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DJ Martian's Page

Intro: A diverse music positive weblog for the discerning listener with an interest in creative artistic music across the contemporary sound spectrum: Goto New Content Section for DJ Martian's Page

Electronic & Dance Music: drum n bass/ jungle, electro, breakbeat/ nu skool breaks, industrial/ electro-industrial/ ebm, synth pop/ electroclash, techno/tech house/deep house/progressive house, psychedelic trance, IDM/ experimental electronics/ ambient/ glitch sounds/ folktronica/ downbeat, jazztronica/ electro-jazz, leftfield/ instrumental/ electronified hip-hop/trip-hop.
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Other Orbits: Kozmigroov, avant / free jazz, dub, modern composition, improvised music and many other hybrids and musical mutations.

Age: I entered this world in 1970. A British Blogger.

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Thursday, June 30, 2005

Pitchfork report on Kompakt

new compilation Total 6 due August 15th

Tracklisting

>>CD1
01 DJ Koze - Hiccup
02 Dorau/Köhncke - Durch Die Nach (Geiger Mix)
03 Justus Köhncke - Krieg
04 Aguayo/Rossknecht - Bouncin' Around
05 Baxendale - I Built This City (Michael Mayer Mix)
06 Rex the Dog - I Look Into Mid Air
07 Thomas Fehlmann - Schone Grusse
08 Tocotronic - Pure Vernunft Darf Niemals Siegen (Superpitcher/Wasserman Single Mix)
09 The MFA - The Difference It Makes
10 Mikkel Metal - Dorant
11 Jürgen Paape - Cream
12 Reinhard Voigt - Ready For Take Off

>>CD2
01 Dirk Leyers - Wellen
02 Superpitcher - Tell Me About It
03 Thomas/Mayer - Panic Room
04 Mayer/Aguayo - Slow
05 Kaito - Hundred Million Lightyears
06 SCSI 9 - Mini
07 Jonas Bering - Glass
08 Ferenc - Tracatra
09 Heib - Phonix
10 The Modernist - The International Loner
11 Peter Grummich - Frozen World
12 The Field - Action

>>Vinyl
A1 DJ Koze - Hiccup
A2 Justus Köhncke - Krieg
B1 Jürgen Paape - Cream
B2 Reinhard Voigt - Ready For Take Off
C1 Aguayo/Rossknecht - Bouncin' Around
C2 Jonas Bering - Glass
D1 Superpitcher - Tell Me About It
D2 Thomas/Mayer - Panic Room

Forthcoming Kompakt albums:

September 12th
DJ Koze full-length debut, Kozi Comes Around

October 4th
New album from Closer Musik's Matias Aguayo
Michael Mayer describes as "absolutely epic."

Also:
New Label
July 18th, Michael Mayer launching a new label, Immer

# posted by DJ Martian 5:14 PM

Magnet will release his new album: The Tourniquet in the UK on August 22nd via Atlantic Records.

[Via ..it's a trap!]

# posted by DJ Martian 1:20 PM

themilkfactory.co.uk ISSUE #69 JULY 2005: Summary

themilkfactory.co.uk deliver another fine selection of reviews. [The summaries below are from themilkfactory.co.uk e-mail/website, to see the full reviews go to the link above]

ALBUM OF THE MONTH
FREEFORM - Outside In
Brand-new offering from Simon Pykes on Skam, Outside In, his eighth album proper, follows the impressive Human of two years ago, and charts more unusual sonic territories.

REVIEWS
EIGHT FROZEN MODULES - Crumbling & Responding / ELECTRONIC MUSIC COMPOSER - Abandon MusicWith two albums out almost simultaneously, and two more due to be released before the end of the year, 2005 shapes up as Kenneth Gibson’s year.

THE GASMAN - The Grand Electric Palace Of Variety
Two years on from his debut album, Remedial, The Gasman’s Chris Reeves returns with this epic and varied double album.

MANDARIN MOVIE - Mandarin Movie
The latest project from avant-garde jazz cornetist Rob Mazurek, Mandarin Movie is a dense and vibrant ode to noise and experimental jazz.

MELODIUM - La Tête Qui Flotte
Following releases on Active Suspension, Disaster By Choice, Peter I’m Flying and Audio Dregs, Melodium now teams up with French imprint Autres Directions In Music for his fourth album.

MICE PARADE - Bem-Vinta Vontade
Well beyond post-rock, Mice Parade’s sixth album references a wide range of influences and builds on Adam Pierce’s previous works.

ONE SELF - Children Of Possibility
Combining the talents of DJ Vadim with Swedish-Brazilian vocalist Yarah Bravo and American MC Blu Rum 13, One Self follow two critically acclaimed EPs with this first album.

PRAVEEN - Backed By Spirits
Long-awaited debut album from New York-based Praveen Sharma, Backed By Spirit is a truly impressive and accomplished piece of work.

STILL - Remains
First solo album for Dälek turntablist Hsi-Chang Lin, AKA Still, Remains collects six dense compositions.

SHORT CUTS
PREFUSE 73 & THE BOOKS Prefuse 73 Reads The Books
FOUR TET Sun Drums & Soil Sa Ra Remix
MUSIC A.M. My City Glittered Like A Breaking Wave

# posted by DJ Martian 12:04 AM

The Village Voice interview Dungen

# posted by DJ Martian 12:03 AM

Wednesday, June 29, 2005

Music webzine: Cokemachineglow.com has a new design.

# posted by DJ Martian 11:51 PM

Seattle Weekly on Earth: Music: Battlefield Earth by Phil Freeman

Nine years after their last studio album, Seattle sludge-metal pioneers Earth return—three times.
by Phil Freeman

# posted by DJ Martian 9:06 PM

Jaga Jazzist Recorded Live

Listen Again: BBC - Radio 3 - Late Junction - 27 June 2005

27 June 2005
Monday 27 June 2005 22:15-0:00 (Radio 3)

Each night this week Fiona Talkington introduces sets specially recorded earlier this month at England's newest festival - the Wychwood festival in Cheltenham.

This programme features the turn of the storming Norwegian largeband Jaga Jazzist.

# posted by DJ Martian 8:55 PM

PopMatters interview Bloc Party member: Fifteen Minutes with Bloc Party

Drummer Matt Tong talks about their rapid success.

# posted by DJ Martian 8:40 PM

TDK Cross Central Festival London: More Artists

GIGWISE.com report TDK Cross Central Announces Even More New Acts including Swedish psychedelic rockers Dungen

Joining the Cross Central line-up are Four Tet, James Lavelle, Whitey, Metric and Dungen who will all be playing live sets at the event.

# posted by DJ Martian 8:37 PM

Mew And The Glass Handed Kites

This Danish website: GAFFA.dk is reporting a September 12th release date for the second Mew album. Strangely the album is called Mew And The Glass Handed Kites.

This Swedish Wikipedia.org provides a

Tracklisting: for Mew - Mew And The Glass Handed Kites.

Circuitry Of The Wolf
Chinaberry Tree
Why Are You Looking Grave?
Fox Club
Apocalypso
Special
The Zookeeper’s Boy
A Dark Design
Saviours Of Jazz Ballet
An Envoy To The Open Fields
Small Ambulance
The Seething Rain Weeps For You (Uda Pruda)
White Lips Kissed
Louise Louisa

Apparently the album is 55 minutes long.

Latest news from | MEW | the official site regarding the single:

27 June 2005

Apocalypso available to download

Apocalypso is now available to buy as a digital download, from the stores listed below, amongst others. This is the radio edit of the track, which is being released as a limited 7" single on July 18th. Also on July 18th, an alternate, reworked version of the song will be available as a download.

# posted by DJ Martian 8:22 PM

Latest Kate Bush news: CD Times - Kate Bush To Release New Album This Autumn [reported via Sky News]

[via No Rock & Roll Fun blog]

# posted by DJ Martian 7:49 PM

Pitchfork report on TV on the Radio - re: forthcoming album The recording process just finished, and mixing is under way

# posted by DJ Martian 7:41 PM

Kultureflash - Headlines from London [No. 129/ 29.06.05]

This week's Kultureflash - Headlines from London

KultureFlash is a free, weekly newsletter covering contemporary culture in and around London. Each week we track down some of the more unusual and interesting events taking place in the Capital and deliver them straight to your inbox. Featuring art, gigs, films, talks, clubs and more -- we are committed to bringing you an eclectic mix of the most stimulating events in London.

# posted by DJ Martian 7:35 PM

Tuesday, June 28, 2005

This week's flavourpill LONDON an email magazine covering music, art, and cultural events

# posted by DJ Martian 4:55 PM

Liars London live date (July) + new album (October)

From the latest Mute email newsletter: News of a forthcoming Liars album: Drum's Not Dead

Liars (Angus Andrew, Aaron Hemphill and Julian Gross) make a welcome return to the UK with a one-off live date at the 100 Club on 5th July.

The London date, which is part of a European tour, precede a brand new CD/DVD, Drum's Not Dead, the follow up to 2004's "They Were Wrong, So We Drowned".

Drum's Not Dead was recorded at Planet Roc, the East German headquarters for radio and TV in Berlin by Holger Müller and was mixed at The Instrument in London by Gareth Jones. The album will be released as a CD and DVD package, the DVD will contain three different visuals to accompany each album track, the visuals are directed by Angus, Julian and Markus Wambsganss.

Queens of Noize present: LIARS LIVE
Tuesday 5th July
100 Club, 100 Oxford Street W1
Doors 7.30pm
Tickets: Â£6 in advance from ticketweb.co.uk

# posted by DJ Martian 1:13 PM

TrusttheDJ.com interview Hardfloor: Hardfloor’s not so bitter Acperience

Hardfloor: Background...

Though throughout their 14-year career, their experiences have included having a number one pop hit in the UK (via Fragma’s Toca’s Miracle) and more significantly, the legacy that remains Acperience.

Coming out on Sven Vath’s Harthouse Records in 1992, the 303 drenched acid house instrumental immediately swamped UK clubland, crossing both of the then dominant genres of house and techno laying a new template for what a club record was allowed to it. It also immediately established the German duo alongside key innovators of the time like Underworld, Leftfield and Dave Clarke, gaining the plaudit ‘arguably the most important post-acid house house record ever’ in The Guinness Book of Techno in 1995.

Hardfloor: new album ‘Four Out Of Five Aliens Recommend This’ is out now !

# posted by DJ Martian 10:58 AM

Monday, June 27, 2005

Satoko Fujii in session

This Friday: Jazz on 3 features Satoko Fujii

Jazz on 3 - Satoko Fujii in session

Friday 1 July 2005 23:30-1:00 (Radio 3)

Jez Nelson presents a specially recorded session with Japanese pianist Satoko Fujii. Blending jazz, contemporary classical and traditional Japanese folk influences, she has developed her own unique sound since she released her debut record in 1996. She is joined by Natsuki Tamura on trumpet and a top flight New York rhythm section, bassist Mark Dresser and star drummer Jim Black. Plus, Jez selects the best of the latest CD releases.

# posted by DJ Martian 1:31 PM

This week's new releases @ Fopp

# posted by DJ Martian 11:40 AM

This week's One World show on Radio 1

Telepopmusic, Yunx and Sonar
Show broadcast on Radio 1
Monday 27th June 2005: 0100-0300

On the show this week we have Yunx from Oxford, Telepopmusik from France and the remainder of the live acts that we recorded at Sonar in Barcelona.

# posted by DJ Martian 8:18 AM

Sunday, June 26, 2005

moldejazz - international jazz festival

MOLDEJAZZ 2005 tales place in Molde, Norway between 18th - 23rd July 2005.

Artists participating in Moldejazz 2005, include:

Anthony Braxton
Arild Andersen Artist in Residence
Arild Andersen Group Electra
Bojan Z Solo
Charlie Haden ”Land of the Sun”
Eugene Chadbourne
Jaga Jazzist
Jamie Lidell
Matthew Bourne
Ralph Myerz & the Jack Herren Band
Scorch Trio - The Thing
Ståhls Blå

# posted by DJ Martian 8:10 PM

Plan B Magazine | Benicàssim your chance to Win Benicàssim Stuff!, competition closes June 28th.

Plan B is proud to be a Media Partner at Benicàssim 2005

# posted by DJ Martian 7:14 PM

New URL for this music blog: DJ ZoZo featuring Goth, Darkwave, Death-Disco, Post-Punk, Deathrock, Industrial, 4AD, Pagan, and those moody Sunday classics

[Previously known as Swung by Seraphim]

# posted by DJ Martian 7:07 PM

Blabbermouth.Net report OPETH: New Song Available For Download

new track, entitled "The Grand Conjuration", has been posted online in MP3 format at this location (length - 9:55; size - 22.71 MB; quality – 320 kbps).

# posted by DJ Martian 2:50 PM

Blabbermouth.Net provide a news update on KATATONIA

# posted by DJ Martian 2:48 PM

Norberg Festival 05 takes place in Norberg, Sweden between 28th July - 30th July.

promising a mix of ambient, click house, dub, drum n bass, glitch, grime, idm, noise, looping, 8bit, microhouse, tech, sound, art, avant-garde weirdness.

WARP show case
Brothomstates (fi)
B12 (uk)
Milanese (uk)
Tom; Warp dj (uk)

SEED show case
Posthuman
Kansas City Prophets
Digitonal
Cursorminer
Bruce; Seed dj
Janos; Techstylism dj
Bell 03; Electronic Desert dj

expanding show case
cathode (uk)
stendec (uk)
vs-price (f)
flotel (uk)
tammetoru (est)
holkham (uk)
dj tench (uk)

Bichi (dk)
Tim Hecker (can)
The Sound Choir WHOP!

Ayhan Aydin (se)
Boj Lucki (se)
Daniel Araya (se)
Gros (se)
Moneoo (se)
Rigas (se)
The Skull Defekts (se)

# posted by DJ Martian 2:30 PM

Optronica Festival - 20-24th July - London

Info on ::OPTRONICA::

A hybrid of film festival and music festival, Optronica is a brand new five day event focusing on the convergence of visuals and music.

Starting on Wednesday July 20th 2005, Optronica opens with 3 nights of live audiovisual performances at the bfi London IMAX; the World premiere of Plaid & Bob Jaroc's Greedy Baby AV spectacular, the UK premiere of DJ Spooky's solo film remix Rebirth of a Nation and a stunning AV show from ex-Kraftwerk star Karl Bartos. Packed Friday and Saturday schedules follow, with cinema screenings, talks, panel discussions and live performances at the National Film Theatre, where audiovisual acts including Skoltz_Kolgen and People Like Us play at Optronica Lab. On the Friday night, there will be a special live audiovisual performance by Addictive TV on the fly-tower of the National Theatre, with projections visible across the Thames, and a club night Optronica @ The Spitz on the Saturday night with a line-up of DJs and VJs from France, Holland, Poland, the UK and Japan.

The festival is organised by Addictive TV in partnership with the National Film Theatre, supported by the Arts Council of England

On a side note, if viewed in 800 by 600 resolution this website has poor usability, no scrolling vertical side bar and the width of the information displayed is inappropriate and frustrating to browse. Even if the website had a horizontal design it would help if a usable horizontal scrolling bar were in place.

# posted by DJ Martian 2:22 PM

Futuresonic 2005

The UK's International Festival of Electronic Music and Media Arts.

Takes in place in Manchester, July 22nd - 24th

Futuresonic 2005 :: featuring

Jamie Lidell
Robert Lippok
A Guy Called Gerald
Susanna & the Magic Orchestra
Jason Forrest

# posted by DJ Martian 2:15 PM

Leonard's Lair review Portal - Waves & Echoes

# posted by DJ Martian 2:10 PM

Leonard's Lair review Richard Davis - Details

Following in the tradition of recent albums by Junior Boys and Matthew Dear, 'Details' should confirm Richard Davis' status as a major player in his field

# posted by DJ Martian 2:09 PM

This Week's New Releases @ Boomkat [June 27th]

This week's new releases @ Boomkat include:

ALBUM OF THE WEEK!
Julien Neto - Le Fumeur De Ciel
Type

Fans of Colleen, Susumu Yokota, Sylvain Chaveau, Xela and Max Richter take note! Parisian Julien Neto has been an active member of the music scene for some time with releases on various labels under various monikers, so it comes as a surprise then that this is his debut album. The title of the record is somewhat fitting as the album is enswathed by curls of cinematic smoke. Think Twin Peaks as blue light illuminates the dry ice around Julee Cruise on centre stage, or the thick French cigarette smoke drifting from Rachel's mouth in Blade Runner and you're close. Yet what makes `Le Fumeur De Ciel' so beautifully inviting is its delicate naivety. There is something of timeless theatrics about the record, hazy childhood memories of half-sinister puppetry and enjoyably menacing shadows. Propelled by a tireless romantic melancholy, this is a work which confronts tragic loss with an unflinching honesty. Each track is underpinned by deep memories and dried tears. `Sketch' takes Neto's signature flute sound and adds sweeping strings and a lightly plucked harp that trips over the already heart wrenching melodies. The atmospheres which Neto carves are the most striking aspect of his music. With samples, rough tape edits and disintegrated synthesized sounds he can manipulate imaginary worlds. Beautiful widescreen listening - one of the finest releases on Type to date....

SINGLE OF THE WEEK!
Fennesz & Ryuichi Sakamoto - Live At Salsa Santa Cecilia
Touch

'Sala Santa Ceclia' is an introduction to the new partnership between Ryuichi Sakamoto and Christian Fennesz. This meeting of the modern day of electronic music with the wise old innovator happened at the Romaeuropa Festival, Rome, November 2004. It's not quite clear whether this laptop event was planned and thought out in advance or whether it happened off the cuff at the last moment. Either way this 20 minute performance, a micro symphony, finds both artists at the top of their respective games. Fennesz continuing the bright drone work of 'Venice' while Sakamoto seems to be able to fit into the contemporary micro electronic scene with ease. You can imagine a real modern symphony orchestra behind the drones, scrapes and rushes of melody - these parts build up into quite a euphoric feeling by the five minute mark. In isolation certain sounds resemble the pulsations of the early work of the Radiophonic Workshop, elsewhere the rushing torrents of sound resemble the works of Ina-GRM members Parmegiani and Bayle . What lingers most after you've heard this performance is the beauty, power and authority that gets better and more moving with repeated plays. Fennesz is now part of Sakamoto's touring band, hears hoping the tour hit's the uk soon. Highly Recommended....

Markant - Feedback
Markant

Every few years good old Markant dusts off his equipment and decides against the sonic retirement he's seemingly slipped into a number of times since his heyday back in the late 90's. His original series of twelves were surely some of the most collectable (and expensive) relics of an era when seemingly every electronic musician dedicated their recorded output in some shape of form to autechre : crunchy beats, DSP's, buried melodies and lots of compression. Now that the scene has sort of dated itself and descended to cliché, its quite hard to remember which, if any, of those countless Markant twelves are worth keeping..but that's another story. The sales notes for this album describe it as "extending the aesthetic "rules" that governed his past work.." though to these ears nothing much has changed in the Markant universe. That's not to say that this isn't a good record - Carsten Endras has always been a dab hand at the controls and his willingness to absorb textured ambience shows a good understanding of structure and form, something missing from the music of so many of his contemporaries. If you're after some well executed IDM, crunchy beats and effervescent classic ambience - this is a record you'll thoroughly enjoy....

Koss - Ring
Mule Electronic

The excellent Mule imprint returns with this cd album (also available split into two vinyl EP's) from Japan's Koss, longtime collaborator Haruomi Hosono of Yellow Magic Orchestra fame. "Ring" is an epic downbeat album, avoiding the "micro" tag with a much more free-flowing attitude that falls into the drift-end of downtempo 4/4. The three "Ring" Tracks fall in at over 12 minutes each and take their time exploring similar constructions, a spacious arrangement of extended synths and barely audible beat pads. The three additional tracks are lighter and more compact, introducing a piano and a dubwise aesthetic for the Sakamoto-referencing "ra1030in" and a sort of metallic looped snd-vibe for "ple-ate". Lovely....

Luigi Archetti / Bo Wiget - Low Tide Digitals Ii
Rune Grammofon

"Low Tide Digitals II" is the sequel to this non-Norwegian duo´s acclaimed 2001 debut album of the same name. As with the debut, this is an extremely fine-tuned mix of acoustic instruments and electronic elements. An album of sensitive, electronically-tinged free improvising, it's the work of two Swiss based musicians, guitarist Luigi Archetti and cellist Bo Wiget. Archetti joined vintage German psychedelic band Guru Guru (one of the groups that has been an influence on latter-day ambient music) in 1990 and he has since appeared on three new albums with them as well as on the live triple album "Guru Guru: 30 Jahre Live" issued in 1999. He has played too with numerous exponents of improvised music including Urs Voerkel, Ellen Christi, Magikami Koichi and many others. Bo Wiget was born in Wattwil, Switzerland in 1971 and studied classical cello in Austria at the Feldkirch Academy. Over the last decade he has worked with numerous improvisers including legendary Swiss free saxophonist Werner Lüdi, Czech singer/violinist Iva Bittova, and Japanese guitarist Taku Sugimoto. Low Tide Digitals, the Archetti/Wiget duo, was launched in 1998. This is a dense but often melodic tapestry of minimalism and self restraint, avoiding the schizophrenic leanings of much of the fabulously eccentric Rune Grammofon roster in favour of something much more even-paced and serene. A hugely immersing listen....

The Chap - Ham
Lo Recordings

There's nothing worse than a review which compares the artist in question to another, top or tailing it with the trusty 'on acid...' caveat. Well brace yourself bwoooooy, for here is The Chap; LCD Soundsystem on acid. With sparse grooves tumbling forth like Haggard and Henty, The (three piece) Chap fuse a pic'n'mix bag of disco, electro(nica), funk, and sleazy rock together into a fidgeting whole which delights and confounds in equal measures. Opening with a propulsive Liquid Liquid bassline that could knock an Anemometer clean over, first track 'Baby I'm Hurting' overtly appears to take itself very seriously (in a Talking Heads kind of way), with dissonant violins, bourbon rock sensibilities and half chanted/half sung vocals cracking the pop wall clean open. Changing influences at a drop of a hat, next up is 'Woop Woop'; a satirical look at the excitement of releasing a record that is so full of knowing asides it could easily have turned into a Shoreditch-endorsed haircut anthem were it not for the beautiful production. The dead-pan vocals of 'Woop Woop' are delivered over sparse electronics which sporadically burst into life through shards of deranged strings whilst, elsewhere, 'Now Woel' sounds like A zeitgeist-tumbling garage rock concoction, 'Woop' (just the one this time) is a delicate acoustic watercolour, and 'Arizona' shows an affinity with Manual, My Bloody Valentine and Telefon Tel Aviv. Not as odd as it thinks it is, 'Ham' is nonetheless a charming collection of AM-roaming compositions that will have something for everybody....

Mace - Circulations
Sub Rosa

"Following Faux-Jumeaux (CD released on Tzadik), where I developed the auto-sampling process (composing a piece of music using only samples of the instruments appearing in that piece of music) around the concept of the double or replica, I chose with Circulations to push the same method much further by approaching it from a more pragmatic angle. The performance falls halfway between mixed concert music (referenced by the instrument + tape device) and live electronics. Even though the musicians never actually play together, they are nonetheless virtually brought together by the presence of the tape, which blends and fuses their instrumental sounds as a whole. By putting side by side in a near-didactical way several compositional stages, two types of writings ("abstract" and "concrete"), this process invites from the listener a cross-reading of the work, matching each instrumental part to its electronic evolution: a sequence of vibraphone arpeggios elsewhere becomes a click'n'cut gimmick, a guitar melody transforms into an ambient loop, and a sustained note on the bass clarinet gives birth to a rumbling in the subfrequency range. So many potentialities comprised in the abstractly written material, but also in the accidents of its recording, its "mise en son."If this correspondence is not entirely rigorous, it is to leave enough room for the endlessly stretchable feedback interplay - or circulation - between abstract and concrete. This album represents one moment in the mutation generated by this movement." Pierre-Yves Macé...

Schwabinggrad Ballett - Schwabinggrad Ballett
Staubgold

The Schwabinggrad Ballett is an open collective and understands itself as part of a network, which among other activities runs the Buttclub in Hamburg, which in turn organizes discussions, readings, exhibitions, concerts and reading groups. Resisting the band format and its marketing treadmill, inspiration for much of the musical output derives from the marching band and free jazz: accordion, timpani, shopping carts, chair improv, and brass. Instead of a lead singer, there are hoarse choirs, and instead of "discourse pop," Dadaist agitprop takes its place. Members of the Schwabinggrad Ballett are: Der Buttclub, Thomas Butteweg, Christine Eder, Ekkehard Ehlers, Ted Gaier, Bernadette Hengst, Frank John, Thomas Lörtsch, Heiko Marn, Roberto Ohrt, Peter Ott, DJ Patex, Tina Petersen, Knarf Rellöm, Christoph Schäfer, Barbara Schulz, Christine Schulz, Christopher Twickel, Kathrin Wildner, Frank Will. Described by Christopher Twickel as: "seventeen killer tracks between caterwauling and 'the collective.' Seventeen sips of musical rotgut between punk and Penderecki. Seventeen pieces of adutainment between the critical mass and massive criticism. Really difficult and really beautiful."...

Portal - Waves & Echoes
Make Mine Music

Influenced by minimalist classical composers, electronica and post-punk of the late 1970s and early 1980s, Portal have followed their own distinct path since their debut single release "Hydro-electric" in 1998. "Waves & Echoes" also sees Portal further refine their sound and experiment more widely than on previous releases. Employing a variety of sampling and digital editing techniques, multi-instrumentalist and writer Scott Sinfield has created a sound that embraces blissed-out ambience, noise, glitches and silence, whilst retaining a distinctly and unashamedly `pop' sound. Melody and harmony play an essential part in Portal's sound and songs are often traditionally structured. Singer Rachel Hughes adds beautiful, haunting vocals to half of the album's tracks. Portal have been described as "innovative spacepoppers" by The Guardian newspaper, whilst the late John Peel called them "strange but rather wonderful". Others have praised the wide range of styles and sounds that the band has embraced and the directions in which they have taken their music. Lovely....

Battles - B EP
Dim Mak

This years Sonar Festival was a mixed bag to say the least, for every Matthew Herbert, Radian, Khonnor and Midaircondo you had to stomach such drivel as.... well I won't name names but you know the guilty parties. Amongst all this hedonistic fallout early Friday evening a select few hundred witnessed one of the most awesome live gigs I've ever attended by this four piece, the mighty Battles. Nuff respect to the Xelaman for thrusting this band into our lives. Post Sonar we will try to do this band justice via stocking as much of their recorded output as possible starting with the 'B EP', from 2004. A five track EP clocking in at just below 30 mins. Battles are a band that sound (both live and on record) a lot mightier than the written word can convey. To call it simply post rock is a massive undersell, the 12 min plus 'Bttls' is up their with early Panasonic for eerie bass quake minimalism. The kind of band that don't come around too often - a big recommendation!...

Orthrelm - Ov
Ipecac

4th album from California's premier free-metal power duo. Their music is an infectious blur of breakneck drumming and rapid guitar interplay, continuously inventive and exceptionally impressive. Mick Barr has achieved cult status as one of the best guitar players anywhere! For Fans Of Cromtech, Flying Luttenbachers, The Locust, Supersystem, Cattle Decapitation, Lightning Bolt, and Hella. On Mike Patton's Ipecac imprint....

Ferenc - Fraximal
Kompakt

In 2003, Ferenc gave birth to a monster entitled "yes sir i can hardcore" paving the way for a new sound that Tiefschwarz, Blackstrobe and many others would later adapt excessively to their own music . These well intended creations raised a monument for the almost forgotten early 90's style pioneered by Frankie Bones, early Joey Beltram, Nu Groove, City Limits. They were a tribute to brooklyn hardcore - the hardest dance music of that period. Those times are over...and it's high time to go back to the future! Ferenc are maxi ruiz & fra soler - the latter one of the most important producers and hardest working promoters in the spanish techno music community. This album starts off with a nod towards classic Detroit Productions, flows through the warehouse scene in Chicago and ends up 55 minutes later with a crunchy line in shuffling beats for the floor taylor made for and by those good boys and girls at Kompakt. This is a solid, deep album from start to finish - and good to see the vinyl having the same tracklisting as the cd for once! Ace....

# posted by DJ Martian 1:43 PM

Friday, June 24, 2005

Next week's releases reviewed @ Norman Records

# posted by DJ Martian 4:48 PM

This week's Jazz on 3 show:Jazz on 3 - New York Vision Festival

New York Vision Festival
Friday 24 June 2005 23:30-1:00 (Radio 3)

Jez Nelson presents highlights from New York's Vision Festival. Featured performers include Mat Maneri, bass legend Henry Grimes and Fred Anderson.

# posted by DJ Martian 4:15 PM

This week's Mixing It show: Mixing It - 24 June 2005

24 June 2005
Friday 24 June 2005 22:15-23:30 (Radio 3)

Mark Russell and Robert Sandall introduce a recording of Jonny Greenwood's BBC commission Popcorn Superhet Receiver, performed by the BBC Concert Orchestra conducted by Robert Ziegler.

# posted by DJ Martian 4:14 PM

Musique Machine review Bohren & Der Club of Gore - Geisterfaust

# posted by DJ Martian 4:07 PM

Thursday, June 23, 2005

Sigur Rós - Album Slated for Autumn Release

sigur rós news:

sigur rós's new album, which has not yet been named, has been recorded and mixed. the album contains ten songs and is currently being mastered in new york. it is expected to be released in the autumn.

[via One Louder blog]

# posted by DJ Martian 9:45 PM

numusic festival - Stavanger, Norway

Yet another Norwegian music festival, this one is called Nu Music. In the current issue of The Wire it's one page advert claims this is Scandinavia's largest festival dedicated to the advancement of electronic music and cutting edge arts.

When: 24th - 28th August
Where: City of Stavanger, Norway

numusic - West coast Festival of numusic

Artists appearing include:

Xploding Plastix
Max De Warner
Brooks
Biosphere
The Bays
Tussle
Rother & Mobius
David Toop
Luke Vibert
Jamie Lidell
Chicks on Speed
Carl Craig
Karlheinz Stockhausen
Json Forrest
Mental Overdrive
Datarock

# posted by DJ Martian 9:36 PM

Issue 46 of Earplug

JUNE 23 - JULY 6

Earplug is a twice-monthly email magazine, delivering a handpicked selection of news, sounds, videos, and original features for the international electronic-music community

# posted by DJ Martian 9:01 PM

The Wire - July 2005

The new issue of The Wire features Jamie Lidell on the front cover.

# posted by DJ Martian 8:36 PM

Arcturus Album Title Announced

BW & BK report ARCTURUS Confirm New Album Title as Sideshow Symphonies, due for release: September/ October on Season of Mist.

# posted by DJ Martian 5:04 PM

A new URL for Simon Reynolds book promo website: Rip It Up and Start Again: Postpunk 1978-84

# posted by DJ Martian 1:41 PM

New Simple Minds Album in September

According to Pause & Play's On the CD Front the new Simple Minds album is titled: Black & White

Due for release, September 13th on Sanctuary Records.

# posted by DJ Martian 1:15 PM

Scott Walker Album due in the Autumn

Update via ILM on this thread: Scott Walker signs to 4AD!

Scott's first 4AD album is due out in the autumn, and will feature the Cocteau's Liz Fraser. This is about all I know

# posted by DJ Martian 1:06 PM

Wednesday, June 22, 2005

Hydrahead have launched a PELICAN :: media player to promote the forthcoming Pelican album titled:

The Fire In Our Throats Will Beckon the Thaw

# posted by DJ Martian 8:58 PM

Radio 1: OneMusic at Sonar 2005

The OneMusic team took a trip out to the Sonar festival in sunny Barcelona to broadcast a Sonar special with Rob da Bank and Huw Stephens and to capture the best new music and bring it back for those who couldn't make it out.

Below are profiles of all the artists we've played so far. Later this week, we'll be adding more interviews and pictures from over the weekend.

# posted by DJ Martian 1:47 PM

Kultureflash - Headlines from London [No. 128/ 22.06.05]

This week's Kultureflash - Headlines from London

KultureFlash is a free, weekly newsletter covering contemporary culture in and around London. Each week we track down some of the more unusual and interesting events taking place in the Capital and deliver them straight to your inbox. Featuring art, gigs, films, talks, clubs and more -- we are committed to bringing you an eclectic mix of the most stimulating events in London.

# posted by DJ Martian 1:30 PM

This week's flavourpill LONDON an email magazine covering music, art, and cultural events

# posted by DJ Martian 1:27 PM

Pitchfork review Orthrelm - OV

# posted by DJ Martian 1:24 PM

Ellen Allien - Thrills, Berlin & dreams

trustthedj.com interview Ellen Allien

# posted by DJ Martian 1:04 PM

Tuesday, June 21, 2005

Terrorizer Magazine - Issue 133

New issue of Terrorizer is on sale this week. Death Metal veterans Obituary are on the front cover.

FEATURES:

OBITUARY
LIFE OF AGONY
MISTRESS
GOREROTTED
WITCHCRAFT
GRAND MAGUS
BAR-BARIAN WRATH: ROADRAGE
SKULLFLOWER
BIOMECHANICAL
NAGLFAR
< CODE >
DARKEST HOUR
GUAPO
AS I LAY DYING
BROKEN BONES
HARD OF HEARING: MESHUGGAH
POSTER: KERRY KING/SLAYER + LACUNA COIL
LEAVES EYES
INTERLOCK
NEURO/VISION EXTRA: NECROPHILIA ON FILM

Also this news:

#133 - EDITORIAL
If you're wondering why this month's issue is out a week earlier in the month than usual, or why we're all looking so pale these days, the answer to both those questions will be that from now on, Terrorizer is going up to thirteen issues a year.

Free CD:

FEAR CANDY 17

HATE ETERNAL 'Behold Judas'
SOILENT GREEN 'Leaves Of Three'
BYZANTINE 'Jeremiad'
MISTRESS 'At Arms Length'
WITCHCRAFT 'Queen Of Bees'
DARKANE 'Layers Of Lies'
REVEREND BIZARRE 'The Devil Rise Out'
DEW-SCENTED 'Rituals Of Time'
CANCER 'Insides Out'
NAGLEFAR 'Spoken Words Of Venom'
WATCHMAKER 'Conference Call Immolation' / 'Civic Bloodlust' / 'Nihilism And Despair'
CONTRADICTION 'The Voice Of Hatred'
DISRUPTION 'Into The Raging Stream'
KAYSER 'Good Citizen'
NECROCEST 'Chronic Rot'
CORPSING 'Blistered Bliss'

# posted by DJ Martian 10:33 PM

The Breezeblock @ Sonar

Now available on Listen Again The Sonar Special show on The Breezeblock

Tracklistings: The Breezeblock

Jim O'Rourke- 'Women Of The World' (Domino)
Brooks- 'Roxxy (Hot Chip Women Of THe Remix)' (Soundslike)
Simian Mobile Disco- 'Pulse' (V2)
Matthias Schafhauser- 'Coincidence (Trentemoller Remix)' (Ware Records)
Colder- 'Wrong Baby' (Output)

***The Sonar Conversations Pt.I- Mathew Herbert, Prefuse 73, Damain Lazarus and Arno (Booka Shade)***

Vex'd- 'Angels' (Planet Mu)

*** Sonar Live Music 1: Subtle***

***Sonar Live Music 2: The Beautiful People***

***Sonar Live Music 3: Mouse On Mars***

***Sonar Live Music 4: World's End Girlfriend***

***The Sonar Conversations Pt.II- Andrew Weatherall, Adam (Subtle), Joris Voorn***

***Sonar Live Music 5: Efterklang***

Ghostface Killah feat. Trife- 'Milk 'Em' (Sound In Colour)
Cyne- 'Growing' (City Centre Offices)

***Sonar Live Music 6: Hood***

***The Sonar Conversations Pt.III- Jamie Lidell, Mocky, Stefan (Soulwax), Steve Bug***

***Sonar Live Music 7: Tape***

# posted by DJ Martian 9:21 PM

Blabbermouth.Net report FEAR FACTORY Finalize Track Listing For Transgression album, due for release August 23rd.

The album includes a cover of the Killing Joke track: Millenium

# posted by DJ Martian 1:58 PM

NEW @ IGLOO

Electronic music webzine Igloo latest newsletter:

Summary...

::NEWSWIRE::
__ Igloo Discount Store with The Agriculture
__ Toytronic :: Re-Release Campaign
__ Les Siestes Électroniques :: July 1-10, 2005 (Toulouse, FR)
__ TJ NORRIS :: dk Exhibit
__ LISTEN at OPi8.com

::REVIEWS::
__ Mlada Fronta :: Dioxydes (Parametric, DVD)
__ Shapeshifter :: Reticulum Flux (Schematic, CD)
__ Satellite Beach :: The Haunted Sea EP (Record Camp, 12")
__ Nacht Plank :: Septs Vents (Lampse, CD)
__ Ra :: Raoul Loves You (Coredump, CD)
__ Praveen :: Backed by Spirits (Neo Ouija, CD)
__ Four Tet :: Everything Ecstatic (Domino, CD)
__ Richard Devine :: Cautella (Sublight, CD)
__ Rusuden :: Formulae Remixes (Terminal Dusk, CD)
__ The Connection Machine :: Painless (Down Low Music, CD)
__ BITFLASHING :: Volume 3 By Mark Teppo
__ Venetian Snares :: Rossz Csillag Alatt Született (Planet-Mu, CD/2LP)
__ V/A :: Crimson (Terminal Dusk, CD)
__ Multicast :: Bahian Coastal Hwy (Obliq, LP/MP3)
__ Thin Films :: Eskimo (Thin, CD)
__ Meat Beat Manifesto :: At The Center (Thirsty Ear, CD)
__ Granufunk + Littl Shyning Man :: MP3 releases on Sonic360
__ MICROVIEW :: Volume 20b By TJ Norris
__ MICROVIEW :: Volume 20a By TJ Norris
__ Sanso-Xtro :: Sentimentalist (Type, CD/LP)
__ The Exposures :: Lost Recordings 2000-2004 (Eastern Developments,
CD)
__ BITFLASHING :: Volume 2 By Mark Teppo
__ Drop The Lime :: This Means Forever (Tigerbeat6, CD/2LP)
__ Amazing Grace :: Revival Times (Desolation House, CD)
__ Enduser :: Comparing Paths (Very Friendly/Mirex, LP/CD)
__ Secede :: Bye Bye Gridlock Traffic (Merck, CD)
__ Exillon :: Prequiem (Component, CD)
__ Compest :: Kryptozoologie (Einzeleinheit, CD)
__ Ryan Teague :: Six Preludes (Type, CD)
__ Axiome :: Il Pleut Des Cordes (Ant-Zen, 12")
__ Sickboy :: Into Oblivion (Mirex, CD)
__ Svalastog :: Silencer (Beatservice, CD)
__ End :: The Sick Generation (Hymen, CD)
__ BITFLASHING :: Volume 1 By Mark Teppo
__ Harold Budd :: Avalon Sutra / As Long As... (Samadhisound, 2CD)

::PROFILES::
__ Who is Mojave? :: Electronica in The ROK
__ MICROVIEW :: Jason Kahn (Cut Label Profile)
__ MICRONAUT :: Multi-Dimensional Explosion of Sound

::FEATURES::
__ IGLOO TRAX :: Latest MP3 by Solipsism
__ AUTECHRE :: Live at Mezzanine 05.20.05 (Review)
__ MUTEK 2005 :: Transmissions

# posted by DJ Martian 1:49 PM

Blabbermouth.Net report on NEGURA BUNGET

The CD will be officially released by Code666 Records in October.

# posted by DJ Martian 1:39 PM

Radio 1 announce Radio 1 goes Stateside

The station has struck a deal with SIRIUS Satellite Radio to broadcast across America, with the shows slotting into the same times as they do in the UK.

There are different time zones within the US though !

# posted by DJ Martian 1:20 PM

Monday, June 20, 2005

Sonar Festival Live 2005

Now on Listen Again: One World presents Sonar Festival Live 2005

Sonar 2005
Show broadcast on Radio 1
Monday 20th June 2005: 0100-0300

Featuring:

Herbert - Plats Du Jour
Afra & Incredible Beatbox Band - Slice My Nice Beat
Afra & Incredible Beatbox Band - Digital Breath
Rei Harakami & Shiro Takatami
Ellen Alien - Naked Rain
Vegetable Orchestra - Greenhouse
Goodiepal
Djsos Krost
Tape
Mink Engine - Dick Chicken
Cycle
Midaircondo
Subtle
Robin Porter
Aufgang - Aufgang
Artificial
Efterklang
Khonnor
Vert
FS Blumm
David Stakenaas

# posted by DJ Martian 11:32 PM

Musique Machine review Ulver - Blood Inside

# posted by DJ Martian 8:36 PM

Playlouder report The Fall sign to Sanctuary! - new album due for release in August.

# posted by DJ Martian 8:35 PM

Brian Eno on Mark Radcliffe Show

Radio 2 - Mark Radcliffe show has an exclusive interview with Brian Eno this Thursday [June 23rd].

# posted by DJ Martian 12:32 AM

Radio 1 @ Sonar 05

Radio 1 are @ Europe's leading Electronic Music Festival, Sonar.

Radio 1 Events - Sonar 2005 details:

Sonar kicks off on Radio 1 with a OneMusic Special live from Barcelona on Thursday June 16th with Rob da Bank and Huw Stephens.

Then there's a week of shows...

Thu 16th 11pm: OneMusic Special with Rob and Huw [this is now on Listen Again]
Mon 19th 1am: One Word Sonar Special
Tue 21st 1am: The Breezeblock
Tue 21st 11pm: OneMusic with Huw Stephens
Wed 23rd 11pm: OneMusic with Rob da Bank
Sat 25th 5am: The Blue Room with Rob da Bank
Mon 27th 1am: One World

The shows will feature sets from:
Vegetable Orchestra, Cycle, Djosos Krost, Efterklang, Artificial, Hurtmold+ Rob Mazurek, Midaircondo, Khonnor, Radian, Durutti Column, Mouse on Mars, Afra, DJ Jifrock, DJ Baku, Fs Blumm, Vert, World's End Girlfriend, Yamauchi, Rei Harakami and Shiro Takatani, My Robot Friend, To Rococo Rot, Duplex, Hot Chip, Mocky, Ben Mono, General Electrics, Who Made Who, Kemialliset Ystavat, Skoltz Kolgen.

# posted by DJ Martian 12:22 AM

Forthcoming One World shows on Radio 1:

20/06 - Sonar Festival Special - Complete highlights recorded from this year's festival in Barcelona

04/07 - Thievery Corporation in session at Maida Vale

11/07 - Fine Recordings - Tiefschwarz and Free Form 5

18/07 - New Zealand Music Special hosted by Zane Lowe

# posted by DJ Martian 12:06 AM

Sunday, June 19, 2005

This Week's New Releases @ Boomkat [Week Commencing June 20th]

This week's new releases @ Boomkat include:

ALBUM OF THE WEEK!
Monolake - Polygon_Cities
Imbalance

Robert Henke has been releasing music under the Monolake moniker for a staggering 10 years now, originally in collaboration with Gerhard Behles and then on his own. In recent years he has been joined on production duties by the mysterious T++ (Torsten Pröfrock, one of the finest producers of post Basic Channel techno variants under a number of revered aliases) and this is their first album working together on a full-scale basis. What's remarkable about Monolake is its ability to shift and morph so effortlessly with the times while using more or less the same basic constituent parts. And so what we have here is a collection of spacious, metallic, dub-infused killers that radiate with crunchy and utterly complex beat structures that never veer into academic realms. This is simply crushing music, taking a techno template for its starting point before mutating into a hybrid construction set of breaks, dub, electronica, and an uncanny knack of always sounding completely unique. Look at the little booklet inside detailing all of Henke's productions and releases over the last decade and you soon realise just how significant his contribution to electronic music has been. Peerless killers from start to finish, an absolute must....

ALBUM OF THE WEEK!
Boy Robot - Rotten Cocktails
City Centre Offices

Having met in the software industry (about as exciting sounding as a Government fiscal review committee), Hans Moller (aka Boulderdash) and Michael Zorn (Lux Nigra) evidently bonded and brought into being Boy Robot, with 'Rotten Cocktails' the follow up to 2003's 'Glamorizing Corporate Lifestyle'. Taking a slew of influences that range from Basic Channel through to Detroit Techno and classic Artificial Intelligence era electronic prototypes, 'Rotten Cocktails' is digital innovation in a jar. Never once sliding into introspective twaddle, Moller and Zorn have crafted a bevy of aural catnip that suggests access to a musical strain of radiesthesia, enabling Boy Robot to successfully pack innovation, listenabiltiy and feet itching rhythms into a mighty wholegrain package. Opening with the glorious sound of electronic stalactites forming, 'Magic Toys For Girls and Boys' soon travels down a thicket lined lane of caliginous atmospherics and sturdy beats that at once resembles a steroid injected BOC and Monolake at its finest in one and the same breath. The magnificent "Live in Vanilla", meanwhile, brings to mind classic Aphex Twin (Girl/Boy-era) - all widescreen strings and jerky rhythms, beautiful and oddly unnerving at one and the same time. 'Invaders Of Vanity Clubland' matches a driving, static couched beat to all manner of syrupy analogue washes and blooping characteristics, whilst 'We Accept All Our Parents Credit Cards' tiptoes its way around a vintage melody as a jack hammer 4/4 pounds out below. Classic electronic listening....

ALBUM OF THE WEEK!
Nacht Plank - Septs Vents
Lampse

This is the incredible debut release on Lampse, a label brought to you by one of the core members of the Type collective, set to pour all the love and attention they can muster into a series of beautifully abstract releases. This first release comes to us from Nacht Plank, one musical third of Lee Norris, the man also behind acclaimed projects Metamatics and Norken. Nacht Plank is where Norris allows himself to experiment the most, abandoning carefully designed beats in favour of long sections and dusty soundscapes. Complicated song structures fall apart to leave space for broken and distant melodies to come forth. The organic and melodic sound of Metamatics and Norken is still present, only darker and much dirtier. The sounds here seem to have been sourced from deep woods and underground tunnels, where mysterious lifeforms breed and grow - Norris then processes them to craft his own wordless stories in the form of these songs. Assembled within hours, they manage to distill, like a magic time capsule, the essence of eternity in a few minutes. On a careful listen one is able to recognize, briefly, familiar sounds; a cricket in a hot summer night, boats dancing in moving waters. Blended with carefully filtered piano and guitar recordings and surrounded by an ensemble of vintage synthesizers, they are the basic ingredients of each track. All these samples and sounds are then repeated and layered after they are given their place in the song. Nacht Plank's music does not only exist within those samples, but in the space between them and in the way they interact with each other. A good reference point would be Markus Popp's Microstoria project or Delia Derbyshire's sci-fi compositions for early analogue synthesizers. As Septs Vents unravels itself, it draws us into its timeless universe evoking the qualities of objects unearthed years after they've been buried....

Andrea Parker / Touchin' Bass - Subsidence
Touchin' Bass

With label boss Andrea Parker's professed love of the mighty Bitsream, you know things are about to get heavy when a Touchin Bass compilation decides to surface. Following on from last year's 'Nobody's Perfect' in house showcase, 'Subsidence' is a global affair featuring material from Tura (otherwise known as Plaid), Dave Tipper, Alpha 606, Doctor Evil. Eggfooyoung, as well as Andrea herself alongside David Morley. What better way to open a compilation than with a rubbery electro/hip-hop face off replete with lazy-boy scratching and face shuddering bass pockets courtesy of Adrian Michna's Eggfooyoung alter-ego? You got it! How about following this up with a Parker/Morley co-production (the dark and sinister 'Polarize'), some synth-stab saturated fast-forward electro courtesy of Plaid ('Bacco') and then a bout of teeth shattering digital chaos from Dopamine Crew's Nomadic ('Anxiety')? You got it two times! Hard, electronic and proper knob-on. Ace....

Weave - Of The Nature Tone
Cactus Island

Tense nervous headache? Well ditch the Anadin and prescribe yourself a dose of Weave, otherwise known as one-man instrument octopus Barry Leake (flute, guitars, percussion, ms10 and of course, laptop). Having done the whole 'formed a band, dabbled in a bit of Djing' thing, Leake has finally produced an album that ties together his passion for IDM, folky stuff (you could add '-tronica' there...) and warm instrumentation, with the result being the understated but beatific 'Of The Nature Of Tone' LP. The album opens with a welter of thrumming digitalis and lilting instrumentation on 'Deepwit', wherein the spirit of BOC gets another exhumation but this time sans the scary kids TV show business. A similar mood surfaces throughout the album, being both introspective and doggedly forward facing; the break heavy 'Lux Natura' and the spacious 'Rheomode' of particular note. Elsewhere, 'Scuffling Bow' sounds not unlike a Bola remix of DJ Shadow's 'Mashin On The Motorway', 'Unky' opts for some icy Russian electronica, whilst 'Upwards' allows Leake to indulge his jazz fixation without all the usual caveats that presumes. Backed up by Philly's drumming on four tracks ('Interlude' the choice of these), Weave leave you sated through the closing jitter-drenched electro-breaks of 'Purge' (think Radioactive Man on a couple of days without sleep), and makes a good case for keeping an eye on his future manouvres....

Solarium - Olari
Spezialmaterial

Martin Wigger's second album departs significantly from the predominantly ambient and soundscape leanings of "I-XIV" released back in 2002. Martin's preoccupation here is with beat constructions, as intricate as some of his label mates but sacrificing none of the flow and rhythmic coercion for which the label is gathering a plethora of advocates. Each track is named after a disassembled piece of the word Solarium - and what we glimpse here is a related set of pieces, readily involved with serious basslines and chattering, implosive beat constructions. The format is unabashed and electronic, `Olar' subscribing to some of the best tenets of the much maligned idm genre, `Ulr' is brave enough to takes the beat squarely into holy territory, looking to revive the adrenlaine rush on hearing Autechre's seldom surpassed `Tri Repetae' for the first time. `Muir' settles on a refined, subtle take on the Spezialmaterial sound, built specifically for rocking european underground venues to their very foundations. The sounds here are developed, considered, dark and light, more abstract perhaps than Solarium's previous work, but nonetheless come heavily recommended....

Secular Musics Of South Yorkshire (Mark Fell) - Reproduction
Bottrop Boy

Reissue of this debut solo album from SND, Blir and Shirt Trax' member Mark Fell. With Sheffield's gentrification now at full pace, it's becoming increasingly difficult to see where the shiny new discos and industrial grime once rubbed up against each other to produce the spark which was electro-pop. Detailed in the wonderful 'Made In Sheffield' DVD, the cities uneasy cultural revolution (which stretched all the way through Pulp and Moloko to Warp and new upstarts 65daysofstatic) led to the likes of ABC, Cabaret Voltaire, Heaven 17 and, of course, Human League bursting forth in the late 70's/early 80's. Taking the Human League album of the same name as source and inspiration, Mark Fell has set about reinterpreting the music anew, and as you'd expect it's a thrilling ride.Fell has force-fed the source material with his own skewed agenda, 'Almost Medieval', 'Blind Youth' and 'You've Lost That Loving Feeling' errupt through a wonderful minimal, glitchy sieve that has a personality all of its own. Wildly inventive and utterly compelling, Fell has managed to resurrect the spirit of the Steel City in a way that doesn't include over priced coffee and Bauhaus-lite apartment blocks. Quite an achievement....

Kevin Blechdom - Eat My Heart Out
Chicks On Speed

This is one of those albums that has to be heard to be believed. Without wanting to piss a thesaurus up the wall, 'Eat My Heart Out' is akin to a kids theme-park ride getting hijacked and rewired as an emotionally bare, 8-Bit Lloyd-Webber musical that will happily chuck in some rock/acoustic/operatic influences whenever the fancy dictates it. Seemingly structured (and I use the word lightly) around Blechdom's bare emotional state (made implicit through her naked, disturbing in a hilarious sorta way cover shots), 'Eat My Heart Out' starts off with a wired set of hyper harpsichords that soon opens out into a full-on operatic number that outdoes even Queen for pomp. Similarly, 'What You Wanna Believe' is like a seriously f*cked kid's TV show being hosted by Fantasmos, whilst Blechdom sticks her pop-coated vocals upfront in the mix. Elsewhere, 'Love You From the Heart' is a pop-rock clash duet (with Mocky) that Peaches could do for copywrite infringement, 'Runnaway Or Stay' is fit to burst with berzerker strings whilst 'Day to Day' is a hillbilly acoustic western torch song. Whether you can stomach all this cathartic pissing about is upto you, but if it's sonic ADD you're after; Blechdom's your girl....

Freiband - Homeward
Bottrop Boy

On Frans De Waard's last Freiband album, 'Microbes', the Goem/Shifts/Kapotte Muziek/Beequeen man submerged himself in a sound which revolved heavily around the development of Asmus Tietchen's reel-to-reel analogue tape scratching techniques, producing a dark and meditative collection of clicks, cuts and fuzz. Pressing PLAY on his new album 'Homeward', it initially seems that he's decided to go for more of the same, with opening track 'A67>A11' easing into life through mealy clicks & cuts and a strangulated harmonica. Yet travel a bit deeper and it soon becomes apparent that the 15 tracks on 'Homeward' (most barely scraping the 3 minute mark) are less overtly dark than its predecessor, with 'Melody' indulging in what sounds like the Barhnam Circus trapped in a microchip and 'O19' seemingly representing an electronic cat foraging amongst some Mille Plateaux goodies. Managing to make innovative music which doesn't load you up on hollow tricks or wilful perversion is an increasing rarity, but Freiband seems to have managed it. Tuck in....

Heimir Bjorgulfsson & Jonas Ohlsson - Fur Your Bears Only
Bottrop Boy

With a title that would have even Frank Carson blushing, the Amsterdam based duo of Bjorgulfson and Ohlsson (it sounds like a stereo company to us too...) follow up their 'Unspoken Word Tour' album with 'Fur Your Bears Only'. When you eventually manage to wipe the tears of unbridled mirth from your eyes and get the CD in the machine, you'll be met with the title track's appropriation of House asthetics, but augmented by acid-rave flourishes, microsound crackles and c-u-t and p-a-s-t-e vocals. Blorgulfson's former life as a member of Iceland's Stilluppsteypa surfaces in the creepy belligerence of 'Grizzly Elliot', where lost vocals battle to be heard above the stutterng, static sullied beats, whilst over on 'Disco Exhibition' a snare-kick straight from the K-Hole gets up close and personal with some gospel, digital tics and a whole choir of untethered vocals. You keeping up. However undoubtdly the most intruiging part of 'Fur Your Bears Only' is the closing couplet with 'Hibernation' doing just that (silence for the best part of 7 minutes) whilst 'Strawberry Bearclaw' is a spasming collage of unrelated sound clips that range from a skanky steal of Mix Master Mike's Beastie related scratching through to some rabid panting. But that title......

Ikue Mori - Myrninerest
Tzadik

A record based on the work of artist Madge Gill who channelled her spirit guide Myrinerest in thousands of drawings and paintings from 1918-1961, you say? I'll be in the garden... But come back, for this isn't an exercise in faux-intellectuelism built around a concept that would have Fox Mulder balking, but rather laptop pioneer Ikue Mori's contribution to the Tzadik women's series. Inhabiting that thin strip of land between the likes of Oval and more micro-sound inclined artists (Twerk, Safety Scissors etc.), Mori is a fully paid-up sonic experimentalist whose woven structures posses a depth and candid excitement missing from much iBook wired output. Opening with dissident strings straight out of Bernard Herrman's most sordid compositions, 'Myrninerest' takes evident glee in sculpting what at first sounds obtuse and border-line avant into detail ridden compositions of quite breathtaking scope and beauty. Whether this be in the form of mournful oboe and digital insects on 'Take It Easy', frosty exhalations on the twinkly 'Sigh', or endless avalanches of sonic snowfall on 'Clash By Night', Mori ensures it's all vitally essential....

Andy Statman - Avodas Ha-Levi : Archival Recordings From The 1990's
Tzadik

An originator of the Klezmer Revival, Andy Statman has spent that last two decades bringing fervid experimentalism to the sphere of traditional Jewish compositions, with 'Avodas Ha-Levi' a collection of archival recordings from the 1990's. Somewhere between Igor Stravinsky and John Coltrane, Statman's music is blindingly creative (if not a little obdurate at times) and sees him bringing new approaches to old material. Opening with a version of 'Reb Nachman's Deveykus Niggun', Statman takes the original and overlays a double-layer of drums, turning it into a Macedonian/Turkish field march in the process, and it is this consistent type of approach which marks Statman out as a true innovator....

John Zorn - Filmworks Xvi : Workingman's Death
Tzadik

Although I've not seen the Michael Glawogger film ('Working Man's Death') for which John Zorn wrote these pieces, I feel I have a good grasp of its content thanks to the astonishing accompanying photos and extensive liner notes written by Zorn concerning his interpretation of the Vienna based directors images. Following men whose work - sulphur mines, brutal slaughterhouses etc. - is literally life threatening, Zorn has called upon the talents of long-time collaborators Cyro Baptista, Jamie Saft and Ikue Mori to help him realise the aural accompaniment to what are raw and extraordinary images. Sensing that "the emotional complexity of chords and melodies seemed inappropriate", Zorn instead settled on a predominantly percussive approach where electronic rhythms and live instrumentation coalesce into a cohesive whole. With the likes of 'Gadani Slipway' and 'Atmosphere' combining Stockhausen sensibilities with an almost Peter Maxwell Davies-esque aesthetic and the truly remarkable waterlogged rhythms of 'Slaughterhouse' building up to a nervous conclusion, this is a collection of music that will appeal greatly to anyone with a love of modern music and can only become more powerful if viewed in context....

Masada - Sanhedrin
Tzadik

John Zorn, Dave Douglas, Greg Cohen, Joey Baron, Kenny Wollesen. Twenty-nine sterling studio performances never available before from what many consider to be one of the most important instrumental ensembles of the past quarter century. Over two and a half hours of rare alternates, many even more exciting than the original releases, were handpicked by Zorn from the legendary sessions of 1994-1997 and are accompanied by a lush book filled with photos, scores, written tributes and remembrances. Recommended....

Elliott Sharp / Merzbow - Tranz
Caminante Recordings

The idea of submitting compositions for noise monger Merzbow to 'reimagine' must be a bit like sending your children to school with a knob drawn on their forehead; you know they're going to get hurt. But in the first of a series, Caminate Recordings are arranging for a slew of "important artists" to submit raw material for the boy Akita to have his wicked way with on the proviso that the favoured is thus returned; with Elliot Sharp being the plucky bugger to start things off. On both 'Mares1' and 'Mares2' Merzbow has consumately disassembled Sharp's contributions with a ferocity that is initially quite intimidating. However, stare them out and you start to sense formidable structures flexing just below the growling surface as the compositions are given an illusory free reign to develop as they please. Of Sharp's Akita remixes, it is 'Esrma2' which shines the brightest as bursts of rhythmic noise are layered around a chruning core in a brilliant display of sonic aptitude. Closing with what sounds like a Star Wars dogfight, 'Tranz' is a must for fans of both individuals' work and anyone else who happens to get caught in the crossfire....

Merzbow - Rattus Rattus
Scarcelight

Ever since Masami Akita (Merzbow to Ma & Pa) downed his delay pedals and embraced the digital era, his work has (if anything) become even more extreme as he discovered new ways in which to disembowel his instruments through the silicone scalpel. Comprised of pieces recorded and mixed between 1999/2005, 'Rattus Rattus' is uncompromising to its core, as wave after wave of electronically baited squall attack your senses. Bar the brief respite afforded through 'Rattus Rattus Suite', Merzbow again hammers home just why he has uncompromisingly dominated the genre for so long. Brootal!...

Rob Mazurek - Music For A Shattered Light Box And 7 Posters
Bottrop Boy

A single composition divided up into 73, thirty-three second chunks and one lone twenty-second piece (does it have a hidden meaning, or was it time constraints; discuss), this new album from Chicago Underground's Rob Mazurek was written as accompaniment for his current art instillation. Opening loud (think breakcore being played at distortion volumes through the wall), it then progresses through the abstract, the tender and the drone before bursting out the other end draped in static and with a gentle grin on its face. Electronically founded, but incorporating a veritable music shop of bits and bobs, Music For A Shattered Light Box and 7 Posters is a big picture told through mayfly bursts; and all the better for it too....

Henry Jacobs - Wide Weird World Of....
Important
CD + DVD //

Important's elaborate packaging continues (the Hafler Trio, Diane Cluck and Piano Magic of particular note) with this CD/DVD release of Henry Jacobs, all housed in an authentic looking magnetic tape container. An influential sound artist and improviser, Jacobs was one of the first to get his hands dirty in tape experimentation and alongside one of the first forays into surround sound (alongside Jordan Belson), he used it to quench his over-active funny bone. Considered by many as a peer of Lenny Bruce and Ken Nordine. 'The Wide Weird World of Henry Jacobs' is certainly that; with prank calls (one of the best being a rock&roll Ku Klux Band trying to get a record deal), fake self-help tips and (quite disturbing) interviews. Add to this a raft of found sound collages and an accompanying DVD of audio/animation, and you've got yourself a real curio that is a joy to experience....

Okkyung Lee - Nihm
Tzadik

John Zorn produced debut from Boston (via Korea) based Okkyung Lee. As the latest contributor to the Oracles series ("a celebration of the diversity and creativity of women in experimental music"), Lee has served up an album of contrasts, wherein the abstract brushes shoulders with more conventional compositions. Heralding the start of 'Nihm' is a collection of chimes ('On A Windy Day') that radiate the very essence of abstract, a situation which is immediately plunged into stark juxtaposition by the following piece ('That Undeniable Empty Feeling'), wherein warm-hued instrumentation is neatly rendered through a Don Redman-esque jazz template. Elsewhere it is the less forcibly experimental songs that work the best, with 'Home' making a solid advancement of Susumu Yokota's sound (fragile, piano-led melodies) and the gorgeous strings of 'Sky', which could have any number of Type Records' signings stamped on the underbelly....

Odd Nosdam - Burner
Anticon

Considered by Odd Nosdam to be his "official" solo debut full length, Burner, features contributions from Mike Patton, Orvar Smarason of MUM, Jessica Baliff, Andrew Broder of Fog, Dax Pierson and jel, and members of Why?. It is also a work that undeniably declares the presence of an artist who has ripened into his prime and is a radical departure from his past productions. Burner, is a dense composition in which the seams between found sound, obscure records, a wide range of instruments and instrumentalists, vocalists, and field recordings are expertly concealed. Recommended....

One Self (Dj Vadim, Dj Woody, Yarah Bravo & Blu Rum 13) - Children Of Possibility
Ninja Tune

We've been rocking this album for what seems like most of 2005. Vadim, alongside Blu Rum 13, Yarah Bravo and the crazily talented backroom squad including Burnley's own DJ Woody and John Ellis from The Cinematic Orchestra have delivered a killer album. Yarah Bravo and Blu Rum have two of the most inspired voices on the outer branches of hip hop, Yarah able to rap in a poetic style and sing like Badu when she feels like it and Blu Rum only has the Quannum emcee's to compare to. Vadim's production depth offers new colours here, the minimal rhythmic principle is in place but it's fleshed out by rustic percussion, vocal samples, earthquake bass and all that good stuff. Twelve tracks in total with amazing artwork and packaging especially with the digipak. Ninja Tune do it again. Highly recommended....

Epic 45 - England Fallen Over EP
Make Mine Music

Featuring what looks very much like Ratcliffe-On-Soar Power Station on the cover (I went to school with a power-fanatic alright!), the 'England Fallen Over' EP is the latest missive from the (now three piece) Epic 45. With a stash of shoegazing and pioneering lp's undoubtedly under their beds, Epic 45 have a sound that is both grand and incredibly intimate, recalling the likes of Hood in their melody hazed outlook. Opening with the title track, 'England Fallen Over' radiates a strange warmth with it's sunrise sensibilities, matching a swirling miasma of effulgent soundscapes to vocals that, whilst outwardly soft, are as spiky as a cactus. A similar effect is achieved on 'Walk Led To Happiness' and 'The Year Ahead', whilst 'Swerving To Avoid Falling Leaves' has a distinct introspective scent amongst its blossom heavy bows. Beautiful music - highly recommended....

Saint Etienne - Tales From Turnpike House
Sanctuary

There's been an awful lot written in the press about how Saint Etienne's new (and rumoured to be last) album has been written with primary school aged listeners in mind. But for those who are worried that 'Tales From Turnpike House' will resemble an episode of Pigeon Street set to urban-pop; don't fear! Although there is a simple thematic concept to the album (a day in the life of the eponymous tower block as viewed through its various residents), Saint Etienne have managed to craft it into a deceptively complex mediation on modern life. All couched in their trademark Wilson harmonies and Bryds scope, songs such as 'Milk Bottle Symphony' are perfectly appointed tales of teenage rebellion (taking notes from Neil Hannon), whilst 'Sun In My Morning' proves Sarah Cracknell's voice is becoming more sun-blushed with each passing year. Elsewhere, 'Lightening Strikes Twice' is as pure a dose of love giddy electropop goodness you're likely to hear all year (it's got Number 1 potential), 'Relocate' is a David Essex duet (you heard right) of middle-class longing to escape the Tube ("I'll miss my mates...") whilst 'Teenage Winter' is the best Black Box Recorder song they never made. Lovely jubbly....

Dark Comedy (Kenny Larkin) - Funkfaker : Music Saves My Soul
Poussez

Kenny Larkin's contribution to music has been profound, pushing the boundaries of house and techno from his early 90s DJ beginnings in Detroit clubs, via productions with John Acquaviva and Richie Hawtin on Transmat & Plus 8, through 94's `Azymuth' on Warp and 95's `Metaphor' on R&S, right up to his 2004 Peacefrog album `Narcissist'. Under his long-established Dark Comedy guise, Kenny offers `Music Saves...' as a focus on funky laid back organ grooves, JBs-inspired horn stabs, bluesy guitar riffs, and his own laconic - sometimes comedic - narrative vocal style, kicking up some real electronic soul and blues music in a high class set of low key tunes. Like so much great U.S. techno, it's almost jazz-like in places, switching from minimal ambience to warm house beats within the firm but relaxed framework....

# posted by DJ Martian 10:39 PM

New Releases @ Boomkat [Week Commencing June 13th]

New releases for week of June 13th @ Boomkat [via Boomkat Newsletter email] include:

ALBUM OF THE WEEK!
Blir (Aka .Snd) - Raster-Post Edits
Raster Noton

It wasn't long after we opened our shop way back in 1998 that the first inconspicuous, hand-stamped 12" from .snd appeared as if by magic in one of our shipments. With only a telephone number discreetly inked on the back of the sleeve there was really nothing to suggest that what we had in our hands was the most precise, sparse and groundbreaking variants of techno minimalism we'd come across or would ever come across again in years to come. As time went by parts of the puzzle started to fill in - snd (was it a project name? a label name? a title?) was the work of Mark Fell and Mat Steel from Sheffield, two characters with a seemingly incongruous interest in the academic/arts end of the musical spectrum and the dark recesses of warehouse party culture at one and the same time, spurred on by their local scene and the presence of compatriots like Rob Brown and Sean Booth from Autechre. Over the next couple of years two more twelves appeared and then a 7" on CCO before Mille Plateaux, in an effort to foist its own generic categorisation on the world, hosted snd as part of its fabled clicks and cuts compendiums and series of album releases. In the midst of all of this, Mark and Mat (together with Premium Leisure cohorts Jeremy Porter and Robert Baker) worked on loop-based material under the loose moniker "Blir". Together with some synth patches from fellow minimalist Frank Bretschneider, these reduced grooves spawned two 12"s that have been more or less impossible to track down ever since. And so, fresh from touring with Autechre, mat and mark return with this hugely anticipated cd for Raster Noton, collecting tracks from those lost EP's and some new material, 19 tracks in total that illustrate in crisp, brilliantly sharp strokes just how their deconstructed bass, tone and click funk works when reduced to its barest parts. Some of it sounds like classic Raster reduction, some of it sounds like Techno blueprints that the likes of Sleep Archives have attracted so much attention for themselves with in recent times. As I'm listening to this now there's a faint echo of excitement in the back of my mind that maybe, if I'm extremely lucky, this release will be a precursor to the return of snd proper. Amen to that....

ALBUM OF THE WEEK!
Lali Puna - I Thought I Was Over That : Rare, Remixed And B-Sides
Morr Music
2CD

"I thought I was over that" is the playful offspring of a band finally confident enough to re-visit their most daring, misfitting, individually conceived moments to date. it's also an opportunity to look at those artists who have inspired them in one way or another over the years, pressing them to develop through remixes, collaborations and cover versions where their ideas blossomed from raw material provided by other artists - and vice versa. the list of luminaries is impressive - starting off with tim simenon's long-dormant bomb the bass, dragged out of hibernation for lali's tantalising collaboration on "clear cut". Leftfield hip-hop producer's alias and boom bip explore the meeting point between two seemingly incongruent generic paths, while canadian beat supremo sixtoo adds a previously unreleased remix of "small things" to his already vastly impressive oeuvre. Andrew Weatherhall and Keith Tenniswood,longtime admirers of lali puna, explore this symbiosis with two wonderfully different entries finding each band reworking the other, while jimmy tamborello's genre-defying dntel snuggle up comfortably alongside post-rock originators to rococo rot (both bands here pitching new remixes that are exclusive to this compilation), and iso 68's thomas leboeg undertakes the art of reduction for his mesmerising remix of "nin-com-pop". Even valerie trebeljahr's voice is subject to these daring maneuvers, - with flowchart's remix of "fast forward" it mutates into a human beatbox that turns the band's usual rules of engagement on their head - and yet the music still retains that unmistakable identity. And as if to whet the apetite, two brand new tracks were recorded for this collection. "The Failure of the Leading Sign Industry" is a short instrumental piece that's swathed in layers of static and barely discernable emissions. This is a shrude introduction, highlighting their collective interest in even the most personal, miniature, outsider sounds. "past machine" is another brand new exclusive - originally written for the late, great John Peel, perfecting the band's line in uplifting melancholy that offsets a classic hook with a simple tale of time passing out of reach, the stagnant lyrics overflowing with an ennui that's impossible to contain. Despite the weariness of the subject matter, this is easily one of the band's catchiest ever tracks, a juxtaposition that's just classic lali puna. And this brings us straight back to the beginning.unlike so many female-led indie-pop outfits over the years, lali puna's music has an underlying self reflection that defies the saccharine coating you might mistakenly register on first listen. these songs shy away from tales of girly broken hearts and bubblegum storyboards, instead exposing a world-weariness - an "ageing out of time" that's often at odds with the adrenaline the band ignite musically. Its on the experimentations, collaborations, deviations and remixes found on this album, however, that this mood is offset against its most startling backdrop - allowing the band to get lost in different sounds, ideas and interventions...and still find their way home. 18 Tracks available on double cd or double vinyl. Highly Recommended....

Various / Sonar - Sonar 2005
Sonar Music

Just in time for next week's festival, Sonar 2005 absorbs the sounds and different scenes of this 12th edition of the Festival, highlighting the trends, moments and featured artists: from digital experimentation to hip-hop, dance music, the most organic sounds and the collision of electronic music, with a wide variety of genre and styles. Here's the tracklisting in full : The Durutti Column: Shooting Roisin Murphy: Dear Diary Jamie Lidell: A Little Bit More Noah23: Chicken Pox De La Soul: Shopping Bags Mocky: Mickey Mouse Muthaf****s! Alex Attias: Future Jazz Subtle: F.K.O. Efterklang: Step Aside Khonnor: A Little Secret Whomadewho: Space for rent Hot Chip: The Beach Party Hood: The Lost You Battles: I PT 2 Goodiepal: Icon Dub Rei Harakami: Joy F.S. Blumm: Bitt Radian: Rapid Eye Movement M.I.A.: Pull Up The People Booka Shade: Memento Munk: B.F Le Tigre: Nanny Nanny Boo Boo Mouse On Mars feat. Mark E. Smith: Cut the gain Atom TM: !Love (Easy Love) Ada: The Red Shoes Iñaki Marín: Mr. Schulze Mu: Paris Hilton Soulwax: Please... Don't BeYourself Ellen Allien: Down The Soft Pink Truth: Out Of Step (Minor Threat) Joris Voorn: Future History...

Anders Ilar - Enkel
Audio.Nl

The swede Ilar has been a somewhat shadowy, but readily consistent in the minimal dubbed out scene for the last few years - some serious deep business on Echochord, Shitkatapult and whispers of some forthcoming dancefloor science on a favourite american label of ours in the none too distant future. Audio.nl has always been something of an ascetic imprint - the stripped down cover aesthetic, minimal package requirements and diversions into the underworld of oceans deep sub-bass. Almost entirely otherworldly sounds, non-linear experiments like this may not transmit perfectly on small computer speakers, but set them loose on headphones or through some tasty speakers and a whole different universe of limpid sounds opens up to you - deep drift, deadly disorientating four four manouevres, and even more beside outside these familiar envelopes - fans of the whole raster axis as well as those after a deeper shade of click will find much to admire here....

The Flashbulb - Kirlian Selections
Sublight

Making even Jean-Paul Satre look work shy, The Flashbulb's (aka Benn Jordan) follow up to 2004's 'Red Extensions of Me' is a whopping, full-fat 28 tracks of break(core) attitude, stunning compositions and splintered IDM which will go down a treat with anyone who has ever fantasised what a Michael Nyman/AFX death match would sound like (see 'Passage D' and it's piano/'Girl/Boy' structure). Picking individual highlights is (to paraphrase Lester Bangs) a bit like dancing about architecture, with each track adding to the whole and best consumed with the broader coherence in mind. Yet this isn't to say 'Kirilian Selections' cannot delight in autonomous chunks, with particular highlights being the rigid beats and analogue nebula of 'Kirlian Choices', the throaty Warp drum & bass and Wyld Stallion guitars of 'Lawn Wake IX' and the vocoder drenched, sweeping acoustica of 'Miles and Miles'. Add to this a cover of 'California Dreaming' that does to The Mamas and The Papas classic what Squarepusher did to Joy Division's 'Love Will Tear Us Apart', and you've got yourself an album that refracts huge amount of influences and talent into a gem studded delight. Like a Yasuijro Ozu for the ears......

The Flashbulb - Red Extensions Of Me
Sublight

Re-issue of The Flashbulb's (aka Ben Jordan) 'Red Extensions of Me' album, originally released in 2004 on the Canadian Sublight imprint. Like the Puccini to many of his peers' Busoni, Jordan is able to craft an eminently listenable selection of digitalis from a technically accomplished palate of electronic detritus that exists for more than showing-off purposes. Taking in delicate piano compositions ('In An Instant'), snare-kick acid lite ('An External Frost') and full-on beat mongering ('Lawn Wake I'), 'Red Extensions of Me' is fit to bursting with electronic founded ideas that wouldn't look out of place coming from Schoenberg, Berg, Webern etc. With a few Richard D. James and Squarepusher posters undoubtedly decorating his bedroom walls, Jordan has nonetheless created a record that escapes his heroes' formidable shadow and in doing so takes the increasingly aged genre down a revitalising set of side roads. Come on in, the water's lovely......

Kraftwerk - Minimum - Maximum
Kling Klang

If further proof was needed of NME's steady decline into a sub-standard version of Look In, then last months dismissal of Kraftwerk as "weird Germans" whose only musical heritage was to have influenced the new Coldplay record (I kid you not), signalled the sound of Charon ringing last orders on the Hades Express... Comprised of 2 CD's or 4 heavyweight LP's recorded on their 2004 World Tour, 'Minimum - Maximum' is a both a wonderful musical document of a band whose fingerprints literally cover contemporary music as well as being a fantastic live album in its own right. With highlights including an opening segement that acknowledges the debt owed by Detroit's Techno community to these four germans with a vocal edit that seems to say "Detroit..Germany...We're so electro" to a show-stealing tweaked "Numbers" flowing into "Computer World" (the moment on the Computer World album where one track turns into the other must surely rank as one of the top 10 spine-tingling moments in recorded music history!) a rabble rousing rendition of 'Tour De France' in Riga' Olimpiska Hall, a pristine version of 'The Model' at Brixton Academy, Warsaw's beautiful 'Radioactivity' and a hairs on the back of your neck moment for 'Autobahn' at Berlin's Tempodrom, Hutter, Florian, Hilpert and Schmitz show just how seminal their band has been not only to followers of electronic music but to the development of popular music as a whole. With every moment a lambent delight, heightened further through the palpable live atmosphere which positively leaks from the recording, 'Minimum - Maximum' is proof that The Robots have won...resistance is futile. Mighty....

Jamie Lidell - Multiply
Warp

We've been holding off reviewing this amazing album for too long. By now you'll probably have a handle on this album after the sampler that dropped a few weeks back, all three tracks on said 12" feature here. Jamie along with his Berlinite friends, Mocky, Tony Buck, Gonzales, Andre Vida, Daniel Raymond Gahn, Taylor Savvy, Jordan Mclean, Scott Saunders and Bill Youngman fuse together perfectly to make this album the joy it is. Of course it's Jamie who handles most of the instrumentation most explicitly on the Prince styled 'A Little Bit More' where his beatbox skills are in full effect. Jamie's soul music heroes are echoed in the harmonics, Al Green, Stevie Wonder, Donny Hathaway all come to mind. Genres hit upon include sixties soul, p-funk boogie, doo-wop pop, nu jazz head scramble (surely 'Newme' will force Jazzanova et al into early retirement) and laid back blues soul in 'Game For Fools' - all with Lidell's 2005 proof unique lyrics that speak out to all us leftfield lifestyle folks. Stevie Wonder needs to hear 'What's The Use', the finest soul track in years to my ears. It's been said before: you'll either completely love or hate this album, although in our humble opinion we all agree that's it's one of the most refreshing albums of the year so far and deserves to be absolutely massive. Completely, wonderfully essential.

Scratch Perverts - Fabric Live 22
Fabric

The UK's celebrity scratch crew lay down a cornucopia of madness on this latest mix CD from Fabric Live. To be honest this is pretty much all about tune selection rather than flash harry scratch and cut. Track selection hit's on class UK hip hop from Ty, Roots Manuva, Skinnyman plus rap's from US brothers Masta Ace, The Roots, The Perceptionists - a tonne of dirty drum n' bass plus sneeky usage of tracks like Radiohead's 'The National Anthem'. 70 mins. Recommended....

Esmerine - Aurora
Madrona Records

Packaged in a fancy-as-you-like embossed case complete with a postcard and envelope to get chatty with, Esmerine's new album 'Aurora' is a grandly atmospheric collection of predominantly cello/piano compositions that looks to occasional percussive thickets for further augmentation. At turns sinister, brooding, optimistic and exhilarating, Esmerine has taken a strictly limited selection of elements (in a similar spirit to Ryan Teague) then let them roam free, with 'Quelques Mots Pleins D'ombre' a testament to this approach as post-rock structures impel the music to surge ever onwards. Utterly accomplished and intricately plotted, 'Aurora' is the kind of album that could soundtrack the downfall of civilisation. In the nicest possible way. Recommended....

Ginnungagap - Remeindre
Latitudes

Limited 4 track CD from Ginnungagap featuring members of Sunn O))), Khanate, Jackie-O and Dukes of Nothing. With some undeniably elaborate packaging that features an over-earnest exposition of the term Ginnungagap in Norse cosmology (no, come back!) 'Remeindre' is the latest instalment in the Latitudes series from Southern Records; an open studio policy where (invite only) artists get some recording time to do with what they please. With the shortest track clocking in at over 7 minutes, 'Remeindre' goes for a portmanteau approach wherein ideas and themes develop slowly and acoustic psych-outs are given time to contrast against the more coarse, Diet Dronecore underfoot. With 'Black Snow. Blood Mountain' going for an oppressive monastic feel and 'Duel Ravens' taking soaring guitars as its badge of honour, 'Remeindre' is an eclectic meeting of disparate creative minds that rewards repeat listenings....

Minotaur Shock - Maritime
4ad

Having released his debut through Manchester's Melodic, Minotaur Shock (aka David Edwards) has packed up his magpies and decamped over to 4AD, with 'Maritime' his first release for the label. With four years having passed since 'Chiff Chaffs and Willow Warblers', Edwards' sound seems to have firmed up considerably whilst losing none of it's ramshackle charm, a fact consummately displayed on the breezy big-band break downs and off-kilter key changes of opening track 'Muesli'. Holding on to the loquacious mood established early on, '(She's In) Drydock Now' continues unabated with a firm nod to Gary Numan's synth collection whilst all around it sugar coated chunks of instrumentation rain down, whilst 'Vigo Bay' (taken from the recent EP) skanks a crafty 'Private Press'-era Shadow melody then beefs it up with a waterfall of tightly wrought, cascading drums. Elsewhere, Edward's reveals a soft spot for CD:UK on the S-Club aping 'Six Foolish Fishermen', takes a leaf out of Caribou's mellifluous book on 'Somebody Once Told Me It Existed But They Never Found It' and wraps it all up on the IDM grazed electonica of 'Four Magpies'. The future's bright, the future's rustic......

Bark Psychosis - 400 Winters Ep
Fire Records

Another limited edition EP from Bark Psychosis, this time round featuring an alternate version of wondrous album track "400 Winters" plus Colin Bradley remixes of 3 tracks : "INQB8TR", "The Black Meat" and "Burning The City". Those of you who read these pages regularly will know how highly we regard this band and everything they do, this is another sublime blend of Talk Talk inspired dense post rock sweeps and a fascination with the delicate sounds of midinight. Highly recommended and limited to 2000 copies only for the world....

Tarantel - Ghost Weight
Acuarela

Following on from the formidable dissertations of 'Paper White' and 'Big Black Square', 'Ghost Weight' see's the Tarental trio laying down some more lengthy pieces that are a dictionary definition of the word Quixotic. Clocking in at just shy of 30 minutes, the four tracks on 'Ghost Weight' all have a distinctive flavour which is best tasted as part of the whole, thus allowing the subtleties of each to emerge through contrast. First up is the bite-size treat 'Natoma' wherein unproduced background noise is glimpsed through a corrugated soundscape that bottoms out into the title track 'Ghost Weight' whose swooping, elongated structures bring to mind a sanguine God Speed You Black Emperor or a droneless Sunn O))) (if there could be such a thing...). Of the other two tracks, 'Holy Throbs of Silence' gets upto no good in the Oval/Akufen play box with a result that sounds not unlike a horde of digital chomping termites issuing squatters rights on your speakers, whilst 'Every Possibility The Next Thing To A Certainty' matches it's title's length with an almost open ended composition that employs sparse drums to thrilling effect....

Damon Aaron - Ballast
Plug Research

Probably best known for his work as part of Telefon Tel Aviv (see the utterly sublime 'I Lied') and more recently manning vocal duties for Barbara Morgenstern and Robert Lippok's 'If The Day Remains Unspoken For' (from the wonderful 'Tesri'), Damon Aaron has been quietly making a big noise for over 15 years now, with 'Ballast' somehow his first solo album. Given Aaron's layered and strangely hypnotic vocal style, 'Ballast' could have survived with a pretty threadbare backing, but rather than push forward a record of undercooked ideas Aaron has instead ensured that the accompanying instrumentation is as richly veined as his voice. Ranging from the acoustic pop of 'Can't Hold It Back' ("Tried to keep calm but it's too much to do...") and 'Over and Done With's perfectly balanced acoustic/string delicacy through to the optimism rendered rectitude of 'Don't Know How It Happens', 'Ballast' sees Aaron making a bruisingly intimate record that you'll want to get to know over and over again. Check....

Like A Stuntman - Fresh Air Is Not The Worst Thing In Town
Highpoint Lowlife

For all its undoubted charm, Indietronica can sometimes suffer from being a bit TOO polished, with key proponents like The Go Find, The Postal Service and The Notwist obsessively ironing out any imperfection, resulting in listeners often being caught craving a bit of the rough. Well feel dirty no more, for here come Like A Stuntman and they're not afraid to leave the house without shaving... Following on from their 'Reduce' 7", 'Fresh Air..." sees the Frankfurt quartet getting up to their elbows in an indie/electronic mess which, despite it's shambolic appearance, is lovingly tooled and full of delights. Opening with 'We're Not In Brazil', Like A Stuntman lurch forward with scuzzed up vocals and pristine beats, sounding just like Coxon led Blur, a coherent Mouldy Peaches or The Notwist, whilst actually sounding unlike any of them. This teleprinter familiarity continues on 'Park The Trailer In The Park' where lumpy and ill-fitting post-electronica (?) shambles along only to reveal a blinding pop sensibility in the bombastic chorus, a trick they repeat on the alt.college, falsetto bedecked 'Let's Talk About Horses' (whilst this time sounding a bit like The Smashing Pumpkins' '1979'). Ooh-eer. Elsewhere they dabble in a bit of Mogwai alchemy, transforming the Scot-rockers' sound into a Twisted Nerve horn baiter on 'I Was Shocked and You Were Shocked', indulge in silly named genres for the clockworktronica/Beck mash-up of 'Making Competitions Out of Everything', before closing with the Malkmus/Wheat fragility of 'All Your Magazines'. That'll do....

PLAN B - Issue 6 : June / July 2005
Plan B

Issue 6 of Plan B, featuring mental Japanese rock strippers Afrirampo on the cover, plus features on Antony and The Johnsons, Sleter Kinney, Gang gang Dance, Electrelane, The White Stripes, Quasimoto, ESG plus loads of reviews...100 pages!...

Fenin - Grounded
Shitkatapult

Lars Fenin is one of those people whose past musical heritage reads like a succession of events that were pre-ordained in order to get him from his mid-90's reggae days in Berlin's Tribal Notes, through the cities electronic renaissance and his first 12" in 2000, to now and the release of debut album 'Grounded'. With great big dollops of techno, reggae, dub and undefined electronica bleeding into each other, 'Grounded' could have been an almighty mess, but it is to Fenin's credit that not only does he bring the various strands together in an florid aural tapestry, he also manages to mint a distinctive style that is very much his own. 'Grounded' opens through the AT-AT beats and burnt sugar vocals of the title track, wherein Fenin imparts the surprisingly poignant lyrics ("I'm walking slowly, sinking easily, but loving intensively..."), in a clipped style that compliments the dubby fingered tech-beats nicely. Straight from this is 'Konstrukt' which (sans vocals) sounds like a musical twin of Tejada in his Plug Research-hat, before we're back to the most upfront and straight laced reggae track on the album, 'No C.I.A.' ("We dem want no C.I.A., we don't trust the way they try to make us free..."). Elsewhere 'Stony Road' sticks to Ockham's Razor in it's sparse and subterranean dub, 'Thrill' is skipping-stone haunted techno, whilst 'Interlude' is proper old school dub. Whether Fenin is a dub/reggae fix for Techno heads or a techno supplement for the reggae mob is unclear, but it is this genre loose straddling position which makes 'Grounded' all the more enjoyable....

Repair - Convenient Arrangements
Sub Static

Repair are the twin brothers Matt & Mark Thibideau from Toronto, and the singer Dawn Lewis. As a Sub Static act from day one, Repair was first known, like the solo projects of the Thibideau brothers, for deep, organic minimal techno, with a melodic sophistication, hidden between the lines. Repair have increasingly focused on their roots in electronic music, leading back to the industrial- & ebm-sound of the late 80's - their heroes were Manufacture, Cocteau twins, and of course Depeche Mode, gathering quite some attention in the independent scene of Ontario, with their self-distributed album "rainbow love clay". After long years of solo activity in the techno scene the Thibideau brothers then founded Repair about 4 years ago as a new collaboration, revealing their desire for more melody and to find a sound that unifies club culture with emotional songwriting and subtly inserted retro references. After several 12" releases, and the hot ep "forgive & forget" last autumn, the Repair album is now finally available, after two years intensive work. Matt and Mark combined their studio, and all commuted between toronto, new york and london (ontario) in order to involve different musicians and friends, such as tim glasgow, who is part of sonic youth's studio crew. For the mastering they engaged Anthony Valcic, a legend of canada's industrial scene, who was and is involved in many productions of the Nettwerk label (Skinny Puppy, Download, Front 242 .... The result - convenient arrangements, an album rarely satisfied with the quick fix - influences from techno and house are woven into melancholic songs, which capture the authentic aesthetic and dare we suggest, magic of early electronic pop music....

Various / Soul Jazz - Chicago Acid And Experimental House 1985-1995
Soul Jazz

Copies finally back in stock after the complete first week sellout of this awesome compilation. Utter genius - every home should have one of these. You can imagine how animated we became on first hearing about this project - an ample 17 tune overview on double cd dedicated to rare and classic original chicago acid -and actually looking for the biggest, most leading-edge tracks. Knowing none, some or actually many of these tunes is almost irrelevant - when presented with a short history of all the music you first heard going out, like this. Manchester was volatile enough 1985 - 1995, so I wouldn't have even begun to imagine what Chicago was like, but the music gave us a pretty good idea. Heard on a loud system in an echoey cold room, more like a car park than anything else, it sounded magical - synthetic, hedonistic - futuristic music made with almost no elements at all. House was the ultimate reduction of everything - you could hear new sounds, disco, sleaze, funk, dancefloor dubs - a technological music that managed to be completely primal - the sound of black chicago remaking rhythm and in the process completely scrambling the world's cultural agenda.. Marshall Jefferson is rightly given major billing, Larry Heard, Pierre, Adonis, Lil Louis massive dancemania `Video Clash", early Adonis as The Sweat Boyz on "Do you want to perculate?" , Armando's staccato masterstroke "Downfall", listening to Tyree's "Acid Crash" - you become unclear as to what you've heard before, so disorientating, so compulsive is the onslaught of classic acid to this day. Phutures's shocking "Acid Tracks" sits comfortable in the knowledge you can't really touch it. Special mention goes to the definitive thumbnail booklet - 52 pages, with text by Tim Lawrence, author of Love Saves The Day - a discerning fan and vigorous knowledge. Also check the fascinating, funny, candid and highly revealing interviews with all the major players, Jefferson, Adonis, Tyree, Cajmere and more. Surprise moment for me was discovering Roy Davis Jnr's wicked `Acid Bass' from '95. Many mancunians round these parts will recall formative moments spent listening to some of the early examples of music contained on this excellent album - a worthy testament, above all things to the deviant strain of partying and music generated Ron Hardy at his acclaimed Music Box shows. Totally essential....

Kirk Degiorgio Presents As One - Elegant Systems
Versatile

Now available on cd! Less than six months on from his last album for Ubiquity, `Out Of The Darkness', Kirk Degiorgio - the master of techno, electronica and jazz fusion -- returns on Versatile with a new addition to his catalogue. Once again Kirk has located the organic warmth hidden in the corners of his machines, resulting in a blend of freestyling old-school influenced techno and dreamy, seemingly-improvised electronica, ranging from fractured future soul dancefloor beats to elegaic, minor-chord symphonics. 8 track limited edition vinyl, good stuff....

# posted by DJ Martian 9:44 PM

New Releases @ Boomkat [Week Commencing June 6th]

New releases for week of June 6th @ Boomkat [via Boomkat Newsletter email] include:

ALBUM OF THE WEEK!
Isolee - We Are Monster
Playhouse

"its hard to imagine a better electronic record coming out in the next six months; it will likely be one of 2005's best albums of any genre." The Wire, June 2005 issue. This massively anticipated album features the first new material in over 5 years from Playhouse lynchpin Isolée (also known as Raijko Muller), 'We Are Monster' sees him travelling even further down the synth lined path hinted at by 1999's 'Beau Mot Plage'. Assembled from a comprehensive spectrum of beats, strings, guitars and electronic detritus, Muller's skill is to overlay what is essentially a micro-house template then refine the sound so it's no longer easily classifiable. An almost perfect synopsis of the Isolée sound can be found on 'Schrapnell', where Muller allows a clutch of strings (that hover between house and high drama) to slowly assimilate a squelchy rhythm and guitar riff , before the whole thing opens up at the end and bursts forth like an Eos enhanced dawn. Similarly, 'Madchen Mit Hase' takes a bag of bleeps, clotted cream electronics and cheese grater vocals then sticks them together in a propulsive fashion that keeps pulling through just as you expect it to sag. With the neon lit beats of 'Do Re Mi', the electroacoustic shakedown of 'Today' and the Tejada-heavy dubbytronica of 'Pillowtalk', Muller has sculpted an album that will keep the Playhouse heads more than happy whilst introducing a few new troops to the cause. Awesome....

Ellen Allien - Thrills
Bpitch Control

Based around a love of Ye Olde 808's and the infamous ARP 2600, 'Thrills' (produced in conjunction with Smash TV) leaves behind much of Ellen's previous dabbles with more complex and crunched-up electronics in favour of a more abandoned, analogue sound for the floor. "Thrills" is a club record through and through, complete with killer pounding basslines, teutonic vocals and the sort of transitional precision only a seasoned DJ with as much floor-filling experience as Ms Allien can produce. In the end, 'Thrills' does exactly what it says on the tin....

Richard Devine - Cautella
Sublight

Following on from his work for Warp and (of course) Schematic, Richard Devine has now settled on Sublight Records for his latest full-length digital opus. Bolstered by an Otto Von Schirach collaboration and Funkstrorung remix, 'Cautella' is probably Devine's most accomplished and fully realised work yet, preferring to allow an evolving schematic space to emerge as opposed to a strict adherence to one dominant style (see the still fresh 'Lipswitch'). Opening with the glitch Wagner of 'Helix Stair Helve', it becomes apparent immediately that you're in for a proper knob-on ride as splintered digitalis pierce your cochlea like an R2-D2 nightmare and noises that suggest a man/robot graft echo in the distance... Having established a 100 metre pace Devine keeps on running with 'Sigstop', wherein breathless and hardboiled beats smash relentlessly down and I'm forced to unsheathe my Aphex/Squarepusher comparison. Touché. Elsewhere, 'Arc-Acid' catches Plastikman snorting Pro-Plus, 'RSL-COM' gives us (and him) a breather with a set of distortion ripped hip-hop beats (think Anti-Pop Consortium in a wind tunnel) whilst the Schirach match-up 'Matvec Interior' is a fantastic aural treat that puts everything through the digital shredder. Add to this the IDM-rendered swirl of the BOC referencing 'Timach' and you've got yourself a done deal....

Antiguo Automata - Mexicano-Microhate
Background

It seems we're currently experiencing a period of fertility within the clicks genre, with this album from Mexico's Antiguo Automata following hot on the heels of the recent superlative Paradroid release. Very much enthralled to the minutia of microsound compositions (although the album's tile suggests it's not all a bed of roses), 'Mexicano-Microhate' sees Automata flexing his SND/Sutekh/Jelinek muscles with eight precision tooled missives. Choosing a method of slow release, tracks such as 'Flowered', 'Banquet' and 'Elementrash' all unravel in the most restrained fashion imaginable as diamond white beats and numerous glitch flourishes coalesce into a Ligeti-fog of serialist precision....

Nudge - Cached
Kranky

A supergroup of sorts, Nudge return with an excellent new album, this time round for the delectable Kranky. Made up of three artists more than well-versed in several types of music, Honey Owens is a member of Jackie-O Motherf*cker, Brian Foote and Paul Dickow have each played in Fontanelle, Foote and Dickow DJ, and Dickow performs and releases music as Strategy, as well as curator of his sooncome new imprint "Community Library" about which word is positively buzzing right now. Having already made a dent in the American College radio charts, "Cached" is a beautifully honed lo-fi affair that takes in shards of garage band mentality, Arthur Russel era Disco modifications, Melodica infused dub shockouts and even a dabble with leftfield skewed pop. It's quite easily the most potentially crossover savvy release on the label since the fabulous debut from Out Hud and will act as an eye opener to many mellowed-out heads looking for something beautifully constructed but angular and rockin in equal parts. We love this label - get checking without delay....

Basil Kirchin - Abstractions Of The Industrial North
Trunk

Recorded back in 1966 when the North was indeed still industrial, as opposed to the Pannini/Call Centre riddled hinterland of today, 'Abstractions of the Industrial North' is a collection of imaginary film soundtracks and library music recorded by Basil Kirchin. With a very Duke Ellington set of roots (jazz drummer with big-band experience), Kirchin had made numerous dalliances into the avant-garde before embarking on his 1966 recording purge, with all these aural facets surfacing on the record. Opening with 'Prelude and Dawn', Kirchin displays an aptitude to match that of the much more renowned David Axelrod, with staccato hearted instrumentation that can cause a double take at times with much contemporary, event trendy musical explorations. Kirchin's musical ability is quite stunning, with themes and structures emerging throughout the compositions that will have you convinced they were recorded in the last decade as opposed to over forty years ago. Also of interest is Kirchin's ear for future stars, with 'Pageing Sullivan' featuring a pre-Zep Jimmy Page and Big Jim Sullivan making this both a musical curio and an astonishingly complete, forward thinking aural document....

Kill Memory Crash - American Automatic
Ghostly International

Having spiked interest on their 'When The Blood Turns Black' EP, this purposefully faceless Chicago duo have at last delivered their debut LP for the consistently amblicated Ghostly International. Taking elements from 80's electropop, Detroit house, Trent Reznor and Warp's Artificial Intelligence movement, Kill Memory Crash then set about refitting these disparate (although not entirely distinct) influences into a high-octane rock based fusion. Although you might be getting dizzy through visions of The Prodigy by this point, Kill Memory Crash thankfully only take their ROCK as a starting point on a journey that leads to a similar (albeit more industrial) territory to The Midwest Project. So whilst 'Riyout' is like a more coherent and toned down Alec Empire and 'Never Forget' goes for the industrial chalice, it's 'Crash V8's' epic build and Rudolf Christoph Eucken sentiment that best represents their sound....

Tosca - J.A.C.
K7

Follow up to 'Delhi9' from Dorfmeister and Huber's Tosca project and it's back to the inoffensive funk/electro that has characterised their previous releases. Housed in incredibly luxurious, fancy-as-you-like, embossed faux-leather packaging 'J.A.C.' is a collaboration rich album that is a little too polite for my liking. Opening with 'Rondo Acapricio', Tosca get off to a good start with a driving set of rubber lined Liquid Liquid bass backing that is as smooth as honey and capable of adding a dash of glamour to even an overcast Manchester. 'Heidi Bruehl' is the first of a clutch of collaborations that sees Sania Farah contributing an afterhours vocal performance to bolster the down beats, whilst 'Superrob' contrasts the burnished Earl Zinger against the lupine Valerie Etienne to considerable success. Elsewhere Dorfmeister and Huber conjur the spirit of Trevor Jackson on both 'John Lee Huber' and 'Damentag', whilst 'Naschkatze' sees Stefan Graf Hadik Wildner and Anna Clementi dabbling in a bit of scatting, and just about getting away with it. Wholesome but not really filling......

Why? - Sandollars, The Ep
Anticon

Where does an EP end and a mini-album begin? Not sure, but I'd have thought 8 tracks warranted the latter whilst Why? seem to favour the former. No accounting for taste, huh? Fronted by Yoni Wolf, Why? make college.alt indie that borrows elements from leftfield hip-hop and west coast psychedelic to go alongside the multiple Malkmus references. Kicking things off is 'Miss Ohio's Nameless', a track that is surely destined to soundtrack The OC in coming months (not that I watch it or 'owt) with it's string drenched choruses and harmonious time changes, a trick that is successfully repeated on the piano heavy title track. Elsewhere, '500 Fingernails' see's Wolf assuming a looser delivery, albeit on a reflective electro wired hip-pop composition, 'Next Atlanta' is how I always wished Mercury Rev sounded (i.e. Not annoying) whilst 'Pantone Cyan' is a bona-fide twinkle-toed set of gorgeous melodies. Whether it's an EP or a mini-album, it's bloody good....

The Herbaliser - Take London
Ninja Tune

The funk-soled brothers Jake Wherry and Ollie Teeba are back with a new full-length album (further bolstered by a bonus disc for initial copies) on Ninja Tune that firmly establishes them as decade long stalwarts of the UK hip-hop scene. Having more than hinted at their direction on 'Something Wicked...', 'Take London' is a Quincy Jones-inspired trawl through the wah-wah wired end of Deep hip hop stylings, opening (properly) on 'Nah'maen Nah'm Sayin' where Jean Grae appropriates a flow reminiscent of Kool Keith for her vocal contribution. With a tarmac lolloping beat and all manner of 1970's cop-show flourishes (taken to a thrilling conclusion on 'Geddim'!!'), 'Nah'mean Nah'm Sayin' very much sets the agenda for the first half of the album and is followed up by the delicate 'Song For Mary'; wherein David Axelrod gymnastics are Parr boiled down to a breezy, mid tempo instrumental. Back to the vocal cuts, 'Generals' is a spasming chunk of rough hewn hip-hop that collides somewhere above Pharaoh Monch and Roots Manuvah as Trap Clappa, Cheech Narinam Daddy Mills, A.K., MacGuyver and Jean Grae duke it out, whilst 'Failure's No Option' calls on Sherwood's very own Cappo for some East Midlands accents. Claustrophobic and decidedly smokey, 'Failure's...' marks a change in mood that is more than matched by Roots Manuva's soulful and covertly threatening rhymes on 'Lord, Lord' ("Lord, Lord, will you help me going on I can't even remember where I'm from"), whilst the Katerine inflected 'Serge' is a Gaelic styled ode to old dirty Gainsbourg....

Susumu Yokota - Symbol
Lo Recordings

Having made an almost perfect musical statement with 2000's 'Sakura', Susumu Yokota is often accused of not living up to that album's sprawling scope and diffused ambience. Marking his 25th album (25!) Yokota has decided to answer those critics with a record that combines the detached aura of 'Grinning Cat' with the directness of his more truculent offerings, claiming it to be his "masterpiece". Built around hordes of classical samples (Puccini, Debussy, Mahler and Beethoven amongst them) 'Symbol' is a grand document that raises two pertinent questions; is it pretentious and is it any cop? The answers; probably and certainly. Opening with 'Long Long Silk Bridge' it's easy to stare cynically at the crate load of Juniper scented strings Yokota conjures up, dipping in and out as over-wrought choirs take to the stage with bare floorboard beats underfoot, but somehow it all works wonderfully. Yokota is barely finished on this prologue epic before he sends the listener into another huge arrangement ('Purple Rose Minuet') that sets harpsichords against some eerily echoing Japanese vocals, again to startling effect. Although his panache for bloody stupid song titles pervades throughout ("The Plateau Which the Zephyr of Flora Occupies"/"Fairy Dance of Twinkle and Shadow"), you get the feeling it's not as po-faced as you are first led to believe with a playful spirit evident on most tracks. Closing with the effeminacy of 'Music from the Lake Surface', 'Symbol' is undoubtedly overblown but in Yokota's affable hands it becomes an indulgent treat. Lovely....

Dungen - Ta Det Lugnt
Memphis Industries

Possibly only matched by the Arcade Fire in the level of pre-release hype for their debut album ('Ta Det Lugnt'), Dungen have been raking in the platitudes and been described as "the best band in the world" by NME (although they say that weekly...never let them forget Menswear), and "mind-blowing" by the esteemed Pitchfork. Apart from that, this album fast became one of the most sought-after and biggest selling albums on the underground scene in the States last year and has been so successful in inducing fits of excitement that the buzz has truly spread far and wide, with even this week's excellent Melodic compilation featuring a track from the Scandinavian psych-rockers. So is 'Ta Det Lungt' any cop? Well yes, particularly if you're into psych readings of Bryds-esque melodies lashed together by of strings and Keith Moon drums. Kicking things off with a flurry of Gene Krupa mayhem, main man Gustav Ejstes launches into a selection-box of riffs on 'Panda'; a song that puts a Swedish spin onto the sound minted by dEUS and Gorky's Zygotic Mynki. All sang in their native tongue, 'To Det Lugnt' references rock-school Radiohead on 'Gjort Bort Sig', gives an electro-smear to the 'Pet Sounds'-riddled 'Festival' and pumps 'Du E For Fin For Mig' to bursting point with strings a-go-go. Adrenaline fresh goodness, highly recommended!...

Elizabeth Anka Vajagic - Nostalgia/Pain
Constellation

Yet another release from the increasingly prolific Constellation label, 'Nostalgia/Pain' is a longform EP from Elizabeth Anka Vajagic and acts as extended accompaniment to last year's 'Stand With The Stillness of This Day' debut album. Packaged in a beautifully embossed gold/purple card case, 'Nostalgia/Pain' is a sprawling work that alternates between tightly structured segments of folk-rock and abstract instrument oscillations, with Vajagic's voice the aural glue. At times similar to Michaela Melian's guttural vocal style or a female Nick Cave, Vajagic allows her voice to slowly become part of the musical landscape (with two clocking in well over the 10 minute mark) and as guitars soar, reverb rattles and drums march onwards, it all takes on an epic Ulysses quality. Deceptively sparse, 'Nostalgia/Pain' is nonetheless as accomplished as a Pinter play....

Olvis - The Blue Sound
Resonant

Either I'm losing my marbles, or Mogwai's 'Rock Action' seems to be having an inordinately large influence on recent releases. The newest artist to stride forth wearing their Scot Post Rock armband is Iceland's Olvis (aka Orlygur Thor Orlygsson) whose second album, 'The Blue Sound', is an orchestra drenched collection of understated songs which radiate naturally towards the less boisterous end of the musical spectrum. Opening with the beautifully fermented beats of 'Acid Trip Festival', Olvis goes on to pull a whole load of jazz from his hat and ends up sounding not unlike the theme tune for 'Tales of the Unexpected'. But in a good way. With an almost 50/50 split in terms of tracks with or without vocals, when Olvis does sing it is always in Icelandic, lending the songs a sense of mystique and heritage that would easily have been lost in English. With loquacious musical flourishes springing up like Juturna, Olvis dabbles in some sunshine-drenched psych-rock on 'Mental Freedom', has a bout pop writing on 'Warfare and Welfare' and thoroughly proves my Mogwai thesis on 'Moving to Mars'. This is a simply exquisite album, those of you who picked up this guy's debut will more or less know what to expect, those of you who didn't will have just discovered a real hidden gem. Highly Recommended....

Les Georges Leningrad - Supa Doopa : Remixes
RCC

The kind of thing Sleaze Nation used to go mental over before they went bust, Les Georges Leningrad might have been tainted by the hand of fashioinita - but don't let that put you off. With remixes from Afuken, Magas and Ghislain Poirer, Les Georges Leningrad kick off the EP with the original 'Soopa Doopa' laying out its belligerent ram-raid on Riot Grrrl immediacy, DFA basslines and Le Tigre production for all to see. Choosing to retain the vocal and digitise the rest, Afuken's bleeping remix sounds like a 'Futurism' cut, Magas puts Sweep in the food mixer for a Flash Gordon retelling whilst Ghislain Poirer relocates the original to a stomping, rhythm led march that allows the soap-box daft vocals to take on a certain undeniable majesty......

Mark Stewart / The Maffia & The Pop Group - Kiss The Future
Soul Jazz

With the recently renewed interest in the post-punk era (spearheaded by Simon Reynold's excellent 'Rip It Up and Start Again') it's no surprise that reissues and collections are starting to filter through the record company sieve, with this Mark Stewart collection the latest and probably one of the most exciting additions. As the main man behind sloganeering gobshites The Pop Group and later on Mark Stewart and the Maffia, Stewart has released consistently from the late 70's through to 2005, with his didactic message concerning redistribution of wealth etc. still as impassioned today as it was nearly 30 years ago. Opening the headache inducingly packaged collection is new track 'Radio Freedom' which, through it's dubby haunted dancehall backdrop and skewed hip-hop rhymes, sounds not unlike a leftfield production - an impression reinforced through 2004's 'Puppet Master'. First of the oldies (1983) is The Maffia's 'Hypnotised', wherein Bambatta beats and Coldcut samples are superglued together in a fashion that still retains a startling freshness and is followed by The Pop Group's amazing 1979 'Beyond Good and Evil' which, along with the recent ACR re-releases, establishes a firm DFA lineage. Elsewhere, The Pop Group's seminal 'We Are All Prostitutes' is all angular guitars and agit vocals, 'High Ideals And Crazy Dreams' is a PiL/Specials brew of influences whilst 'Dream Kitchen' is razor serrated electro-pop. With a limited edition set of Stewart's graphic design postcards thrown in for good measure, 'Kiss The Future' is a Retrospective of a truly pioneering character on the scene who seems more relevant in the current musical climate than ever before. Highly Recommended....

Amelia's Magazine - Issue 03 - Spring / Summer 2005
Amelia's
Mag // £ 9.99

When does a magazine become a work of art? Amelia's is easily our favourite magazine right now, issue three delivering a limited edition 168 pages of fabulousness! With a fancy "flock" dog cover ..Inside there is a whole bunch of collectable "animal magic" stickers designed by a special selection of contributors, including featured musicians, fashion designers, and of course illustrators. Music: Full length features on the well known and the obscure but fantastic: The Mystery Jets, British Sea Power, Coco Electrik, The Rakes, Viva Voce, Martha Wainwright, Secret Machines, The Bravery, Electrelane, Art Brut, Longcut, Do Me Bad Things, Doloroso, Metronomy, Apartment and The Magic Numbers. Collections: Erasers - a brief visual history...Stylists and photographers shoot fashion to be inspired by: Tara D'Arby and Des Lewis, Neil Stuart and Gemma Booth, Laurent Le Bras and Andreas Bleckmann, Cynthia Lawrence-John and Lindsay Hopkinson. Fashion profiles:Karen Walker, Basso & Brooke, Howie B and Christopher Shannon. Photo documentaries on zoo cages, bodybuilding, television studios and all-American youths by: Nick Ballon, Dean Chalkney, James Deavin and Neil Massey. Make & Do: Come on - you've always wanted to make a knitted monster haven't you? Illustration: Visual gags, journeys across far away landscapes and other strange but compelling stuff from a variety of illustrators. And a whole section devoted to "animal magic" illustrations. Amazing magazine - essential purchase!...

Rod Modell With Kevin Hanton - Illuminati Audio Science (Deepchord Continuous-Flow Mix)
Silentes

Another breathtaking installment in this Deep Chord / Rod Modell related series of releases on the Silentes imprint, once again diving deep into the minimal dub infusions and Basic Channel variations that this artist and label are well known for. This time round featuring the helping hand of Kevin Hanton, this 18 track session spreads itself over 70 minutes of incredibly deep and immersing Chain Reaction emissions pieced together and sequenced using loops/tracks from the Deep Chord archives, plus banks of unreleased and specially recorded new material. If you like heading towards the deep side, this is about as good as it gets. Essential listening....

# posted by DJ Martian 8:47 PM

New Longwave Album

NYC epic rockers Longwave have a new album: There's A Fire due for release June 28th in the US.

News:

The band will be performing on Seattle's great radio station, KEXP, on Monday June 20that noon Pacific time (3pm Eastern). Click here to hear the webcast....

[UK Time: 8pm]

Press Release for the album: BigHassle.Com: Longwave

No sign of a UK release date yet, although it is available as an import @ Amazon UK

# posted by DJ Martian 3:31 PM

The Observer | OMM | review Royksopp - The Understanding with a top 5 star review.

# posted by DJ Martian 2:30 PM

The Observer | OMM review My Computer - No CV

producer John Leckie (the Stone Roses, Radiohead) who was smitten enough to move into a B&B near their studio for three months to record the follow-up. The result, No CV, is an album which is scarily bleak at times, but raises the bar in ambition as well as heartache. It's hardly fitter or happier, but ambition-wise this is My Computer's OK Computer.

The Manchester group My Computer are back with their second album: No CV.

Due for release July 18th on Gut Records

# posted by DJ Martian 2:23 PM

British TV station Channel 4 have a music blog.

Similar sort of music coverage ala The Guardian Guide.

# posted by DJ Martian 2:18 PM

ATP - The Nightmare Before Christmas curated by The Mars Volta

The latest confirmed artists list for this ATP event in December 2nd - 4th, in Camber Sands, England.

THE MARS VOLTA »
DIAMANDA GALAS »
THE KILLS »
WEIRD WAR »
LES SAVY FAV »
CINEMATIC ORCHESTRA »
ACID MOTHERS TEMPLE »
BLONDE REDHEAD »
DAMO SUZUKI + JELLY PLANET »
MICHAEL ROTHER »
HIGH ON FIRE »
THE FUCKING CHAMPS »
BEANS »
JAGA JAZZIST »
BATTLES »
QUINTRON AND MISS PUSSYCAT »
THE LOCUST »
400 BLOWS »
SUBTITLE »
KILL ME TOMORROW »
YEAR FUTURE »
HELLA »
GRIS GRIS »
JAI-ALAI SAVANT »
THE ETERNALS »

# posted by DJ Martian 1:56 PM

New T.Raumschmiere Album: Blitzkrieg Pop

Mute.com announce a new T.Raumschmiere album: T.Raumschmiere: News:

New T.Raumschmiere Single, Album
NEW ALBUM "BLITZKRIEG POP",
FEATURING THE FIRST SINGLE "SICK LIKE ME"

For a very special preview of the album, check the following link for the incredible “crash edit“ - http://www.mute.biz/traumschmiere/blitzkrieg_edit.mp3

"Blitzkrieg Pop" release date: August 23, 2005
"Sick Like Me" release date: June 28, 2005

T.Raumschmiere returns in 2005 with a brand new album, his second for novamute, "Blitzkrieg Pop". Recorded in late 2004 and early 2005 in Berlin, "Blitzkrieg Pop" sees T.Raumschmiere build upon his hybrid of punk rock and electronic music unleashed on the masses in the form of his 2003 album "Radio Blackout".

Containing more apparent punk rock, twisted rock and ambient influences as well as his own vocals on the first single "Sick Like Me" and the album track "Blitzkrieg Pop," T.Raumschmiere also enlisted the help of his friends Ellen Allien (from Berlin's Bpitch Control label) on "Diving In Whiskey," Quasimodo Jones (from T.Raumschmiere's own Shitkatapult label) on "A Mess," Sandra Nasic (from European rockers Gauno Apes) on "A Very Loud Lullaby" plus French newcomer Judith Juillerat on "3 Minutes Happiness."

North American tour dates will announced shortly for this fall.

# posted by DJ Martian 1:52 PM

Forthcoming Vladislav Delay Related Albums

Mutualism music distributors in Germany, provide this news on Vladislav Delay:

FUTURE PROJECTS:

New VLADISLAV DELAY album Four Corners in late August

Debut album of the AGF, CRAIG ARMSTRONG, VLADISLAV DELAY album project “The dolls” in October

NEW album of UUSITALO and LUOMO in 2006 Stay stuned

# posted by DJ Martian 1:49 PM

Saturday, June 18, 2005

Insomnia 05 Festival

Insomnia festival showcases the cutting edge of electronic music in Norway during four days in late summer. Insomnia has featured pioneers and critically acclaimed newcomers. The sunny, North-Norwegian summer nights make the festival a unique experience. Insomnia Festival is an annual event.

When: wednesday 24th aug to sunday 28th aug.

Insomnia Festival

Here's the list of artists for this year's Insomnia Festival.

Artists:

Autoband
- local jazz/electronica/visual efx
Datarock
- duo from Bergen with their own very special mix of rock, funk and electronics. With hints of Talking Heads, New Order.
Bertine Zetlitz
- the Norwegian queen of electronic pop had a huge sucess in Norway with her latest album Rollerscating.
Jaga Jazzist
Kong Sverre
Mental Overdrive
Nils Petter Molvaer
Three Fools And Their Tools
Trulz & Robin
Wibutee
DJ Friendly
DJ Olanski
DJ Ralph Myerz
DJ Torbjørn

# posted by DJ Martian 6:01 PM

Blabbermouth.Net report on My Dying Bride: MY DYING BRIDE Guitarist Talks About Upcoming Album

# posted by DJ Martian 5:38 PM

Blabbermouth.net report on Celtic Frost: CELTIC FROST: New Album To Be Produced By PETER TÄGTGREN

# posted by DJ Martian 5:33 PM

Blabbermouth.net report on Swedish black metal band Dark Funeral: DARK FUNERAL Guitarist: New Album Is 'Far Beyond Hyper-Speed'

# posted by DJ Martian 5:28 PM

Pitchfork review Ellen Allien - Thrills

# posted by DJ Martian 5:16 PM

MIC Norway profile Eivind Opsvik: a quintessential jazz musician.

New York-based Norwegian bassist and composer Eivind Opsvik has emerged as one of the most active, productive and acclaimed of young musicians on the city’s jazz scene. Needless to say this entails a growing stature also internationally.

# posted by DJ Martian 5:14 PM

MIC Norway report on A-ha A-ha’s latest in the hands of Flood.

15/06/2005

London: The new A-ha album, due for release this fall, is currently being mixed by legendary studio-guru Flood

# posted by DJ Martian 5:11 PM

BW & BK report on Queensryche: QUEENSRYCHE Ink Deal With Rhino Records The new album is expected through Rhino in January, 2006.

# posted by DJ Martian 5:04 PM

BW & BK report on Opeth: OPETH - Ghost Reveries Is "Finished"; Artwork, Tracklisting Revealed

# posted by DJ Martian 5:02 PM

Tom Verlaine Solo Album due early 2006

Tiny Mix Tapes relay the news that Tom Verlaine has signed to Thrill Jockey a new solo album is due early 2006.

Billboard reports that Verlaine has signed with Chicago label Thrill Jockey, who are set to release his first solo LP since 1992's pleasant Warm and Cool (Rykodisc).

# posted by DJ Martian 4:56 PM

Stylus review Orthrelm - OV

# posted by DJ Martian 4:46 PM

Junkmedia review Manual - Azure Vista

# posted by DJ Martian 4:45 PM

The Guardian review Billy Corgan - TheFutureEmbrace

I listened to a few tracks from this album on 6 Music - wasn't impressed - reheated 80s electro-rock influences adding nothing new.

# posted by DJ Martian 4:33 PM

NME.COM report Primal Scream get to work on new album

# posted by DJ Martian 4:30 PM

The Guardian profile: David Gilmour

Pink Floyd's guitarist has a history of generous, understated philanthropy. Now the man who sold his £3.6m house to fund a project for the homeless has gone one further: ending a bitter 22-year feud to perform at Live 8

# posted by DJ Martian 4:29 PM

Speakers Push the Air interview Boom Bip

# posted by DJ Martian 4:28 PM

Yahoo! Music report MOJO awards announced including:

Icon: Siouxsie Sioux (voted for by MOJO readers)

Inspiration: Gang Of Four (voted for by MOJOreaders)

Lifetime Achievement: Robert Wyatt (presented by MOJO]

# posted by DJ Martian 4:27 PM

The Guardian review Colder - Heat

# posted by DJ Martian 4:25 PM

Music blog to check: Banana Nutrament

# posted by DJ Martian 4:23 PM

PopMatters interview Junior Boys

# posted by DJ Martian 4:22 PM

Broadcast offer Tender Buttons in the Autumn

themilkfactory.co.uk recently reported news of a forthcoming Broadcast album:

BROADCAST TO RELEASE NEW SINGLE AND ALBUM IN THE AUTUMN

Tender Buttons is announced as a ‘dark, tripped-out psychedelic affair with wonderful songs and truly spine-tingling moments’.

# posted by DJ Martian 4:21 PM

BBC 6 Music report Eno rejoins Roxy

The new Roxy Music album WILL feature the unrivalled sonic expertise of Brian Eno after all.

# posted by DJ Martian 4:17 PM

music webzine indieworkshop.com has a brand new look.

# posted by DJ Martian 4:16 PM

Elbow are Leaders Of The Free World

Xfm report Elbow Premiere New Album At NFT on July 6th.

The album NOW unbelievably has a new title: Leaders Of The Free World

# posted by DJ Martian 4:14 PM

Ulver - Blood Inside

In terms of innovation and hybrid sonics Ulver must rank alongside The Young Gods as being supreme modern sonic architects. Ulver's sonic spectrum of music meshes to create startling results.

UK release June 27th on Jester Records, US release on End Records on July 12th.

Several reviews of the new Ulver album Blood Inside are already acknowledging the outstanding achievement of this landmark classic album for 2005:

review by Metal Invader Ulver - Blood Inside

Their influences are endless, but the way they combine them is masterful. Black metal, Jazz, Blues, Classical, Industrial, Ambient, Ethereal, and quite possibly every genre you can think of, ULVER are sampling from everything and are masterfully creating a musical collage that attacks, embraces and beautifully chokes the listener into its world. A soundscape that creeps up to you and floors you like a bulldozer, "Blood Inside" is a composition of drums, violins, percussion, guitars, vocals (choir and solo ones), synths and a host of samples, that's expressed in nine audio and one video tracks:

Encyclopaedia Metallum: several user Reviews for Ulver's Blood Inside

review @ funprox.com: Ulver - Blood Inside

If you are familiar with the William Blake album: imagine a more mature, mad, coherent, orchestral Ulver and you’ll get the idea… All in all, I can only say that I really love this unique band!

Treehouse of Death review Ulver - Blood Inside

I’ll just limit myself describing the musical stylings that are mixed to create this aural experience. A short way to say this is take Arcturus, Vangelis, Miles Davis, M83, The Devin Townsend Band, Portishead, Kraftwerk, Mogwai and Pink Floyd, let them jam together then get Mr. Bungle to do the song arrangements.

Outside Left review Ulver - Blood Inside

# posted by DJ Martian 4:01 PM

Stevie Nixed MkII has now been added to my blo.gs list.

# posted by DJ Martian 3:18 PM

Playlouder review The Departure - Dirty Words

# posted by DJ Martian 3:16 PM

Echo & the Bunnymen set for Siberia

Echo & The Bunnymen have a new album on the way, titled 'Siberia' due for release September 5th.

According to Ian McCulloch speaking on 6 Music the album has weird guitar sounds on it.

# posted by DJ Martian 2:52 PM

Icelandairwaves 2005 festival has been announced. [October 19th- 23rd]

The ticket sale for Iceland Airwaves 2005 has all ready started internationally through the Icelandair offices, and now we announce the first names on the bill. Only 4,000 passes are available for the festival this year, that takes place in some 5-8 venues in downtown Reykjavik

# posted by DJ Martian 1:38 PM

Lambgoat interview Burst including discussion of the forthcoming album: Origo. [Set to be one of the most anticipated rock albums of 2005]

Earlier this month Lambgoat's Drew Ailes conducted an interview with Burst bassist Jesper Liveröd via email.

[via It's a trap!]

# posted by DJ Martian 1:35 PM

Next week's releases reviewed @ Norman Records

# posted by DJ Martian 1:18 PM

Stream 2 new Mew tracks @ | MEW | the official site [you need to register for the mailing list to access these tracks]

16 June 2005

New Music and film

The time has come to play you 2 new songs from the album, as well as the short film which Jonas refers to below.
The tracks - Apocalypso and Why Are You Looking Grave? - will be streamed for 1 week only, from today.

# posted by DJ Martian 1:14 PM

Baikonour Album

Earlier this decade, Baikonour released an EP that reminded me of the same euphoric atmospherics of Ulrich Schnauss. Now comes a new Baikonour album...

BAIKONOUR: For The Lonely Hearts Of The Cosmos CD (MELO 031CD) : OUT 07/26/2005 :

"The historical Baikonour (in Khazakstan) was known for hosting a Soviet launch base, but its musical counterpart goes by the real name Jean-Emmanuel Krieger and has nothing to do with missiles. He takes residence in Brighton, UK which might be interpreted as a latent need to be closer to his spiritual home and birthplace; Versailles, France. For a rich seam of future like-minded artists has been mined from the denizens of that town in recent years, including names such as Air, Super Discount and Alex Gopher. Jean-Emmanuel's own musical upbringing progressed through many stages, stages reflected in his own creative output, as the man himself admits. Growing up with 'Pink Floyd from Dad and Marvin Gaye from Mum' he later found himself 'obsessed with British indie pop in the '80s, like Cocteau Twins and My Bloody Valentine. I think you can hear a lot of guitars in my album and I've always been fascinated by guitars and the variety of sound you can get. This is why I like the Cocteau twins, MBV and Sonic Youth as they have that in common.' These days, however, you're more likely to find him plugged into a wide variety, 'Jamaican music is a favourite as well as Krautrock (massively) and another love being Indian music. What else? Alice Coltrane (the indian music connection here), Soft Machine, Os Mutantes, Television, Manuel Gottsching, Japanese Noise, Neil Young, Eno, Cluster and Deuter, 60's psych and Scott Walker. I'm still interested in what Amon Tobin, Boards of Canada and Mouse on Mars are up to'. This intricate path of musical touchpoints has served to enrich Baikonour's own output with every flavour imaginable, steering from Kraut-influences to jazz and always underpinning each piece with, simply, great tuneage. All inspired by his predecessors' 'total lack of commercial ambition and the will to do something different'. That's an admirable ambition indeed, and For The Lonely Hearts Of The Cosmos adheres closely to its principles. For this record, Jean-Emmanuel went back to the style and inspiration of the sounds he grew up with. 'I mixed and recorded everything myself, using mainly old instruments. But everything has been recorded and edited on a Mac using digital emulations of classic 60's compressors and Eqs'. But that's not all, For The Lonely Hearts Of The Cosmos lives by the oath of collaboration and was recorded in a truly pan-continental sense. 'All the live drums have been played by Lee Adams from Imitation Electric Piano except on 'Hoku To Shin Ken' which has been played by Eiji F Morotomi and recorded in Tokyo, Japan. Etienne Rodes is playing most of the 6 strings guitar parts on this track too'. The near future beckons more work with Baikonour's contemporaries, namely lining up with some of his old collaborators by 'playing with Imitation Electric Piano, playing bass and mixing the new album'. Until then, you'll have his opus to admire; it's for the entire cosmos after all."

Source: Forced Exposure / FE Publicity

# posted by DJ Martian 12:08 AM

Friday, June 17, 2005

Welcome Back !

After two weeks of PC problems at home [Was it the VGA cable ? Buy replacement, Check, Test, still not working. Was it the Monitor ? Most probably, ordering of a new Monitor and logistics of arranging a suitable delivery date.]

Instal new Monitor = success, back to a working PC.

I need to play catch up with a few things, starting this weekend: e.g update Boomkat review listings, update rateyourmusic.com, check e-mail backlog, update some music news / reviews links, recommence listening to internet radio, check new MP3 downloads etc.

The last 2 weeks have been rather unusual and frustrating - not having internet access at home is like living in a mid 90s timewarp!, it's good to be back.

# posted by DJ Martian 8:55 PM

Thursday, June 16, 2005

Depeche Mode Announce Tour, plus new Album for Autumn 2005

Gigwise report Depeche Mode Announce Huge World Tour

European dates announced, North American to follow.

UK Dates:

Manchester, MEN Arena – March 30
Birmingham, NEC – March 31
London, Wembley Arena – April 3

However the tour itself will commence in North America.

More info @ Live Daily: Depeche Mode plots return with new album, world tour

A new Depeche Mode album will be released this Autumn !

# posted by DJ Martian 5:40 PM

BW & BK report on Manes: MANES - New Album In Pre-Production, Recording To Commence In Late Summer

# posted by DJ Martian 1:50 PM

Stylus review The Departure - Dirty Words

reviewer, Dom Passantino rates it harshly an F. [Stylus use the academic alpha rating system)

Was this just judging it on originality, I wonder ?

# posted by DJ Martian 1:36 PM

Playlouder interview Jamie Lidell

# posted by DJ Martian 1:33 PM

Revolution magazine

PlayLouder writer starts ace new magazine titled: Revolution

because of the utter lack of any music magazines aimed at women and any with a largely female editorial team. The magazine mostly covers female artists,...

You can get Revolution magazine in Rough Trade and other record stores..

# posted by DJ Martian 1:25 PM

Pitchfork review Isolée - We Are Monster with a 8.4 rating.

# posted by DJ Martian 1:14 PM

Wednesday, June 15, 2005

Cave In Album Set for September

Pause & Play On the CD Front state the release date [September 13th] of the new Cave In album:

Cave In "Perfect Pitch Black" (producer: Andrew Schneider) (Hydra Head, Sept. 13, 2005)

# posted by DJ Martian 1:32 PM

popmatters.com review The Departure - Dirty Words

An American perspective on The Departure

# posted by DJ Martian 1:25 PM

Creamfields 2005 - August Bank Holiday Weekend

tranzfusion.net report Creamfields 2005 Announced - see article for full line up.

dance music festivals seem to have the same sort of line-ups - year after year !

# posted by DJ Martian 1:11 PM

David Sylvian Collaboration Album - Autumn Release

Latest David Sylvian news:

David is currently working on the final mixes of a collaborative album
with Steve Jansen and Burnt Friedman. The project has yet to be named,
but it promises to be an exceptional group album. We will have more
news on this release during the coming months. The release date is set for
Autumn

[Source: via David Sylvian email newsletter]

# posted by DJ Martian 1:05 PM

Tuesday, June 14, 2005

trustthedj.com report New additions to the Bestival line-up

New additions to the Bestival line-up
14/06/2005

SUNDAY BEST PRESENTS BESTIVAL
9 - 10 - 11 SEPTEMBER 2005
ROBIN HILL COUNTRY PARK, NEWPORT, ISLE OF WIGHT

www.bestival.net

# posted by DJ Martian 5:23 PM

This week's flavourpill LONDON an email magazine covering music, art, and cultural events

# posted by DJ Martian 5:20 PM

Koneisto 2005 - August 12 - 13th

One of Europe's leading annual electronic music festival takes place in Helsinki, Finland.

This year's Koneisto Festival website is now active.

An English language version of the website is on the way.

In meantime, these artists have been confirmed:

Aavikko (Stupido, FIN) LIVE
» www.aavikko.net

Adam Freeland (Marine Parade, UK) DJ
» www.marineparade.co.uk/artists/adam

Alek Száhala (Teflon Bullet, FIN) LIVE
» alek.szahala.com

Annie (679 Recordings/Warner, NOR) LIVE
» www.anniemusic.co.uk

Asa (Fried Records, FIN) LIVE

Borzin (Koneveljet, FIN) DJ

Eliot Ness ([reiv:], FIN) DJ
» www.djeliotness.com

Fanu (FIN) DJ

Frequenzberater (Datapunk, GER) LIVE

Funky Amigos Djs DJ

Gamma (FIN) DJ
» ambient.cx/gamma

Giant Robot (Stupido, FIN) LIVE
» www.giantrobot.fi

Infekto (Nine2Five, FIN) DJ
» www.nine2fiveoffice.com

J.Kusti (Mbar, FIN) DJ

K2 (Salute Entertainment, FIN) DJ
» www.djk2.com

Kris Kylven (FIN) DJ

Makelove (Music Is Better, FIN) DJ
» www.musicisbetter.com

Michael Mayer (Kompakt, GER) DJ
» www.kompakt-net.de

Miika Kuisma (Subtraxx, FIN) LIVE
» www.miikakuisma.com

Mouse On Mars (Sonig, GER) LIVE
» www.mouseonmars.de

Mr.A (Voodoo, FIN) DJ

Orion (FIN) DJ
» orion.reaktio.net

Orkidea (FIN) DJ

Pastacas (FIN/EST) LIVE
» www.pastacas.com

Pietari (FIN) DJ

Puppa J & Tasottavat (Black Hula, FIN) LIVE
» www.tasottavat.blackhula.com

Radioton (FIN) LIVE

Roisin Murphy (Echo, UK) LIVE
» www.roisinmurphy.com

Roshi & The Junkmen (Next Big Thing, FIN) LIVE

Sam & Gigi (FIN) LIVE
» www.samgigi.com

Sebastian (Rush, FIN) DJ

Soma (FIN) DJ

Son Kite (Digital Structures, SWE) LIVE
» www.sonkite.com

# posted by DJ Martian 5:07 PM

This is Music from Norway - a new portal promoting Norwegian music.

# posted by DJ Martian 5:04 PM

Forthcoming The Breezeblock shows on Radio 1:

June 21st
Sonar Special
The best from Barcelona

June 28th
Vitalic Live
Plus an Ariel Pink Session

July 5th
Africa Week
Africa Dope live in session

July 12th
Fuse-In: The Detroit Electronic Music Festival
Carl Craig, Model 500 etc

# posted by DJ Martian 1:38 PM

musicOMH.com review Saint Etienne - Tales From Turnpike House

This is gorgeous record that starts great and gets better with each additional hearing. Taking Saint Etienne to another level, Tales From Turnpike House is music to herald summer, but with universally human themes for any season

# posted by DJ Martian 1:35 PM

musicOMH.com review The Departure - Dirty Words

The reviewer seems to go over the top in the hype stakes:

We're almost exactly half way through 2005, and we may just have come across the album of the year. With Dirty Words, The Departure have set a landmark in modern rock music and therefore must be heard by everyone. This undoubtedly marks the first chapter in a long an illustrious career. Welcome them into your world.

# posted by DJ Martian 1:32 PM

BBC Music review Broadway Project - In Finite

# posted by DJ Martian 1:28 PM

Leonard's Lair reviews Misty Roses - Komodo Dragons

First impressions count and the initial feelings upon listening to Misty Roses' 'Komodo Dragons' is that a lost classic by the late Billy Mackenzie has been unearthed.

# posted by DJ Martian 1:25 PM

Stylus review Piano Magic - Disaffected

Also reviewed by Leonard's Lair: Piano Magic - Disaffected

# posted by DJ Martian 1:23 PM

TrustheDJ report on a Sónar 2005 Double compilation: Sónar 2005 double CD

# posted by DJ Martian 1:17 PM

Monday, June 13, 2005

Githead - Profile has a UK release date of June 27th.

Official website: Githead

# posted by DJ Martian 5:48 PM

Playlouder review Martin Grech - Unholy

# posted by DJ Martian 5:45 PM

Dusted review Brian Eno - Another Day On Earth

summarizing:

But a master brewer should be able to come up with more than a half-full glass

# posted by DJ Martian 5:41 PM

Pitchfork report on Mogwai: Mogwai Recording New Album Tentatively titled Mr. Beast, the album is slated for a release in early 2006

# posted by DJ Martian 5:36 PM

Elbow New Album in September: "The Stops"

According to Pause & Play the new album by Elbow will be released on September 6th, titled: The Stops

Further info @ Crud: Elbow - New album details emerge, new songs debuted at intimate gig

This is confirmed on V2 Germany website !

# posted by DJ Martian 1:34 PM

Dimmu Borgir - Plan Next Album for 2nd Half of 2006 Release

Blabbermouth.Net preport on Norwegian symphonic black metallers Dimmu Borgir: DIMMU BORGIR: New Full 'Story/Concept' Album Due Late 2006

"Next full-length album: Writing will begin August/September sometime, once everything else with festivals and re-recordings are out of the way. It'll take the time it needs, so don't expect any release sooner than second half of 2006, at earliest. We have not yet decided who will be supervising/co-producing our next studio effort, but what we do know is that it'll most likely be a full story/concept album. We feel it's time to do something 'else,' starting on scratch exploring fresh territory, challenge ourselves. More details on this as things develop.

# posted by DJ Martian 1:27 PM

Playlouder review Mice Parade - Bem-Vinda Vontade

# posted by DJ Martian 1:23 PM

Mew UK Mini-Tour

4 UK dates for Danish epic rockers Mew at the end of July:

The band have just announced 4 UK shows at the end of July. Ticket numbers and prices in brackets:

July 25 - London ICA
July 26 - Manchester Academy
July 27 - Nottingham Rescue Rooms
July 28 - Glasgow ABC

[alerted via It's a trap]

Also updated on June 12th: in the journal section:

We finally decided on an album title, and all the songs have proper titles now (we still call them by their working titles though, on the setlists so as not to confuse ourselves too much). To those of you who miss the working album title let me just reveal that Saviours of Jazz Ballet will appear on the album too, as it is the title of one of the songs.

# posted by DJ Martian 1:11 PM

This week's new releases @ Fopp

# posted by DJ Martian 1:05 PM

This week's releases reviewed @ Norman Records

# posted by DJ Martian 1:03 PM

Signal to Noise - the Journal of improvised & experimental Music

The new [Summer 2005] issue of Signal to Noise magazine has Four Tet on the front cover.

# posted by DJ Martian 12:57 PM

Friday, June 10, 2005

Issue 45 of Earplug

JUNE 9 - JUNE 22

Earplug is a twice-monthly email magazine, delivering a handpicked selection of news, sounds, videos, and original features for the international electronic-music community.

# posted by DJ Martian 1:58 PM

Thursday, June 09, 2005

DHG (formerly known as DODHEIMSGARD) have a new website.

A new album is on the way from this Norwegian Avant-Black Metal band.

[Alerted via It's a trap]

# posted by DJ Martian 1:29 PM

Flowered Up are Back !

NME.COM report FLOWERED UP ANNOUNCE WARM-UP SHOW - get your flares out, the cockney Happy Mondays are back.

# posted by DJ Martian 1:24 PM

BW & BK report on Queensryche: QUEENSRYCHE's Geoff Tate - "Kind Of Getting Ready For Recording" Of Operation: Mindcrime II

[Spot the mistake in the article: Operation Mindcrime was released in 1988, not 1986]

# posted by DJ Martian 1:19 PM

Later...Show 5: 11.35pm, BBC2, Friday 10th June 2005

This week's Late...with Jools Holland show includes:

Beck, Doves, David Sandborn, Plantlife and M Ward

# posted by DJ Martian 1:13 PM

Playlouder review Dungen - Ta Det Lungt - this album just released this week in the UK.

# posted by DJ Martian 1:08 PM

BW & BK report on Opeth: OPETH - Roadrunner A&R Man Is "Blown Away" By New Material

# posted by DJ Martian 12:58 PM

Philip Sherburne reviews Mutek: on the Pitchfork website: Column: The Month in Techno

# posted by DJ Martian 12:52 PM

New Killing Joke Album

The new Killing Joke album will be released on September 12th. [Via The Gathering Killing Joke e-mail list]

# posted by DJ Martian 12:50 PM

Wednesday, June 08, 2005

Kultureflash - Headlines from London [No. 127/ 08.06.05]

This week's Kultureflash - Headlines from London

KultureFlash is a free, weekly newsletter covering contemporary culture in and around London. Each week we track down some of the more unusual and interesting events taking place in the Capital and deliver them straight to your inbox. Featuring art, gigs, films, talks, clubs and more -- we are committed to bringing you an eclectic mix of the most stimulating events in London.

# posted by DJ Martian 12:59 PM

Tuesday, June 07, 2005

Playlouder review Minotaur Shock - Maritime

# posted by DJ Martian 5:42 PM

This week's flavourpill LONDON an email magazine covering music, art, and cultural events

# posted by DJ Martian 5:36 PM

themilkfactory.co.uk - June 2005

New issue of the the milkfactory.co.uk - summary reviews from milkfactory.co.uk website.

ALBUM OF THE MONTH
IRIS GARRELFS - Specified Encounters
After having her work featured on countless compilations and having worked with the like of Scanner and Si-Cut.db, it is finally time for Iris Garrelfs to release her first album. Specified Encounters collects seven tracks entirely built around the human voice.

REVIEWS
13 & GOD - 13 & God
13 & God documents the unexpected meeting between German post-punk band The Notwist and avant hip-hop outfit Themselves.

BROADWAY PROJECT - In Finite
Dan Berridge returns with the third instalment of his musical wanderings as Broadway Project and gives his cinematic soundscapes a live makeover.

ELECTRELANE - Axes
Returning with their third album, Electrelane show great maturity and control over their music.

IN THE COUNTRY - This Was The Pace Of My Heartbeat
Led by pianist Morten Qvenild, who is also one-half of Susanna & The Magical Orchestra, In The Country cultivate beautiful instrumentals on near-slumber territories.

JAGA - What We Must
With their fifth album, Norwegian formation Jaga capture the energy of their live set and move into rockier territories.

KOBOL - Broken Ebony
This debut album from Mexican outfit Kobol draws influences from Latin jazz, dub and electronica and proves a truly enduring first release.

QUINOLINE YELLOW - Dol-Goy Assist
With just two EPs and a few appearances on Skam Smak series, Quinoline Yellow’s Luke Williams has already made a mark on the electronic scene, and this impressive first album is likely to impose him as one of the brightest talents of 2005.

SI-CUT.DB - From Tears: Beach Archive
For his seventh album as Si-Cut.db, Douglas Benford takes his machines with him on his travels and explores a variety of coastal locations.

THE WOODCRAFT FOLK - The Woodcraft Folk
Stunning self-released debut by Alan Outram as The Woodcraft Folk. Seventeen tracks of delicate and subtle electronica with a folk feel.

SHORTCUTS
ASCOLTARE Gallery / Giving Set / Giving Set Pt. 2
FENNESZ / SAKAMOTO Sala Santa Cecilia
CLAUDE YOUNG Electronic Dissident
FRED GIANNELLI Telepathica EP

# posted by DJ Martian 5:27 PM

Monday, June 06, 2005

Temp Admin Notice

Currently I have technical problems with my PC at home.

Hopefully, this will be fixed ASAP and then normal service can continue.

In the meantime, try these:

The Music Blogosphere is updated 24/7 to keep you entertained.

The latest music news updated 24/ 7 @ News Now: Music News

For music discussion: ILM

# posted by DJ Martian 2:52 PM

Friday, June 03, 2005

Goldfrapp the 3rd Album: Supernature

On ILM the tracklisting info for Goldfrapp's album now titled: Supernature, due for release on September 20th.

# posted by DJ Martian 6:01 PM

BW & BK report KATATONIA Enters The Studio, Recording Underway

# posted by DJ Martian 5:53 PM

Almost Cool review In The Country - This Was The Pace Of My Heartbeat

# posted by DJ Martian 5:26 PM

Stylus review Nile - Annihilation of the Wicked

# posted by DJ Martian 5:24 PM

Stylus review Sanso-Xtro - Sentimentalist

# posted by DJ Martian 5:24 PM

Next week's releases reviewed @ Norman Records

# posted by DJ Martian 5:01 PM

BW & BK report PARADISE LOST Ink Deal With Century Media

# posted by DJ Martian 12:12 AM

Thursday, June 02, 2005

Junkmedia interview Feist

# posted by DJ Martian 11:54 PM

Colder - Heat

Colder's second album Heat will be released on June 27th in the UK on the Output label.

# posted by DJ Martian 11:40 PM

Asda starts online CD Price War

Mirror.co.uk report Asda are now selling CDs via Jersey VAT free: RECORD LOW: CDs DOWN TO £7.47

Currently the Top 50 chart albums are on sale from prices as low as £7.47 [inclusive of delivery !]

Apart from current chart CDs, an extensive CD back catalogue of 120,000 items can also be ordered.

Website: Asda Entertainment

# posted by DJ Martian 10:58 PM

Andreas Tilliander in London

Info: Flyer

Tues 28th June 2005

The Spitz
109 Old Spitalfields Mkt
London
7pm - late
£8

Andreas Tilliander (Mille Plateaux/Pluxemburg)
Pest (Ninja Tune)
Ola Bergman (New Speak/Skam)
Jan Anderson (Electronic Desert/Cutting Pleasure)
Bell 03 (Electronic Desert)

Tickets: http://www.wegottickets.com/event/5867

http://www.pluxemburg.com/andreas
http://www.ninjatune.net/ninja/artist.php?id=68
http://www.new-speak.com
http://www.electronicdesert.com/ed
http://www.spitz.co.uk

In a UK exclusive, four maestros of Sweden's ever fertile electronic music scene fly into town for a one night only special to demonstrate why their highly explosive, diverse and far reaching compositions have elevated them to the top of this global stage at an unprecedented rate.

Andreas Tilliander (aka Lowfour, Mokira, Komp) might be one of Europe's most active techno-pop musicians, releasing on the ever consistent Mille Plateaux and Pluxemburg imprints as well more divergent forums such as Resopal. He is also the twice Swedish Grammy nominated artist and Manifest winner who has pioneered the so called, 'clicks & cuts,' movement that has blossomed over the past few years and whose beautifully rendered takes on mutated pop and dub house have seen the likes of pop luminaries such as Li'l Kim hungry for a touch of his magic on her records.

Ola Bergman, in his first ever live UK appearance, is none other than the co-founder of cutting edge Scandinavian label, New Speak, whose output has been regarded as some of the most innovative in global electronics to date. With subsequent releases on the highly respected Skam imprint, he is a musician and true craftsman whose intricate and wealthy expertise in the music of machines has seen him create some of the most stunningly and emotionally charged pieces of electronica since the turn of the century. He is an artist who commands a captive audience as his rich tapestry of beats, breaks and sweeping synthesis rewire not only your aural sensors, but, your mind, body and soul.

Complementing this already unique and exceptional line-up are Electronic Desert label bosses and long time forefather's of Northern Europe's burgeoning electronica scene, Bell 03 and Jan Anderson. Tonight, they will perform a one-off live act fusing the apex of digital technology with vintage benchmarks. Using Final Scratch they will blend a collection of works produced especially for this evening's showcase with some of their more classic movements. These two gentlemen, in their multitude of production guises have been at the forefront of Sweden's synthetic era for the last two decades and have been solely responsible for some of the most seminal and sublime moments in techno, electro and electronica that the world has ever had the pleasure of listening to.

Finally, we are especially proud to present Ninja Tune's Pest in their full band guise who will be performing in a special London show to celebrate their forthcoming record 'All Out Fall Out,' which marks a massive departure from their sample based recordings of past to full on live antics. These five gents mix up everything: jazz, hip hop, funk, rock, gargae, techno into a unique blend that is as instantly identifiable as them. Thier scarily high grade musicianship and punk ethics should not be missed.

# posted by DJ Martian 10:12 PM

NME editor Conor McNicholas admits to targeting the NME at a younger teenage audience: in this Press Gazette article.

I have noticed this year the NME has become even more dumber than ever, the same few established artists covered over and over. Predictable, dull, establishment and complacent.

Strangely, IPC Ignite now blatantly targets the U20s with the NME, meanwhile it's other music magazine Uncut gets more boring trad rock Over 40s readership with every issue. [The new issue has an interview with Van Morrision ! zzzzzzzzz boring ]

A massive gap between the ages of 20 - 40 [particularly the middle section of 25-35] is currently not being catered for by IPC Ignite's music magazines.

# posted by DJ Martian 9:45 PM

Oceansize Second Album Titled Everybody Into Position

Beggars Banquet announce a new Oceansize album is on the way.

Currently mixing their second album at Sarm studio in West London with Danton Supple...

The new album was recorded at Monnow Valley studio in Monmouth and The Works studio in Stockport in April/May with Dan Austin (The Cooper Temple Clause, Doves, People In Planes). Entitled 'Everybody Into Position' the album includes the forthcoming single 'Heaven Alive' due for release in August.

# posted by DJ Martian 9:02 PM

On rateyourmusic.com: Top 100 Rated Albums of 2005 has been updated.

a new number 1 rated album:

1 Sufjan Stevens - Illinois

...and it's not even half way through the year and The Bravery aren't in the top 100 !

# posted by DJ Martian 6:39 PM

Blabbermouth.Net report on Ephel Duath: EPHEL DUATH: Hard At Work On New Album tentatively titled "Pain Necessary to Know", is due for an October release.

# posted by DJ Martian 5:36 PM

Pitchfork review Four Tet - Everything Ecstatic

# posted by DJ Martian 5:01 PM

Deftones Album for October Release

According to Pause & Play's On The CD Front the new Deftones album is titled: Saturday Night Wrist, due for release October 11th.

Deftones "Saturday Night Wrist" (Maverick/Warner, Oct. 11, 2005)

# posted by DJ Martian 4:59 PM

Drowned in Sound report on Mogwai: Mogwai announce only UK gig of the year in Glasgow !

Mogwai are currently working on a new album, so if this is the only UK gig of the year - that means the next Mogwai album will be a 2006 release.

# posted by DJ Martian 4:45 PM

Hanne Hukkelberg - Little Things

Hanne Hukkelberg is a 26 year old Norwegian, who has been referred to as the Norwegian Equivalent of Stina Nordenstam. Her album Little Things gets a UK release on the Leaf Label on June 13th.

PostEverything profile 'Little Things' by Hanne Hukkelberg [The Leaf Label]

# posted by DJ Martian 4:32 PM

Dusted review Orthrelm - OV

# posted by DJ Martian 4:25 PM

Later... Show 4: 11.35pm, BBC2, Friday 3rd June 2005

Last week's show had nothing of personal interest. So on to...

This week's Later...with Jools Holland includes New Order and Acoustic Ladyland

Look out for the powerful British Jazz-Fusion band:

Acoustic Ladyland
Acoustic Ladyland are made up of four accomplished and award winning musicians and their jazz / rock fusion has been winning them rave reviews. Their recent album 'Last Chance Disco' has been compared to both Gang Of Four and Herbie Hancock.

# posted by DJ Martian 4:21 PM

Wednesday, June 01, 2005

MIC Norway profile Magnet

The magnetism of Magnet: One of Norwegian pop music’s most internationally admired artists releases his third album.

# posted by DJ Martian 6:15 PM

BW & BK report on Moonspell: MOONSPELL - New Album, Record Deal In The Works

# posted by DJ Martian 4:15 PM

Reassessing Brian Eno's '80s ambient reissues. - by Dave Q

Seattle Weekly: Music for Windows by Dave Queen

# posted by DJ Martian 4:08 PM

Drowned in Sound provide a reminder: Patrick Wolf begins UK tour

# posted by DJ Martian 4:02 PM

Kultureflash - Headlines from London [No. 126/ 01.06.05]

This week's Kultureflash - Headlines from London

KultureFlash is a free, weekly newsletter covering contemporary culture in and around London. Each week we track down some of the more unusual and interesting events taking place in the Capital and deliver them straight to your inbox. Featuring art, gigs, films, talks, clubs and more -- we are committed to bringing you an eclectic mix of the most stimulating events in London.

# posted by DJ Martian 3:59 PM

Mojo - July 2005 Issue

U2 are on the front cover of MOJO Magazine on sale in the UK today.

includes:

FREE CD! U2 JUKEBOX
Compiled for MOJO by Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr and featuring The Ramones, Arcade Fire, The Cure, Futureheads, Interpol, Echo And The Bunnymen, Suicide and more…

# posted by DJ Martian 3:54 PM