ambient / drone / avant garde

Eilean Records

The quality label Eilean records starts 2018 on a high note. Ljerke is a multidisciplinary live project which took form in the Frisian landscape as as source of inspiration. The project includes some music artists from Netherlands (Romke Kleefstra, Jan Kleefstra, Sytze Pruiksma) and Norway (Alexander Rishaug, Hilde Marie Holsen, Michael Duch) completed with the video artists Marco Douma (NL) and Haraldur Karlsson from Iceland. Furthermore, this debut album is mixed and edited by Rutger Zuydervelt (Machinefabriek) and mastered by Lasse Marhaug. So there are quite a lot of experienced names behind this, which explains the immaculately beauty of it all.

Because yes, this is an absolute gem, exploring the regions of drone, ambient, classical music, (dark) jazz and experimental music. The result is an adventurous album with calm, soothing music interlaced with poetry. Throughout the entire album, Ljerke seems to blend Zoviet France with The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble, something I personally can only applaud. Opener 'Muurv' gradually lures you in with its minimal approach and follower 'Tsjilland' goes on a mild Godspeed! You Black Emperor journey.

The music seamlessly combines modern day electronics with contrabass, trumpets and guitars. I like that, but that's not really a surprise. As a fan of all things dark, slow and atmospheric I can only recommend this thing. That, plus I recommend playing it on a rather high volume, close your eyes and let mind altering soundscapes like 'Waarbekkasin' or 'Hettekobbe' do their thing. I don't want to talk about end-year lists yet but I am damn sure that these tunes will often appear in my day-to-day playlist from now on. Do yourself a favor and add them to yours too.


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drone / doom

Today's "slow music" scene might be one of the best things that has happened to music since Sister Rosetta Tharpe invented rock 'n roll. It's remarkable how varied the world of music has become since the beginning of the previous century and it does not look like that is going to end soon.

In recent years, slow music has been making a serious comeback. Ambient, doom metal, post rock and dark jazz are now widely accepted and appreciated, which obviously is a good thing. Coincidentally, all four genres seem to appear on this three track album by Bolt.

Perhaps it's safe to say that Bolt sounds like a lovechild between Sunn O))) and Bohren und der Club of Gore. Their slowly pulsating drones seem to balance on the edge between jazz and doom, which obviously results into stunning dark music. It's repetitive, immersive and hypnotic, maybe a bit like Dale Cooper Quartet and the Dictaphones on steroids. The album contains three tracks and clocks off at about forty minutes. In that time, the band takes you on a ride across a pitch black meandering river of drones, doomed out riffs and haunting soundscapes.

The mastering was done by Tobias Stieler (Kokomo), which might explain the overall heaviness of the whole thing. Since Dunk! Records released this on a beautiful colored vinyl, I expect this trio to play at next year's Dunk! festival, preferable in the forest. I am absolutely sure that Bolt will become a highlight on the festival. So if you want your music to haunt your dreams, this album surely deserves a spot in your collection. This is a brilliant album, no doubt about it, and now let's hope that Bolt will soon crush Europe with this mesmerizing sound.


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dark jazz

A few years ago, someone on a dark jazz forum posted a question: "does Dictaphone have anything to do with Dale Cooper Quartet and the Dictaphones?" The answer was a resounding "no", despite the name similarity. For starters, Dictaphone is German while their colleagues hail from France. Yet, people understood the confusion. Both acts roam in the world of dark jazz, a genre with few active bands. To make the confusion even more apparent, both bands now have releases on the same label too. After five years of silence, Dictaphone returns on Denovali with a brand new - and tremendously enjoyable - new album.

Although the music on 'APR 70' is slow and gloomy jazz, Dictaphone differs from their colleagues. The music is not as dark and doomed-out as Bohren, not as experimental and drone inspired as Dale Cooper, not as easy digestible as Radare and not as long winded as The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble. Instead, this seems to nudge more towards the darker works of Miles Davis, combined with a decent sense of electronic experimentation.

The three Dictaphone core members (Oliver Doerell (electronics, bass, guitar), Roger Döring (saxophone, clarinet) and Alex Stolze (violins)) have been working on this album for three years, which compared with their two decades of existence is not that long. It consists of nine tracks, nine slowly meandering rivers of jazz, electronica and ambient. In fact, the song 'Stanko' can somehow be compared to 'Die Moldau' by Smetana, being an equally narrative and flowing piece of music.

Of course, there is only a tiny gap between jazz and classical music, so it's rather easy to make this comparison. Yet, it also says a lot about the overall quality of this album. From the moment 'Opening Night' started, the mood was set for a hazy yet adventurous listening experience. Somehow, this music demands your attention and when it has it, it never lets you down. 'Lofi Opium' is a second highlight, and 'Sceance' is simply breathtaking.

In all, this is a beautiful jazz album, one that definitely earns a spot in your collection. There is more good news too, as Denovali are about to re release Dictaphone's previous albums. Some of them have been limited until now, so soon the world be able to enjoy the murky jazz splendour of Dictaphone, and that is a good thing.

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dark jazz / ambient

Ukrainian dark jazz and ambient combo Gamardah Fungus returns with a brand new album, which for me is always a reason to celebrate. In the past, I have been pleasantly surprised by this act. Their constant musical exploration has always been interesting so I was very curious about this one.

Once again, Gamardah Fungus treats us to long explorations and jam sessions and once again they seem to balance on the edge between dark jazz and ambient music. Besides, there seems to be a decent flair for folk music as well, especially in 'Arcanum', the second track.

Yet, it was opener 'Old Manor Spirits' that immediately got me hooked and quite possibly that one will remain my favorite throughout the album. It's a long, droning track with a gloomy free jazz attitude. 'Signs And Signal' repeats the atmosphere of the opener and by now, I'm starting to use the term "forest folk" for this album. Apparently, most of the album is recorded during improvisation sessions in the forest and somehow, you can definitely hear that on this album.

'Landscape Painted By Fear' even contains owl sounds. I'm not sure if these are recorded or programmed but they certainly add a lot to the organic, natural feel of the whole thing. The last track, 'Final Lullaby' seems to nudge more towards the post rock scene and further away from the forest as its predecessors. Quite frankly, this is also one of my favorites here. So I guess it's clear that this is another excellent album by this Ukrainian duo. Obviously it comes highly recommended.


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dark ambient / drone

I've seen the dark ambient scene evolve a lot in the past few years. I have seen and heard most of the groundbreaking acts on labels like Cold Meat Industry and Cyclic Law from the very beginning. Ever since I discovered the genre, I've been fascinated by it and it has been a constant throughout all my musical endeavors. So I'm extremely glad to see that this style is still alive and kicking. Ever more so, in recent years, it has gotten even more interesting with acts like CHVE, Barst, Empusae and this Swiss act, Sum Of R. The ritualist approach takes the upper hand again, which is a good thing. 

Sum Of R was formed by Reto Mäder in 2008. Fabio Costa joined the project shortly after. During live performances, they use guitars, effects, drums, synths, samples and drones to create a dark yet hypnotic atmosphere. On this album, their third full-length they do exactly the same, influenced by everything between dark ambient, noise, post rock/metal, electronic and psychedelic music. The result is a fascinating listening experience, an event for body and mind.

The majority of the tracks on this album are slowly pulsating soundscapes and drones while others seem to borrow elements from modern classical music and soundtracks. Personally, I'm most fond of the ones with percussion, like 'Like & Dust'. My favorite track is 'Overgrown', which after the intro, immediately drags the listener down into a whirlpool of impending drones and soundscapes. 

The level of variation on this album is perfect. Every track seems to have its own identity, its own set of different elements. Yet, the whole thing is coherent and unmistakably Sum Of R. 'Cobalt Power' for instance, reminds me a lot of the current wave of dark jazz bands, like Dale Cooper Quartet or Bohren Und Der Club Of Gore. On other occasions, Sunn O))) isn't far off. But in all, this is simply a brilliant piece of dark music, one I will recommend to every dark soul out there.


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dark jazz / ambient / experimental

In my previous review (read), I wrote that Finnish one-man project J. Kill and Mr. Mule had evolved into a full band. The whole thing has become more serious instead of an experimental playground so the band decided to change their name to Käki, which means cuckoo. The music however is still exciting and immersive as ever. So I guess it's only natural that I throw their first four albums into one big review.

"Katoa" means "disappear". This is the first album, a solo effort. Jere recorded this after four days in isolation in a basement studio. It took him twelve hours to complete the album but the result is quite interesting. It combines dark jazz with something I can only describe as gritty Americana music. The songs are slow, lingering blends of jazz, drones and ambient but in a way they also come close to some cosmic, psychedelic jams. I think this stuff is perfectly suited for fans of Dale Cooper Quartet and the Dictaphones or Bohren Und Der Club of Gore and I think I will have to mention these names again real soon.

experimental / dark jazz

Here on Merchants Of Air, we receive albums through a number of media. Some people send CDs, others send emails, yet other contact us through our social media and here and there someone talks to me personally on a gig or festival. To be honest, I mostly forget about all but the first two. Facebook messages tend to get lost in the massive heap of notifications on that platform but once in a while an exception occurs. Those exceptions are usually caused by one or a few keywords. This time, the phrase "dark jazz" grabbed my attention, as it usually does. So, since I don't feel like playing heavy stuff, I decided to check it out.

Autger is a Russian one man project who claims to make "night music". What that is exactly? Well, in this case it seems to be slow, dark and eerie, inspired by doom and black metal but balancing on the edge between dark jazz, dark ambient and dark wave. The result is intriguing, like the bastard son of Dale Cooper Quartet and Sephiroth. Dark jazz tunes and soundscapes float freely over electronic percussion. Here and there an eerie vocal sample completes the gloomy, mysterious atmosphere. 

For a die-hard dark jazz fan, this album might take some getting used to, or at least the opening song, 'Der Untergang Der Welt'. It's a strange tune that combines electronic beats with drones and only gradually explores the regions of dark jazz. But once it grasps you, it won't let go until the dark and gentle 'Prophecy' sets your mind at ease. 'Libellus Adversus Deum, Regem Et Regnum' opens with some noise, some almost hidden voices and suddenly comes up with something I can only compare to industrial electronics. 

That track has some more surprises up its sleeve. Hell, Autechre suddenly comes to mind and that puts us right into the IDM scene. This album is starting to feel like a slow music megamix and I'm starting to like it a lot. On 'Regicide', the dark jazz is far off, unless it's a Scorn remix of Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Orchestra. Yes, Scorn. I don't think I need to tell you that this is quite a varied and surprising piece of work. My advice? Check it out but do it with an open mind. I don't think you will regret it.


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dark jazz

Fans of Twin Peaks will surely know what to do this summer: binge watch their favorite series. To them, the name Dale Cooper will probably ring a giant bell, or a whole glockenspiel. Yes, this French act is inspired by the haunting and eerie atmosphere in these blockbuster cult series. They're not only named after it, they also sound like they have spawned directly from Twin Peaks' soundtrack. With a blend of 50's crooners, dark soundscapes and deep saxophone, Dale Cooper Quartet & The Dictaphones have been paving the way for many dark jazz bands in the past decade or so. This new album, their fourth, can be seen as another medal on the genre's uniform.

Since their debut, 'Parole De Navarre' in 2006, Dale Cooper Quartet & The Dictaphones have been masters of their trade. In 2011, their masterpiece 'Metamanoir' came out, followed by 'Quatorze Pieces De Ménace' two years later. The elements are always similar: gloomy jazz, chansonic jazz vocals, noisy guitars and heaps of lingering soundscapes. On 'Astrild Astrild' the band follows that path. Perhaps that is the first thing I noticed, unlike some passages on their two previous albums, there is nothing surprising and genre-bending to be found here. 

Is that bad? Of course not. It's Dale Cooper Quartet & The Dictaphones, a band that has once again created some delightful dark jazz tunes, best to be enjoyed while chasing ghosts and bad memories. I'm not going into a song by song description on this one. Hell, I'm not even going to mention any of the songs. In fact, I'm going to take a little break from writing this review to order the album and see if they sell new t-shirts as well. My old one is almost worn out. 

Right, the album should be on its way here soon, so let's go on with the review. In all fairness, I don't think 'Astrild Astrild' is their best album to date but then again, it would be extremely tough to equal 'Métamanoir'. However, it is a carefully crafted and brilliant piece of dark jazz that definitely earns a spot in your collection. Once again, there are plenty of highly immersive passages and a gritty, gloomy atmosphere. So yes, I can only recommend this album to all dark jazz fans out there. 


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