I had the pleasure of reviewing Mrs. Fradejas a couple of days ago, and now it’s time to review Mr. Fradejas! Santiago’s new release sits in an equally unique point on the music reference chart. One can find something akin to post-Industrial noise, a brutalist interpretation of contemporary classical music, improvisation in the fine European-American free jazz tradition, and avant-progressive rock which labels like Cuneiform Records champion. Another masterpiece by one of the best young composers operating in Europe today.
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[Music] Shoom – Tried To Sing But Couldn’t
Thirteen years ago, I was given an opportunity to work with Shoom, an Israeli band whose sound nestles comfortably within the realm of Mediterranean ethnocore, avant-rock and ethno-rock, a term I’ve not heard in quite some time, but which seems appropriate for this band.
Lots of percussion and guitars flow quite nicely with a duduk making melodies on top. Definitely worth a listen to this album, as well as their back catalog.
[Music] Tomáš Kočko & Orchestr – Velesu
Tomáš Kočko and his orchestra hail from the Czech Republic, and have been storming their way up World Music Charts Europe recently. It’s pretty easy to see why. The music mixes Moravian music elements in an updated framework, adding touches of progressive rock, neo-folk, and even trends in electronic music. Ancient Great Moravia comes to life in this album, and its sound is breathtaking.
Here’s a taste from the upcoming album:
[Music] Troum – Acouasme
Stefan Knappe is a man who wears many hats. He runs Drone Records, which releases some of the best in dark ambient and experimental music, and serves as both a mailorder and distributor of music not directly found on his label as well.
The talent we wish to concentrate on is as a composer with his project TROUM. In this release from 2015, Knappe unleashes a cascade of some of the darkest experimental music I’ve heard in some time. It is dark, however, in a way that is not vulgar or cheap, as too so-called ‘noise’ bands are wont to be. You won’t hear any children with vile fetishes for rapists or serial killers who turn on their vacuum cleaners and try to sell this as ‘music’. No, in this case, Knappe actually goes through the process of crafting something worthy of being a soundtrack to a very intense film. There is a lot of sub-bass throbbing and pulsating, but all of it done with the precision of a master surgeon who knows how to weild his scalpel. TROUM is always releasing music of note, or collaborating with others to do the same.
If you have a Bandcamp account, follow his work. You will find no disappointments there.
[Music] A.M Ferrari Fradejas – Dominique Worships The Sun
A.M Ferrari Fradejas is a composer based in France who also happens to be the wife of noted guitarist and composer Santiago Frajedas, whose amazing work has graced these pages in the past. Ferreri Frajedas’ new release is an absolute delight to listen to, and it came as a shock to my ears.
I was expecting progressive rock, and I was rewarded with that in spades. What I didn’t expect to find was a deep thread of ethereal music, some of which reminded me of past bands like Chandeen or Love Is Colder Than Death. There is also a touch of cabaret music here, as well as reminisces of groups like Slapp Happy, Henry Cow and Dagmar Krause’s solo work. Fans of Laurie Anderson might find something familiar here as well.
It was weird, hazy, and utterly fun listening for me.
[Music] The Wedding Present – Going, Going…
The Wedding Present have a brand new album out! This one is very strange, as the first half has more of a weird ambient or even post-rock-ish feel to it, nothing like what one would expect. From Track 5 onward, despite David Gedge’s voice thinning out a touch, it’s the great guitar playing one expects from the Weddoes.
[Music] Breatherrr – Chantrieri
I NEVER get mail from local bands or record labels. It’s been a constant since I started writing to musicians. Part of it was because I could see them at my leisure, but part of it was because it wasn’t ‘cool’ to talk to local indie rags, only to people from the outside. Well, today, I can say that I can finally promote a local person. Breatherrr is a trip-hop act with retro influences which bring up genres like electro and new wave. I’ll have to investigate further.
[Music] vivienxo – w84u
vivienxo is a Finnish musician who does ‘dreampop’. I have no idea what the genre really is, but there’s a lovely, muffled sound to it that reminds me of old 80s dreampop that I’m familiar with, such as bands like Dream Academy. Definitely worth investigating further.
[Music] Mary Halvorson & Noël Akchoté – Mary Halvorson & Noël Akchoté
I have to admit that I’ve been waiting for such a release to come about for a while now. Noël Akchoté, perhaps the most prolofic guitarist working in improvisational music today (and maintaining astoundingly high quality throughout each release) pairs with NYC-based Mary Halvorson, a guitarist I have only become acquainted with this past year. This is a purely improvised duet, with no rehearsals, recorded in Belgium this year.
For those who already collect the work of Noël Akchoté, this will be another treasure to add to your collection. As for Mary’s work, this is a fine introduction, which makes me want to delve into her solo work.
Lost in Kiev ~ Nuit Noir — a closer listen
At first, the deep-throated vocalizations and dialogue samples are a curiosity, their necessity not immediately apparent. But after the album is played to its bitter end, all is revealed. These nine pieces represent the Nuit Noir (black night), and serve as impressionistic short stories: shock fiction, if you will. Spoken words may set the stage, but on […]
A Miscellany Of Tasteful Music 