassist from Uzbekistan (!) accompanied by several other musicians from the Seatlle scene (Hans Teuber, Jacques Willis, Erik Anderson, Issac Marshall, Flora McGill, a.o.) The cd is recorded bit by bit between November 2001 and March 2003. Not all musicians apperar on all tracks. Most tracks have between 6 and 9 musicians playing Ruckers’ compositions. Exceptions are the short intro-piece played by saxplayer Hans Teuber and the great solo cry from misses Josephine Howell in the gospel-rooted piece ‘Lost years’. The ensemble pieces offer a fusionlike and entertaining kind of jazz. The titletrack has a burning guitarsolo by Bill Frisell. We hear nicely layerered arrangements. Unusual instruments for this kind of jazz as melodica and accordion. Alas all good players assembled here, can’t help that music sounds dull at moments. The compositions refer to the 60s and 70s state of the art. ‘Oil’ also sounds traditional in this respect. But it’s much better then ‘History of an Apology’ in my experience. ‘Oil’ is a collaboration of Hans Teuber (alto sax) and Paul Rucker (cello). The pieces don’t sound instantly composed to me. In some tracks themes are lend from other compositions. In ‘Somber Time’ we here ‘In the Summertime’. There is a lot more of unity and togetherness in the playing here compared with ‘Apology’. A modest and sincere work is created by both gentlemen. The playing is warm, lyrical and sophisticated. They love melodic lines. It’s a record that perfectly would fit in the ECM-catalogue (DM). Address: http://www.jacksonstreetrecords.com FORMATT: CONNECTIONS / SAMULI ALAPURANEN : APINAVIDEO (CDR by Abflug) VERHAVERBEKE KRZYZOSIAK : IKKUNA / VYGANDAS SIMBELIS : IN ARMY OF LOVERS (CDR by Abflug) HINTERLANDT : SITTING, GOING PLACES / KARRI O. : DEPARTURES AND ARRIVALS (CDR by Abflug) Abflug is a new Finnish label based in Helsinki both dedicating its releases to sound and video arts. The first three releases of the label seem very promising each containing an aural and a visual part. On the first release of Abflug, Belgian artist Formatt takes care of the aural side, working in the field of atmospheric ambient. 23 minutes of delicate waving ambient swirling alongside crackling noises and subtle pulsing beats lying somewhere between deep ambient composers like Steve Roach and clicks'n cuts legend Kit Clayton. On the visual side we find Samuli Alapuranaen working with moving pictures of apes in a rain forest added a gentle synth-tune with subtle drones underneath. The three minutes tune functions as the soundtrack to the slow moving pictures and it does work well. Second Abflug release presents Verhaverbeke Krzyzosiak on the audio side and Vygandas Simbelis on the video side. Verhaverbeke works in the field of ambient-based guitar experiments. Subtle noisescapes of clicks and crackles stand as a great background for the five tracks of guitar tones and gentle strumming. As with the first Abflug release the visual side is the most abstract part. Controlled by Lithuanian artist Vygandas Simbelis the video titled "Army of lovers" presents different toy dolls jumping on camera close-up. The soundtrack sounds like field recordings of a continuously running reel containing sounds of percussions as well as human noises. As the movie develops echoed sounds appear and the sound spectre turns from minimal to a more varied expression. What goes for the audio part of the three releases, the third release contains the least accessible but nevertheless also very interesting work. German composer Jochen Gutsch (a.k.a. Hinterlandt) has a musical background ranging from classical trumpet to noise guitar. His work takes its starting point in four different pieces each titled after certain locations around the world. Even though Hinterlandt also focuses on an ambient sort of expression his style seems more psychedelic and crossover-like with among others elements of jazz. Owner of the Abflug-label represents the visual side of third release. As revealed in the chosen label name, Karri O. has an interest in air transportation, which also comes clear with his video "Departures and Arrivals". Greasy video recordings of aero planes at terminals and aero planes about to take off slowly fades in and out as minimal ambientscapes of backwards moving sound samples represent the soundtrack. "Departures and arrivals" are the most straight lined piece of video art of the three releases. Overall three very promising releases of the Abflug label, also making some extra points in the conceptual idea of combining sound art and video art into one disc. (NMP) Address: http://www.abflugrec.com COMFORTER VS LEFTHANDEDDECISION (CDR by Spirals Of Involution) COMFORTER - BLATNOJ CHANSON (CDR by Spirals Of Involution) HOW TO USE YOUR FRIENDS AS ORGAN DONORS (CDR compilation by Spirals Of Involution) TELEPHERIQUE VS ALIENLOVERS IN AMAGASAKI - GLOBALISERUNG (CDR by Spirals Of Involution) Spirals Of Involution is a small Russian CDR label that releases unknown Russian musical projects aswell as some more well-known western bands captured in live concert in Russia (like the Ohne CDR reviewed elsewhere) and a forthcoming Pan Sonic disc. Comforter is a band that I can be really short about. It's noise music of the very loud and very aggressive kind. Distorted radio signals, fed through a couple of old synths and the rusty circuits of guitar effects pedals, and the volume crancked up to ten while recording (just because an eleven was not available). Likewise I don't know much about Lefthandeddecision or how the piece 'The Study Of Hate & Whiskey' was made, but they seem to care more about some built up throughout a piece. But by and large they cover similar ground. Nice for the initiated, but best left alone there. Things get interesting on three way group compilation 'How To Use Friends As Organ Donors' - it's not that Comforter does anything comforting or different than on the previous two releases, but the more inspiring moments come here from Daruin, the act of Kazuya Ishigami who displays his love of cutting up sounds through digital editing techniques. Noise is his thing too, but at least it's moving along and it has more variety. The most interesting pieces are by Alexei Borisov (see also Vital Weekly 328) whose noise seem to have some purpose at least - not just painful agony, but he's actually composing around with the found noise snippets. The most experienced player of the three - and it shows. The final new release by Spirals Of Involution is a collaborational effort between the well-known German underground trouppe Telepherique and Alienlovers In Amagasaki. They both have two tracks of their own and two tracks in which they rework eachothers material. Behind Alienlovers there is the same guy as Thirdogan. Of course he is known, and no need to change that view when choosing a new name, as a noise musician. His portion, both in his solo works, aswell as in his collaborational piece, is that of computerized noise. The picture on the cover of him probably says it all. After which, actually first on the release, the music of Telepherique is sheer pleasure. Calm, atmospheric, multi-layered sounds of synths and concrete sounds. Maybe not top of the avant-garde, but after a couple of hours captured in noise land, actually a total relief. But for all releases: nice packaging! (FdW) Address: http://soi.yoll.net PAUL WIRKUS/MARCUS KUERTEN - HEBAN (CDR by Authorized Version) Solo work by Marcus Kuerten has been reviewed before (see Vital Weekly 388) and also his work with Polish sound artist Paul Wirkus (Vital Weekly 307). On the latter they use computer and analogue synthesizer in a very nice piece of drone music, but for their new release, two collaboration tracks and one solo track by Wirkus, I am not so sure what the sound input is. I think I heard various string instruments, a piano and a choir, but somehow I don't see them conducting an ensemble of players together, so it may easily be coming from a computer. Especially the solo piece by Wirkus sounds like either a taped or sampled choir piece. Heavenly voices, in loop mode and with slight variations. This piece, 'Grabarka' walks on a very thin line between kitsch and serious avant-garde. The collaborational pieces maybe also sampled, but most defintely less kitschy. Very minimal sounding, with maybe samples of orchestral instruments (like pizzicato strings in 'Ohne'), an occassional bang on a piano, this comes close to modern classical minimal music, but interesting enough not close to Steve Reich et al, because this is all going at a very slow pace without hardly any move at all. Especially the two collaborational pieces are great and I'm lesser convinced about Wirkus' solo piece. (FdW) Address: http://www.a-version.co.uk EVERY KID ON SPEED VS EVERY KID ON ACID (CDR by Retinascan) From the ever active underground computer music scene dividing their time between putting MP3s online and releasing music on CDR, comes Antonio Dimitrov, from Skopje, Macedonia. He runs the Acid Fake label and has various musical projects, such as Microsound_00, Sound_00, Every Kid On Acid and Every Kid On Speed. This new release sees him remixing himself. The difference between 'Acid' and 'Speed' is that the 'acid' monniker is 'dark ambient' and that 'speed' is about glitch and cut up electronics. The whole dark ambient thing has vanished in these remixes as it is all about glitch and cut ups. Dimitrov throws a lot of sounds into the computer and produces in a rather improvised way a noisy, a nasty and speedy cut up electronica. I have no idea what he is using here, but it seems to me that he opened the box of max/mspandora and that the software eats it's way like a maggot through his sound files. Music that arrives with this speed is an attack on the senses. The short seventh track of vinyl cracks doesn't bring the peace. Even when I liked this release a lot, I'm glad it's only twenty minutes - for such mayhem a perfect length. (FdW) Address: http://www.retinascan.de NEBOGEO - PRESENTS: 0 (CDR by Retinascan) Pawfal is a website devoted to free software, made for Linux computers and it is also a community of musicians using the software. Nebogeo is one such group of artists, or maybe just one person - the website has a lot of information that is not really clear about this. Whatever may be the case, Nebogeo makes electronic, techno influenced music. Simple ticking away, a bit crude on the production side and a bit unclear what the software does that is available, because it's hard to see what makes this music different from the many others who operate in similar territory of broken beats and atmospheric synths. What is left are eleven nice tracks, nothing earthshaking new, but a pleasent listen throughout. Sometimes that's all there is and it's ok. (FdW) Address: http://www.retinascan.de YANNICK DAUBY & CHRISTOPHE HAVARD (CDR by and/OAR) You will have to excuse me for the delay of this review, but somehow, somewhere this release was misplaced in the Vital HQ (humho), but a review is never too late. The recording is almost two years old and is described on the cover as a 'improvised laptop duet' - actually I saw this only after I had heard it. I swear it was a combination of the good old laptop in combination with someone producing electro-acoustic sounds, amplified tin foil, screws and bolts, combs: that sort of thing. Well, maybe they were on the laptop as original sound sources. In the course of forty-three minutes, things unfold only a very slow rhythm - a gentle moving glitch (as opposed to glitches), almost inaudible passage and whatever software they are using: it is hardly to be recognized. Maybe it's just two guys playing their finished soundworks and nothing is improvised? It certainly sounds like it. I am sure not many improvisers would agree with me here, but saying something sounds like it's composed, while it's actually improvised, is probably an insult to the rigid improv minds. But I rather see it as a compliment. Only at certain times, this sounds improvised, but for the better part, it sounds like a well-planned thing. Either way: it doesn't matter. The result is nice and that's what counts. (FdW) Address: http://www.and-oar.org/ XV PAROWEK - KILOGRAMY (CDR by XV Parowek Records) Hailing from Poland comes Bartek Kalinka, aka XV Parowek, who was inspired by Einsturzende Neubauten when he started in 1994 to produce sound of his own. The first experiments were harsh noise, but over the years XV Parowek changed to what it is now: musique concrete inspired noise, that is generated, I think, in an improvised way. The cover lists, quite funnily '50% objects, 20% filtering, effects, 20% radio, 5% field recording and 5% other'. It's not entirely clear to me whether he uses a computer or that it is old fashioned four track - I suspect it's the latter. There is a certain rawness to be noted in both recording and mixing of the sounds, that adds a very lively atmopshere to it. I was reminded to some very early Merzbow (in his cassette years) and the work of Brume. Both have a similar in your face approach, a sound that allows no silence, no point of rest but contrary jumps around leaving the listener breathless. I understand that this is one of the less noisy works of XV Parowek, so maybe that's why I like it... (FdW) Address: http://xvp.terra.pl TOSHIYA TSUNODA/CIVYIU KKLIU (2xminiCD by Bremstrahlung) RADU MALFATTI/ILYA MONOSOV (2xminiCD by Bremstrahlung) Bremstrahlung so far brought us two double CD compilations under the name 'lowercase'. Music that is beyond the threshold of hearing, pointing at the microscopic details of sound. Now they started a most curious project: a series of double mini CDs (even when they are pressed on 5 inch CDs) packed in a nice metal box. In total there will be ten metal boxes. Inside the first box we'll find Toshiya Tsunoda and Civyiu Kkliu. The first one is already known from his releases on Hapna, Sirr and Lucky Kitchen. Tsunoda is a man who tells what he is doing, even when the messages are cryptic. In 'Recorded Landscape: Pier' it is most obviously the environmental recording of a pier (although no water sounds are heard) and is a very dense recording which covers a really low bass end sound. The other two pieces are electronic pieces, unlike much other work by him. The first 'Fragments For Stereophony' is crackly and the second one consists of high pierced sounds. Unlikely pieces for Tsunoda but he is a man to record unlikely sources, so nothing is really a surprise... The second CD in this box is by Civyiu Kkliu, of whom I only know his Bake Records release '111'. It turned out that that work is part of a larger series, named '111-11111111111'. Unlike Tsunoda Kkliu doesn't describe what he is doing. I think he uses spaces with special acoustic conditions to play back his unnamed soundmaterial in. This new work is called '1111111' and is much louder, soundwise, then the previous Bake Records release. On the surface, it seems a very static drone, in which not much seems to be happening. Changes in the material only seem to happen at a very superficial level. Even upon very close listening, the changes might not be fully there and only when played at a moderate volume, things become alive in your own space; I am sure that's exactely the sort of thing Kkliu is aiming for. Here the conceptualism is at work on a great level. The second box has a work by Radu Malfatti and Ilya Monosov. Malfatti is mostly known as an improviser with people like Phil Durrant and Thomas Lehn, and he is one of the most minimal players around. His instrument is the trombone. In 'Selbander' he uses three of them (I am sure not at the same time) which uses the 16th intervals. Cutting silence as an equal part to the music - which is quite loud, I might add, in contrary to some of his more silent work - makes this into quite a crazy release. Maybe not as powerful as some of his other work, dwelling a bit too much on the conceptual approach, but nevertheless a powerful work. Ilya Monosov you may know from his LP on Elevator Bath, earlier this year (see Vital Weekly 359). For his work 'Structure #1, #2 and #3' he uses 'a computer, a trumpet, a nice daym a bad day and several other days in the year of 2002'. The shortest CD so far, which lots of silence in between very very sparse sounding material. Just an occassional bleep here, there, then and sometimes now. It certainly stretches the patience of the listener. With the use of silence both apparent in the Malfatti work aswell as here, it has become an important, if not equal factor in the composition. Once more the question of what music really is has been asked. I think the Monosov pieces are powerful pieces, contemplative and zen like, with massive silence and only the smallest particles at work. (FdW) Address: http://www.lowercasesound.com FCKN BSTRDS - TOTAL SECURITY (CDR by Hondenkoekjesfabriek) Recentely I reviewed a release from the Dutch underground scene that I am not really connected to, a CDR by Monobrain and De Fabriek (Vital Weekly 390) and here is another one. Hummmm.... what's it about? Good question. Ok, so, I think it's the documentation of an event dealing with safety and breach of privacy, camera control and big brother. The film on this CDR shows us in very small screen a kind of surveillance camera thing of the proceedings, people making music, dancing and just total mayhem. The music part, audio lasting just under eleven minutes, is of likewise noise. The Fckn Bstrds, for it is them who put on this rackett, are probably the best The Netherlands have to offer in noise music. An open collective of music makers cum performance troupe, usually their events end in chaos and anger. The sound here contains of just downright noise, people screaming (did anyone say 'dick' in there?), feedback and distorted rhythms. Despite the vagueness of the whole thing, one can grasp a little of what was going on back in april - state control happens everywhere, but little cells remain free and celebrate their freedom. (FdW) Address: http://www.angelfire.com/stars3/fcknbstrds/de-HONDENKOEKJESFABRIEK.html PEETALL - RMXS 2 - FOR JEFF SURAK (MP3 by Earlabs) In Vital Weekly 374 Jeff Surak discussed a MP3 release by Peetall, a mysterious project, who delivered three remixes of the fab four (The Residents?) and said it was a fine granular mash, using 'the usual plugins' - especially that last thing upsetted Peetal, but they took on the challenge and tried to improve things on new fab four (The Gang Of Four?) remixes. I had a peep back then at the Peetal tracks, but wasn't blown away by it. Too noisy and not enough structured for my taste. But the new pieces sound much better. I dare not speak about plug ins - let alone usual plug ins (before you know they deliver another remix) - but structure is apperent here. It's mostly done by editing small sounds, treating them carefully and cook up a nice collage out of intro's and outro's. Even for non lovers of the fab four (Four Tops?) a fine treat. (FdW) Address: http://www.earlabs.org DO MAKE SAY THINK - WINTER HYMN COUNTRY HYMN SECRET HYMN (CD by Constellation) Fourth release from Toronto, Canada based collective Do Make Say Think. If I understand the cover info correctly, we get three hymns - Winter Hymn, Country Hymn, Secret Hymn -, divided into nine songs. The opening hymn - the parts Frederica, War on Want and Auberge le Mouton Noir - delivers your usual instrumental post-rock, where outbursts of hard noiserock are countered by meandering pieces - slow, military mars driven, with melodic strings or woodwind added. Intense and exiting. The same can be said about the second three-piece, Outer Inner & Secret, 107 Reasons Why and Ontario Plates. Because of the painfully haunting cry of the electric guitar in the first part, the band sounds exactly like label-mates Godspeed You! Black Emperor. Come to think of it, it must be said that a lot of the releases from the Constellation label sound awfully alike. Not especially a bad thing - on themselves usually high quality albums -, but chances are the long-time follower starts to get exhausted. In 107 Reasons Why Do Make Say Think experiments with jazz-chords, and that‚s pleasantly refreshing. The closing hymn - Horns of a Rabbit, It‚s Gonna Rain and Hooray! Hooray! Hooray! - steps back into the standard post-rock idiom again first (although the recording seems reworked with some interesting sound-effects) to slowly slip into a joyful pop-ditty, full of twanging guitars and electronics with easy listening tendencies. Winter Hymn Country Hymn Secret Hymn is definitely a good album, but you probably own most of it under different titles from different other bands already. If that‚s a problem is up to the listener. (RT) Address: http://www.cstrecords.com 1. From: "hagshadow" Hinoeuma present: Harbinger Soundclash Vol 1. Thursday 20 NOVEMBER 2003 Merzbow http://hatomasamune.easter.ne.jp/merzbow/ SCHIMPFLUCH-GRUPPE SUDDEN INFANT solo-set, circa 20 min. DAVE PHILLIPS, solo-set, 10 min. SCHIMPFLUCH-GRUPPE, ca. 25 min. ALEPH EMPIRE's solo is turntablism, 20 min. http://www.suddeninfant.com - www.tochnit-aleph.com [MIGROS KULTURPROZENT] The New Blockaders 20th Antiversary Offensive - the final live performance http://www.thenewblockaders.org.uk Anomali http://www.hypnagogia.org.uk Putrefier http://search.yahoo.com/search?p=Putrefier EMIL BEAULIEAU America's Greatest Living Noise Artist http://www.rrrecords.com/ Venue: Red Rose ,129 Seven Sister Road N7 Finsbury ParkTube From 8.pm To 2.am £.10 only at the door info : hagshadow@f... or: harbingersound@l... www.geocities.com/hagshadow http://www.geocities.com/hagshadow/harbingersound.html www.harbingersound.com tel: 07940079615 --------------------------------------- Coombe Records & CEE present : midRange : An evening of phonography, new experimental electronic music & film Fractured clicks, collaged rhythms, drifting electronic soundscapes, harmonious tones & atonal drones with special guests: Troum [Transgredient / Staalplaat / Drone Records] - GER Pawel Grabowski [Flat Music / ArtGenda] - PL Dual [Drone Records / Coombe / CEE] - UK iD [ex-Headbutt / Project Dark] - UK m u r m e r [Bake / Absurd / Resonance FM] - US plus DJ's iMAX [SLOW SOUND SYSTEM] - UK midRange residents - UK Film and visuals by iMAX [SLOW SOUND SYSTEM] - UK GR. [Coombe / Fat Cat] - UK Brown Sierra [Noisegate / Atavistic Ratchets] - UK 8pm - 2am Friday 21st November 2003 £5.00 on the door : midRange : @ The Red Rose Club 129 Seven Sisters Road London N7 7QG Tube / BR: Finsbury Park Buses: 4 / 29 / 153 / 253 / 259 more info: +44 (0)20 7281 3051 cee@dual.co.uk info@coomberecords.com http://www.coomberecords.com http://www.dual.co.uk http://www.noisegate.org.uk http://www.slowsound.net http://www.troum.com http://www.projectdark.demon.co.uk 2. From: "N.Veliotis/E.Spyridou" looper ‘cannot speak to my dying mother' scandinavian tour 16 oct. hamar – toneheim folkhogskole kl 22:00 – [audio] 17 oct. oslo – blå 20:00 – [audio + video]   19 oct.   gothenburg – fagelbergskyrkan 18:00 – [audio] 20 oct. stockholm – fylkingen 19:30 – [audio + video]   looper: martin küchen – saxophone & pocket radio nikos veliotis – cello & video ingar zach - percussion 3. From: douglas benford PRESS RELEASE OST & Si-cut.db UK tour OST (aka Dalglish/Chris Douglas) and Si-cut.db (Douglas Benford) play some UK dates in November, as part of a Highpontlowlife label tour, with same label acts Motion & N.LN joining them along the way. Dates: London Arts Cafe, with Motion (25 November), Stoke Talbot Hotel with Motion (26), Oxford The Cellar with Motion (27), Glasgow 13th Note with N.LN (29), Nottingham Moogbar with N.LN (30), Brighton Freebutt with N.LN (4 Dec). In addition, N.LN also plays London Sprawl 3 Dec, and Si-cut.db plays Sprawl's Interplay 2 festival 19 Nov. For details & added dates see www.highpointlowlife.com 4. From: November 7, 2003 Turnament - A Festival of Turntablism MC - for the first time in Los Angeles in more than 15 years - The Rappin' Duke Ace & Duce - Los Angeles (Los Angeles Free Music Society founders) amk - Los Angeles (flexidisc collages on classroom record players) DJ Icy-Ice - Los Angeles (Stacks Records proprietor and hip-hop prime over) DJ Jester - San Antonio (URB Magazine Next 100 artists 2003) DJ Quest - San Francisco (Live Human founder and "Hamster Breaks" mastermind) DJ Smallcock - Sydney (3000 RPMs of terror from Down Under) Dublab Soundsystem - Los Angeles (transglobal Internet broadcasting pioneers) Emil Beaulieau - Lowell (performing a dignified and professional tutorial on anti-records) Installations (in the Derby Room) David Woodard - Los Angeles - lecture / exposition of the Brion Gysin Dreamachine DJ Meeuw - Amsterdam (dancehall) The New Blockaders - anti-concert 9:30 p.m., The Derby Nightclub 4500 Los Feliz Boulevard (corner of Hillhurst Avenue and Los Feliz Boulevard) Los Angeles, California 90027 323 663 8979 fon http://www.the-derby.com/ Admission at the door - $25 / $20 UCLA students with valid identification Contact info@turnament.com for advance ticket sales information 5. From: KOJI ASANO Music Production Koji Asano plays in Cordoba / Lisboa / Athens --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- October 11 @ El Quiñón, 22:00 Sensxperiment 2003 festival Lucena - Córdoba October 24 with João Pinto @ Sonic Scope/número festival Lisboa October 30 October 31 @ Small Music Theatre Athens 6. From: Consumer This month some friends of Consume have organised a lovely, spiritually uplifting festival focussing on the mind body and soul. As well as fortune tellers, psychics, tribal drummers and a Royal Navy stand there will be all sorts of homeopathic/alternative treatments available on the site to soothe all tired souls. Oh, and there will also be an alternative music tent featuring the following international musicians: KILL YR TIMID NOTION OCTOBER 17th - 19th DUNDEE DCA Friday 17th 7:00 Cyclo [Carsten Nicolai + Ryoji Ikeda] 8:10 Steve Roden 9:20 alva noto [Carsten Nicolai] Saturday 18th 12:45: short film programme 1 4:45 Corpus Collosum: Michael Snow 7:00 Philip Jeck 8:10 [the user] 9:20 Mirror with Phantom Engineer: Haxan 10:30 Sunburned Hand Of The Man Sunday 19th 12:45: Invasion of Thunderbolt Pagoda: Ira Cohen 4:00 short film programme 2 6:30 Akaten / Zoffy / Zubi Zuva X 7:00 Ruins 8:00 Acid Mothers Temple 9:10 Phonographics. Live [Deutsch, Siewert, Fennesz, Dafeldecker, Stangl] Day pass 10 pounds/8 pounds Festival pass 25 pounds /22 pounds more info go here: http://killyourtimidnotion.org 7. From: "Claudio Parodi" Claudio Parodi on reeds Claudio Parodi Turkish clarinet, raita (Tunisian reed) + guest musicians from Circolo ARCI N.A. "EXTRA" www.extra-artnet.it Friday, October the 17th h. 18.00 Piazza Loggia Brescia h. 22.00 Ko Keb Piazza Loggia Brescia contacts: Claudio Parodi Via Trieste 46/23 16043 Chiavari (GE) Italia tel. +39 0185307740 mobile +39 3290276077 e-mail: cla.parodi@libero.it