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MNHM - Of Empires Past

5/5/2017

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euhm...
Consouling Sounds
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Here we go again, wandering in uncategorizable musical areas and wondering what the hell I am going to write about this album . Unsurprisingly, this album has been written and recorded by a Dutch band. I really wonder what's in the water over in The Netherlands. Many of their bands come up with original and exhilarating stuff, impossible to put a finger on. This is no exception, but it does have an awesome Dutch sound to it.

At least, the two first songs do. Titled 'A Show Of Might' and 'Equals Of Gods', these songs remind me of the music of their fellow countrymen Kong. With instrumental, progressive and immersive rock music, these two songs alone make the album worthwhile and the whole album is only beginning. After the massively energetic 'Equals Of Gods', the album starts blooming, as if those first two songs formed the stem and the sheer beauty is only now coming up.

I think the easiest way to describe this album is naming it "experimental post rock". Post rock is indeed a huge part of MNHM's music but they're not weary of incorporating other stuff, like the saxophone of Dead Neanderthals' Otto Kokke. With that, and with several passages, the free jazz elements appear, be it in a noisy kind of way. Yes, noise, because there is a lot of that to be found here too, along with its nasty brothers noise rock, math rock and sludge metal.

So maybe this will help: MNHM is what would happen if you lock Dead Neanderthals, Kong, Melvins, Swans, And So I Watched You From Afar, Yodok III and Frank Zappa into a rehearsal studio and force them to record an album. I know, that sounds like a list of people capable of putting an epic piece of work on the market and that is exactly what this album is, epic. Just listen to the action movie soundtrack worthy 'How Things End' or the doomy 'Rule Of Law'.

Oh well, The Dutch, what a strange kind of creative masterminds. You never really know what you're going to get (and I'll leave out the box of chocolate references, because Belgian chocolate is always better), but that is a good thing. My advice is simple, check it out, open your mind and allow this masterpiece to shock and awe you. You'll be in for several surprises and you will be astounded, I promise you.


​Serge
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Beheat Gorum de Mentheurd – Portraits

2/5/2017

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black metal
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Portraits is an album by Italian black metal project Beheat Gorum de Mentheurd, to be officially released in the end of the month, on May 24. Forty four minutes and fifteen seconds long, the album has only three tracks. The first, Осень. Домотканово (which, translated, means “Autumn. Domotkanovo”), is four minutes and nineteen seconds long. The second track, Прасковья Мамонтова (which means “Portrait Of Praskovya Mamontova”), is fourteen minutes and thirty two seconds long. The third and final track – Девочка с персиками (which means “The Girl With Peaches”) – is the longest one, an epic song twenty five minutes and thirty five seconds long. Portraits reveals itself to be a beautiful and delightful album. A very experimental melodic black metal record with predominant atmospheric – and mostly ambient – elemental traits, that stays dominant throughout the work, Portraits is a formidable and calm lyrical allegory, that expresses in a frame of beauty the constant motion of surprisingly poetic cadences, overwhelmed by the serenity of silent virtues, wonderfully aligned at the intercalary sojourn of unpredictable circumstances, predisposed to the sensible degree of ecstatic waves of pale sonorous grievances, condoned at the behest of invisible forces awakened by the intensity of the ecstatic scale of invariably resourceful harmonies, that can be intrinsically felt throughout the album.   

Slowly elaborating an atmosphere where everything can be deemed a neutral disappointment of the heart, although ostensibly consistent at the same time, Portraits has in the intensity of its qualities and abilities the insurrection of a higher realm, fulfilled by the constant exhilaration of emotional battles, dragged by the painful resurgence of distant shadows overcoming the disabling despondency of a storm, lost in the sight of a preciously vivid dream.   

Especially in the third track – the long, epic and monumental Девочка с персиками (“The Girl With Peaches”) – the main features of the work are drastically and distinctly revealed. An effusively dormant and lenient ambient track with subtle nuances, the sonorous framework of the song is elevated to an expansive scale of lurid expectation, despite a fragrant – although dubious and inconsistent –sense of serenity ravenously dispersing an interpretation of morbidity in the air.    

Since black metal elements almost fade away in this work, having little to no prominence at all in neither of its tracks – especially in the last – to label Portraits only as an ambient album would be definitely more suitable. Nonetheless, this does not diminishes in any way the fantastic qualities and characteristics of this amazing work, as a record, and also as an imperiously marvelous work of art. Never tedious neither monotonous in any passage, all the way through, Portraits can be considered a terrific and wonderful ambient album. Certainly, has a dramatically unique sound, being expressively singular in its peculiar definition of a protuberant and composite atmosphere. Evidently, it is not like the ambient albums you have been listening so far, I positively guarantee you this fact.     
 

Wagner
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James A McDermid - Ghost Folk

27/4/2017

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ambient / experimental
Polar Seas Recordings
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This is probably one of the most adventurous ambient albums I have heard in a while, and certainly the one with the most tracks. There are no less than twenty-five of them on this album, most of them short studies of a certain instrument or soundscapes while others are nicely elaborated pieces of music. I have been playing this album a few times in the past few days, mostly while writing my book, and I have to say, this one never gets one-sided. It always makes you wonder, "what is coming next?"

I'm not going into a song-by-song description with this one, but I have to pick out some tunes, just to show you how diverse this whole thing really is. It starts with an opener which features the voice of Veronika Zakonjšek. She appears on more songs, but out of those, 'Moje Misli' is my favorite, a mysterious soundscape, luring the listener in. The song is followed by my absolute favorite on this album, 'Sepastia', which reminds me of both O Yuki Conjugate and Deutsch Nepal. It's a rhythmic track and a damn immersive one too.

'Cutter' is a strange, otherworldly piece of music, short but certainly captivating. 'Vertigo' is an eerie track, one that reminds of either very experimental ethereal music or stripped down post-rock. 'ColourEyes' is possibly even stranger. Then there are vintage old school ambient passages, dark drones, classical arrangements and uplifting plucked snares. With that being said, this album just never ceases to grab your interest, even if the songs are rather short. You still have a seventy minutes lasting sonic adventure here.

But now the hardest part, who exactly to recommend it to? Well, see it this way. 'Ghost Folk' is one of those albums that has the power to get you acquainted with new things while still containing everything you like about ambient music. It's relaxing, it's spooky, it's surprising and it's incredibly diverse. So yeah, this is one that every ambient fan should listen to, at least once. Check it out, you might be pleasantly surprised here and there...


​Serge
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Blanck Mass - World Eater 

11/4/2017

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electronic / noise / experimental
Sacred Bones
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At the end of 2015, I declared Blanck Mass' Dumb Flesh as the 2nd best album of that year, just behind No Joy's  More Faithful. In hindsight, judging by the amount of plays those albums got from me I should have declared Dumb Flesh as the best. It is a stellar album and I am not afraid to call it a landmark album in the history of electronic music. To say I had high hopes for World Eater is a massive, massive understatement. High expectations can yield big dissappointments though. M83's 2016  album Junk was a huuuuge let-down and I wasn't that impressed by Nothing's Tired Of Tomorrow as well. I know that musicians don't (and shouldn't) give a rat's bottom about how I feel about a particular album turns out though. It's their album, their fruit of their labour. Still, I got cautious about being too overly enthousiastic about upcoming albums, but in the case of World Eater I couldn't help it. This simply couldn't turn out bad or okay-ish, right? 

Right!! If anything it's even better than Dumb Flesh! I know I get carried away easily, dishing out hyperboles a lot of the time but this honestly surpasses all my expectations. Benjamin John Power takes his brainchild to the next logical step. Dumb Flesh already strayed much further from the ambient sounds of Blanck Mass' eponymous debut album by being much more rhythmic but World Eater takes it again to the next level. After the brilliant opener 'John Doe's Carnival of Error', that sounds like a musicbox mated with monstrous setup of analogue synths, complete with the (now almost trademark) glitched and cut-up vocals, 'Rhesus Negative' blasts through your speakers. A monster of a track that left me practically dumbfounded the first time I heard it. Again, the cut and paste vocals give it that alien feel to it. I really like the way that they are used as a percussion instrument. Speaking of which, the beats and occasional harsh vocals of this track lean very close to the rhythmic noise from artists on Ant-Zen and the likes, but the whole epic, larger than life soundtrack-like feel of the tracks results in something unlike you've ever heard. It's a glorious triumph of a track. 

'Please' drastically reduces the speed and yet again features the warped voices as the main focal point. I can't quite put my finger on it, but for some reason I'm reminded of The Bulgarian Voices Choir when it comes to the vocals. It has that same otherworldly feel to it. 'The Rat' goes down the rhythmic noise road again, albeit much more playful and, like the whole album in fact, doused in a huge soundtrack sound sauce. 'Silent Treatment' is as close to a "love song" as Blanck Mass will get and has a certain broody sensuality to it. 'Minnesota/Eas Fors/Naked' hearkens back to the debut with it's ambient sounds and moods. 'Hive Mind' starts calm enough, once again a sensual 'love song sound' but explodes into a glorious finale at the 6:30 mark which makes  you want to crank up the volume all the way to 11. Pure bliss. 

I haven't really gotten into the whole idea and concept of the album but then again, Power explains it all in the various press releases, as well as on the bandcamp page. So who am I to explain my interpretation to you, dear reader? I'm all for people finding their own meaning. Power states: 'The human race is consuming itself' and the anger and frustration that come with it are tangible throughout the album. Most notably in 'Rhesus Negative'. But it's not all negativity. There are glimmers of hope, and the aformentioned finale of 'Hive Mind' is a good example of that. At least, that's how I interpret it. The fact that Power manages to invoke so much feeling and emotion in what is essentially a wordless album is an accomplishment on its own. 

I cannot stress enough how absolutely stellar this album is. It is an album that transcends genres and like Dumb Flesh before it is yet again a landmark album. We are not even halfway 2017 but this will reach my number 1 spot, unless something even more amazing will come by.... 

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Bjorn
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Brieviews 22

31/3/2017

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Lynhood - Septembre

ambient / experimental / shoegaze
Atypeek
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Lynhood is the solo project for French bassist Chloé Della Valle, founder of the Grenoble label. Lynhood is also a very interesting take on ambient, drones, noise pop and shoegaze. Armed with a bass guitar, her dreamy voice and a loop station, Lynhood creates textured pop songs with a gritty edge. That now results in this four track ep which at times is extremely melancholic. While opener 'Tree' is a gentle tune, 'White Emperor' is a tremendous tearjerker, gloomy and deeply introvert. In all, this ep is not an easy pill to swallow but certainly one worth the effort. It's simply another interesting take on drones and ambient. Try it out...

Duality - Archeology

metalcore / metal
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French metal act Duality come up with a complex but immersive take on progressive metal and metalcore, a genre I'm not always a big fan of. However, the three songs on this ep are laced with oriental influences, unusual vocal lines and tantalizing electronics, which make this thing a lot better than I expected. The songs are quite slow but still contain heaps of energy and grinding riffs. My personal favorite on this ep is 'Osiris', an intense piece of work that will often surprise the listener. I suggest you check it out, musical surprises are always a good thing as they open your mind for new things.

Never Train - Dnar

hard rock
Inverse Records
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They call it "street rock", but I think the term "hard rock" will fit the band very well. I mean, uptempo rockers with a dirty edge and plenty of power, both in the riffs and in the vocals, that spells hard rock in my book. Never Train, a band from Finland, does nothing really new but they did record three highly convincing pieces of good old fashioned rock 'n roll. There is a little bit of Skid Row in here, a dash of Ramones and even a touch of Guns 'n Roses. So this just can't go wrong. Opener 'First We Live' is my favorite. 'Hope In Youth' is a rocking dance floor filler and closer 'Dnar' is simply an uplifting piece of old school hard rock. You might need this...

Dominique Charpentier - L'attente

classical / ambient
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The email that contained this ep, also contained the words "It's a piano solo album", which is probably the truest thing I have ever read. On this ep, there is a piano and ten massively experienced fingers who gently help the instrument reveal its dreams. The five short pieces on this ep are soothing and minimal classical pieces that can lighten up every day. I don't care what genre you usually listen to, dear reader, but I strongly urge you to purchase this album. Music like this should be in everybody's collection. Everybody needs moments like these, moments to meditate and look into their own soul. This album can help you with that...

Vautour - Vautour

drum & bass / industrial metal
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With the energy of a metal album, French electronic act Vautour comes up with six massively energetic pieces of industrial music. Fans of Chase & Status or Pendulum will undoubtedly embrace this thing. There are references towards hardcore techno, dubstep, drum & bass and breakbeats but also towards rock and metal, be it a highly electronic form If you ever see a moshpit forming during a drum & bass gig, it will probably be while Vautour is playing live. In all, this debut is an interesting piece of work, one which will definitely get your dancing boots on. I can see good things happening for this act in the future.

Moonlight Prophecy - Eternal Oblivion 

progressive / thrash metal
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Philadelphia's Moonlight Prophecy is a Progressive, Thrash and Neoclassical Metal project from multi-instrumentalist/songwriter Lawrence Wallace, and that is pretty much all you need to know before getting your hands on this stunning ep. Mostly instrumental, this three-track is loaded with shredding riffs, epic guitar solos and a massive drum sound, all coming with a gloomy atmosphere. People have said that this compares to Nevermore meets Testament and I'm not going to disagree with that. Fans of epic, technical and immersive metal can easily trust this project to deliver the goods. So yep, recommended as hell, this one...

Era 9 - Warrior

nu metal
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This single by Montreal based rock band Era 9 is a very nice appetizer for their upcoming album (planned to be released in May). This song seemingly blends influences from Linkin Park, Paramore, Lacuna Coil and even Skrillex and throws them into one immersive piece of music. The result is a possible hard rock charts hit, a song that would do perfectly well as a Wrestlemania tune, for example. So yes, it's worth to check this out. I'm already curious for the upcoming full-length and if you're into anything that smells like nu metal, you should too...

Electric Floor - Fader

synthpop / new wave
Vipchoyo Sound Factory 
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With elements from indie rock, new wave and synth pop, this trio politely invites you to the dancefloor, especially if you are a fan of Echo & The Bunnymen, Psychedelic Furs, The Cure, Human League and so on. These five tracks seem to come directly from the eighties but will just as well please fans of modern day indie rock. Opener 'Bluedive' and the gloomy 'Borderland' are my favorites on this five track but all the songs are worth your attention. So yes, for a nostalgia trip, this is definitely a highly recommended ep and to be frank, I'd rather go see these guys on stage than Depeche Mode.

Headless Horseman - 47009

techno / industrial
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Speaking about invitations to the dancefloor, this one is something for the discotheques and dance festivals around the globe. Headless Horseman delivered a four track ep, loaded with beats and eerie soundscapes. Yet, instead of the regular 4/4 beats, this act gives the whole thing an industrial touch, reminding me of acts like Imminent, Sonar, Morgenstern or Synapscape. The opener, 'Widow's Peak' is my favorite here, along with the Scorn-like dark dub track 'The Day She Vanished'. So yeppers, for a techno record, this is a bloody good one, one that will find the way to my playlists quite often from now on.

Lonely The Brave - Diamond Days

alternative rock
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British band Lonely The Brave delivered a nice four track ep, named 'Diamond Days'. On this ep, the band comes up with small rock anthems, seemingly influenced by alternative rock, indie and post rock. Opener and title track 'Diamond Days' is a possible fan favorite, an intelligent rock anthem that would fit perfectly well in today's alternative rock community. 'Two Heads' is a bit heavier and 'Collider' is another awesome anthem. The ep closes with a nice version of 'The Rat', originally recorded by The Walkmen. In all, this ep might not be earth shattering but it's definitely a nice addition to your collection.

Misto - Infinite Mirrors

post rock
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This debut ep by Italian one-man post rock act Misto has been released last year but it only reached us a short while ago. Usually, when that happens, the release ends up in the pile of albums-we-don't-have-time-for but this time I'd like to make an exception. Why? Well, this is a very nice six-track ep, containing some gentle post rock tunes. This certainly is one of those ep that would perfectly fit in your massive post-rock playlists, there where Explosions, Godspeed, Mogwai, Caspian and Astronaut also roam. So go ahead, download these tunes help me in hoping that Misto will form a band and tour soon...

Grave Plague - The Infected Crypts

death metal
Give Praise Records
Redefining Darkness Records
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On to the extremes then, courtesy of American death metal horde Grave Plague. Their sole goal is to resurrect the old school version of death metal and on this two-track ep they do exactly that. With a sound that reminds me of something between Dismember and At The Gates, this quintet blasts two ferocious slabs of vintage death metal through my speakers at a very high paste. The whole thing is quite short but powerful enough to demolish a small suburb. So if you're into grinding riffs, sick grunts and pulverising tempos, this one should have a spot in your collection. Period.

HaatE - Crystal : Farewell

dark ambient / black metal
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Italian black ambient act HaatE returns with a mesmerizing and hypnotic ep, one that has everything it needs to be a solid reference to this dark and mysterious genre. Although mostly rooted in dark ambient, there are elements from black metal and the whole post-black/rock scene. The end result is a sonic journey that never disappoints, never gets stale and continuously contains this cold, eerie and haunting atmosphere. I can only recommend this thing to all you dark souls out there. For people like you, this music is comforting and calm while it's dark and scary for others. Great work, a must-have.

Kolfskop - Cambozola Superster

experimental rock
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The weirdest ep in this edition of Brieviews comes from Belgian trio Kolfskop. These guys from Ghent once had an idea about how music should sound, threw that overboard and started experimenting, influenced by Zappa, Waits, Beefheart and Primus. Now, they come up with this strange ep, one that has the words "avant-garde" written all over it. Nonetheless, this thing comes highly recommended because it's something you just don't hear very often anymore. Oh, and it's all in Dutch, but don't let that stop you. After all, plenty of Belgians are musical geniuses as well as completely mad.

Eli van Pike - Herzschlag

gothic / industrial metal
Darksign Music
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A German-American cooperation, deeply rooted in the dark industrial metal scene, that has got to be interesting. And it is, certainly for fans of bands like ASP, Oomph, Wolfsheim and so on. This single contains the gothic rock song 'Herzschlag' and a bunch of EBM/industrial/future pop remixes. Personally, I would have preferred one or two other songs on this single, just to add a touch of variation, but nonetheless, this is an interesting example of today's gothic scene. So I guess the choice is yours, and I strongly suggest checking this single out. If you like it, why not get the whole album?

Fork / Göttemia - Indre Enfold

punk
Kraftpest
Fork
Göttemia 
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And we end this edition of Brieviews with two bands from the Norwegian punk underground, bands that have been playing live and touring for years and became quite good friends. Fork comes up with two energetic punk songs, nudging towards alternative and noise rock but still raunchy enough to please hardcore punks. Göttemia adds three aggressive punk tunes to the mix, perfectly capable of getting that mosh pit started. Both acts seem to do exactly what they want, which obviously is in perfect punk tradition. So, punk of all ages, check this out. You'll love it.
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Empusae - Lueur

27/3/2017

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drone / dark ambient
Consouling Sounds
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Years ago, my musical endeavors focused mainly on dark ambient and ritual industrial. I devoured everything that labels like Cold Meat Industry released. In later years, pretty much after the demise of CMI, I start wandering into different territories to satisfy my dark ambient needs. Those eventually lead me to love and respect our own Belgian drone and ambient acts, including CHVE, Barst, Dirk Serries, Stratosphere, Ashtoreth, acts who inspired me to make my own little steps into the world of ambient, drone and noise.

Empusae, the alter ego of Nicolas Van Meirhaeghe is no stranger to me. During those old days, I often listened to his music, often in playlists along with acts like Sophia, Deutsch Nepal, Sephiroth, Raison D'Etre and so on. However, for some reason both forms of ambient have always been separated, at least to me. But at one point Empusae found his way to Consouling Sounds and started cooperating with Barst. Now, after all is said and done, there is this new album, one which once again proves the Belgian dominance in this scene.

'Lueur' consists of two tracks, each lasting a bit over twenty minutes. If you want a short description, you can see this as a perfect marriage between Sephiroth and CHVE or between Sophia and Barst. Both worlds of ambient and dark industrial come together perfectly well here, thriving on Empusae's talent for gloomy but immersive music and the brilliant guest appearance by Colin H. Van Eeckhout (CHVE, AmenRa). Track one alone, named 'Guiding Light' is a massive piece of constantly evolving dark ambient, sludge and drones.

That being said, this album is just as inventive and adventurous as 'The Western Lands' by Barst, although that one has a lot more tempo changes and eclectic elements. 'Retinae Tenebrae' seems to focus more on a mix between neoclassical and dark ambient, which is just as welcome in my book. Ordo Rosarius Equilibrio comes to mind here, but also some of those epic sludge metal bands, in a way. That cannot be just Colin's influence, that must be decades of experience in all sounds dark and heavy.

The verdict? As I said, this album only confirms everything I said about Belgian ambient acts. Of course this comes highly recommended. What else did you expect?


​Serge
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Dead Neanderthals - Craters

24/3/2017

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heavy jazz / grindcore / noise
Consouling Sounds 
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Time to prepare for another slab of ruthless jazz aggression by Dutch combo Dead Neanderthals. The question is, how do you prepare for something like this? I mean, this is not the kind of music you usually listen to when you begin digging into the immense world of sound design. You got to have a certain history, some stepping stone bands, so to speak. For starters, you need to know your way around noise and experimental music. You should know something about jazz and then forget all about that. You should know about grindcore too.

A friend of mine once said that Dead Neanderthals "abuse their instrumental respectfully". I couldn't agree more. What they come up with sounds like pure equipment torture, but one that is only possible when the musicians is passionate about the music. 'Craters' is a thirty-six long extreme jazz composition, where sax and drums drag the listening into a cesspool of metallic, harsh and barely controlled chaos, for the occasion aided by a bass guitar. This album claws, scratches, screeches and gnaws, all in perfect Dead Neanderthals tradition.

I think it's safe to say that this is Dead Neanderthals darkest and moodiest work so far. In a way, it can compare to their previous work but also to acts like Barchan, Plaistow and Sunn O))). You know, jazz but heavy, overwhelming and perhaps a bit homicidal. Is it a recommended album? Well, obviously it is. Every Dead Neanderthals fan should have already got his hands on a copy of this album. Even if you're not a fan, check it out. You will either love it or hate it but you'll have to agree that it's something you don't hear every day. 


​Serge
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Federico Dal Pozzo - Untitled_TeVeT

16/3/2017

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ambient / experimental
Krysalisound
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Experiments with sound have been my favorite activities since I discovered that tapping on my baby chair created music. During my searches through the bizarre world of sound art, I've been listening to printers, hard drives my mom's old washing machine, birds, train engines, metallic sounding conversations and whatnot. However, even I never thought that one day I will be listening to an ice cube for an hour. A 380 kg weighing ice cube that is.

Yes, this album by Italian experimentalist and musique concrete  composer Federico Dal Pozzo is an acousmatic composition, generated from the freezing sounds of a 380kg ice cube. So if you expected drums, synths, guitars and other traditional instruments, you might want to rethink your vision about music. Apart from being strange and unusual, this hour long composition is adventurous, almost alive.

Musically, this album fits in perfectly with your weirdest ambient and musique concrete albums, but it also fits in with regular ambient and all things soundscapes related. It constantly evolves, becomes loud, intense, overwhelming but also cold, isolated and alienating. It not only show the freezing ice cube but also beautifully blends in with the sounds of your surroundings, making this kind of music a part of everyday life. So yes, this one comes highly recommended. 


​Serge
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Margaret Catcher - Singularity 

11/3/2017

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electronic / alternative rock
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Well, since we're dealing with deviant music today, I might as well throw this one in the mix. Again, much like the melodic death metal, the free jazz and the harsh hip hop I wrote about today, here is an album that shatters every expectation and leaves me wondering what the hell I'm going to write about the damn thing. Not that I mind, but the days of easily categorizing a band are over, that's for damn sure.

Unsurprisingly, Margaret Catcher are a French duo, that country is crazy. One is a drummer, the other one plays bass and both throw in heaps of vocoders, effect pedals and sensor paths. The result is something that resembles math rock music in an electronic and abstract way, a bit maybe like something between Add N to (X), Battles and Suicide. This album is loaded with weirdness, but also with uplifting and danceable songs.

Most of the songs are quite short, only a few make the three minutes mark. Nonetheless, they are full of unexpected hooks, dynamic drums and an old school sound that will make every vintage synth fan get aroused, easily. My personal favorites? Well, I'm quite fond of opener 'Not Too Bad' and title track 'Singularity' is a confusing but massively enjoyable piece of music. In between, there are other captivating tracks to be found. 

In all, this is a startling album, one that could have been made in the experimental scenes of the seventies or eighties. I think most of these songs will end up in my day-to-day playlist and I'm sure that I will grin each time they appear, especially when I got people over who have no idea that there is such a thing as experimental music. I suggest you do the same, you might be surprised what lurks in the rehearsal rooms of France...


​Serge
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Al'Tarba - La Nuit Se Lève

11/3/2017

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electronic / experimental / hip hop
Atypeek
I.O.T. Records
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We're still in France. We're once again dealing with something surprising, something stubbornly following its own path. Yet, this time, the music is something completely different, deviating from anything I usually listen to and certainly from anything I review. Right now, we're in the urban electronic hip hop scene, listening to beatmaker Al'Tarba and his gloomy tales of pariahs, sidewalk survivors and anti-heroes. 

Al'Tarba has been influenced by Mobb Deep and Wu-Tang Clan but also by audiobooks, field recordings, street dialogs and the sounds of everyday. Those influences are now being thrown into a intense and stunning album, 'La Nuit Se Lève' (which translates as 'The Night Rises'). The album is a mesmerizing blend of beats, electronics, weird soundscapes and a multitude of vocals. Hip hop and dubstep,  they seem to fit perfectly together.

Now, my knowledge of both genre is quite limited. So I'll throw in a few names that come to mind when I listen to most of the songs on this album. Cypress Hill is one, especially the ep they recorded with Rusko. The Herbaliser also comes to mind, along with Wu-Tang Clan, Eminem, Nas, you know, the in-your-face version of the rap and hip hop scene. In that aspect, 'Guillotine' is a brilliant angry hip hop track.

Now, I don't often listen to either hip hop, rap or dubstep but this album will definitely end up in my day-to-day playlist. I don't think I've ever heard these genres being this interesting, this varied and this immersive. Who to recommend it to? I don't know, I really have no idea. I'm not sure if fans of these genres read this website but if so, I recommend it to them, along with fans of weird electronics. This is the kind of variation you need in your collection, believe me.


​Serge
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Jacaszek - KWIATY 

2/3/2017

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experimental / electronic / ambient / classical
Ghostly International
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I first discovered the wonderful and adventurous music of Jacaszek in a record store. 'Glimmer' and 'Catalogue des Arbres (feat. Kwartludium)' have been regularly played albums for years in this household. So when this new album was announced, I was immediately interested. However, like often happens with artists this talented and versatile, starting to write this review was a difficult task. So let's just begin by writing that this is an breathtaking piece of work.

For those not familiar with Michał Jacaszek: he is a Polish composer who combines electronically prepared sounds with acoustic instruments.  Over the years, he composed soundtracks and theatre music, plus a number of albums. His work blend classical music with experimental electronics and jazz. He knows little to no musical borders and continuously drags in seemingly strange influences. 

'Kwiaty' means flowers and in a way that is exactly what you get on this album; blooming pieces of music that look and feel familiar yet mysterious. The album was inspired by Michał Jacaszek’s discovery of an English anthology of metaphysical poetry from the 17th century by Robert Herrick, which to him — somehow-- sounded songlike when read out-loud. The album contains guest appearances by Hania Malarowska (Hanimal), Joasia Sobowiec-Jamioł and Natalia Grzebała.

The songs on this album are strange pop-ballads or jazz inspired classical pieces or electronically rearranged folk songs, regarding on how you feel about them. I hear influences from all these genres, including trip hop, dark jazz and the soundtracks to Tim Burton's movies or even Twin Peaks. There is a gloomy atmosphere, a mysterious feel but also musical ingenuity and beautiful vocals.  In short, this is Jacaszek at his very best.

Once again I refuse to pick a favorite track. I'm not even going to mention separate songs. I'm just going to recommend buying the album. Take the weekend off and enjoy 'Kwiaty' non-stop. Allow Jacaszek to guide you on an introvert but epic journey, one you will not regret. It will definitely be worth the effort. If you are into anything between Dead Can Dance, Bersarin Quartet and The Nightmare Before Christmas, you will easily get addicted to this thing...


​Serge
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Fabio Perletta - Ichinen 一念

17/2/2017

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ambient
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Strange things are happening in this house, strange coincidences to be exact. Recently, we have been working on a new project, one we truly believe in and one we are quite determined about. We believe that this project is going to take one year to be complete, at least, that is what our advisors have been telling us. A few days ago, this album came in, quickly followed by another one, both carrying the word 'Ichinen'. I'd never heard of that word before and I found it extremely coincidental that it suddenly appeared twice. 'Ichinen' is a Japanese word used in the art of zen meditation, meaning 'determination' and 'one year', among others. 

'Ichinen', the album by experimental composer Fabio Perletta, is the follow-up to his 2016 album 'Genkai'. It was inspired by a trip in Japan in 2015 and a book of Suzuki Daisetsu Teitarō, titled 'Living by Zen'. So I guess it will be no surprise that this is a meditative ambient album. Divided into three parts, this album is a collection of soundscapes, drones, noises and field recordings, arranged into narrative pieces of music, or "sound art". However, don't expect blissful ambient in the vein of people like Brian Eno or Harold Budd. No, this album is abstract, avant-garde and unpredictable. 

The best way to approach this album is to play it loud enough, find a comfortable position and allow the sounds to guide you through your own imagination. As I already mentioned, this is a meditative album, both minimal and immersive, if played in the right conditions, obviously. I'm not even going to recommend this just to ambient fans. I'm going to recommend it to everyone. In this world, full of stress, anxiety and depression, an album like this might actually help people to relax, to meditate and to discover talents and emotions they never thought they had. So check it out, try it. It's healthier than taking antidepressant medication...


​Serge
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Violet Cold – Anomie

14/2/2017

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experimental / black metal / shoegaze
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Anomie is an album to be released on March 1, by Azerbaijani musician Emin Guliyev, under his artistic nom de plume Violet Cold. With six tracks – the eponymous Anomie, She Spoke Of Her Devastation, Lovegaze, My Journey To Your Space, Violet Girl and No Escape From Dreamland – Violet Cold’s music is a complex mixture of several different – and at a first glance, disparate – genres, like atmospheric black metal, blackgaze, ambient electronic music, shoegaze and post black metal, amongst others, resulting in a peculiarly unique blend of sonorous artistry, that has created a singular kind of experimental music, in the whole history of the underground scene. A very surreal album, with sad nuances, opaque colors and emotional soundscapes, Anomie is certainly a very unique composition. With beautiful harmonies, and a fantastic melodic layout, the record is full of abyssal and enchanting dream-like fantasies, as well as sincere disdainful loyalties, deeply inserted in the vastness of a pure and cosmological vision, that resurfaces at the core of an unseen labyrinth of agony, never testified in a work with such level of sensibility, in the underground music scene before. 

With the serenity of unspoken, but deeply energizing harmonies, full of soul, relinquishing beauty and aggrandizing features of spontaneity, this is certainly a refreshing, embellished and interesting album. Deeply committed to a general level of uneasy originality, which, at least to a certain degree, seems obvious, given the fact that so many different genres are combined with the genuine proposal of creating something unique – though ambient elements do prevail most of the time throughout the album’s length –, Anomie is a magnificent record. Authentic and singular, certainly this album is anything less than a major outstanding work. 

Splendid, fulfilling, original, faithful to its roots, and genuine by the sake of its purpose, there is no other album that could be highlighted as a possible comparison. A formidable artistic achievement, you are never bored throughout its fifty three minutes long run. In the end, you will be asking yourself when something with such a powerful magnitude will ever be created again.   

A great experimental work, with a phenomenal final result, Anomie is a sensational record, being a splendid work in the experimental music category, probably the best ever made. With the perfect infusion of so many different elements from a lot of different genres, what has been created on this album is marvelously unique and unparalleled in the history of underground music. A splendorous sound from a different world, a different dimension and a different galaxy, you will never believe what you are hearing, in the first place. A majestic exemplar of artistic excellence, Anomie is an album that deserves its place of honor.  



Wagner
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Belgium experimental underground 017 survey – Edited by Unexplained Sounds Group

14/2/2017

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ambient / dark ambient / experimental
Unexplained Sounds Group
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Another compilation featuring various artists, edited by Unexplained Sounds, Belgium experimental underground 017 suvey has twenty six tracks, from various groups and musicians specialized on the ambient music genre. Like all compilations, on this album you have a huge amount of different styles, several of them exceedingly good, vibrant and overwhelming, some ostensibly monotonous and despondent, others extensively ordinary, and a lot of them incredibly tense and surprising. The ambient genre primarily has to be heard and analyzed by experienced listeners, who really comprehend and love the genre. And Belgium experimental underground 017, above them all, have the best the ambient genre has to offer – both in the traditional and experimental verves –, in the underground worldwide scenario, so to speak. 

Analyzing a compilation like this one is thoroughly difficult, primarily because you have to deal with a huge amount of different artists, each one of them practicing their own peculiar style and particular understanding of the genre. Nonetheless, the compilation has a cohesive unity and a coherent uniformity all the way through, never being disparate, inconsistent or ecstatic in any moment. With a vast collection of excellent ambient tracks, the album relies mostly on very nervous, anxious and agonizing atmospheres, although more relaxing and calm harmonies can be heard throughout the album. A very singular collection of ambient music, Belgium experimental underground is a curious album, that managed to reunite the most talented, original, somber and sinister contemporary artists on the genre. The first few tunes already caught me by surprise: with conspicuous, subtle and funereal devices, they follow the more traditional layout on the genre, obeying the primary characteristics of ambient music. The apprehensive atmosphere is certainly amorphous and malevolent, and you evidently will find yourself caught into the dark underground of a depraved and doomed dimension of affliction and demise, if you listen to his whole album completely alone in the dark. The artists in the album are generally competent and skilled, knowing precisely how to properly create the exact harmonies for the sake of an ambivalent and nervous climax, precisely demanded on this type of music. If you really love ambient and dark ambient, you will definitely be thrilled by this album. With so many fantastic tunes, you will certainly find your favorites. One of the tracks that have completely captivated me is Requiem for a Star, by Aponogeton. A beautiful song characterized by a serene and transcendental harmonic cosmogony, it has an expressively poetic soundscape, infatuated by a corrosive, yet enchanted and graceful numbness, that runs free through the acquiescence of the rhythms, standardizing a correspondence between the subtle energy that flows between the invisible nature of the sincere grandiosity of a solitary universe and the dreams that unfold among the rivalries of ardent and infinite thoughts. 

Nevertheless, twenty six long tracks can be a tiresome journey. I strongly recommend you when listening to this album to divide it into two or three parts. In one day you can listen to songs from one to ten, the next day from eleven to twenty, and finally, from twenty one to twenty six. The songs are very long, and even if you are a very ardent enthusiast of ambient music, you will eventually feel tired if you listen to the album in a unique, long rush, like I did. 

But I should point it out the fact that the songs are impeccable, and the sinister atmospheres most tunes are able to evoke are simply fantastic. Belgium experimental underground 017 suvey is major ambient/ dark ambient compilation, that has everything needed to please the enthusiasts of the genre. With calm, serene, quiet and sometimes thoroughly ecstatic harmonies, the objectifying agony, the sensational anguish and the imperially dense and macabre virtuosity of these tracks really intensify a musical narration of fearful apprehension and unbelievable lethargy, as you feel yourself profoundly, physically and slowly transported to a vast and surreal dimension of delusional worlds, where nothing is what it seems.

With a prevalent hostile nature, full of afflictive vibrations, Belgium experimental underground 017 is a fantastic album, certainly the best ambient/ dark ambient compilation I have ever heard. Abundant in sinister nuances, dark grievances and derelict numbness, it is full of qualities, and has the best tunes created in the genre. A surreal collection with twisted expectancies, here ambient music escalates towards a new path of creative excellence, featuring the most melancholic, acerbic, pervasive, doomed, anesthetic, talented and experienced artists ever produced in the contemporary history of the genre.  


​Wagner
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Brieviews 20

8/2/2017

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Aidan Baker & Karen Willems - Landlos

drone / ambient / jazz / krautrock
Midira Records 
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Another cooperation between Aidan Baker and a drummer, this time Karen Willems from Belgian experimental band Inwolves. Together, the duo recorded two tracks which both showcase the drone ambient we all know Aidan Baker for, but also take on elements from krautrock and jazz. Of course, neither of both musicians go for a conventional way of playing their instruments and in this case, that leads to a strange, mildly psychedelic trip. The overall tone is rather calm and soothing. Of course, this comes highly recommended for all drone ambient fans. You simply can't go wrong with Baker & Willems.

Derby Derby - Love Dance

drone / krautrock / experimental
Ormo Records
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This debut album by French improv-experimentalists Derby Derby is quite an interesting one. Split into two parts, this thirty minutes lasting blend of krautrock and drone reeks of jazz, without losing itself in the chaotic approach of free jazz. Part one, 'Love' reminds me of Caudal, but with trumpets instead of guitars. It's slow, repetitive and immersive, and perfectly suited for all fans of Aidan Baker and company. The other track, 'Dance', is wild, energetic and psychedelic. Both are absolute recommendations for those who love to wander in elaborate musical landscapes, that is a fact. 

Noemie Nours - Songs From The Life Of Bears

singer-songwriter
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These are four of the saddest, most fragile songs you'll ever hear, seemingly recorded somewhere in a bedroom. There is nothing complex or overproduced about this ep, on the very contrary. This is an introvert singer and her instrument, completely locked into herself, into the subdued correlation between the two. The result is an exceptionally minimal singer-songwriter ep that breathes the spirit of folk activism and protest.  Amplified and extended with other instruments, these tunes could become immersive shoegaze songs and I kinda want to hear that happen, but for now, this surely is something to listen to while shedding some tears...

Fen / Sleepwalker - Stone And Sea / Call Of Ashes II

doom / dark ambient
Ksenza records
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A dark and haunting split between Russian one-man act Sleepwalker and UK's progressive black metal act Fen. Sleepwalker opens the split with three amazing pieces of music, ranging from shoegaze to post-rock and doom to dark ambient. Opener 'Somnambulistic Trance' alone is worth the effort of buying the album, an immersive piece of work, like The Cure meets A Swarm Of The Sun. Then there are three Fen tracks, two epic progressive black metal pieces and one calm, acoustic track. Obviously, all six tracks are worthy of a spot in your collection. This simply is an awesome split album, period.

Assent - We Are The New Black

metal / metalcore
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Aah, the French, such a bunch of stubborn experimentalists. Once again a French act comes up with something that defies all classification. This project, created in 2015 by Aurélien Fouet-Barak (vocals, bass, drums programming) blends a bunch of metal genres, including groove metal, black metal, metalcore, progressive and heavy metal, into a whirlpool of heavy, violent, technical and blasting music. With all these different elements, obviously this is a well-varied album. Yet, in all honesty, I do have to say that only trained metal ears will be able appreciate this. For other people, this is just too weird and exhausting, not for me though...

Raptor King - Dinocalypse

thrash metal / hardcore
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We're not done with the weirdness of the French yet, and apparently that also counts for the level of variation and the number of different genres. Here, thrash metal goes fist in fist with hardcore, black metal, stoner doom, heavy metal and whatnot. The result is an ep that rips on your eardrums and stomps your stomach. My personal favorite is the blackened 'Fight 'n Roll', but I would recommend the entire thing because of two good reasons. One, it fucking rocks, and two, the front man is a dinosaur who survived the meteor impact and the following extinction 74 million years ago. I know, it sounds weird but in France, everything is possible...

Nula - Kenoma 

doom / sludge
Black Bow Records
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Hailing from Serbia, Nula comes with a different and refreshing approach to doom and sludge metal. not only are the vocals in Serbian, which is already pretty unique I think, but Nula also brings a sense of melody to their rough and intense sound. Furthermore, it seems like black metal has been one of Nula's influences, along of course with several sludge doom bands. 'Silazak U Prah' is my personal favorite but I'm quite positive that all three songs on this album will eventually end up in my heavy playlist. I suggest you do the same, check out this album, let these Serbians surprise, shock and awe you. You know damn well you want to...

Adrian Pain & The Dead Sexy - Mixed Messages

metal / metalcore 
All-Core
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Canada delivers another slab of musical aggression with metal hybrids Adrian Pain & The Dead Sexy. Here, we have something between metalcore, death and progressive metal, as if Alexisonfire or Funeral For A Friend combined forces with Deftones, Ill Nino or Incubus. In a way, this ep can be seen as a gateway, something to lure younger rock fans into the massive world of metal and core. Honestly, this isn't really my cup of tea, as I'm not a big -core fan, but I have to admit that there are some awesome tunes to be found and that 'Say It Like You Mean It' is a world class song. So, youngers, meet your new favorite...

Soothsayer - At This Great Depth

doom / sludge / black metal
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Hell yeah, a huge dreamy post-rock/doom passage, followed by nutsack ripping black metal and sheer brutality. Normally, those sudden outbursts of aggression cause me to go 'meh' but in this case, I'm definitely sold. These Irish doomers have released a stunning ep, with two long tracks, heaps of variation and some psychedelic passages. This is sludge metal at its best, intense as fuck and immersive as hell. And then the second song still has to start. Doomers, doubt no longer, this will provide you with multiple eargasms, or it will make you go absolutely insane, which is just as good...

Illimitable Dolor - Illimitable Dolor

doom
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From Australia comes arguably one of the most beautiful doom metal albums of the year. This album is a tribute to Gregg Williamson, a deceased band member, and perhaps one of the most emotional tributes I've ever heard. The album contains for deep and sorrowful doom anthems, somewhere between the funeral doom of Evoken and the doom death of bands like November's Doom. If you are nostalgic for those glorious nineties and its awe-inspiring bands, you definitely need this gem in your collection, right next to My Dying Bride, Saturnus, Officium Triste & Shape of Despair. Get it now, you will not be disappointed, I promise...

Radien - Maa

sludge / doom
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Oh damn, this is a massive doom monster with fierce claws, perfectly prepared and willing to rip you shreds. Finnish sludge doom horde Radien comes up with a very nasty and gritty version of the genre, seemingly also inspired by the punk scene. The two tracks on this ep are horrifying pieces of music, and that is actually a compliment. Throughout the two songs, I've been thinking about Winter, Skullflower, Dopethrone and the complete uselessness of our existence. Besides, usually, I'm not so high on sludge metal vocals, but this one is awesome. These guys are on their way to become one of my favorites in a precarious scene...
Serge
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Sielwolf & Nam-Khar - Oppressfield

6/2/2017

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dark ambient / noise / experimental / industrial
Sombre Soniks
Sielwolf
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Last year, the apparent resurrection of Sielwolf pleasantly surprised me by releasing, 'Atavist Craft', a cooperation with German ritual ambient project Nam-Khar. Now, they return with a second effort, one that seemingly takes on an hypnotic, repetitive and industrial approach. Well, I cannot say that I'm disappointed by this direction, on the very contrary. This new album, 'Oppressfield' is pretty damn awesome, to be honest.

In fact, 'Oppressfield', both the title track and the entire album, are perfectly suited to function as the soundtrack for a post-apocalyptic horror game, or movie. There are unidentified noises coming from everywhere. The atmosphere is haunting and often quite intense. There are eerie soundscapes and drones. There is repetitive percussion, lulling the listener into a dark state of trance and taking him on an adventure through his deepest fears.

Of course, this is not an album for everyone. I cannot imagine people playing this at a dinner party or during a pleasant get together with friends and family. This is an album that should be listened to in absolute solitude, preferably loud. The gloomy drone track 'Failed States', for example, is a scary piece of work that only experienced ears can appreciate. But those ears will definitely adore this thing.

Who to recommend this to? Well, obviously to fans of MZ.412, Atrium Carceri, Brighter Death Now, Desiderii Marginis,... that kind of stuff. If you're into old Cold Meat Industry albums, 'Oppressfield' undoubtedly deserves a place in your collection. I only mentioned two tracks, but apart from the title track, I have to say that 'Crypt Trap' is the absolute highlight on this release, closely followed by the ritual droner 'Exorial' .

​Seriously, this is industrial ambient at its best...


Serge
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Brieviews 17

17/12/2016

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Ummagma + A.R.Kane - Winter Tale 

dream pop
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A.R. Kane
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The one thing I dislike about Christmas, is the music. From those appaling bells to the 'Frohe Weihnachten' by The Wiener Sängerknaben, it's all horrible. Luckily, this year, there's a decent alternative, a little cooperative single by shoegaze / dream pop acts Ummagma and A.R. Kane. 'Winter Tale' is a gentle, dreamy and quite minimal song, guaranteed to get you into the wintery atmosphere. If you're into stuff like Cocteau Twins, 'Winter Tale' could easily guide you through the darkest days of winter. I also really dig the two remixes, taking on an ambient approach. Nice work...

Verein Freude - Schnappschuss

jazz / krautrock / post rock
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Somewhere between the immersive atmosphere of post rock and the psychedelic approach of krautrock we find the inspiring music of Verein Freude, a German band. On their facebook page, this quartet mentions Miles Davis, Avishai Cohen and several other jazz-musicians, and with good reason too. The music on this ep is a perfect combination of jazz and post rock, well, the mild, subdued version of post rock that is. The end result is a nice relaxed piece of music, perfectly suited for the quiet winter evenings and the lounge bars at the summer beaches alike. Check it out, this is a pleasurable listen.

dy - Flip Side

electronic / idm
ampbitifgo
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On to the electronic scene then, where we meet a project named Dy and his weird, gloomy electronics. In a way, I think it's safe to place this ep between your Aphex Twin and Autechre albums. Dark, haunting soundscapes and broken rhythms make up most of this release, brilliantly highlighting in 'Flipped Out'. Although, I have the say, that eerie opener, 'Cheap Seats' is a great piece of electronic (dark) ambient as well, reminding me even of Deutsch Nepal's percussion rich works. In all, this is a splendid effort, containing five original and immersive pieces of electronic sound art, definitely good enough for my daily playlist.

Architectural - Cubismo

techno
Triple Vision
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Time to put on your dancing shoes and join me in the discotheque. Spanish producer Architectural comes up with an ep containing four dance tracks, seemingly inspired by the early industrial techno scene of Detroit where strange soundscapes and noises meet repetitive beats and minimal percussion. For me, the ep highlights in the second track ('Cubismo 8.2 (Lost in Buenos Aires)), probably because of those awesome ambient soundscapes. Yet, I just might recommend this one to everyone who isn't afraid of some electronic dance music once in awhile, especially those who nudge towards industrial.

Guruzsmás - Üst A Gríz Felett​

rock / experimental
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Back to the world of rock music, more specifically the experimental corners of that industry. Guruzsmás is a band from Hungary, four guys playing some complex, confusing and fascinating music. It's just as alternative as it's psychedelic and reeks just as much of jazz than it reminds me of Frank Zappa. There are flashes of surf rock, post rock, math rock, noise rock and so on. Hell, there is a didgeridoo and it's mainly instrumental, apart from some troath-singing. Yes, this is a weird album, but nonetheless one that deserves your attention if you want something else, something unique. This is something unique!!!

Crimson Tusk - Crimson Tusk

stoner / doom
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Driven by the sheer power of the riff, Oxford quartet Crimson Tusk come up with a heavy but groovy four track ep. On this, they deliver a solid blend of sludge metal, stoner rock and heavy blues, obviously resulting in delicious fuzzed out rock songs in the vein of Dopethrone, Bongzilla, Weedeater and so on. My favorite track is 'Stray Dog', a guaranteed party started, but I guess that could easily be said about all four of these tunes. Even more so, throughout the album, the party seems to intensify. 'Rollin' made me start a little head-banging session. What a fine stoner doom tune that is. Stoner doomers, you have got to buy this one!!!

Cities of Mars - Celestial Mistress

psychedelic doom
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Swedish doom masters Cities Of Mars take us on an interplanetary mission. With heavy riffing, psychedelic passages and firm, intense vocals, this trio comes knocking on the doors of Yob, Conan, Mastodon and The Obsessed. The three tracks on this ep are simply epic doom metal anthems, with title track 'Celestial Mistress' being an eleven minutes lasting highlight, both on this ep and in the whole doom metal scene. Fans of the above mentioned bands can easily trust Cities Of Mars to deliver the goods so it'll be no surprising that this galactic gem comes highly recommended.

Ur - Hail Death

black metal / doom / thrash
Arachnophobia Records
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Another shocking piece of extremism comes from Polish horde Ur. They present a six track ep with a grim blend of thrash, doom and black metal. The result is a damn varied piece of work with some fierce headbanging potential. Bands that come to mind include Voivod, Venom, Sodom, Absu, Marduk and so on. Yet, it does feel like a coherent effort. 'The Tongue Of Fire' is probably my favorite song on this one but that's a difficult choice to make. Whom I'd recommend it to? Well, obviously  all those old school black & thrash metal fans out there. This is the real shit!

Dark Messiah - Dark Messiah

thrash metal
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Hailing from Canada, Dark Messiah blends metal, metal and metal into metal. The band was formed in the summer of 2015 and already come up with their debut ep. In a way you can actually hear that. Although the five songs here are decent metal tunes, they're not yet close to the heroes that influenced Dark Messiah (you know, Metallica, Megadeth, Pantera...). But who knows, give time, effort and a professional producer, the future might shine bright for these Canadians. If so, in a few years, many fans will start looking for this debut, so you might as well just buy it now...

Stillborn Slave - 7 Ways To Die

metalcore
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Formed in 2009, French melodic hardcore combo Stillborn Slave have a lot more experience under their belts than the band above, and you can actually hear that. In seven songs, with a total of twenty-eight minutes, these guys blast some brutal metalcore, deathcore or whatever core through your speakers. The absolute highlight is 'End Of Everything', a song that sounds destructive enough to deserve such a title. This definitely is something for the younger generation of metalheads. However, I'm sure seasoned metal fans can easily appreciate the high level of musicality on this one.

Expo Seventy - America Here & Now Sessions 

drone / ambient / psychedelic
Essence Music
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After all that metallic violence, it's time for something completely different. For that, this massive jam session definitely is a highly recommended piece of work. Like we're used to from Justin Wright, this album is an hypnotic trip through cosmic music and psychedelic rock, something between acts like Om, Earth and Barn Owl, along with the jam bands from the sixties and seventies . This time, two drummers have been added to the mix, giving the whole something jazzy and psychedelic. The end result is a mesmerizing album that will definitely accompany my late-nite writing sessions from now on.

Tellma - Swansong

folk / rock
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Tellma is a French duo, dedicated to playing elegant rock music and that's exactly what you get on this ep. The acoustic guitar is the central instrument on which a number of calm, emotional pop rock songs are written. The songs are not complex, not overly distorted, not rocking your socks off but they are certainly a pleasure to listen to. The music reminds me a bit of Radiohead, David Bowie and Jeff Buckley. The title track remains my favorite, followed by the tearjerking version of Queen's  'The Show Must Go On'.

Deathblow - Demolition Deployment

thrash metal
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While preparing their upcoming full-length, Salt Lake City thrashers Deathblow throw this short but brutal assault in our faces. The ep contains two songs and a cover version of Motorhead's 'Mean Machine'.  Obviously, this is stuff to bang your head to. Think Overkill, Kreator, Testament, any of your eighties thrash favorites and you'll be very close to what Deathblow delivers. It's fast, varied and relentless, exactly what this kind of music is supposed to be. So thrashers of the world, what are you waiting for? Get your hands on this ep or are you not a true thrasher? I mean, it's only a dollar...

Deep Fryer - Deep Fryer

punk / hardcore
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Songs about hangovers, groundhogs and whatnot, recorded in a basement by a band constisting of members of other Fredericton, New Brunswick based bands, a band with the seering hot name Deep Fryer. I'm not sure if this is all too serious, but that doesn't really matter. What matters is the fact that these are four fierce, aggressive and fast hardcore punk songs that will even make your chamber plants start a moshpit in your living room. My personal favorite? The band's name. I know, I'm not really a hardcore fan but if you are, you have to download the shit out of this. Besides, it's free so you have no excuse not to.

Parallel Colors - Inoculation

post rock / psychedelic / progressive
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Also free, and certainly worth the effort is the very first single by American progressive rockers Parallel Colors. Inspired by everything between Tool, Caspian and Russian Circles, these guys come up with an immersive, technical and varied eight minutes lasting track. If this really is the harbinger of things to come, like a full-length, Parallel Colors might become one of thé discoveries of 2017. I certianly hope that they will send me the album when ready and come over to Belgium and the rest of Europe for some magnificent gigs. This truly is promising stuff...
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Jim Wylde - Songs for the Brokenhearted from the Departed

15/12/2016

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ambient / experimental / folk
IO Sound
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Musical schizophrenia can be a beautiful thing. If you don't know what that means, I'll explain. Some artists start out as a noise act, but are also quite interested in folk music. Others make blissful ambient but like to add some heavy beats over their soundscapes. So what do they do to solve that dualism? They simply start a side project. I did it, and chances are big that yet another one will be coming up soon. Jim Wylde did it too, trading his repetitive death industrial (in the sp3ct3rs project) for gloomy winter folk under his own name.

​'Songs for the Brokenhearted from the Departed' feels like a collection of distant folk melodies, created by a tribe you will never see but always hear from across the cold wintery landscapes. There, often harsh, melodies release a strange, bleak atmosphere, here and there coming quite close to the musical scenery primitive black metal bands try to create. These melodies contain an eerie, distorted sound, making it tough to identify the instruments Jim Wylde used to record this album. Piano and guitar perhaps? Probably.

I think 'Without You' is my favorite track on this one, uncoincidentally it's also one of  the mildest ones on this album. But what strikesw me most about this one, is the sense of solitude it breathes. There is a composer, all alone, nobody to be seen or heard in miles and he makes strange, otherworldly tunes. My advice? Try it out, chances are big that you never heard something like this before, even if you're a noise-adept...


​Serge


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Harhakuvia - Patsaat

30/11/2016

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psychedelic rock / blues
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Today, the plan was to start another edition of Brieviews for Merchants Of Air. You know, working my way through the pile. After I'd written a few, I came across this strange little thing, sent to me by J. Kill & Mr. Mule, who apparently is a member of this band. It was presented as psychedelic blues rock with a focus on hazy improvisations. Since I had been listening to a lot of heavy stuff already, I needed something different, something calm and soothing. So I pressed play, opened my review template and just started writing.

The album opens with a long track which holds the middle between blues and post rock. One long immersive piece of psychedelic rock follows, one which somewhat feels like a massive jamsession between Jimi Hendrix, Jefferson Airplane and possibly some of their colleagues. When the vocals appear, I'm immediately imagining how awesome Woodstock must have been. With that, I mean that this whole thing sounds like a live recording from back in the days, which isn't perfect but certainly has its charm.

'Valkoinen Vuori' drags the whole thing deeper into the regions of blues and jazz, leaving the psychedelic approach behind for a while. This is a strange, somewhat eerie ballad but nonetheless an interesting one, showing the versatility of these improvisations. On other occasions, as in 'Toteemi', the band shows a bit more of their experimental style. In this one, I even recognize a touch of vintage doom metal. Earth comes to mind, so does Om and several other acts.

Yet, even though there are plenty of bands to be compared with, I feel like this is mostly a joyous and successful result of an intense series of jam sessions by a bunch of likeminded musicians. As far as I'm concerned, these guys can come to Belgium and play this kind of stuff in a local venue here anytime. It'd be awesome to listen to them jamming while enjoying a beer. My advice; check it out, you just might rediscover the sheer joy of making music.


​Serge
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Cancel The Apocalypse - Our Own Democracy

26/11/2016

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post metal / experimental
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A few days ago, I was going through the pile of albums to be reviewed when this thing caught my eye. The accompanying biography mentioned post metal, which at that time seemed like a decent companion for my daily tasks. So I shoved the disc into my audio-machine, pressed play and started doing some household chores. The opening track 'Athens' started to play. I remember thinking, "that's a pretty nice intro, all classical and stuff". Even when the post metal vocals came in,k I thought, "nice approach, I like it". But then I didn't know that the whole album was going to be like this. After about thirty minutes, it was all over, and I found myself wondering what the hell I'd been listening to. Post metal and sludge, without distorted guitars. Is that still post metal?

Regardless of what genre this is, it's awesome. There are typical post-metal vocals by Matthieu Miegeville (My Own Private Alaska, Psykup, The Black Painters), both haunting screams and clean ones. There are drums (studio: Jérémy Cazorla (Shake Us) - live: Hélios Mikhail (Meredith Huner)), equally normal in this area of the musical universe. But then there are the classical guitars of Arnaud Barat and the cello of Audrey Paquet (Trio Milonga, Quatour Eveil). The result is strange but nonetheless quite impressive. It shows that classical music and metal aren't that different from each other and fit perfectly well together. It's like listening to atmospheric and acoustic sludge metal without losing the power of the initial style.

That approach also drags some jazz influences along with it, maybe not intentionally but certainly welcome. Finding references to other bands isn't really easy either. Maybe it's best to think of an acoustic set-up for bands like AmenRa, Eyehategod and Neurosis but also acts like Tool and Deftones. Regardless of all that, I think this is a pretty daring and a highly original album, one that breaks boundaries between genres and eras. I know I didn't mention any particular tracks in this review but that's because that whole thing is such a bizarre and somewhat chaotic experience. A damn intense one too. Recommended? Definitely!


Serge


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