New Releases for December 2007

Index of New Releases for December 2007

IBERIAN ROCKS (SPAIN)

Artist:	23HZ & NUMAESTRO
Title:	Al-Andalus/Praise Dub
Label:	IBERIAN ROCKS (SPAIN)
Format:	12"
Price:	$11.50
Catalog #:	IBR 001EP

"The new label Iberian Records -- based in Lisbon and Barcelona -- has as its principal objectives the release of 'bass music' -- dubstep, grime, toxic dancehall, kuduro, techno dub, dub and similar styles -- and the nurturing and promotion of a nucleus of local and international producers. A1 -- 'Andalus' is a perfect example of the Mediterranean sound being developed by 23Hz + Numaestro. Starting with a vocal sample from Moroccan music, the introduction is joined by an accordion type riff -- curiously sounding not too dissimilar to Augusto Pablo's distinctive melodica sound -- which leads to the drop. Here a massive sub-bass with stabbing mid-frequencies enters the fray, which drives the track along with skanking half-step beats which have plenty of spring-reverbed snares and slicing hats. The heavily effected sampled voice is placed in the mix to give extra atmosphere, while the opening riff leads us to a semi-drop which leaves just the sub before proceeding to a false drop before the riff and sample are introduced once again which finally take the track into its homestretch. This track oozes distinctive character and is guaranteed to smash the dancefloor as well as providing a deep meditative vibe. Road tested by Numaestro on dubplate, it has levelled dances right across Spain and beyond, as well as being picked up by many of the DJs on Sub FM and figuring in many of the top tens of DJs in the dubstep community over recent months. You are advised not to sleep on this one! 'Praise Dub' -- starting with a vocal sample from Algerian music -- a short introduction leads to the drop. Then a rampaging descending scale bass line comes into play, set against tight-stepping swinging beats. This track is built round the b-line and beats which are given junglesque details. High strings and atmospheric FX, together with the vocal sample, are spliced into the tune to give texture. The tune works through another drop and then proceeds to a breakdown. After which the bass line is reversed -- designed to surprise the dancefloor -- before returning to the original groove and final climax. This is an exercise in energetic bass n' beats, referencing early jump-up jungle (without any of its predictable excesses) and two-step swing -- given the trademark 23Hz+Numaestro Mediterranean twist."

ILIAN TAPE (GERMANY)

Artist:	SLIWINSKI, RALPH
Title:	Dercole Leven EP
Label:	ILIAN TAPE (GERMANY)
Format:	12"
Price:	$11.00
Catalog #:	ILIAN 002EP

"Ralph Sliwinski is already known from his releases on labels like Below, Morris Audio or Hartchef Discos and surely for a good reason. He is one of the producers who have their own unique style which is recognizable directly. Analog old school sounding beats fat as the women of the U.S. McDonalds promotion campaign. 'Dercole Leven': groove, Afro-American vibes and a piece of Haribo Saure Lüngerl are building that tune, as well as rhythm structures out of a fruit market in Oslo, phantom hi-hats and shaking ballerina feet. 'Lockheed': if you like dub... do you like dub techno as well? We hope so, because this cut even dubs out Beeny Man while he is cutting his toe nails. A bass line sounds like it is played live by Ismilia Iiliiah at the Kingstons K2 conference, percussions fresh out of Mr. Sliwinski's beat-box machine hook up with that incredible Detroit chord Orchestra and deliver us a journey through Jamaican forests."

IMMIGRANT (GERMANY)

Artist:	DEE JAY COCOE
Title:	Webale EP
Label:	IMMIGRANT (GERMANY)
Format:	12"
Price:	$11.50
Catalog #:	IMM 033EP

"The versatile Dee Jay Cocoe has been performing in the Californian music scene for over a decade through his Abstract Workshop hip-hop collective, performing beside megastars The Black Eyed Peas, and alongside DJs such as Mark Farina, Little Louie Vega and Joe Claussell. Always conscious and ever soulful, Cocoe has finally graced Immigrant with one of his deepest house trax to date. So genuine the track, Jay Haze and Cadenza's Alejandro Vivanco were chomping at the bit to remix it. Together with Long Beach vocalist Mukwenda, this EP blends house and techno genres, appeasing both dancefloor and listening sensibilities. A1 - 'Webale' (Fuckpony Remix) -- Jay Haze has been unstoppable of late and it's under his Fuckpony alias that we asked him to transform Cocoe's loose rhythms and Mukwenda's African chants into a dancefloor smasher. The deservedly long mix delivers a hypnotic and tribal groove of bass, drums and synths that mutate, squelch and reverberate throughout the mix. Haze makes great use of the vocals, utilizing them frequently to cut through the mix, with tripped-out delays and creative editing. B1 - 'Webale (Alejandro Vivanco Remix)' -- the Cadenza cohort and Chilean native balances out the EP with a tripped-out tribal groover. Vivanco's Latin roots are at work in this remix, delivering a peak time mix within a framework of organic drums and hypnotic atmospherics."

IN FINÉ (FRANCE)

Artist:	MOTO, CLARA
Title:	Glove Affair
Label:	IN FINÉ (FRANCE)
Format:	12"
Price:	$12.00
Catalog #:	IF 2007EP

"Barely aged 24, Clara Moto already demonstrates an incredible maturity. After a childhood lit up by jazz and classic piano studies, she now stands up as one of the new faces of the Austrian electronic scene, having set her own label Houseverbot and in organizing the reputable Birds parties at the Postgarage of Graz. Discovered at the latest editions of Sonar and Montreux festivals, Clara cultivates a femininity and an uncommon elegance on the fringes of minimal, microhouse and electronica through her live DJ sets and productions. A rare appeal that convinced InFiné to roll out the red carpet for this new EP which displays three facets of a fresh and strikingly innovative personality and an unquestionable imperial class!"

INFRACTION

Artist:	BETHELL, CRAIG
Title:	A Day Full of You, A Night Tired of Me
Label:	INFRACTION
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.00
Catalog #:	INFX 026CD

"A Day Full Of You, A Night Tired Of Me is the debut album by ex-Locust vocalist Craig Bethell. The album displays a plaintive songwriting style that unashamedly croons its way through a set of eleven varied songs influenced as much by avant-pop baritones Scott Walker and David Sylvian as it is by a troubled and melancholic Chet Baker. Bethell's vocals are late night deliveries, a haunting idiom of the post-modern torch song. Mark Van Hoen (Locust, Mojave 3, Sing Sing) lends production duties and evokes an atmosphere of Low-era Bowie, (as on the instrumental overture of 'December'), employs a careful use of Rhodes piano & subtle strings ('Bad Blood'), as well as vintage synthesizer, distant harp motifs and brushed drums ('Finding The Light' & 'History Repeats Itself'). London-based songwriter/singer Craig Bethell has sporadically written, recorded and performed his songs since 1983. His working life has largely been devoted to magazine publishing. Through demand from different quarters (die-hard Locust fans, new fans via MySpace, etc.), Craig was encouraged to revisit the best of hitherto unreleased material from past sessions with Van Hoen. These works were revised, re-recorded, remixed and revamped, along with some completely new material, to make up A Day Full Of You, A Night Tired Of Me, an album many years in the making."

Artist:	ALOOF PROOF
Title:	Piano Text
Label:	INFRACTION
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.00
Catalog #:	INFX 030CD

"There is no ambient record greater than Aloof Proof's Piano Text. I'm not the type of person given to grand, insupportable claims; this is simply a statement of fact. The album has equals, but no betters, and it is a tragedy that so few listeners have had the chance to hear this album in its entirety, let alone own a copy for themselves. It is the kind of album that becomes essential after just the first listen. Since it was quietly released in 1994 -- a time, remember, dominated by the ambient techno boom of such artists as the Orb and Future Sound of London -- it has achieved a kind of cult status among fans of the genre. This is largely due to the edited versions of the album's two tracks that appeared on Asphodel's sprawling drone compilations, opening the world of Aloof Proof to thousands of eager listeners in the mid-'90s. The overall sound of 'The Ghost Ship' and 'The Last Leaf' is simple to describe -- the tones of a piano are stretched to the horizon line; long, lingering sounds, the fluttering threads of them in the wind, drifting like subtle perfumes, a dream language culled from a very familiar instrument. In its way, it is also a kind of Mandelbrot image -- the briefest segments of the tracks can be listened to (like Eno's Neroli or Thursday Afternoon) to get an accurate idea of the whole. However, the magic of Piano Text is that, when taken as a duo of suites, the larger forms of the piece are revealed to be a classical composition of the utmost drama, suspense, nuance. It is, indeed, the music of the inexplicable dream worlds we all travel to during sleep. This is an album that must be listened to -- no words can adequately describe how spellbinding the music is, how staggeringly elegant it is." --B. Bieniowski

INNOVA

Artist:	PARTCH, HARRY
Title:	Enclosure 8
Label:	INNOVA
Format:	DVD
Price:	$17.00
Catalog #:	INNO 399DVD

"In 1985, Philip Blackburn climbed the stairs to an attic in Iowa City and started trying to make sense of the boxes piled up there. They contained a composer's life's work: scrapbooks, tapes, photos, letters, scores, and film reels -- fragile treasures documenting the 20th century from a most unusual viewpoint, perhaps the world's most original musician: Harry Partch. The idea was to publish them and reveal Harry to the world on his own terms. Not as the crabby, homeless, self-taught microtonal musical weirdo and instrument maker, but as that most American of all artists, a truly independent thinker. With Enclosure 8, the work of bringing them to public attention reaches its apotheosis. The Enclosures series (named for the extras Partch wanted to add to his life-long letter to the world) started appearing in 1995 with a VHS video of four films made in collaboration with the Chicago-based film-maker Madeline Tourtelot. Four CDs, two years and one book later, Enclosure 4 appeared featuring his later films: Delusion of the Fury (his culminating ritual-theater work) and a San Diego Public TV documentary, also on VHS. Now the time has come for these to be issued on DVD, extensively restored, re-synched and digitally-remastered from the extant original prints. Until books and CDs become as obsolete as VHS, the Enclosures series is complete and, taken together with the Harry Partch Collection on New World Records, Partch's entire work is available for the first time. Innova's DVD, Enclosure 8, offers not only a chance to see higher quality versions of previously available material, but it also includes two performances made after Partch's death in 1974: a 1981 staged production of his hitchhiker piece, Barstow, directed by Danlee Mitchell, and a 2006 choreographed version of Castor & Pollux, performed by John Schneider's Ensemble Partch! using replicas of Partch's original set of instruments. Films include: Music Studio -- Harry Partch (1958): Partch takes the viewer on a tour of his Chicago home and plays his microtonal instruments. Includes his demonstration of how the soundtrack for Windsong was made. Windsong (1958): the ancient Greek legend of Daphne and Apollo, transported to Lake Michigan. U.S. Highball (1958; completed 1968): Partch and his ensemble perform a dramatized account of riding the rails during the Depression on a transcontinental hobo trip from California to Chicago. Rotate the Body in All Its Planes (1961): Harry's favorite: a ballet for gymnasts. The DVD is accompanied by a 12-page booklet featuring writings by Philip Blackburn, Danlee Mitchell, and Harry Partch." Total running time: 126 mins. NTSC format, all regions.

INSTITUBES (FRANCE)

Artist:	CURSES!
Title:	Hungry For Love
Label:	INSTITUBES (FRANCE)
Format:	12"
Price:	$12.00
Catalog #:	INS 12013EP

"Institubes' latest record is a debut 12" coming straight from the deepest pit in hell -- Brooklyn. Curses is not a total rookie, though. Wrapped in this elegantly engineered cloak of mystery, is bass heavyweight champ, Drop The Lime. Under this new guise, he's all about reigniting the excitement of early '90s dance music. But he's so not retro. His peculiar brand of mutated house defies everything you think you know about 'proper club music.' He makes evil records that challenge you to play them out, LOUD, and then amply reward you for doing so."

Artist:	MIDNIGHT JUGGERNAUTS
Title:	Road To Recovery
Label:	INSTITUBES (FRANCE)
Format:	12"
Price:	$12.00
Catalog #:	INS 12020EP

"In their native Australia, they are the next big thing: the Melbournians sent ripples across the world with airplay on BBC1 and MTV2 UK/Europe, and back home on Triple J radio. For its first non-French release, Institubes couldn't be prouder. They've remixed tracks for !!!, Kim, The Presets, Dragonette, Electric Six and Damn Arms, while Juggernauts' tracks have been remixed by Sebastian, Cut Copy, Popular Computer and The Presets. Lead single 'Road To Recovery' is a dizzying array of stomping disco beats, spiraling synths and effervescent guitars, a sonic mission through laser-soaked corridors and rainbow-lit roller derbies. It's the perfect intro to Midnight Juggernauts' debut album. On the flip, 'Tombstone' is a surefire party starter, so full-on, so anthemic when the drums and guitars emerge from the vocoderized incantation, the kind of indie synth-rock beast that the electro kids love. 'Popular Computer,' courtesy of Kitsuné and fresh out of a splendid New Young Pony Club remix, turns the synths way up and pours lush melancholy into the mix. Heart-breaking and hard-hitting."

Artist:	MIDNIGHT JUGGERNAUTS
Title:	Road to Recovery Remixes
Label:	INSTITUBES (FRANCE)
Format:	12"
Price:	$12.00
Catalog #:	INS 12021EP

"Vincent (vox/keys), Andy (guitars/vox), and new drummer Daniel Stricker (formerly of The Valentinos) have everything going for them: airplay on Radio 1, support from the Ed Banger/Justice cabal, remixes for !!!, Dragonette and VHS Or Beta, two European tours under their belts and a third one to come. Hot on the heels of the original Road To Recovery 12", we wanted to see what would happen if we put those massive discoid drums and laser synths in the hands of two angry young men known for two different but equally powerful takes on dancefloor destruction: D.I.M. from Germany and Curses! from Brooklyn."

Artist:	RUBATO, DAVID
Title:	Circuit
Label:	INSTITUBES (FRANCE)
Format:	12"
Price:	$12.00
Catalog #:	INS 12022EP

"New signing form the Institubes family. Killer big room daft-ish dancefloor stormer. David Rubato lives in Paris. He's in his 20s. Former rave kid. Not a DJ. He studied composition and musicology, but dance music is something of a calling. Got into techno very young. At 15, Rubato writes to French techno legend Laurent Garnier to ask him how to use a TB 303. Garnier calls him up and invites him to come and meet him at Rex Club. 'Circuit' was recorded live in one take and edited down to 5- and 8-minute versions. It's house and electro fighting for track domination, with disco providing treacherous air support to both."

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