Z Tapes always produces charming, simple surprises. This one comes in the form of Australian/Serbian troupe Lalić, whose album reminds me of what demos of early Railway Children, Movement-era New Order and maybe something a tape collection inside the Postcard Records post box might sound like. Worthy.
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[Music] Vainoras and the altar of the drill – Life,Love,Doomjazz
The more I hear doomjazz artists, the more enthralled I become with the genre. It sounds as though jazz-noir combines well with a nearly ambient aesthetic. Our latest case-in-point are the Australian group Vainoras and the altar of the drill. This release appeared out of nowhere last night, and it has had my ears perked up ever since.
There is a mellow, spacious, yet creepy vibe flowing throughout the album. It’s not unnecessarily noisy at all, which makes the experience much more pleasant. This is music to think and fume to.
[Music] Richmond Avant Improv Collective – Chance Operations
As I finally had a long stretch of time where I could actually enjoy hearing whole albums again, I decided that RAIC would be Album Number One today. What a revelation this one has turned out to be!
According to the collective’s Bandcamp website for this release, “Chance Operations was inspired by John Cage’s “Silence.” RAIC often brings together musicians who normally would never play together. For Chance Operations, twenty musicians from a wide range of backgrounds- jazz, rock, noise and world music, some with backgrounds in improvisation and some without – came together at Etching Tin Studios in Richmond, Virginia. The musicians’ names were written on different ping pong balls and then placed in a sealed container. In a separate container were balls with the number for the ensemble ranging from a duet to a sextet.” Chance operation, indeed.
The album itself makes for eerie listening. There is one track which stood out for me, “Irrigating An Arid World,” where shrieks, wailing and very sparse instrumentation make one feel like they are on a heavy hallucinogenic trip. The spirit of John Cage having a heavily spiked mushroom tea with Sun Ra and, maybe, Cathy Berberian or Diamanda Galás, permeates this album. The group have a new album coming soon, and I’m already looking forward to hearing much more from them.
[Music] Mikhail Chekalin – Symphony-Phonogram
Mikhail Chekalin deserves at least as credit for being a leading light in electronic music and New Age music as artists like Klaus Schulze, Peter Frohmader or Vangelis. That might be a provocative statement to some who enjoy this kind of music, but I think the comparison stands, as Mikhail has been releasing quality music consistently for so long that a new album is simply expected to be solid now. He’s never let me down yet.
[Music] Various Artists – Witchcraft & Black Magic In The United Kingdom
Our friend and compatriot Raffaele Pezzalla (the legend behind Sonologyst, Unexplained Sounds Group and Eighth Tower Records) has made yet another masterful compilation, bringing together such acts as Rapoon, Michael Bonaventure and Daniel Williams to pay tribute to one of England’s quirkier periods – that of witchcraft in the British Isles.
I see the history of witchcraft from both a Christian and historical point of view which differs from what the liner notes say, but be that as it may, the compilation is solid, and I only regret I didn’t review this about two weeks ago, as it makes for great Halloween / All Souls’ Day listening.
[Music] Ginger Baker Band (with Bill Laswell and Foday Musa Suso) – Kagaribi
The late Ginger Baker was one of the most powerful and innovative drummers to ever grace rock music, especially since he never truly considered himself a “rock” drummer, but rather a jazz drummer. You can hear it in this release where he collaborates with legendary bassist Bill Laswell and Gambian griot Foday Musa Suso for this 20-minute EP.
Suso and Baker play their instruments off of each other beautifully, while Laswell anchors the chaos. Recommended.
[Music] Ze Roberto – Lotus 72 D
Much respect to Mr. Bongo Records for releasing a track considered to be the ‘holy grail’ of Brazilian pop, Ze Roberto’s classic Lotus 72 D, a paean to Formula 1 race car driver Emerson Fittipaldi, who was crowned world champion in 1972.
Apparently, the fast version of this song is the one that is most well-known, yet it seems that version was pitched up. Track 1 is the correct version, but both are included in this 7-inch.
[Music] Meadowsilver – The Coronation of the Herring Queen
From the ashes of The Hare And The Moon comes Meadowsilver, at least as how I understand it. Grey Malkin continues to be one of the leaders of psychedelic neofolk, and will eventually take his place among acts like the Legendary Pink Dots, Comus and the like.
This is way too small a taste of this new project, of course, so we wait to see what Meadowsilver will produce next.
[Music] Richard Pinhas & Merzbow – Rhizome
This release bridges the not-so-large gap between genres, connected by Heldon guitarist and loop master Richard Pinhas, and perhaps the most prolific post-Industrial composer of all time, Masami Akita (under his performance monicker Merzbow).
This is a live recording performed live during the Sonic Circuits Festival, September 24, 2010 at La Maison Française [The French Embassy] in Washington D.C. The sound quality is superb, and as one would expect from two masters of their respective fields, their instruments of choice (guitar and loops for Pinhas, computer for Merzbow) ebb and flow into each other effortlessly. This is a powerful release, and I hope it is the beginning of a long-term collaboration between both.
[Music] Da Voile – Heitt Hjortu
Da Voile are a one-man post-rock band out of Minsk, Belarus. They compare favorably to bands like Sigur Rós or Explosions In The Sky. This EP has turned out to be a very impressive release.
If you are a fan of the genre, this release will not leave you feeling disappointed at all. The guitar work is excellent, as it soars and dives effortlessly, and is supplemented with a fair amount of noise that doesn’t overwhelm the beauty of the tracks.
A Miscellany Of Tasteful Music 