Great Explorers
Originally released as a CD on the UK label Pickled Egg in 2009, Great Explorers is the second full-length effort from one-man dynamo The Doozer. Siltbreeze was delightfully chuffed to make its acquaintance (by way of Matt Valentine's suggestion) and agreed to release it unto all the world on the much-sought-after vinyl format. Hailing from Cambridge, England, The Doozer bears an almost uncanny vocal resonance to past legend Syd Barrett, as well as a knack for cobbling together occasional…
Fin Eaves
We don’t write record reviews often these days thanks to the current paradigm of online music journalism. Considering our hyperactivie information age zeitgeist, why do you need some blowhard like myself describing a record to you when you can just pipe in the preview on Last.fm or whatever? With that said, it takes a certain type of album to convince me that I have some serious science to impart on others, and spirit warriors Cloudland Canyon’s latest, Fin Eaves, is just that type of work. Thi…
Auf Wiedersehen
A lasting gravestone release from Philadelphia's Clockcleaner packs in more drama than your mama with enough bad attitude to make the food court cry. Since 2007's release of "Babylon Rules", Clockcleaner have toured the trailer park areas of the United States as well as conquering the scorched earth of Australia. During this time the band recorded this 4 song EP length record that sharpens their midnight howl in a direction only hinted at in previous releases. The band now operates in a d…
For Alto
One of the first solo saxophone recordings of the 60s – recorded as one of the first few sessions by a young Anthony Braxton! As the title implies, the whole album features alto sax – played freely by Braxton with a depth of creativity and sense of humanity to rival any of the previous greatness of his generation from bigger names on labels like Impulse or ESP. There's a great sense of restraint here too – not one that has Braxton on the inside of the jazz spectrum, but which keeps him …
Urge To Kill
Nobody knows what a Brainbomb is, but with the sounds of this record strapped close to your skull you will not need your fancy pants college thesaurus to figure out exactly what the meaning is. This record is maximum, in-the-red and dealing with more issues than a year of after school specials. Sounds like a fried out speaker blowing a mix of Detroit fueled orgy fun and evil bad-assery. Driving around in your car, being tired, picking up hitchhikers and killing them with hammers and scre…
Singles Compilation
THE BRAINBOMBS use a horn, scraping guitars and the mindset of a mentally impaired killer to bring some dark damage to the putrid remains of the corpse of rock music. When the band started, they were much more in line with the European industrial scene of the time. Though they use the tools of the rock trade, Brainbombs instead breath from the fart-helmet of minimal repetitious overload. To this a drugged out horn floats in the mix. The collection of songs on this release documents the ba…
Refuse This Gift
The third album Refuse This Gift from Bear Claw is one of two records that ended up being part of a double whammy of releases from Sickroom Records just recently for me. Paired up, at least in my mind, with the excellent Conformists record (which you can find a couple posts below) Bear Claw gives a bit more of a traditional spin on the Chicago math/noise-rock sound compared to their label mates. With their third album Refuse This Gift the band hasn’t deviated all that much from their pr…
Collected Works 1995-96
This excellent collection of Masaki Batoh's (founding member of Ghost) "A Ghost From The Darkened Sea" and "Kikaokubeshi" brings together two albums recorded and released in 1995 and 1996, during the final period of conceptualization for Ghost's "Lama Rabi Rabi" album. These two solo records allowed Batoh to explore musics and textures in an entirely free space from the already quite free (and rapidly morphing) Ghost. This is a solo record in a very complete sense: aco…
IV
The fourth and final album to be released during Faust's original lifespan, originally released by Virgin Records in 1973. "As an album, IV matches the band's trajectory: Jumbled, fragmented, with random data integrity issues, but seeming more the brainchild of inspired pop anarchists than calculating avant-gardists. Yes, the record sounds more 'professional' than any of their others, but somehow that doesn't actually equate to slick sounds: Opener 'Krautrock' (which Irmler says wa…
Moon Phantoms
Moon Phantoms is a collaboration between the bands Bardo Pond and Suishou No Fune from Japan. This record came about as most of these collaboration records do by two bands doing a tour together, hitting it off and deciding it would be fun to record a session together. Here's a review I'm stealing from Aquarius Records who always seem to sum up the mood of an album perfectly in just a few sentences: "Deep in the forest ethno-drones, drenched in buzz and shimmer. Sitar, guitar, cumbas and all sor…
Onrushing Cloud
Although Onrushing Cloud is the first recording by this trio, Andrea Belfi (drums, percussion, electronics), David Grubbs (electric guitar, voice, piano) and Stefano Pilia (electric guitar) share a common bond in that they’ve all released solo works via the Swedish label, Hapna. On this album Grubbs and Pilia combine instrumental forces while Belfi sets out a backdrop of highly sensitive percussion and electronics. The outcome is a single, half-hour, flowing body of work thatâÂÂ…
Whitehouse
This project involves the unique German avant-garde orchestra performing a selection of tracks from the Whitehouse catalogue. The rehearsals and mixing were done in collaboration with William Bennett but he doesn't actually perform on the recordings. Anyone familiar with Zeitkreitzer's Rendition of Lou Reed classic Metal Machine Music will be fully aware that these guys can magnificently translate noise music and in this case electronic music through acoustic interments. Bennet's compositions h…
Solo Works : The '70s
This historic collection gathers together the four seminal solo albums recorded by Alvin Curran (b. 1938) in the 1970s. Two, Fiori Chiari Fiori Oscuri and The Works, are making their first appearance on CD. Author-critic Tim Page, an early advocate of these works, writes, 'Curran weaves electronic technology, an occasional acoustic instrument, voices and musique concrète ('found' music) into a multi-hued tapestry of sound. He holds these dissimilar elements together with a compelling subliminal …
Natural Information
AMONG THE WIRE'S BEST OF 2010! Joshua Abrams in an infectious groove-based album built around the guimbri, a 3-stringed animal hide bass used by the Gnawa of North Africa. "Bassist & composer Joshua Abrams has been in the thick of Chicago's vibrant music scene for fifteen years, playing & recording as leader & sideman in projects across the genres. He co-founded the 'back porch minimalist' band Town & Country (Thrill Jockey/Box Media), & with Matana Roberts & Chad Taylor, the trio Sticks & Stone…
SixSixSix
Six Six Six iz a collection ov material from the first 6 years ov Sleep Chamber. Mastermind John Zewizz gave permission to Theebradmiller.blogspot.com and VOD-Records to choose the tracks. The outcome reveals and demands for a renewed and extended perception of Sleep Chambers artistic synthesis of the last 30 years.On Lp1 as well as the 7“ you will find pure and very strong minimalsynth-tunes from his very early "cassette"- only releases like „Ze Wizz Kidz“(released 82 but recorded in 79/80), „D…
Valusia
Limited LP edition: Crescendo. That's the word that most aptly fits Valusia, the latest ep by wunderkind Nika Rosa Danilova, aka Zola Jesus. Building layer upon layer upon layer of synths and drums and vocals, Valusia, honestly, gets better the more times we spin it. Her career is on the upswing as well, with no signs of a de-crescendo: tours with Fever Ray, Wolf Parade, among other big names. The four songs on this 18 minute record stand with the best Zola Jesus has released. The "cleaner" soun…
Shunt
Strøm are Gaudenz Badrutt, pianist and electronic musician (1972) and Christian Müller (1971), clarinettist and electronic musician. Under the name of strøm the two artists from Biel mix since 2001 various ingredients: free improvisation with conceptual music, contemporary music ideas with free jazz explosions, down to earth, drifty energy with spherical sound. The duo mixes electro-acoustic chamber music skillfully with allusions to contemporary pop-aesthetics. Both musicians studied at …
À Prague
Étron Fou Leloublan is a mythic Seventies underground French band created by Chris Chanet (Aka Eulalie Ruynat, saxophone and vocals), Guigou Chenevier (Drums) and Ferdinand Richard (Bass & guitar). This leader of the French underground shows his sense of humour and derision on a deliciously weird music. This incredible trio happily destroys all rock structures and performs a delirious music, full of humour, of rhythm, close to Captain Beefheart's, Albert Marcoeur and ZNR. This unique musi…
Incapulco
Now, If you've been observant, little lads and ladies, you will have noticed we've had this available on Cd-r courtesy of Winged Sun already. Well, now it gets a full LP release which is more than likely due to the success of the excellent 'Ascension' and 'Shangri LA' LP's. I like High Wolf. In this age of power jamming without friends and space improv in space world, we find ourselves living in High Wolf make a lot of sense. Plus, this French dude is like, really good at, you know...jamm…
Disasters of self
I've known Joe for close to 15 years - his audio output for a few more. His composition techniques, recording and editing methods, and persistent refinement and redefining of his aural goals has helped to define a body of work that I firmly believe only few artists could hope to match. After a handful of releases on C.I.P., ranging from full-length CD to one-sided 7, my resolve solidified that Joe was a contemporary artist whose work deserved the focus, breadth, and depth of a multiple LP…