Category: Downtempo

Ogmasun - Into the Void

post rock / post metal

With 'Into The Void', Swiss progressive post metal combo Ogmasun delivers a dark, broody and intense trip. Two tracks, forty minutes, this album one hell of a journey. Perhaps it is not as easy digestible as most post-rock related albums but it's certainly worth the effort. Gloomy ambient tunes alternate with heavy, guitar based pieces of music in which the bass pushes the whole thing forward. Then there are the vocal samples which fit perfectly over the music and elements of indie rock, math rock and progressive rock. The result is something highly narrative, something every fan of elaborate anthems will appreciate.

Bunkr - Schluss

noise rock / jazz / experimental

What starts as a pretty normal post rock album quickly develops into something mind boggling as Swiss band Bunkr opens a box of influences from noise rock to jazz, mathcore and even progressive metal. On 'Schluss' the band comes up with five tracks, mixing dissonance with immersive hooks and sheer intensity. The result is a baffling piece of work, not easy to comprehend but definitely something fans of the unusual will enjoy. Title track 'Schluss' is my personal favorite here, or perhaps the somewhat sludgy 'Truand'. Most fans will prefer the lengthy 'Vautour', but all five of these tracks will overwhelm you, no doubt about that.

Gloson - Mara

doom / sludge

Roaming somewhere between funeral doom and sludge metal, Swiss act Gloson delivered a gut piercing two-track EP. To tell you the truth, I was a bit surprised when I heard it for the first time. Instead of the hazy, stoner version of doom, which I expected, Gloson immediately comes up with massive riffs, pummeling drums and fierce death growls. Needless to say, perhaps, but I was quickly impressed with opener 'Usurper'. 'Equinox' easily walks the same rough and brutal path. Heavy, intense, yet melodic and immersive, this EP is an absolute must-have for the seasoned doom fan, no doubt about that.

Geezer - Spiral Fires

psychedelic / doom / stoner rock

Kozmik Artifactz

Can't get enough of heavy riffing and doomed journeys? Well then, put this in your pipe and smoke it. American trio Geezer throw a massive EP into the mix with 'Spiral Fires'. Opening with a psychedelic space tune, this EP quickly takes us off this planet and into the vast darkness of our galaxy. Then, when the riffs, the bass and the drums appear, Geezer guides you on sonic waves of Sabbathian riffing, something like that. And all of that continues in the other three tracks. As far as psychedelic doom metal is concerned, you rarely get anything more interesting than this. So obviously this comes highly recommended

Lecu - Scented Sonar

ambient

Left Tapes

The facebook page mentions: "Ambient kinda guy // ambient kinda music" and that pretty much covers the load for this three-track EP. Inspired by Frahm, Eno and Aphex Twin, Lecu comes up with three enigmatic ambient tunes, a bit experimental at times but certainly worthy of a spot in your elaborate ambient playlist. My favorite here is 'Blue Desert', which combines gloomy soundscapes with playful elements, which somehow represents a soft summer rain. I think ambient fans will know what to do with this beauty. Check it out and allow Lecu to take you on a beautiful underwater journey...

Aleksei Nikitin - Vesna

house / techno / electronic

Lobster Records

Russian producer Aleksei Nikitin comes up with a pretty exciting 12" which will get many EDM fans on their feet. Opener 'Gruv' immediately sets the tone: repetitive beats, rough sampling and minimal melodies. Yet, my favorite here is the dark dancefloor filler 'Blaze Away' which takes me back to the days of Zen Paradox, Shaolin Wooden Men and so on. Title track 'Vesna' even delves into the dark underground of gothic industrial electro and heavy synthpop. That's three different styles of house music, all on one EP, more than enough to appear on these pages. So check this out and shake your ass. You know you want to...

Druhá Smrt - Incarnatium

dark ambient

Sombre Soniks

I don't think Druhá Smrt need an introduction on these pages. Over the past few years, this Czech duo have become one of my absolute favorites in the dark ambient scene. Their new effort, 'Incarnatium' merely cements that spot. With four tracks, this EP is another brilliant statement for Druhá Smrt. Dark, brooding and immersive as hell, this EP can easily stand next to your favorites by Raison D'Etre, Lustmord or Atrium Carceri, just to name a few. This is a somber album, mystifying and dreary, like only the most seasoned dark ambient acts can produce. Believe me, Druhá Smrt is a force to be reckoned with in this scene. You need this!

Chelidon Frame - NowHere Nowhere NoWhere

ambient / experimental

Sounds Against Humanity

From the bandcamp page: "This music is an attempt to tame all the new sounds you meet when moving to a new house". Composed out of processed field recordings, this album is an outstanding piece of minimal ambient. With nine track, Chelidon Frame attempts to narrate a story, something deeply personal. Now, I can't really say I feel the story on this album but I do enjoy the music. These are unusual and unrecognizable sounds, dressed in layers of soothing ambient, fitting perfectly with the sounds that surround you, like church bells, passing cars or the neighbor's music. In all, this is a highly enjoyable album, one that will pleasantly surprise you.

Talipes Valgus - Sly

electronic / downtempo

With six tracks, Russian electronic act Talipes Valgus comes up with a slow, pulsating and brooding EP where trip hop receives a modern day make-over. According to the biography, the software used for this music is Ableton and in a way you can hear that. The deep bass lines and the typical Ableton sounds are present, but that doesn't mean that this thing is stale and unoriginal. In fact, 'Ravine River' plays with orchestral samples to create something rather overwhelming. Besides, Talipes Valgus doesn't shun the experiment, resulting in a few odd but mesmerizing pieces of music.

Haunt - If Icarus Could Fly

heavy metal

Shadow Kingdom Records

Helter Skelter Productions

And just like that we're catapulted back into the glory days of heavy metal. Haunt digs deep into the world of NWOBHM and comes out with a flashing eight track EP. Each of these tracks could have been written by one of your favorite old school heavy metal bands but hey, they forgot so here is Haunt to make you raise your horned fist and yell along with these infectious tunes. Opener 'Run & Hide' is probably one of the most electrifying metal tunes released this year and most of the others will make your rock dick grow hard, I promise. So yeah, heavy fucking metal. If you like that, you will love the hell out of this EP.

Suffering Hour - Dwell

black metal / death metal

And to plummet in utter darkness, here is 'Dwell' by American horde Suffering Hour, an eighteen minutes lasting anthem of black and death metal torment, destined to erode your sanity. This track is a massive slap in the face of those who have strict guidelines to enjoy their death metal. This is intense, ferocious and suffocating but it also comes with a very high level of atmospheric songwriting. Suffering Hour certainly is a unique entity in the world of death metal, adding plenty of variation to a genre that thrives of violence and brutality. So yeah, this is one for the extremists among us, one you'll cherish or suffer.

Russ Young - Pala

ambient

Audiobulb

I often end my sets of Brieviews with a soothing ambient release. I have a good reason for that. Writing these short reviews can get intense, especially if I write them in one go, which means several hours of listening and writing. This time I picked a wonderful ambient EP by Russ Young. Four tracks, one as blissful and as restful as the next. Opener 'Polaris' is a beautiful piece of music, driving on minimal melodies and flowing soundscapes. 'Cavern' feels somewhat darker but is just as immersive. In all, 'Pala' is one of those releases that you just want to dive into, which is exactly what I would recommend. Press play, close your eyes and escape from the wicked world we live in...

Serge

Hypnotizer - Bholenath

4/1/2019

psychedelic / chill-out / downtempo

Nutek Chill

Bholenath is an album released on December 24, by a psychedelic chill-out artist, better known by the alias of Hypnotizer. An hour-long album, the record has ten tracks: Kiskanu, Aliens Room, Life Oportunity, Planet Tribe, Between Witches, Jungle Market, Changing Energy, Mystical Experience, Cloudy and Distant Connections. With gracious and somewhat tempestuous – though commonly stagnant melodies –, Bholenath is not a marvelous nor epic record, though manages to be quite interesting and responsive, revolving around colorful and symbiotic harmonies that inadvertently expands its sonorous waves over the diluted axis of its own musical allegories. Despite the fact that delivers some abrasive commonalities and clichés, there is a genuine creativity present on this album, that makes the nucleus of its work to be truly representative of the genre; more specifically, its modernist trends, influenced by reggae and world music, which are quite audacious and elegant.

Bholenath displays moderately some tangentially sophisticated flavors and dynamic liquid grooves, that makes the music interesting. Its cohesive and free-flowing sound is a discreet amalgamation of lucid sonorous densities, passionately combined to create a colorful atmosphere of sensible, placid and sagacious peripheral possibilities. Nevertheless, occasionally, the music resents itself from a moderate and conspicuous level of monotony, although the quality and the dynamism of the sound remains intact.

A cohesive and sensitive work, that understands the visceral anatomy of its harmonious and energetic layout, Bholenath can be defined as an impressive – even majestic, sometimes – exemplar of psychedelic chill-out music, if we are willing to ignore its more rude, but to a wider extent, insignificant limitations. True to the cosmogony of its own salutary, but inherently mordacious musical diagram, on this album, the sound expands itself through the tissue of its latent fragmented waves of digressive serenity, whose perceptive artistic platform revolves around the immensity of its refreshing abstract tonalities.

Of course, while this album is not marvelous, it can be considered a decent, lucid and sardonically delusional psychedelic voyage, that takes its own volatile essence by storm, transforming each molecule of its own hallucinatory transient grace into a virtual reality sensitive journey. An interesting work – that fails to avoid entirely the generic elements of the genre –, Bhilenath is a moderately satisfactory psychedelic chill out album, with some impressive and extraordinary arrangements.

Wagner

Ahanjack - Ataraxia

25/10/2018

psychedelic / electronic / chill-out / downtempo / psytrance

Space Radio Records

With its deep space virtuous cosmogonies and a voluptuous synchronic ambient layer of masterful sonorous engineering, that works at the skylight precious visibility of its fabulous technical mordacity, Ataraxia, with all of its ten formidable and exponentially delusional tracks – Ataraxia, Psylent Coral, Shamanism Eyesight, Trust The Wait, Starseed, Cosmic Hologram, Badass Wolf, She is a Nurse, Psycho Delicate and Meraki – proves to be a dense, eruptive and monumental album, with a sound condensed at the imponderable vicinities of its own universal axis of arduous tenacity. In a belligerent zone of furious beauty and serene complacency, the harmonious sonorous fragrance of Ahanjack displays the elemental and versatile capabilities of all of its marvelous and intricate levels of artistry.

Departing from conventional, but surreptitiously deep melodic alignments that break the spiral axis of the conspicuous effigies of sound that drives the linear pulse of the beatings, the album consistently displays a dynamic creative fever that definitely understands the bizarre complexity of its own vivacious concept, and effectively plays by the rules; beautiful harmonies dance in the colorful horizon of a day that never fades away, as red twilights shine bright at the tender displacement of ascendant harmonies, that rise from the dreams of its own imperative intonations.

As the album evolves, the harmonies become more and more fluid, lucid and organic, though the flexible design of its anatomy exhibits a creatively expressive composure that is the groundwork of the artist’s style. Nevertheless, the psychedelic galaxy that vividly revolves around the charming and elegant harmonies creates surreal cadences of everlasting clouds that filtrates the impulsive beatings of the rhythm, although the general layout of the sound is left untouched, and obeys a coherent melodic elasticity that rarely moves outside its peripheral zone of sensibility.

Ataraxia is definitely a formidable album of psychedelic chill. With disruptive harmonies and a sentimental musical layer that promotes a delightful collision between effective melodies and surreal intonations, the record is definitely a sensational musical achievement. Despite the fact that the artist is somewhat relapse in terms of audacity, the consistency and the inebriant agility abundant in the music showcases a genuine charisma that overflows the ordinary elements of its inherent creative abilities, exposing a dimension of hidden splendor, which is something that the audience can experience with a high degree of satisfaction.

Wagner

Mixtaped Monk - Vacant Earth

29/8/2018

ambient / post rock / classical

An often recurring theme in the world of literature and movies is the sudden disappearance of humans, the "last person on earth" experience. 'Earth Without People' is a fascinating documentary series about how the earth will react after all people are gone. 'The Stand' by Stephen King uses the same theme to build up to a final battle between good and evil. It happens to be a theme from one of my own stories-in-the-pipeline, and it also seems to be the starting point for this new album by Indian one man project Mixtaped Monk. In this story Arka finds himself all alone on the planet. Everybody else is gone. With those emotions and questions he recorded a splendid soundtrack.

Musically, Arka Sengupta travels in the worlds of downtempo music, including classical piano melodies, post rock compositions, classic rock ballads and ambient tunes. Opener 'Chronicle of the Ending' mostly seems to function as a calm and rather impending intro. Here, the artist finds himself alone, here the questions and fear appear and here this long journey begins. The first real highlight comes with 'Sunshine on a Desolate Road', something the might be inspired by listening to Brian Eno jamming with Pink Floyd.

The album continuously drives on this slow, gloomy paste with serene rhythms and looping soundscapes. Yet, there is also a certain amount of unpredictability here. Although calm and introvert, sometimes eerie melodies appear, sharp and uncomfortable. In a way that perfectly resembles the overall theme of the album. You're alone in a vast world. It sure is silent and tranquil, apart from the often scary sounds of nature, the collapse of building structures and your own heartbeat when panic strikes.

On 'Distant Stars' we see the last human gazing into the night skies, to the twinkling of the stars. I wonder what he is thinking? The song makes way for another Pink Floyd inspired anthem, 'From Loneliness to Solitude'. I guess it's clear what he is thinking now. Being the last man on earth can't be a very happy and joyful occasion, but is sure comes with beautiful music. Perhaps that music is a bit too sweet and easy digestible at times but it is an excellent soundtrack for one of the earlier mentioned movies and documentaries.

I can imagine elaborate drone images over an empty city while 'Birds, Seas and Mortals' is playing. I can see the man sitting down in despair and loneliness during 'Maybe a Bright Future Waits'. This album is based on a dream. After listening, I would like to see that dream, see what happens, see how the last person on earth copes with that destiny. No doubt that this album would make an interesting and well varied soundtrack.

Serge

Takkra - Divine Architecture

27/8/2018

psychedelic / electronic / downtempo / chillout

Iboga Records

Divine Architecture is the second album released by Hungarian electronic music producer David Vigh, under the alias of Takkra. With eleven marvelously crafted songs – Equillibrium, Merging Matter with Spirit, Armistice, Galactic Shaman, Chasing Dragons, Celestial Mechanics, The Healer (Changa Song), Sound Is God, Scienta Sacra, The Dervish and Towards the Within – the sound of the artist is a profoundly philosophic, sensorial and serene dive into the quintessential soul of the universe. In a dimensional atmosphere of perfectly devised harmonies, where gravity has no opportunity to write the downfall of its own expansive cosmogonies, but to work for them to stay on a permanent inviolable ascendancy, everything on this transcendental work is felt with the pungent plausibility of sincere and elemental human sensibilities. As the beautiful and majestically colorful sound softly penetrates into your mind, you definitely feel your soul evaporating, and becoming one with the universe, in a galactic empire of gracious intimacy, that knows no boundaries underneath its infinite horizon of everlasting redemption.

The overall sound of the album is captivating, and the style of the artist is simply marvelously impeccable, with no negative elements to point it out. Just close your eyes and enjoy the journey. Everything else is superficial. While your soul drifts away from the monumental collisions of its own sentimental atmosphere, graceful harmonies draw in the epicenter of your conscience a peripheral wall of discreet, but pervasively pungent melodies, that easily inscribes into the plural densities of your perceptions the tangentially impalpable transience of an inherently existential grandiosity, that obliterates its own overshadowed horizon of events. With a formidably expansive musicality, that comprehends and encircles on the flexible anatomy of its poetic filter the vastness of its own proverbial intensity, Divine Architecture can be described as a wonderful, monumental album, that definitely establishes a superior standard for the genre, on creative and technical matters.

One of those albums that definitely works as a major therapy session, Divine Architecture is a gracefully cohesive state of the art work. Thoroughly energizing, sincere, and expanding its horizontal wave of harmonic gracefulness from the axis of a lucid atmosphere that understands profoundly the sensitivities of its solid anatomy, this album is a pleasant surprise from the beginning until the end, and a landmark celebration for enthusiasts of the genre.

Definitely, the technical precision and the natural sensibility of the artist are responsible for this over-the-top, fabulous record, whose sensationally fantastic degree of artistry is just exceptionally wonderful, and establishes new boundaries and parameters for electronic music in general. Despite appearing to be simple on the surface, Divine Architecture is a majorly dense and complex album, that dissipates with its creative labor all the general commonalities found within the genre, without depriving nor distorting its fundamental characteristics. You just have to listen to this monumental work of art. You will be definitely thrilled with the aggrandizing nature of its original dispositions.

Wagner

Band of Orson's Machines - Graffiti

16/7/2018

electronic / downtempo / ambient

Monday morning, one of the hottest days of the year. I have been cursing the sun and planning to go live in a cool cave somewhere. Hot summer days are nice, but not when they last for weeks without rain, wind or any temperature drop. For now, my living room is fine but in a few hours it will turn into a greenhouse, practically unbearable to sit in. So I guess I'll do my review work now and spend my evening in a summer bar nearby. There, I actually wouldn't be surprised to hear pieces of this album flowing through the speakers. This is perhaps one of the most modern sounding albums I have reviewed in the past few years, even Lords Of Acid sound old compared to this.

Band of Orson's Machines is a side project for Urs Wild, who we know for his impending dark ambient sounds. This album contains no less than sixteen songs, all between three and a bit over six minutes long. Here, the focus is on electronics, beats and thick bass melodies. Furthermore there are vocals samples and dreamyu ambient passages, together creating a soundtrack for a dystopian, futuristic movie.

Musically, Band of Orson's Machines delves into the same pool as acts like Burial, Sumach, Bonobo and so on. The music drives on these lengthy and deep basses while the rest of the music adds a bit of variation to the whole thing. That being said, the album isn't very varied but I don't think that is to be expected from this genre. The main elements and set-up for most of the songs is similar but that doesn't seem to harm the overall quality.

I does make it tough to pick out a favorite track. 'Playground' perhaps, with the sounds of children playing and yelling. Or opener 'Monument' which immediately sets the gloomy and immersive tone. Or maybe 'Moths' which covers the searing hot sun with ice cold darkness. In fact, I'm quite sure that all these tracks soon end up in my day-to-day playlist, along with other downtempo acts like Autechre, Boards Of Canada and Kode9. I suggest you do the same for this is an interesting marriage between modern day electronics and vintage ambient sounds.

Serge

Brieviews 43

21/5/2018

White Hills & Der Blutharsch And The Infinite Church Of The Leading Hand - Desire

krautrock / psychedelic

White Hills

Here is an interesting cooperation to kick off this edition of Brieviews. Two interesting psychedelic music acts got together for a jam session and created this immersive summer meditation, a five track trip towards the gloomy site of the psychedelic sixties. I like the level of variation that this cooperation has generated. There is blues, shoegaze and - naturally - a big dose of psychedelic krautrock, all combined into songs that make every post-goth and neo-hippy happy. My favorite is 'Desire' but I'm sure that all of these tunes will end up in my day-to-day playlist. I suggest you do the same.

Der Blutharsch And The Infinite Church Of The Leading Hand & Derniere Volonté

psychedelic rock / krautrock / neo folk

Derniere Volonte

Or how about this collaboration. Once upon a time, these two acts were genre-colleagues but gradually their sounds moved away from one-another. However, together they have recently released something pleasantly surprising. On this EP, they come up with four lo-fi songs, once again borrowing elements from krautrock, shoegaze and vintage electronica. This stuff immediately brought a big smile to my face, not because it's joyous music but because I am listening to pure and authentic jamming fun. 'L`Arc En Ciel' even flirts with synthpop, absolute brilliance. Recommended? Utterly!

Pink Cocoon - Alienation

doom / blues

website

We're not done psyching-out yet, we're just gonna add some doom blues to the mix, courtesy of Canadian trio Pink Cocoon. On the cover you can see a man worshiping an amp and that should tell you everything you need to know about this demo. The EP contains six songs, all hypnotic examples of heavy psychedelic music, complete with mind altering guitar solos, feedback, groovy riffs and trance inducing drum work. Pink Cocoon will get you levitating on massively immersive doom blues, there is absolutely no doubt about that. Fuck, I love this. This is going on repeat for a while and I'll do the rest later...

JK Flesh – Wasplike

techno

Inner Surface

There's no denying that Justin K Broadrick has had a massive influence on the world of music. Napalm Death, Godflesh, Jesu... They're classics in their respective genres. And then there was also Techno Animal and JK Flesh, Broadrick's dancefloor invitations. Well, with this 'Wasplike' EP, he no longer invites you, he drags you by the neck and lets the distorted beats punish you to extacy. This four track EP is a wild techno adventure, fueled with noise and drones but mostly pumping harsh and abrasive, especially in 'Mindprison'. So you have been warned, this thing will get you shaking your lazy ass...

Moloch - The Other Side

electronic / darkwave

Do you ever wonder what the next retro craze will be? We've had stoner rock revivals, psychedelic revivals, even new beat seems to be coming back. But as far as I'm concerned the next big craze is eighties horror soundtracks like this EP from Polish electronic act Moloch. Imagine the Knight Rider theme taking a dark turn and you'll get close to what this act delivers. Personally, I can 't get enough of this. If you are a sucker for eighties synths or old school EBM, you will absolutely adore this, I promise you. I also urge you to check out 'The Vatican Cellars', which brings you more of the same awesomeness. I'm a fan now...

Burning House - Tracer

shoegaze

This EP by British shoegazers Burning House is either an application for or a tribute to the legendary 4AD label. Just look at that cover and tell me it doesn't remind you of Dead Can Dance or Cocteau Twins? Musically, this brings everything that you used to love about shoegaze and dreampop into today's alternative rock scene. In four fantastic and intense tracks, this trio delivers pure reverb galore, complete with the high-octane drums and introvert vocals. The Jesus and Mary Chain often comes to mind and so does A Place To Bury Strangers. So yeah, this comes highly recommended...

Eye of the Destroyer - Violent By Design

death metal

To be released in the beginning of June, this two-track single by New Jersey death metal act Eye Of The Destroyer is the follow up to their full-length 'Starved and Hanging', released earlier this year. What I like about this EP is that it's not about speed. The two tracks here are slow. However, what they lack in tempo, they definitely make up in brutality. Although short, only three minutes long each, these monstrosities will undoubtedly get you headbanging and making weird hand gestures towards the sky. My personal favorite is the title track but rest assured, both these tunes will fuck you up hard...

Alexandre Navarro - Imaginations

ambient / downtempo / post rock

An interesting and original EP by French guitarist/soundscapist Alexandre Navarro, 'Imagination' brings me some much welcome chill-out tunes. I think this guy has been listening to Plaid and Boards Of Canada a lot, something I can only applaud, obviously. On these five tracks, I hear something similar; downtempo electronic music, calm and soothing but not too goody-goody. The level of variation is perfect, aided of course by a range of sounds and instruments. This really is nice stuff, stuff that makes me curious about future musical escapades by mister Navarro...

Valyria - Into the Dying of Time

death metal / power metal

Back to the heavies, this time with Canadian power death metalers Valyria and their latest EP. What to expect? Well, imagine the blend of everything in the history of melodic death metal since Children Of Bodom, Evergrey and Nevermore. The EP opens with an intro which leads way for a massive array of flashing guitars, pounding drums and a combination of power metal vocals and death growls. I guess it's needless to say that the bombast and energy blasts from the speakers and that the whole thing is a mesmerizing whirlpool of extreme metal galore. If you like your metal bombasic as fuck, you need this...

Anthony - Get Over U

americana / alternative rock / indie

On a somewhat calmer side of the musical spectrum we find Anthony, of Ceremony fame, and his four track EP 'Get Over U'. This might be one of the poppiest, cheesiest and most bittersweet things I have ever reviewed for this website. The songs here are lo-fi indie tunes about love and heartache, inspired by acoustic rock and post-punk. Somehow the Lemonheads and Blind Melon come to mind but also flashes of Pixies, Beatles and the entire jangling-guitar scene in England. Closer 'I Hope I Never See You Face' is my personal favorite here, and certainly a message towards some people...

Eyes on the Machine - Eyes on the Machine

stoner metal

Polderrecords

Et voila, another Belgian band enters the already immense stoner rock scene. Eyes On the Machine is a band from Aalter, inspired by the likes of Tool, Mastodon and "Mike Patton's Crazy Bands". The stuff on this EP sure is crazy. It's also quite unpredictable but for the most part, this rocks the fuzz out of your underpants. With groovy riffs, a drummer that possibly wants to strangle you and a vocalist who swallowed a hydrogen bomb, Eyes On The Machine make stoner blues metal sexy again. There will be a lot of ass shaking and headbanging going on in Belgium this summer and I can' be happier about it...

Brieviews 42

24/4/2018

Alberto Nemo - 6x0

ethereal / drone

The name Alberto Nemo might ring a bell to Venetian Snares fans for whom he delivers vocal performances. With this record, the opera singer delves deep into the world of dark, esoteric ambient. Drones, soundscapes, a gothic atmosphere and the distinct operatic vocals create an estranging sound, somewhere between the gloomy experimentality of Coil and the ethereal orchestration of Elend. This EP contains six tracks, meant to be played backwards. You can hear that in the strange sound of the music but, if you're one of those dark, haunted souls, you can just as easily enjoy this album the normal way.

Käki - Junk Loops 3

drone / ambient / experimental

To some people, rubbish isn't always rubbish. To some people, scrap yards are instrument stores. This release by Käki (aka Junkyard Shaman) is the registration of a live performance, using junk, loops, soundscapes, samples and drones. The result is a brilliant mix between Master Musicians Of Bukkake, Einsturzende Neubauten and Raison D'Etre. In three long , repetitive and captivating tracks, Käki effortlessly takes the listener on an hypnotic trip. This is a perfect journey for a post apocalyptic movie about earth during a nuclear winter. Recommended? You bet. This is fantastic stuff.

Alien Tantric Method - Intraverse

dark ambient / electronic

Canadian dark ambient act Alien Tantric Method delivers a gloomy, cinematic and outer space inspired album, loaded with eerie soundscapes and cosmic noises. Immediately, IIVII comes to mind. Both acts seem to have a similar, highly electronic approach and both acts love adding repetitive percussion to their dark ambient sounds. Obviously, the result is something massively immersive. Here, that results in genre highlights like 'Awake' and the stomping 'Vortex' which drags both noise and EBM into the mix. Take it from me, this is one highly exciting release.

Rodney Cromwell - Rodney's English Disco

electronic / synth pop

Right, time to put on our dancing shoes and step into our time machine for a sweet trip to the electronic eighties. Rodney Cromwell comes up with a melancholic EP, fronted by the synthpop cracker 'Comrades'. However, there is more to be found here. 'Barbed Wire' borrows influences from shoegaze and new wave. The joyful 'Technocrats' reminds me of German act And One while closer 'Dreamland' seems to revisit The Cure's synth years. In all, this is pleasant EP that totally reeks of the eighties. I don't mind and I know heaps of others don't mind either. So check it out, you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Siete Catorce - Agnosia

electronic / experimental

Hypermedium

Mexicali producer Siete Catorce delivers an experimental and unique approach to electronic dance music. Far away from trends, Catorce plays with quirky percussion, intrinsic soundscapes and futuristic atmosphere. On this EP that results in four wayward but energetic dance tunes, something between Autechre and Speedy J's 'A Shocking Hobby' album. This is no everyday techno music, on the exact contrary. This is the result of a years long exploration with beats, sounds and glitches. My personal favorite here is 'Susurro', a possible smash hit in a highly developed alien world. Neat!

Superalma Project - Dystopian Children

drone / dark ambient

Inspired by Dystopian literature (1984, Brave New World, Hunger Games), this project by Igor Almeida delivers an angsty and dark soundtrack, loaded with haunting soundscapes, eerie noises and impending percussion. At times acts like Deutsch Nepal, Coil or De Fabriek come to mind, which obviously places this release right into the avant garde ambient scene. The album closes with a track named 'Isn't Life Disappointing?' which clearly sets the tone for the whole thing. No, this is not a joyous piece of work, not at all, but it is a damn intriguing and captivating one, that's for sure. So check it out now.

Teahouse Radio - Her Quiet Garden

drone / ambient

Teahouse Radio is a brand new project by Pär Boström of Kammarheit and Cities Last Broadcast fame. With this project, Boström seems to explore the brighter side of ambient music, although the album still is gloomy and melancholic. The set-up is minimal, the drones and soundscapes are mild and the overall atmosphere is dreamy, as decent ambient music is intended to be. The album contains eleven tracks, each one and excellent and beautiful piece of work. This is definitely something for fans over everything between Brian Eno and Biosphere, which I guess says a lot about the overall quality.

Adeptus Mechanicus - No More Heartbeat

dark ambient

Hailing from The Netherlands, Adeptus Mechanicus treats the listener to frightfully droning dark ambient tunes. According to the bandcamp page, the music is inspired by Yen Pox and Stratvm Terror, which might explain the industrial soundscapes and haunting atmosphere. The artist is also active in the world of hard-, dark- and speedcore and that too is audible in the intense nature of these three tracks. In fact, 'Mechanical Bringer Of Death' seems to embrace the harshness of those genres (without the beats) to create a monumental industrial noise track. I'm damn sure that all fans of dark, harsh ambient will absolutely adore this stuff. I know I do.

Hezaliel - Paradise Lost

dark ambient

Eighth Tower Records

We're crossing the border again to witness yet another brilliant dark ambient performance by one of our fellow countrymen. Belgian act Hezaliel seems to continue the dark, impending flow of some of the previously reviewed albums here. This album contains eight deeply droning piece of dark ambient music, all with an enigmatic and mystifying atmosphere. The monolithic 'They Darkened The Land Of The Nile' is my personal favorite but each of this tracks will end up in my ever expanding dark ambient playlist. I suggest you check it out and get your hands on this thing. It rarely gets better than this...

Visions & Phurpa - Monad

dark ambient

Cyclic Law

Visions

Phurpa

Celebrating its 100th release, Cyclic Law presents an exclusive collaboration between label head Frederic Arbour’s long standing project Visions and Russia’s enigmatic ritual formation, Phurpa, lead by Alexey Tegin. The result of this collaboration is a stunning and enigmatic dark ambient album in four chapters, showcasing the best possible combination of both seasoned acts. Fans can actually expect the usual elements: drones, soundscapes and haunted voices. Yet, that "usual" comes at a very high quality and an almost suffocating atmosphere. For fans of dark ambient, this is a definite must-have.

AnD - AnD003

techno

And Music

Manchester residents AnD are here to invite you to the dancefloor and then pound you into a pulp with their raw, heavy and chaotic analog techno tunes. This stuff is intense but pretty much irresistible for every fan of hard electronic dance music. Borrowing elements from Detroit techno, retro rave and industrial, this EP opens with the dazzling track 'Manchester'. 'Analogical' follows and quickly becomes my favorite here, one that reminds me of the boiler room at Pukkelpop. 'Prophecy' nudges more towards trance while closer 'Transit' is mostly noise with beats. Enjoyable? Fuck yasss!!!

Rebekah - My Heart Bleeds Black

techno

Mord

More stomping techno, this time from Birmingham-born Berlin-based artist Rebekah. On this EP, or better, on this Double-EP, Rebekah delivers no less than nine dark and grinding techno tunes, driving on repetitive beats and enhanced by gloomy noise-scapes. The result is a massive assault on your dancing muscles, a neverending frenzy of dark, almost industrial techno. It's damn hard to pick a favorite track here and at some points I'm not sure that I can enjoy this music for a long time but I have to say that tracks like 'Halo Effect' and 'Empirical Cycle' are definite dancefloor killers.

Brieviews 37

20/2/2018

Grantezuma - Grantezuma

alternative rock

soundcloud

A rock band, definitely! All the songs of this EP are great compositions as individual pieces. This work were produced by Sebastian Carsin in a very professional way, only reinforcing that Grantezuma works very hard to achieve his goals and doesn't do this in a sloppy way - a praiseworthy attitude in this ephemeral world. Definitely the big hit of this EP is ‘Doce Negro Abril’ (Black Sweet April, in English). If I were the musical producer (in an artistic way), I would have put this song as the first track, with no doubt! Grantezuma deserves recognition, so keep working hard!!! One of the life's secrets (at least in my humble opinion) is: Always be patient and persistent!!!

Glauber

Ferla - 13122017

drone / experimental

Abjection Productions

What do you do if you have a composition that is impossible to play because it requires a lot of expensive electric guitar pedals and all the guitar players that you know don’t have money? Ferla decided to get this music concept and just play it at a festival called ‘Jazz No Hope’, in Porto Alegre city (BR-RS). The music is amazing (despite the poor recording)... Its concept is very simple but very powerful: An overlap of loops with slightly changes at the tremolo bar and the tone potentiometer. So if you like that old-school low-fi bootleg cassettes, this album was made for you!!! If not... that’s ok, because this artist have other interesting works recorded in studio!!

Glauber

Maff - Melañiña

alternative rock / shoegaze

Hailing from Chile, Maff delivers some good old fashioned shoegaze, mixed with alternative rock. So yes, this EP drags you right into the nineties but at the same time it sounds incredibly relevant today. Parts Jesus and Mary Chain, part Sonic Youth, part Dinosaur Jr and part Explosions In The Sky, Maff brings highly enjoyable ethereal rock tunes to your speakers, highlighting in the single 'Hawaii'. That one certainly is one for the dark dancefloors, and so is 'Deserts Are Rainbows', be it in the early morning hours. My suggestion? Check it out. What Maff does is nothing new but it's so damn satisfying...

Sophia Marshall - Lin-dah

folk rock / americana

website

Former HaveNots vocalist Sophia Marshall spent several of her school years in the same building as three members of Kasabian. Now she releases a tribute EP containing three songs from the world famous act. Funny thing is, I am not familiar with Kasabian's music so for me, these are all brand new songs. And I like them, although I'm not sure I will equally like the originals. I'll probably check them out soon. I like Marshall's often fragile voice and the gentle, country-inspired guitars. I'm quite sure that 'Goodbye Kiss' and 'Fire' will often appear in my day-to-day playlist, especially on these chilly winter evenings. Nice work.

We Are Cursed - We Are Cursed

metal / post hardcore

French eardrum violators We Are Curses deliver four pounding and pummeling tracks, balancing between metal, sludge doom and post hardcore. The band consists of members of Synopsys, Godisdead, Jack Dope And Noise so these are experienced musicians. Therefore it will be no surprise when I say that this EP is a thunderous blast. Fans of anything between Conan, Amenra, Yob and Neurosis might want to check this out. It might not yet be the mesmerizing quality delivered by those acts but We Are Cursed are certainly getting somewhere with this. This is a very promising debut EP.

Taller Than The Trees - Hubris

post metal

Since I mentioned Amenra I might as well throw yet another ridiculously talented post metal band from Belgium. The oh so quiet town of Westerlo now has its own noisemakers, named Taller Than The Trees. On this EP they deliver four crushing tracks plius three pieces of ambient noise by W.D. Spectrehead which serve as breathers. The endresult is an immersive twenty minutes lasting epos of sludge doom, post metal and post rock that hopefully will get a decent amount of heads turned into their direction. Sludgers, doomers and headbangers will easily enjoy this album, I'm sure of that.

Black Neon District - Standing Waves

progressive metal

Rising from the ashes of French progressive death metal act Outcast comes Black Neon District, formed by three of its members. They left the "death" part of their music behind them, resulting in clean vocals and a more convincing overall sound. Fans of bands like Dream Theater, Pain Of Salvation and perhaps even Opeth, Evergrey and Meshuggah will easily appreciate the skills and talents that Black Neon District showcases. For me personally, this is a bit too progressive, but that is personal taste. I cannot deny that these guys are skilled and attuned and that there is little to stop them from breaking through in the world of progressive rock soon.

Ficture - Filled Spaces

downtempo / electronic

Audiobulb

This is a coincidence. I was looking for something new to add to my "downtempo" folder, something to accompany acts like Bonobo, Autechre, Miwon and Boards Of Canada. Now this EP falls on my plate and I immediately loved it. It fits right in there, especially the bass loaded opener 'Portable'. All five tracks on the EP are intriguing. They're gloomy yet playful and filled to capacity with interesting sounds, hooks and angles. It's albums like these that put a smile on my face. Today's electronic scene is loaded with generic rubbish but EP's like this one show that there is still hope and that there are still great talents to be discovered.

Depths Of Kronos - From The Void

death metal

Amazon

Back to the headbanging regions of the musical spectrum where we find Dutch destroyers Depths Of Kronos. These guys from the lovely city of Tilburg come up with some infectious melodic death metal. With heaps of tempo changes, brutal growls and tormenting riffs, this bands places themselves in the footsteps of bands like At The Gates, In Flames and Soilwork. To be honest, this is not really my cup of tea, but - also to be honest - I recognize a talented death metal act when I hear them. This certainly is a talented band, one with plenty of variation and with all the necessary elements to make death metal great.

Affasia - Adrift in Remorse

doom metal / dark metal / death metal

Transcending Records

Speaking over diverse metal, here is American death doom band Affasia and their mindbending debut EP 'Adrift In Remorse'. On this EP they seem to show what it would sound like if November's Doom entered the recording studio with Anathema, Slowdive and Evoken, or something like that. Elements of classical music, darkwave, gothic rock and shoegaze fuse with lingering doom death metal and the result is massively intriguing. These four tracks, highlighting in 'Dissolute' show a fresh and interesting direction for the slow and heavy scenes. I wonder how the future of Affasia sounds like...

Revenger - The New Mythology Vol. 1

thrash / death metal

Ok, one more slab of ruthless aggression before I jump into something calm and soothing again. Here is the new, second, EP by Canadian thrashers Revenger. This five track EP is a harsh, powerful and fierce work with skulls ripping riffs, flashing solos and bitter, arduous vocals. It constantly balances on the edge between thrash and death metal. So no, this is definitely not for the faint at heart. On the contrary. I think you'd have to be a seasoned extremophile to be able to enjoy this, but if you are, you will undoubtedly end up with severe whiplash, multiple bruises and a hammering headache. Fuck yeah!!!

Hemka - 707 Collision

techno

Balans Records

From death metal to techno without hesitation, only on Merchants Of Air. Anyway, it's dancefloor time with French producer Hemka and her '707 Collision' EP. The EP contains two tracks and two remixes of the title track. What to expect? Well, repetitive beats, Detroit techno inspired melodies and a raving atmosphere, nothing more, nothing less. I guess this is just one of those releases to play loud and throw yourself onto the dancefloor. My personal favorite here is 'Nocturnal Rounds', probably because I like all things nocturnal. Oh well, let's just dance our asses off. It can be cleansing sometimes...

The Thing With Five Eyes - Noirabesque

23/1/2018

dark jazz / downtempo

Amazon

Ever since I founded this website, I've always been fascinated with the most unique, out-of-the-ordinary albums. In the past three years, several of those have been reviewed and still often appear in my day-to-day playlist. I think that looking for rare gems has become some sort of obsession, not only in the past three years but throughout my entire lifetime. It doesn't limit itself to music either but that is a whole different story. Today, while browsing my mailbox, I stumbled on this album by The Thing With Five eyes. It was originally coined as a dark jazz album and, even though I disagree with that tag, it's one of those unique gems my brain and ears crave.

The Thing With Five Eyes is a brand new project by Jason Köhnen, known for a multitude of bands and project, including Bong-Ra, Celestial Season, The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble and The Mount Fuji Doomjazz Corporation. Recently, he also released some other exciting albums on Svartlava from Rotterdam. These will be featured on the next edition of Brieviews. Now, let's focus on this fascinating musical experience that 'Noirabesque' has become.

On this record Köhnen is accompanied by Algerian / French singer Leila Bounous. She adds Arabic timbres to the music, which somehow brings a select number of Dead Can Dance songs to mind. Besides these element, you can find a wide array of musical influences, from ambient over (dark) jazz to krautrock and downtempo electronics. But even with those influences, there is a beautiful conceptual feel throughout the entire thing.

Another helpful hand (or set of lungs in this case) is proved by Izzy Op De Beeck (Detour Doom Project) who plays the trumpet. His efforts are rewarded in the brilliant track 'Taurus', which is probably my absolute favorite on the album. Yet, rest assured, there is not a dull moment to be found on 'Noirabesque'. It's an album with nine highlights, as each song is another awe-inspiring piece of work with 'Salem' being a perfect and genre defining opener.

In the end, I think the "dark jazz" tag is definitely earned here, especially in the way that The Thing With Five Eyes can stand next to Dale Cooper Quartet and the Dictaphones, Radare, Macelleria Mobile Di Mezzanotte and Somnambulist Quintet. Yet, just as easy this album delves into that scene, it redefines it with heaps of new influences. I have been following this scene since day one and I'm extremely happy that acts like these pop-up.

Recommended? Almost as much as breathing...

Serge