heavy jazz / grindcore / noise

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. 


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avant garde / experimental / drone / jazz / noise

Well well, here is something you don't hear every day. That is, unless you are a hardcore free jazz fan who easily finds his way into the pummeling chaos that this genre is.  If you, on the other hand, are someone who loves his music to be easy digestible, controlled and somewhat predictable, you might want to think twice before hitting the "play" button on top of this review. Your world might be shattered.

Of course, the Dutch don't really care about shattered worlds and pulverised dreams. That little country has been throwing a lot of unexpected and weird things on the world, including gabber hardcore but also the awesome blend between grindcore and jazz that Dead Neanderthals produce. Well, it the latter region we find The Julie Mittens, for me now known as "the Skullflower of the jazz scene", and their haunting release 'Soundcult'. 

What  to expect from this release? Well, a lot of noise, inspired by the Japanese noise scene. The four songs, each lasting over ten minutes, are incoherent and dissonant slabs of drones, noises, percussion and unidentifiable sounds. This certainly is something for the trained and experienced ear but those ears might be overjoyed with these bizarre sounds. So who to recommend it to? Everyone, just check it out and allow The Julie Mittens to drag you into a whirlpool of noise. It'll be an experience you never forget.


Serge

experimental / electronic / ambient / classical

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...


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shoegaze / dreampop

stoner rock

electronic / ambient

Avian

post rock

black metal / hardcore

heavy jazz / noise rock

alternative rock

doom metal

heavy metal

power metal / heavy metal

hardcore / progressive

symphonic meal / gothic meal

techno

alternative / singer-songwriter

death metal / thrash metal

Serge

dream pop

jazz / krautrock / post rock

electronic / idm

techno

rock / experimental

stoner / doom

psychedelic doom

black metal / doom / thrash

thrash metal

metalcore

drone / ambient / psychedelic

folk / rock

thrash metal

punk / hardcore

post rock / psychedelic / progressive

jazz / post rock

2016 will go down in the history books for a lot of things and most people will have mixed feelings about this year. I do too because a lot of stuff has happened over the past eleven/twelve months. Musically, this was a great year. Lots of brilliant albums have been released, which turns my end-year list from a difficult task into a giant problem. But, as a little hint of lists to come, I noticed one important thing this year. I'm finally a jazz fan.  2016 is the year that jazz bands finally managed to pull me over. Of course, the "dark jazz" scene has already delivered me a lot of awesome albums, but the more traditional version of the genre hasn't, until this year.

One of them is Virta, a trio from Helsinki, Finland. They have been working on this album for three years, which is actually a decent test to see if the music maintains its vibrant sound. Undoubtedly, several passages changed throughout the writing-process. I think that's inevitable with this kind of music. Yet, the endresult is an impressive whirlpool of jazz, post-rock and electronics, a sometimes confusing but always satisfying journey through the world of instrumental magic. 

I think the correct term is "Nordic jazz", a variant of jazz that is known for its narrative atmosphere and its immense musical landscapes. Virta delivers exactly that and, luckily for me, mostly stays away from the nervous freestyle solos some other variants are known for. There are some of these to be found here, but they only come out when the rest of the music is strong enough to carry them. And believe me, dear reader, the music definitely is strong enough. When played loud enough, the heavy passages on this album are compareable to post-metal anthems.

Speaking about post-stuff, there is also plenty of that to be found on 'Hurmos'. I think this album can add a lot of musical value to the collection of post-rock and -metal fans, right in between your Godspeed You Black Emperor, Wang-Wen and Sigur Ros album for example. Furthermore, I'd suggest this to any fans of Boards Of Canada, Plaid, Dale Cooper and  Mono fan out there, just because this album just might help you discover something new, something beautiful.

My favorite tracks are 'About To Fly', 'The Landing' and 'Uni' but I guess I'll just keep doing what I have been doing in the past few days: shove the album into my media player and put it on repeat. I suggest you do the same, especially with the winter coming up. It's time to crawl under a blanket, light the fireplace, get a glass of your favorite beverage and enjoy the musical scenery, gracefully delivered by Virta. 


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jazz / experimental / drone

After three gruelling days of stoner rock, doom metal, hardcore thrash metal and more heavy psychedelic music at DesertFest, I really needed something calm and relaxing. I searched through my heap of albums to be reviewed, looking for that one album that was presented as a jazz and experimental one. I fed the disc to my cd player, ready to submerge myself in the soothing sounds of jazz music. 

That relaxation session lasted exactly forty-four seconds, then the distortion came in and shortly after I found myself in a whirlpool of drums, guitars, saxophone and noise that reminded me a lot more of some sludge metal bands I had seen in the past few days than it reminded me of people like Miles Davis or Dave Brubeck. From then on, Danish quartet Svin threw surprise after surprise in my face, taking experimental jazz to a whole new level.

Perhaps it might be interesting to mention that the album was recorded in the legendary Sundlaugin Studio, established by Sigur Ros. Inspired by recordings of the majestic nature of Iceland, including gushing waterfalls but also by the harsh noise of the industrial surroundings, like repetitive machines, Svin improvised and recorded for ten days, and the result is a strange but epic masterpiece.

I already mentioned that opener 'Dodskontainer' has an atmosphere and sound quite similar to doom and sludge metal. Well, 'Faergen Ellen' drives on an industrial overtone while 'V' beautifully blends post-rock with jazz. Yes, real jazz. This track is the first one I would categorize as such, and I definitely like it. I'm not sure if it's my favorite one on this album, but definitely one worth checking out. So is 'Japser', which throws some ambient influences into the mix as well. I'll leave the other two tracks up to you, but rest assured, they're equally brilliant and surprising. 

Because why the hell not? After all, music is meant to be explored and that is exactly what these guys are so damn good at. It seems like they want to explore every single possibility, every single aspect of their instruments, as well as their cooperation as a band. On this album, their fourth one to be exact, they certainly succeeded in creating something glorious, mystifying and epic, something I would recommend to...

Yeah, who? That's a tough one. I mean, most jazz fans are stubborn elitists who might frown on the distortion and the eerie soundscapes. So doomers, sludgers and stoners maybe? Well, they might be open to it but this stuff might still be a bit to odd. Perhaps it would be best to push the album towards fans of Dead Neanderthals, Zu, Naked City (or anything by Zorn for that matter). Fact remains that this is one damn interesting piece of work, one that you need to check out, whatever stuff you usually listen to.


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progressive rock / jazz

What do we have here? This is something that doesn't often reach our inbox. Come to think of it, I don't think there are many bands left in the progressive jazz rock area of the musical universe. But that's ok, we don't need many bands, we just need one or a few good ones and in that aspect, we're being quite pampered with this little gem. It's an adventure in rock music, loaded with elements that you just don't hear a lot these days.

Seven Impale is a band from Norway, formed in 2010. They released their debut 'City Of the Sun' in 2014, which is now followed by 'Contrapasso'. On this new album, they explored their unique and varied sound much further, resulting in an album loaded with unexpected hooks, contrasting rhythms and strange melodies. Furthermore, there are some brilliant vocal lines and hypnotic psychedelic solos.

That being said, perhaps this album is a bit too experimental for some people. Too much rock and metal for jazz fans and too much jazz for metalheads. I think the real target audience for this full-length is somewhere in the middle, where fans of Frank Zappa, King Crimson and Van Der Graaf Generator live. Yes, "live", for that kind of people, music is a safe haven in a world that isn't competent enough to control its own noise.

For me, personally, 'Contrapasso' is a great album, highlighting in the opening track 'Lemma' and in 'Helix'. Again, that's a tough decision to make since every song here contains massively impressive passages, like the jam-session in 'Inertia' which is hypnotic as hell. Other elements seem to come from post-rock, psychedelic rock, krautrock and whatever it is that people like Tangerine Dream or Klaus Schulze made.

Then again, you can also bang your head a little to 'Langour', if you're an experienced progressive metalhead that is. A short headbanging session to some heavy part of a Dream Theater concert is that least you should have done before you're ready for the musical ingenuity of Seven Impale. Yes, this stuff is way more interesting that Dream Theater, but that might be personal opinion.

To end this review, I'd like to mention Sleepytime Gorilla Museum to emphasize the theatrical and often cabarettesque feeling of the whole thing. This atmosphere mainly comes from the vocals and the use of the sax. It's a weird combination but it works pretty damn well. It adds a lot to the variation of the album, which is already highly varied to begin with. So yeah, I think you should check this out.


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I don't know, experimental jazz techno noise?

Since I experienced Dead Neanderthals at Incubate a few years ago, I've been trying to follow whatever these guys are doing. I admit, I can't keep up with everything but I do my very best. So when I saw that name on the sticker attached to the album, I didn't hesitate. I ripped the plastic off the digipac, fed the cd to my cd player and turned up the volume. Before I realized, I was dancing my ass off and the patients from the plastic surgery hospital across the street were looking and laughing at me. Needless to say, I cannot dance but I will repeat these spastic movements every time I hear this music again.

This album is a collaboration between heavy jazz combo Dead Neanderthals and Dutch psychic house act Drvg Cvltvre. It contains one track, which is a thirty-five minutes lasting dance track, driving on a solid beat and containing loads of soundscapes and tiny variations. It's an immersive jamsession with techno beats, drones, saxophone and guitars, guaranteed to get your butt moving. Unfortunately, there is little else to say about this release, apart from the fact that it's a massive psychedelic and hypnotic trip that you definitely should try out. I hope that this release is followed by a few live performances real soon. I'm absolutely positive that it will get entire audiences in a deep state of trance.


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drone / ambient / freejazz 

I received this album a few  week ago, shortly after I published Tomas Järmyr's 'Songs With Stories' (read). I know both artists quite well, one from his massive oeuvre, both solo and with Nadja, Caudal, Hypnodrone Ensemble and the other one for his work with Barchan and Zu. I was extremely intrigued by the possible outcome of this cooperation and I immediately formed an idea about how this whole album would sound. The opening track only confirmed that idea, Aidan's drones and Tomas' free jazz drums created a wondrous musical adventure. However, soon after, a question popped up, being "can they make this stuff interesting for an hour and a half"?

Apparently, they can.

After I listened to the whole album for the first time, I turned to Mike from Consouling Sounds and asked him "whose idea was it to lock these two geniuses up in a recording studio". Mike said that is was all their own idea and added the the fact that he was immensely pleased to be able to release the end result. If I owned a record company, I'd be damn pleased too. You get two seasoned musicians who clearly put their mark on a certain genre. I mean, Aidan has been doing this for centuries and Tomas has been responsible for a landmark album with James Welburn (Barchan - Soliton). Yes, landmark, I regard that album as the breath of fresh air the drone-scene needed.

'Werl' is ninety-five minutes of experimentation, a continuously evolving and thus highly varied masterpiece. In fact, the typical initial idea I had about drones with free jazz was forced to expand. There are industrial passages, there is a strange and psychedelic guitar solo from Aidan, there are elements of ambient, noise, krautrock, psychedelic rock and doom. It's impossible to pick a favorite track, as they all float in and out of one another and create a new atmosphere each time. I mean, 'III' is noisy, 'IV' has something Godspeed-y, 'V' is minimal as hell, 'VII' could be a psychedelic sludge noise rock track from the sixties if that existed back then and so on. 

My advice? Let me put it this way: if nobody is going to send me a physical copy of the album, I'm damn well going to buy it myself, even though I already have the flac-version. 


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jazz / post rock

In the past few weeks, we have been listening to this album quite a lot, much more than usually happens with albums before I actually start writing the review. I'm sure the count will increase a lot in the months to come. And that is quite strange, considering the fact that I'm not a jazz fan. Dark jazz, sure, but jazz-jazz? Not really. However, I notice that I'm slowly being lured into the jazz-scene and albums like this one certainly help.

John Ghost is an adventurous band from Ghent, Belgium. Their music could be described simply as jazz, perfectly suited for the upcoming festivals like Gent Jazz or Jazz Middelheim. I don't think many fans of the genre will dislike this album.  Opener 'Hypnagogia' and follower 'Period Of REM' incorporate all the needed elements and instruments, such as reeds, vibes, bass, piano, rhodes, energetic drums...

But shortly after, the other influences start kicking in. 'Prologue H-H' comes up with the drones and the experimental electronics while 'Head-Habitat', one of my personal favorites, nudges towards dark jazz and post-rock. From there the album rolls on, here and there nudging towards free-jazz but never in an obtrusive, nervous way. Instead, the focus remains on immersive music. You can almost feel to joy of playing this.

'Concrete Trees / Wooden Ants' is another great highlight and another classic jazz-tune, driving on a dynamic tempo and featuring a wide array of playful solos. The breather 'Blue Rooms' feels like a ritual ambient track, you know, the ones will singing bowls and other unusual instruments. That being said, yes, there is plenty of variation to be found here. From typical jazz to elaborate musical landscapes, somehow reminding me of acts like Sigur Ros or composers like Olafur Arnalds and at times even of Laraaji.

So yeah, this is a great piece of work, certainly one of the best jazz albums in 2016. Like I said, I'm gradually getting into the whole genre and this album definitely is a gateway to other stuff. For many people, including me, anthems like 'Head-Nomad' and 'Day One' can be pleasant discoveries, guiding them into new territories. For others, also including me, John Ghost is simply a talented jazz band with a very strong album. Highly recommended...


Serge

ambient / (dark) jazz

If you are one of those people who think black metal artists can only produce inaudible chaos, please continue reading this review. If you're want to know a little something about "gateway-albums" keep reading. If you're a fan of dark jazz and ambient, go ahead, read on. If you want to know why this album surprised the hell out of me, stay focused. Or just skip to the last paragraph of this review, only to find out that I will recommend this stunning piece of work to all of you.

Somewhere in 2004, a man named Rastko Perišić started a black metal project and named it Shadowdream. Yet, from the very beginning, it was clear that this project was more than another one-man black metal act. Elements of ambient, jazz and classical music quickly infiltrated the music, starting a vast musical experiment. Then (or better, "now") this act returned with a completely new sound. Out went the black metal and in came "midnight jazz".

Obviously, influences from Bohren Und Der Club Of Gore, The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Orchestra and Dale Cooper & the Dictaphones often shine through on this album. But Shadowdream does what none of those bands have succeeded in: making me a jazz fan. I love dark jazz, but I always needed one more push to make me appreciate smooth, free or experimental jazz. This album finally built that bridge between the two and finally made me "crossover". 

And that's not even the greatest thing about this album. There are plenty of other influences, from dark ambient of acts like Raison D'Etre, over the vintage electronics of Delia Derbyshire to the joyful flute sounds of what I call "Island music", all submerged in a gloomy atmosphere, which unsurprisingly brings the suspenseful soundtrack of Twin Peaks to mind. That's not a bad set of influences for a black metal musician, right? Oh, there's also a bit of post-rock.

Why the album surprised me? Well, to be honest, I have been listening to it six, seven times now and I always imagined a full band, firmly rooted in jazz. I admit, I didn't read the biography before I started listening. Judging from what came out of my speakers.I was expecting a bunch of trained musicians. This is one guy, one dude from Serbia, one damn talented man too. I don't know his musical background, apart from what I wrote in this review, but he's got skills.

That brings me to the final paragraph where I will recommend the hell out of this masterpiece. Just like last year, suddenly a dark jazz album pierces itself right into my best-of list. I don't mind. I'm absolutely positive that 'The Sunsettler's Motel' will become one of the most played albums in this household in 2016. Simply brilliant...


​Serge

experimental / jazz / post-rock

How about some more musical weirdness? This time we're in France, listening to a band featuring Sylvain Darrifourcq who has been featured on this website before. With this band, founded in 2014, he got the company of Manuel Adnot, Adrien Dennefeld and Romain Dugelay. Inspired by Chinese writer Mo Yan and impressed by the vastness of the deep sea, they created this strange and dynamic aquatic journey.

The foundation for this album clearly is jazz music but it wouldn't be jazz if it was just jazz. The songs on this album sound quite different from each other. There's the opener 'Offshore' which featured distorted guitars, somehow reminding me of the grunge sound. Probably because of  the saxophone, this track reminds me a bit of acts like Morphine, Zu or Red Snapper. Obviously, that's a very good thing.

Second track 'Nori et Wakame' shows more traditional jazz, be it enhanced by the use of electronics while title track 'Carpe D'Or' leans towards atmospheric post-rock, as if it's a jazz version of Sigur Ros. 'Tendance Brique' brings back the pulsating heaviness of the grunge scene and adds some psychedelic stoner rock in the mix. I think this is my favorite track here but I'm not sure. Fact is, this whole album is a mesmerizing trip.

One of the strangest songs here, is 'Les eaux du gouffre aux tortues'. It seems to make no sense, musically speaking, but once you delve deep into it, it becomes narrative, adventurous and quite immersive. By the end, things even start leaning towards Godspeed You Black Emperor by using an array of drones, soundscapes and subdued melodies. By now, I want to see this live and if so, I hope they play 'Nishiki', an inspiring piece of music.

There's one more track to go, one which I've enjoyed quite often in the past few weeks. It's true, I've played this album a dozen of times, each time discovering new sounds, new atmospheres. And I'm not even consider myself a jazz fan. Then again 'La fosse des Mariannes / Pays de neige' is a brilliant piece of work, a perfect closer for this album. Perhaps here I'll finally throw in the tag "post-jazz".


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experimental / noise / avant-garde / jazz

"Hello, this is the first album by avant rock / experimental band Danielle Liebeskind", that's how the accompanying note for this album opened. I remember thinking "experimental, avant rock, that sounds a bit arty-farty, a bit pretentious possibly". I mean, I've heard a lot of "avant" stuff in my life and sometimes the self-glorification of the artists is massive, certainly compared to the non-coherent manure they produce.

But I tried the album anyway, because the exact opposite is also true. I've heard a lot of "avant" stuff which takes the listener on beautiful, strange and unexpected journeys. Besides, Danielle Liebeskind is a Dutch band, a trio and some guest musicians. For some reason the Dutch seem to know how to make experimental music interesting. Apart from their "shlagers" and their awful carnival music, the Netherlands are one of the greatest countries to discover new sounds.

And yes, Danielle Liebeskind is something to discover. They're mostly an improvisation act, so it shouldn't be a surprise that this debut is a registration of improv sessions, recorded in March 2014. They seem to be influenced by jazz, classical music, ambient, drone and noise artists but I can also hear elements from Pink Floyd, mostly in the guitars on 'Equilibrium Of Make Believe'. Those guitars also seem to be hiding behind a wall of weird sounds and odd percussion.

The whole thing does indeed feel like an experimental jazz performance, a very experimental one. You know, like when Sonic Youth, Keiji Haino and Merzbow decide to to make a jazz album together. I'm not even sure which instruments were used but I guess they include spoons and singing bowls next to more traditional instrumentation (piano, drums, guitars...). On the other hand, in the first part 'Little Acts Of Rebellion / I Saw Your Light' I recognize absolutely nothing, except for the narrating voice.

That track is one continuously changing piece of minimalistic music, that's for sure. So is opener 'Kimya Dawson Tribute', a song that perfectly fits in with the natural and human sounds around me. In fact, it often happens that I have no idea which sounds come from the LP and which come from in and outside of my house. I like that. It gives the album something extra. It makes it sound completely different every time I listen to it. 

And I think I will be listening to this quite a lot from now on. It's an album that deserves deeper exploration by curious and open minded music fanatics. The way it turns from gentle noise into a piece of classical music into a dark jazz tune, accompanied with what sounds like typewriter sounds, is brilliant. I can only applaud this approach to music and I do recommend this album to all you experimentalists out there.


Serge

jazz / avant garde / noise

Well, since we're dwelling in strange and absurd music, how about an avant-jazz record that will awe and confuse you? In Love With is a project by French drummer Sylvain Darrifourq, aided by the string instruments of Théo and Valentin Ceccaldi. The album is named 'Axel Erotic' and it's a weird thing, but what would you expect from experimental jazz, something radio friendly? Forget about that. This will kill your radio...

Yes, experimental jazz, I guess many people will know what that means and I guess many people will know exactly what to expect: incoherent rhythms, non-conventional sounds and a nag to take everything to the absurd. Those expectations truly come true, even though the album opens quite friendly with an experimental modern classical piece. 'Bien Peigné En Toute Occasion' is probably the most listener friendly track here, and quite frankly also one of my favorites.

Yet, from then on, things become stranger. 'A Saveur De Très Beurre' nudges towards experimental and pretty dark ambient while 'Asil Guide' becomes utterly chaotic, certainly in the drums. 'Sexy Champagne' takes on a more gentle approach, a bit ambient-jazzy if you like. 'Les Flics De La Police' is a repetitive and polyrhythmic piece of experimental music, not really my cup of tea but not all records can be, right?

There are a few more songs to be discovered on this album, to be discovered by a seasoned jazz fan that is. I cannot imagine that any music lover will be able to appreciate this without the necessary foreknowledge of avant garde jazz music. But that doesn't mean it's a bad album. I quite enjoyed the weird and mesmerizing trip and the many surprising hooks and edges. Perhaps you can too, so check it out. At least it will be something you never heard before...


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ambient / drone / jazz

Roadburn is coming up in a few weeks and I'm sure many people are looking forward to that. I know that the good people from Consouling Sounds are, because they are about to release this gem upon the world to coincide with Yodok III's appearance on the mother of all fuzzfests. I wish I could go to Roadburn this years, but unfortunately, I can't. However, I'll comfort myself with the knowledge that I'll be seeing Yodok III at Dunk!Festival later this year.

Yodok III is the enthralling cooperation between Tomas Järmyr (Barchan, Zu), Kristoffer Lo (Trondheim Jazz Orchestra and others) and Belgium's own drone-guru Dirk Serries (Microphonics, Vidna Obmana, Fear Falls Burning). Their work has previously been released on Tonefloat's 'New Wave Of Jazz' series, which crossover jazz and experimental ambient. So yeah, these guys know a thing or two about exciting music.

'Legion Of Radiance' is a one track album, lasting almost seventy minutes. It combines the unique drumming of Järmyr with Lo's deep tuba sounds and Serries' recognizable soundscapes. The result is a gloomy and adventurous piece of music, which is best to be enjoyed with your eyes closed and your mind open. At first, the music is silent. In fact, it took me awhile before I realized that the album was already playing. 

But, like all good drone and ambient albums, gradually the music swells and gains momentum. It becomes darker, deeper and more intense, minute after minute. It gets heavier, experimental and jazz-like, certainly with those energetic drums. In the end, it because every drone fan's dream: a mature album which floats in a similar way than Smetana's 'Die Moldau'. Or maybe that's just me. Fact remains, this is a brilliant album which you should definitely buy.


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ambient / avant-garde / experimental

Here in Belgium, everybody knows the name Dirk Swartenbroekx, or at least one of his projects Buscemi or Radical Slave. Well, some years ago, Swartenbroekx created a little spin-off in the form of an ambient and soundscape project, mainly for art installations. Today, after a few ep's and singles, he gathered some seasoned musicians to make Azure Mortal a full blown band, including members of Nordmann, Fifty Foot Combo, Daan, Maya's Moving Castle...

In a way, it seems like Azure Mortal is the dark side of Swartenbroekx. Ambient, jazz, drones and soundscapes make up this album, but all in a gloomy, kind of eerie, manner. Yet, somehow I'm still reluctant to place this album between my dark ambient collection. There's much more to it, even though 'Waai' and 'Gene Krupa Goes Bananas' are great pieces of dark minimalism. Azure Mortal feels more like a band I would place between Dale Cooper and Bohren.

Other influences I can hear seem to come from Throbbing Gristle, Steve Reich, Nurse With Wound, Angelo Badalamenti, Nils Frahm and so on. So yes, there are a few layers of old industrial, mainly in some of the rhythms, as in the brilliant song 'Deadweight' and the poetic 'Nacht'. There's also a bit of classical music, as in the joyful piano piece, aptly named 'Piano Piece' and even some Tangerine Dream and Klaus Schulze.

While most dark ambient acts focus on creating deep drones and mystifying atmospheres, 'Duivels' seems to be a collection of songs, varying massively in sound and style. 'Raven' for example is a strange jazz piece, perfectly suited for a David Lynch soundtrack while 'Pro Create' drives on mild techno beats and repetitiveness, somehow bringing Chris and Cosey to mind. Odd but nonetheless very interesting.

In all, this is a highly surprising album, a well-varied one too. I never expected something like this from Dirk Swartenbroekx but I'm very happy this album reached me. I will recommend this to dark ambient fans, even though this goes a lot further and a lot deeper. So check it out and allow yourself to dwell in the wonderful and mysterious world of Azure Mortal. You'll be in for an inspiring journey...


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jazz / soul / funk

When this album arrived last week I had no idea what to do with it.  Before I even started listening to it, I was scratching my head and wondering what to write about this.  After all, this is not our usual cup of tea.  So last night, I brought this album with me when we were going to visit a friend. He is a jazz fan and has a bit more knowledge about jazz and related genres.  In the end we ended up getting quite drunk and reminiscing about music history. Result: I still didn't know what to write about it, but I am going to try anyway.

Yves Peeters is a Belgian drummer who has been fascinated by the rich musical history of New Orleans.  With his project Gumbo he tries to blend jazz, gospel, blues, funk and parade bands music together.  He also got help from some well-known musicians, including Francois Vaiana & Bruce James (vocals), Nicolas Kummert (tenor sax); Dree Peremans (trombone) and Nicolas Thys (bass).  

The album opens with the groovy 'My Gombo's Free', a warm and soulful song which somehow reminds me of world music festivals in the midst of summer.  That feeling continues throughout the first three songs.  It is as if this band is playing, much to the enjoyment of a big smile wearing audience, while the sun is heating up all the souls in attendance.  Funk, groovy, soul and jazz are being blended into a joyful Mardi Gras.

'Force Of Nature Part 1' takes on a full-on jazz approach with solos and complex rhythms while 'Part 2' suddenly comes up with what seems like African chants and immersive percussion.  I guess this second part is my favorite tune on this album.  Both songs also show the versatility of this project, making music that sounds familiar but never hesitates to experiment a little, I quite like that about this album.

'Lighthouse' suddenly goes a lot darker, driving on piano, bass, lingering wind instruments and minimalistic soundscapes. It nudges towards the darkjazz scene, which I like a lot.  Perhaps this is also the most radio friendly song on this album, but to be honest, I have no idea about the music they play on the radio nowadays.  I prefer to ignore that medium.  Nonetheless, this is a strong piece of music.

'Masquerade' shows the big band approach and 'No Hero' is a calm ballad, driving on almost droning bass.  Both are again two quite different songs on an already highly varied album.  But the key question is, 'who am I going to recommend this to?'  Well, if you're into jazz, funk, soul and groove, this certainly is something that you want to check out.  If not, do it anyway, it wouldn't be the first time you're pleasantly surprise by something beyond your own scene.


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Classical / Experimental

One thing I've always admired in music is the strong tendency to survive and to blend with whatever is popular during certain eras.  Classical music has been around since the sixteenth century and is still massively popular.  It also mixes perfectly with other genres and certainly with electronics.  An excellent example is this album by Danish act CTM, which stands for Caecilie Trier Musik.

Caecile Trier is a composer, vocalist and cellist, active in the wonderful region between classical music and minimal electronics.  It's a world where people like Nils Frahm, Sebastian Plano and Olafur Arnalds also like to dwell, but in a different way.  On this album, the piano is not the main aspect, the song is.  The piano is present, along with a number of different instruments and electronics, but they all seem to serve on goal: making decent songs.

And decent these songs are (I know, that sounded like Yoda a bit).  These are quite dark pieces of music, often containing deep droning basses and minimal but effective electronic percussion and trippy beats.  They support the distinct voice of Caecile, which somehow reminds me of something between Tracy Chapman and Sade.  This voice gives the whole something warm, folk-related perhaps. 

This album certainly is something unique and there are some brilliant songs here, including 'The Way The Mouth Is A Mouth' and closer 'Escored/The Road'. The latter has something jazzy, which by the way is mildly present throughout the entire album.  So yes, I will recommend this to jazz fans, and to fans of classical influenced pop ballads.  Try it out, you'll be pleasantly surprised. I know I was...


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jazz / noise rock

Well, since we're dealing with strange music today, we might as well throw this odd fusion album in the mix.  Lately we've been receiving more and more jazz-inspired albums and most of them are quite confusing to me.  The first time I listened to this one, it was no different.  I kept on wondering what to write about it, hell, up till now I don't even know if I really like it or not.  Yet, it would be a shame to ignore this album because there's definitely something interesting going on.

Louis Minus XVI is a band from Lille, France. Instruments used are drums, bass, alt sax and tenor sax.  'Kindergarten' is their second album, after 'Birds and Bats' in 2011.  On this album, they present a number of compositions, five to be exact, and each one is as strange and unsettling as the previous one.  Blending free jazz and noise rock, these guys have come up with something that might just be a massive blast live.

Opener 'La Marche' brings back memories of bands like Zu and Dead Neanderthals.  In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if this song would be a blast when played live at a festival like Incubate. The constant repetitive pounding and harsh sounds of the whole even brought the phrase 'The Godflesh of jazz' to mind.  That should give you some indication.  'More Friends' takes on a bit more of a jazz approach and is somewhat calmer that its predecessor.

Personally, I can't stand 'Sugar Od' as it's way to free jazz for my nerves.  Yet, I do know that some people will definitely regard this one as their favorite on this album, especially of course the die-hard free jazz fans.  But then I prefer the wall-varied and quite beautiful 'Columbine's Twin' or closer 'Bain Atlas'.  Those songs might appear often on playlists in this households. So yes, check it out, try to get used to it.  You might be pleasantly surprised...


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