Saturday, June 12, 2010

[BB 048] Mœbius & Plank - Rastakraut Pasta (Album) CD 2010

Mœbius & Plank - Rastakraut Pasta
Label: Bureau B
Catalog#: BB048
Format: CD, Album, Reissue
Country: Germany
Released: 2010
Genre: Electronic
Style: Krautrock, Experimental

Credits: Artwork By [Cover By] - Mœbius
Bass - Holger Czukay (tracks: 3-4)
Composed By - Moebius & Plank

Tracklist:
1 News 4:53
2 Rastakraut Pasta 6:17
3 Feedback 66 4:58
4 Missi Cacadou 5:32
5 Two Oldtimers 7:03
6 Solar Plexus 4:55
7 Landebahn 1:29

'Rastakraut Pasta' is the 1980 album of odd studio experiments from the legendary Conny Plank and Dieter Moebius (also of Harmonia/Cluster/Kluster etc). In the scheme of things, this album appeared after some of Dieter's best works with Eno and Roedelius, and at the start of a fruitful pairing with seminal studio engineer, Plank, before they would go on to create the frankly awesome 'Zero Set' album together with Cosmic Courier, Manfred Neumeier. Obviously influenced by Jamaican dub and perhaps tired with lovely kosmiche trips, this album just reeks of smoke and heated circuitry, keeping the pace to a lethargic waddle throughout. The title track is basically a weirdo dub pattern scrawled with skronky Teutonic melodies and fizzing electronics from all corners of the studio and sounds like they had a wicked time making it. With 'Feedback 66' they version Ramones style punk at halfspeed with warped vocals, while there are a couple of more typical synthesizer workouts on 'Two Oldtimers' and 'Solar Plexus', but these both have a playful sense of humour that's generally not found in their other material. A landmark LP of late krautrock experimentation, then!

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[BB 049] Mœbius & Plank - Material (Album) CD 2010

Mœbius & Plank - Material
Label: Bureau B
Catalog#: BB049
Format: CD, Album, Reissue
Country: Germany
Released: 2010
Genre: Electronic
Style: Krautrock, Experimental


Credits: Artwork By - Kilian - Moebius
Composed By - Moebius & Plank
Producer - Moebius & Plank

Tracklist:
1 Conditionierer 8:47
2 Infiltration 7:40
3 Tollkühn 6:11
4 Osmo-Fantor 4:27
5 Nordöstliches Gefühl 7:15

'Material' is the second album of playful studio experimentation from Konrad 'Conny' Plank and Cluster's Dieter Moebius. It was produced in 1981 at Conny's studio and features the two long-standing friends and collaborators (Plank had worked as engineer on practically all of Moebius' records) in an endearingly explorative mode. The throbbing rockabilly send-up 'Conditionierer' makes a crazy start to the album, and much like the rest of their work at this time, strangely predates the techno culture of Germany by a decade or so. From here we pass through drowsy dub-tronica on 'Infiltration', to the exhilarating arpeggiations of 'Tollkuehn'and a pair of loungey off-world electronica tracks fixing kosmiche with dub techniques and an unimpaired imagination for new forms and styles. Awesome.

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[TYPE 050] On - Your Naked Ghost Comes Back At Night (Album) CD 2009

On - Your Naked Ghost Comes Back At Night
Label: Type Records
Catalog#: TYPE050
Format: CD, Album, Reissue
Country: UK
Released: 21 Jul 2009
Genre: Electronic
Style: Dark Ambient, Drone

Credits: Artwork By [Layout] - Radu Prepeleac
Drums, Percussion, Piano - Steven Hess
Guitar [Prepared, Electric] - Sylvain Chauveau
Mixed By - Helge Sten
Photography - Shawn Convey
Recorded By, Mastered By - Jeremy Lemos
Notes: Recorded at Acme Studios, Chicago, July 2003.
Mixed at Audio Virus Lab, Oslo, December 2003.

Tracklist:
1 Your Naked Ghost Comes Back At Night And Flies Around My Bed 7:02
2 Erotique 6:02
3 Too Many Demons Still Haunt This Land 6:48
4 Oh Run Slowly 5:54
5 Façade 12:08
6 In The Forest Of The Night 8:08
7 The Lonesome Poetry Of Mark Rothko 17:29

*For all intents and purposes, this is the great 'lost' Deathprod album* 'Your Naked Ghost Comes Back At Night' seemed to go fairly unnoticed by the great listening public when it was initially released on a small cd-only pressing by the French DSA label back in 2004, but has since become the stuff of legend. To many this has become one of the great 'lost' death ambient albums, and an all too-rare full-length excursion from one of the most revered producers of the century - Helge Sten, aka Deathprod. As a producer, Sten molds the source material into the kind of menacing analog atmosphere established on his classic 'Morals & Dogma' long-player, leaving you with one of the finest examples of the genre this side of Deathprod's own peerless four-disc boxset. The real beauty of this record lies in the richness of its sound matter: you'll never encounter a drab low-frequency hum on this record. When you gaze beneath the surface you're always sure to make out something buried deeply within its dusky obscurities. Even during its most oppressive moments, such as the writhing, concealed darkness of 'Facade' there's a loaded atmosphere that plays on the mind - its vast sonorous clanking somehow reminiscent of Quatermass II's unseen monstrous mass, thrashing around in the industrial plant's cooling towers. Equally, much of 'Your Naked Ghost...' sounds like being stuck at the bottom of the ocean in a submarine only to hear someone knocking from the outside. It creepily plays on the subconscious in ways most records couldn't possibly hope to, resounding with a hollow metallic quality that conveys the utmost sense of sonic profundity - leaving you with a vacuum you can't help but fill with all manner of gloomy associations. Despite the sinister undercurrents, this is an unmistakably beautiful hour of music. From the penetrating blip narratives of 'In The Forest Of The Night' to the entombed industrial timbres of 'The Lonesome Poetry Of Mark Rothko', every moment of this once desperately overlooked album is incredibly special. In short, it's an absolute must.

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[WIT 009] Saturn Form Essence - Abyss (EP) CD 2009

Saturn Form Essence - Abyss
Label: Witte Dood Records
Catalog#: WIT009
Format: CDr, Mini, Limited Edition, EP
Country: Netherlands
Released: 2009
Genre: Electronic
Style: Dark Ambient, Drone

Limited to 33 copies.

Tracklist:
1 Abyss 11:06

Sometimes the name says it all; the solo-project Saturn Form Essence from Ukraine paints images of space through electronic and ambient sounds. Even though the band is really young, it's managed to create three full-lenghts, three demos and two EP's - and all of them were released this year!

  The track is based on a really slow, calm, spacey, and somewhat low-pitch ambient pattern that progresses in a vein that makes me think that it was made (and possibly improvised) with a synthetisator; the chords changes also imply to that direction, they are that visible. The synth-track is backed by a bassy "two-chord" droning pattern that's repeated throughout the track. The drone pattern doesn't change, it just occasionally changes it's pitch or volume a bit. These two sounds fit well together and create a working whole, except for the brief moments when the drone gets too much space to itself as it just doesn't sound too good on it's own.

  Even though this track is rather good execution- and sound-wise, it's ideas and structure present really basic material; if you're into space ambient, it's most likely that you've heard similar stuff way too many times. The track lacks in ideas and daring, and even though the used sounds are good, especially the synth-sound is rather basic too. As the release is based on such a sparse amount of elements and changes, it gives it's all in a rather short amount of time.

Despite all that, the release does succeed in painting images of deep space and is good for an occasional listen. Based on all the material I've heard from the band, there would be need for a good deal of practicing the usage the chosen instruments, as well as refining the ideas.

Buy from wittedood or discogs



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[inre 040] H.U.V.A. Network - Live At Glastonbury Festival 2005 (Album) CD 2010

H.U.V.A. Network - Live At Glastonbury Festival 2005
Label: Ultimae Records
Catalog#: inre 040
Format: CD, Album, Limited Edition
Country: France
Released: 28 May 2010
Genre: Electronic
Style: Downtempo, Experimental, Ambient


Credits: Artwork By - Magnus Birgersson , Vincent Villuis
Mastered By - Vincent Villuis
Performer - Magnus Birgersson , Vincent Villuis
Written-By, Producer - Magnus Birgersson , Vincent Villuis (tracks: 1 to 9)


Tracklist:
1 Intro 3:21
2 Time Circles (Live) 5:29
3 Moon Town (Live) 6:46
4 Processing Lights (Live) 4:00
5 Access To The Long Fields (Live) 9:29
6 Indigo Room (Live) 6:44
7 Distances (Live) 14:35
8 Symetric Lifes (Live) 8:50
9 Rain Geometries (Live) 7:19
10 Overload (Live) 12:56

Limited Edition - Digifile CD format + postcards
Exclusively distributed by [ Ultimae.com ]

Magnus Birgersson aka Solar Fields and Vincent Villuis aka AES Dana
performed this memorable H.U.V.A. Network Live Act on the IDSpiral stage at British festival Glastonbury in 2005.

Expect some deep Downtempo beats, oneiric Trip Hop and Morning Trance.
Buy from
ultimae


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Thursday, June 3, 2010

[Digitalis Limited: LTD#122] Celer - Rags Of Contentment Cassette 2010

Celer - Rags Of Contentment
Label: Digitalis Limited
Catalog#: LTD#122
Format: Cassette, Limited Edition, C75
Country: US
Released: Feb 2010
Genre: Electronic
Style: Ambient


Credits: Artwork By [Design] - Rutger Zuydervelt
Music By - Danielle Baquet-Long , Will Long
Other [Titles By] - Danielle Baquet-Long
Notes: "Ahead of gainway, I think we'll both be trees by some pond one day."
Edition of 150 copies.


Tracklist:
A Pleased To Be In A State Of Sour Resplendency
B Things Gone And Still Here

Buy from discogs


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Hammock - North West East South (EP) CDr 2010

Hammock - North West East South
Label: Hammock Music
Catalog#: none
Format: CDr, EP, Limited Edition
Country: US
Released: 18 May 2010
Genre: Electronic, Rock
Style: Post Rock, Ambient


Credits: Performer - Hammock
Notes: Released as part of a limited edition book by the same title and packaged with a copy of Chasing After Shadows...Living With The Ghosts.
"North West East South" is a hardback, linen-bound volume that features 100 images Thomas Petillo shot while on four photo trips with Hammock from 2004-2009 (includes all album covers).
The book is numbered out of 287 and signed by Marc Byrd, Andrew Thompson, and Thomas Petillo.


Tracklist:
1 North 7:57
2 West 4:05
3 East 7:42
4 South 6:45

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[THRILL 12.43] High Places - Can't Feel Born (Vinyl) 2010

High Places - Can't Feel Born
Label : Thrill Jockey
Cat. No. : THRILL 12.43
Format, Vinyl, 12", digital
Genre : Electronic
Style: Experimental

Tracklisting:
A1 Can't Feel Nothing
A2 I Was Born
B1 I Was Born (HP Remix)
B2 Can't Feel Nothing (HP Remix)

The 12” is housed in a DJ style jacket with black & white photographs taken by the band on each side. The LP labels are printed in full color from the original photos so that they will match up with the artwork and fill the holes.

The 12” is pressed on 150 gram colored “bad laundry” white vinyl (with a slight touch of blue) in an edition of 1,000 copies..

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[IA 030] Maps And Diagrams - Tööpuudus CDr mini 2010

Maps And Diagrams - Tööpuudus
Label: I, Absentee
Catalog#: IA030
Format: CDr, Mini, EP, Limited Edition
Country: US
Released: 16 Feb 2010
Genre: Electronic
Style: Minimal, Ambient

Credits:Written-by, Producer, Photography [Cover Image] - Tim Martin (3)
Notes:Limited edition of 100 copies.
Written and produced at Roadmap Studios, Cambs in 2010.

Tracklist
1 Urschîpfung 6:42
2 Glottal 6:21
3 KÑsiraamat 6:24

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Mark McGuire - Dream Team CDr Limite Edition 2008

Mark McGuire - Dream Team
Label: Wagon
Catalog#: none
Format: CDr, Limited Edition
Country: US
Released: 2008
Genre: Electronic
Style: Acoustic, Drone, Experimental


Edition of 75 copies.
Comes with 2 inserts.


Tracklist:
1 Dream Team 1 17:18
2 Different Light 9:43
3 Dream Team 2 13:10

Buy from discogs


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[ADR 075] Lullatone - Songs That Spin In Circles (Album) CD 2009

Lullatone - Songs That Spin In Circles
Label: Audio Dregs
Catalog#: ADR 075
Format: CD, Album
Country: US
Released: 2009
Genre: Children's, Electronic, Pop
Style: Vocal

Tracklist:
1 A Mobile Over Your Bed 4:37
2 A Plastic Bag In The Wind 3:01
3 A Merry-Go-Round In The Park 4:16
4 An Old Record On Its Player 2:48
5 A Carousel On A Slide Projector 3:55
6 Stars On The Ceiling Of A Planetarium 1:50
7 Tops On A Table 2:08
8 The Hands Of A Clock 3:28
9 A Toy Train On Its Track 3:12
10 The Whole World While You Are Asleep 8:55

Most recording artists would probably regard it as a bad thing for their audience to be sent to sleep by their music, but not so with Yoshimi and Shawn James Seymour, who have designed his disc for maximum soporific value. Lullatone, you had me at 'hello'. This particular Boomkat correspondent has never really got on with the desperately twee universe inhabited by cutesy, kiddietronica merchants Lullatone, and their latest enterprise is hardly likely to win me over. Equally though, Songs That Spin In Cycles probably delivers precisely what the duo's existing fanbase wants from their music, so in a sense, everyone's a winner. This series of lullabies - composed for their newborn son - introduces itself with 'A Mobile Over Your Head', a disarmingly agreeable constellation of deep, resonant chimes and twinkling bells. It's actually rather nice and liable to make you feel a bit warm and squidgy if you're so inclined, but altogether more cloying is the cute-core bossa-pop of the next track, which (sort of / probably / not really) references Wes Bentley's slap-able performance in American Beauty. It's called 'A Plastic Bag In The Wind' ("Sometimes there's so much beauty in the world... I feel like I can't take it." etc, etc....), which underlines a missed opportunity for the band - clearly they should have combined those first two song titles to create the ultimate Lullatone track: 'A Plastic Bag Over Your Head'. In truth, this is far better than I'm letting on. It irks me to say so but on its own terms this album is a raging success, and might reasonably be thought of as a modern-day equivalent to Raymond Scott's Soothing Sounds For Babies. Sweet dreams, kids...

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[WGGT 03] Emeralds - Lake Effect Snow / Science Center (Vinyl) 2010

Emeralds - Lake Effect Snow / Science Center
Label: Wagon
Catalog#: WGGT03
Format: Vinyl, 7"
Country: US
Released: May 2010
Genre: Electronic
Style: Abstract, Drone

Limited to 350 copies.

Tracklist:
A Lake Effect Snow
B Science Center

two short-form tracks (the latter of which overlaps with “does it look like i'm here?” - the former appears to be exclusive here - perhaps an alternate to the album’s “double helix” ? - listen to the sound-sample) par excellence, continuing the band’s work in short-form variants on their extended synth/guitar bliss-out also with the singles its going to rule because its like a bunch of the tracks from the record, but also many out-takes, b-sides and live etc... next batch will have like three out- takes ! one includes an excerpt from our performance with tg in chicago .. pretty cool stuff

Buy from discogs or clevelandwagon.blogspot

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