#35

Brian Green + Frske – Output Data c20

I'm finding myself rather unimpressed with what this collaboration has to offer. A hodgepodge of beats, samples, and static drenched synthesizers, Output Data is little more than a meandering sound collage. Occasionally something with promise manifests, but the sound quickly drifts off into mediocrity. It's not that Output Data is a terrible album, rather that there are better things you could be listening to.

Hand Rolled Gold


Demonic Death Judge/Semtex/Frogskin – By The Malice of Evil...Death Comes Vol 1. cd

Took me a while to finally get my hands on this, but damn was the wait worth it. A split between three Finnish heavyweights, this is fuckin' rad. Demonic Death Judge kick things off with three tracks of doom laden sludge. There's just a hint of the psychedelic, stoner rock sound and the vocals have an unusual, roaring echo, which gives the songs a really distinct sound. With a more typical sludge sound are the four tracks from Semtex. You can't help but make a comparison to Bongzilla, but that's really unfair to Semtex, as their style is more blues influenced and far better sounding. Finally the album is rounded out with three tracks of dark, grimy sludge from Frogskin. There's a heavy crust influence and the vocals sound like something off a black metal album. This is easily my favorite of the three, but all of these bands are laying out some sick tunes. Get your hands on a copy of this and go load up that bong...

Shifty Records


i AM esper – Explosion Of The Red Giant c40

I'd commented in an earlier post that it appeared i AM esper was undergoing a musical and thematic shift and Explosion Of The Red Giant confirms this transformation. Gone are the dense guitar drones dedicated to nature, replaced with cold, ambient rumblings from space. This is a very minimalistic and bleak album; not really what you'd expect from i AM esper. It's rad stuff, and showcases the talent and complexity of the project. Now for the bad news: Explosion Of The Red Giant was super limited and is sold out. Luckily, the album has been posted on i AM esper's band camp, so all you lame asses who didn't snag a copy can still check it out.

Self released


Láppide/Northern Forest/Empty of Darkness/Endless Solitude – Northern Depression cd-r

I'm kind of bummed out with this cd. The prospect of hearing some new material from Láppide had me pumped, but it turns out the track here is the one from the Meu Velho Caixão demo. And the Northern Forest piece is also recycled from the album reviewed in the last post. They're solid tracks, but I wanted some new stuff. Luckily I hadn't heard anything from Empty of Darkness or Endless Solitude, so the album wasn't a total let down. Empty of Darkness plays solid, if somewhat straightforward, black metal. Endless Solitude, a one-man side project of Empty of Darkness, let loose with a track of black metal that mixes melody and raw fury. Northern Depression is a great introduction for people who're new to these projects, but if you are familiar with them, you're going to get some songs you've already heard.

Smell the Stench



Syrinx & P·A·L· – Governance cd-r

Getting a little burned out on ambient music? Can't deal with anymore atmospheric synth jams? Well Syrinx & P·A·L· have just what the doctor ordered. Governance merges mellow guitar drones, mechanized noises, and ghostly, synthetic vocal loops to create an ominous industrial ambient sound. It's unsettling and engaging, the sort of thing that raises those hairs on the back of your neck. Need I say more? Go snag a copy.

Dark Meadow Recordings

#34

Art Imperial/Northern Forest – Nagando Nas Brumas Do Noctivago Crepusculo cd-r

Ever since hearing Art Imperial's Look at the Moon... a few posts back, I've been dying for them to release some more stuff. So, when I saw they were doing a split with Brazil's prolific Northern Forest, you know I had to snag a copy. I was hoping for more of the progressive, ambient black metal that was on the demo, but instead Art Imperial has gone full out ambient. Now, don't get me wrong, it's good stuff with a spacy vibe, it's just that I really dug their earlier sound. Northern Forest's half of the split consists of a short ambient piece with twangly electronic organs, a massive 16 minute atmospheric track that incorporates some nature field recordings, and finally a 10+ minute track that starts out black metal and fades into melodic sounds. Although the Art Imperial half wasn't what I was expecting, this still a still a solid album worth checking out.

Smell The Stench


Darkosis – Darkosis cd-r

Here's the thing about the whole raw, blackened noise sub-genre, even though it is dissonant and chaotic, you still have to some musical talent to pull it off. Most of the groups involved in this scene are just making a racket and trying to pass it off as kvlt noise. This is why I'm digging Darkosis so much, because while incredibly disharmonic and harsh, you can tell there's skill in the maniacs behind the instruments. Honestly, this won't be appreciated by many, probably not even by a large amount of black metal fans. But, for those who do enjoy this particular sound, Darkosis will be greeted with hails.

Glossolalia Records


Gross Bite – Yod c46

Gross Bite is one of those acts where it's tough to provide a concise explanation of their sound and tempting to just pigeonhole them under the banner of experimental. The unifying element throughout Yod is the percussion. Mostly it's vaguely ethnic, world-music sounding drumming that guides pulsating synths, found sounds, and rumbling noises to create an impressive field of sound. Eclectic, interesting, and recommended.

Deep Tapes


Köhn – Stay Away From The Towers c90

No joke, this might be the electronic prog burner to end all 'em all. So, get this kids, this tape consists of two side long, live synth jams. That's right: no studio magic or edits or anything else. And it's so fucking incredible that if it didn't say it was a live recording, you wouldn't believe it. The synth action just drips kraut psych vibes and the sound is constant morphing and expanding. It's awesome and nothing I manage to bang out about it will do Stay Away From The Towers justice. Absolutely a must have.

Sloow Tapes


V.A. - Lonely Christmas Vol.2 cdx4

Yowza, I could probably spend the entire entire post just reviewing this massive release. Consisting of four cds which contain 36 songs from 36 projects, Dark Meadow has really out done themselves here. As the title of the cd suggests there's a Christmas or winter theme to most of songs here. Anyhow...

Disk 1: The stand out tracks from the first cd came from i AM esper, Ars Sonor, and 3Music. i AM esper's track seems to mark a stylistic shift, as it's noticeably harsher than his other works I've heard. It's still guitar driven, hypnotic drone, but with a dose of mechanical reverb. I'm not particularly a fan of this style, so the fact that I'm digging it speaks volumes for the track. The cold, wind-swept ambient piece from Ars Sonor is like the soundtrack to being abandoned on the tundra and makes me want to check out more from this artist. Finally, 3Music composes an unusual experimental piece that mixes piano, rhythmic samples, and field recordings. Now, as for the groups I found interesting, but not quite my deal, there's Senon & 21 Grams, who remind me of an industrial version of Type O Negative, Blood, with a weird, slow drum n' bass with pitchshifted vocals things, and the minimalist electronic sounds of Murmurists. There also harsh drone tracks from Elizabeth Veldon, Nuclear Nation, and Mists of Poveglia, but, as I said, I'm not really a fan of this sound and these acts paled in comparison to the esper track.

Disk 2: The 2nd cd kicks off with a dark, grimy slab of minimalist drone from Misantronics. Yea, buddy. Ian Holloway follows with a rad little track composed of sampled and spliced church bells. Dark Isle is up next with a track of laid back, low key beats; not really my scene, but I found myself nodding along to it. Then there's a plodding, go-no-where, lounge-y, jazz track from Jared C Balogh, which was one of the two tracks on this cd that I just couldn't get into. Luckily, that buzz kill is followed by an epic lute driven, medieval piece by My Silent Wake that reminded me of Basil Poledouris' soundtrack for the original Conan The Barbarian. After that Abysmal Dirge leaves you feeling more frozen than Hoth with an ambient track of coldwave synths. Next is the other track I couldn't get into, from After [Life]. It's that terrible style of techno filled with shitty space ship noises over the same repeating beat. The cd concludes on a high note, with some mechanized drone from Syrinx and a track of shoegaze with electronic percussion from Nathan Watson.

Disk 3: This one was probably my least favorite of the four cds. Things start off great with a sick selection of metal; there's digital noisecore from Word or Object?, some interesting raw black metal from Lykankult, and death grind from AngelFuck. Unfortunately, these tracks are promptly followed by some jangly dubstep from Alexthymia. It picks up a little with the contemporary, piano fueled piece from Life's Decay and a mesmerizing soundscape from B. Lone Engines, but a track of pointless rumbling from Dao De Noize quickly harshes the sonic vibes. Then there's Noise Injury with annoying, static-y beats and finally Grim Funeral Techno, who's music sounds just as stupid as the name would suggest.

Disk 4: Drone and ambient dominate the final cd. There are ambient jams from Total Solitude, Back Yard Ghost & The Spirit Dies, Playing With Nuns, and Pollux that run the gamut from spaced out trance inducers to menacing soundscapes; all rad stuff. As for the drone acts, it's on the harsher side of the spectrum with a crushing Syrinx remix from Pink Venom and rather unimpressive pieces from Cumshot in Snow and Mystified. There's also a dose of black metal on here, with an old school sounding track from Ràzakél Krièg and an unholy onslaught from Baalberith. Niiiiiiice.

In conclusion, why haven't you scored a copy of this yet? Lonely Christmas is fucking outstanding. Between the diversity of music on here and the insanely low price, there's no excuse you can come up with for not getting a copy. DO IT!

Dark Meadow Recordings

#33

Collapsed Arc – In Cursive c20

Collapsed Arc is at it again, this time with two side long slabs of glitchy looped audio. In Cursive is dense and claustrophobic, possessing a disjointing non-percussive rhythm. It's rad as hell, some of the better experimental music I've heard in a while.

Imminent Frequencies


Conspiracy 666 – Conspiracy 666 cd-r

The first demo from Brazil's Conspiracy 666, you get two tracks of black metal with a technical edge. There is a surprisingly pro vibe to this; both tracks are composed & played with skill and the production is crystal clear. Nice to hear a black metal band recording in a studio instead of their parent's basement. Worth checking out if your preference in black metal runs toward skill rather than rawness.

Bosque Produções


Cop Bar – No Justice, Just Law c60

Holy fuck! Go get a copy of this right now. No Justice, Just Law is 20 songs in under 20 minutes of Cop Bar's grind/hardcore insanity. There's a great balance of being heavy, but not too serious. I can't wait till these guys drop their split 7' with Captain 3 Leg next year. Seriously, go get this already.

Self released


Impostüre/Skeld – Split cd-r

France's Impostüre kick things off with two tracks of blackened death metal that's got a certain rock-n-roll vibe to it. I'm digging it. And, the vocals are ridiculously guttural; they sound like something from some scummy goregrind act, but it ends up working great here. America's Skeld wrap the album up with three tracks of cacophonous black metal. It was a little too loud and abrasive for my tastes. Check it out for the Impostüre half, and who knows, maybe you'll dig Skeld too.

Glossolalia Records


Keasmonic Heritage – Metos cd-r

A single track ep from the ambient side project of Count Shannäth, the majority of Metos is constructed from interwoven nature field recordings and meandering keyboards. Pretty standard fare, until you get to the sudden appearance of the feedback laden guitar or cheesy, digital lute solo. All in all, a fairly mediocre release. Pass.

Bosque Produções


Laura Warholic – what comes before the word?? c26

The majority of this tape is nearly inaudible. I donno if I just got a fucked up dub or it's supposed to sound that low, but it left me nonplussed. The A starts off with a whining electronic piece that goes nowhere, then there's a folksy-shoegaze track, followed by a spoken piece over a sound collage, and things get rounded off with a fuzzed out, wah-wah guitar jam. I'd be digging those last three tracks if I could actually hear them without having to turn the volume up to 11. Flip the tape and there's this dark, rambling, sci-fi spoken piece that's layered over really driving percussion and synth. It's rad as hell, even with the fucked sound. The rest of the tape is taken up with a ghostly, ethereal track. It's a cool piece, but feels a little anticlimactic following such a burner. I really hope it's just my copy that's messed up and not all of them sound like this, because there's some awesome music on here and I want to tell you to snag a copy.

Faux Pas Records

#32

Art Imperial – Look at the Moon I Feel the Agony of Tomorrow cd-r

Oh, I'm so digging this. A single track of astral, instrumental, ambient black metal, Look at the Moon... is a total trance inducer. The guitar is surprisingly abrasive for such an ambient piece, but the faux saw wave feedback sound actually works perfectly as a counter point to the rest of the music. If you're at all into progressive black metal, drone metal, post metal, etc, you wanna check this out.

Bosque Produções


Bear Trap/Sloth – Slothbear: I Am Mobile cd

This split album starts off with 24 tracks from Bear Trap, with all of which but four clocking in at under a minute. Basically, they sound like the bastard child of a power violence band and a free jazz act; it'd be filed under noisecore, but there's just something about it that I cant get into. Sloth rounds things out with three tracks of their harsh-noise-with-a-sax schtick. This is a rough one because both bands are good at what they do, but the type of music they play here just isn't my deal.

Self released


Count Shannäth – Unreleased cd-r

Lurking in the piney woods behind the Lane Bryant outlet store is Conroe's grimmest one-man dsbm act, Count Shannäth. It's hard to be kvlt in the suburbs of Houston, but damn if he isn't trying. Anyhow, the ep opens up with “Autumn Haze”, a solid track of depressive black metal with a heavy shoe-gaze aspect. The vocals were a little overly dramatic, but otherwise it's ok. Up next is a track titled “Unreleased”, which should have stayed that way. The mix is bad, with a ridiculous amount of feedback and the thing is just a general damn mess. I'll probably check out some other stuff from the Count, but I can't recommend this particular release.

Bosque Produções


Food Pyramid/Deep Earth – Split 45

Niiiice, I didn't know anyone still dropped 45s; gotta love busting out the yellow snake spindle adapter for that big hole. Food Pyramid lets loose with some outer space beats and electronics. Deep Earth rounds things out with atmospheric synth and funky bass lines. And, both these burners clock in at over 5 minutes. So fuckin' rad, go get it already.

moon glyph


Sam Gas Can – Life on Earth is Pure and Golden, Life on Earth is Hell on Earth c24

You definitely need an appreciation for outsider music and weirdo pop to get into this little album here. Life on Earth... consists of nine short pieces that vary wildly in style, jumping from indie electronic compositions to cornball, lounge-y jams with out missing a beat. Excluding a few acoustic, folksy tracks, the music is driven by old, analog keyboards. It's cool stuff, but not everyone's going to be able to enjoy it.

Lighten Up Sounds


:Wulgata: - Eastern Sons: Fourth Journey Into the Heart of the Ancient cd-r

Playing dark ambient infused with the folk music of southeastern and far eastern Asia, :Wulgata: has released an impressive album with Eastern Sons. I was a little skeptical when I snagged a copy of this, afraid it would be nothing more than synthesizers and poorly played zhonghu, but this fear proved to be unfounded. The music is both skillfully composed and well played. There's the slightest industrial influence on the album that gives the songs an edge. Recommended.

Invisible Eye Productions

#31

Epocha Tristèsse – Epocha Tristèsse cd-r

A collaboration between two of the underground's more prolific musicians, Brazil's Kavara (Satanic Forest, Northern Forest, Láppide, etc, etc) and Germany's F (Svartalvs, Todessucht, Black Werewolf, etc, etc), Epocha Tristèsse pumps out some raw, depressive black metal. It's good stuff; a little slower than I was expecting, but it works out well. Hopefully this isn't a one time deal, as the single eight minute track on here isn't enough to satisfy my eardrums.

Bosque Produções


Flower Man – Inversion Fortuite 10" lp

Distorted strings, chirpy electronics, flanged ambiance, and the occasional disembodied voice is what you can expect to find on this one sided 10 inch ep. It's a weirdo release, but damn if Flower Man doesn't manage to pull it off and leave you wanting more. There's a playful, lighthearted nature about the unconventional sounds on Inversion Fortuite, too. Recommended for those of you looking for something a little eccentric, but accessible.

Monofonus Press


Ralph White – The Hanged Man c40

Ralph White is an impressive musician. He plays the banjo, accordion, and is a fiddler too. Unfortunately, what he's not as skilled at is song writing. The tracks on The Hanged Man seem to ramble and meander aimlessly to the point of annoyance. Further irritating is White's nasal, yodel-y vocal style, which misses the mark throughout the album. With as much as I've been getting into americana and folk, I was excited about getting my hands on this slab of 'acid bluegrass', but instead find myself sorely disappointed. I've come to appreciate this a little more with each listening, but not enough for me to recommend it.

Sloow Tapes


Sloth/Hogra – Split 7″

If I were still into noise, I'd probably be going apeshit over this ep. Sloth starts things off with a totally chaotic slab of harsh sound, that includes a frenzied sax. Hogra rounds the release out with two tracks of static pulsations, noise, and visceral growling. Worth checking out if you're into sonic dissonance.

Self released


Strings of Distorted Doom – The Winter Demos 2008 – 2009 cd-r

While unable to usurp Necrosadik's title of “shittiest sounding band ever”, Strings of Distorted Doom is definitely churning out some terrible, terrible music. A two man, black-noise-metal-whatever group, three of the four tracks are train wrecks that consist of vocal and guitar racket. The last track switches things up with a marginally listenable track of dark ambient. There is no reason for you to own this.

Bosque Produções


Xladnokrovie 616 – Gorod cd-r x2

This is fucking massive; four tracks split over two cds that clock in at over an hour a piece. The basic element of Xladnokrovie 616's sound is quiet, rumbling soundscapes that are overlaid with minimalist instrumental drones and rhythmic field recordings. While, at first, I found myself enjoying Gorod, I quickly began to find the music boring and monotonous. There's definitely a progression in the sound over the four tracks, but it's rather minuscule. I can't help but feel like this was a single track about 25 minutes longs, that was stretched out to fill up two hours. The only audience I can see enjoying this are the most fanatic drone enthusiasts.

A Beard of Snails Records

#30

Dark Isle – Poetry By An Open Fire cd-r

Collecting two eps and some unreleased work, Poetry By An Open Fire is 25 tracks of experimentation with electronic beats, neoclassical keyboards, and ambient soundscapes. With as many tracks as there are on the album, there's a fair amount of variance in Dark Isle's work. Some of the pieces were basic triphop stuff, while others were interesting, genre blending tunes. While this isn't really a style of music I'm into, I found myself enjoying the album. This will be appreciated for those who enjoy more progressive ambient or dub.

Dark Meadow Recordings


Grasshopper – Miles In The Sky c20

I've been digging the Grasshopper cassette I reviewed a few posts back so much that when I saw this limited, tour only release was reissued, I had to snag a copy. The boys kick things off with a side long track that starts as really harsh drone and ends with trumpets and electronic ambiance. The B side is more trumpet drones and synth pulsations, but a little more laid back. Cool stuff.

House of Alchemy


Permafrost – End of Humanity cd

I get the feeling that End of Humanity is a collection of Permafrost's odds and ends packaged together. The five dark ambient tracks stand well enough on their own, but when listened to as a whole, they lack a sense of cohesiveness. The two songs which are continuations from other songs on other albums particularly stand out, as the atmosphere they create is noticeably different from this album's other tracks. It's not a bad album, but the inability of the songs to mesh and create a shared ambiance is frustrating.

Invisible Eye Productions


SSSTORMSHELTERRRR – s/t c22

You can't get any more rad than this right here. Playing something akin to 'sludge gaze', SSSTORMSHELTERRRR manages to churn out a heavy, dreamy, doom-pop sound. You only get three tracks, but it'll keep you till they release a full length. Soooooo recommended.

Monofonus Press


These Feathers Have Plumes – all cats are grey by night c22

Composing bass driven drone that's skillfully interwoven with field recordings, These Feathers Have Plumes has a mysterious and elusive sound. With each listening of all cats are grey by night, something new presents itself and you're absorbed deeper into the music. This is an essential addition to the collection of any serious drone aficionado.

//cae-sur-a//

#29

Akoustik Timbre Frekuency – Gnostik Spasms cd-r

From what I can gather, Gnostic Spasms is a summoning or banishing device of some sort or another, complete with the necessary sigils included in the liner notes. Exactly what supernatural presence is being called up remains unknown, but hopefully it enjoys drone music too. Anyhow, as you may have already guessed, Akoustik Timbre Frekuency plays ritualistic drone with a heavy mystical emphasis. Because of the occult aspect, you might expect this to go the whole spooky supernatural route, but instead it focuses on altering your consciousness and penetrating the subliminal. Even if you're not into the arcane wisdom contained with in, you'll dig this just for the music.

Dark Meadow Recordings


Clathrus – Lanugo 3" cd-r

Well, what have we here? Lanugo is cool little collection of laid back, electronic dreamscapes. There's a nice kind of folky, world music vibe running through the album, especially noticeable in the vaguely gamelan percussion. Recommended for your trance-inducing pleasure.

A Beard of Snails Records


Gloom Seance – Horrible Tales cd

A collection of two earlier released eps and a bonus track, Horrible Tales sounds like the soundtrack to one of those cheesy, zombie apocalypse type video games. Perhaps “horror ambient” just isn't my thing, but it didn't seem like Gloom Seance was capable of establishing any sort of foreboding or scary atmosphere. The bottom line is that you've got eight tracks here that don't manage to establish the desired mood and fall short of being solid cuts of ambient music in their own right.

Invisible Eye Productions


Necrosadik – Speak In Silence (A Self-Destructive Introspection) cd-r

Speak In Silence has to be, easily, one of the worst albums I've ever heard. Necrosadik claims to play depressive black metal, but in reality it's just a dude banging on a guitar and howling like a cat in heat. Try as I might, I haven't even been able to make it all the way through the album. After about 30 minutes, it feels like my ears are getting cancer. I've been putting off reviewing this for a solid month, just because the thought of listening to it again is terrifying. This is so bad it's not even funny.

Smell The Stench


Opponents – Scopes Sarcophagus c44

Opponents kick things off with a side of piercing, rumbling drones overlaid with disembodied voices. Niiice. On the flip side we get more harsh stuff, this time backed with pulsating synths that add an unusual rhythmic element. These dudes have served up some really rad tunes with Scopes Sarcophagus and being that it's a limited release, you better go snag a copy asap.

905 Tapes