New Releases for October 2007

Index of New Releases for October 2007

ATAVISTIC

Artist:	HARNETTY, BRIAN
Title:	American Winter
Label:	ATAVISTIC
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.00
Catalog #:	ALP 181CD

"American Winter = holler musics woven with archival field/radio recordings, meeting the 21st century. The Berea College (Kentucky) Sound Archives holds non-commercial recordings documenting more than 75 years of Appalachian history and culture. In late 2005, the Berea College Appalachian Music Fellowship Program was made possible by a grant from the Anne Ray Charitable Trust, established by the late Margaret Anne Cargill. The Fellowship program supports scholarly research in Berea's collections of traditional music." "Brian Harnetty was among the first Appalachian Music Fellows. Initially overwhelmed by the collection's richness, he quickly immersed himself in field recordings, radio programs, and oral history interviews. We conversed daily about what he'd heard, the concept of tradition, and collections as a type of composition. The resulting pieces take the known, unknown, and forgotten, reworking them into new cloth and exposing new layers of humanity." --John H. Bondurant, Sound Preservation Archivist, Berea College

Artist:	OCHS/SAX & DRUMMING CORE, LARRY
Title:	Out Trios Volume Five: Up From Under
Label:	ATAVISTIC
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.00
Catalog #:	ALP 182CD

"The fifth installment in Atavistic's Out Trios series configures a triad of West Coast heavies on sax & double-drums: Larry Ochs (Rova/Orkestrova), Scott Amendola (Nels Cline Singers & more); and Don Robinson (Cecil Taylor (!), Wadada Leo Smith, George Lewis, Raphe Malik & Glenn Spearman). With absolutely lovely cover art by Emilie Clark & photos by Scott Campbell, Out Trios Volume Five kicks hard, while maintaining an omniscient cool. Other releases in the Out Trios series feature groupings such as Lee Ranaldo/Roger Miller/William Hooker; Jeff Parker/Kevin Drumm/Michael Zerang; Nels Cline/Andrea Parkins/Tom Rainey and Geoff Farina/Luther Gray/Nate McBride. Atavistic's Out Trios series is dedicated exclusively to issuing the most captivating instrumental music available -- as deployed within the context, structure & constraints of the trio format. The series is an open-ended experiment in freedom, interaction & sonic architecture."

AUDIOMATIQUE (GERMANY)

Artist:	TRENTEMØLLER
Title:	The Trentemøller Chronicles
Label:	AUDIOMATIQUE (GERMANY)
Format:	2CD
Price:	$20.00
Catalog #:	AM 002CD

This is Anders Trentemøller's second full-length release, after his astounding and critically-acclaimed debut, The Last Resort on Pokerflat. This new double album is not a new studio album but, as the title indicates, an overview of Trentemøller's impressive body of work. The Trentemøller Chronicles includes Anders' personal selection of his best songs and remixes, which have only been available on vinyl or on compilations, as well as some new and exclusive songs. But the fantastic Trentemøller mix on CD1 and the fine selection of remixes on CD2 make this release a great double album in its own right for extraordinary listening pleasure. The Last Resort took the hearts of music lovers worldwide by storm. At that moment in time the Danish producer had built his outstanding reputation on not only his huge dancefloor hits, but also the remix work he'd done for other artists. Trentemøller's work is an organic combination of hand-played instruments and electronic sounds. Layer after layer of instruments fall perfectly into place and contrasting large and vast echoes and sharp, in-your-face sound bites mix with a dangerous but successful incompatibility. This Chronicle presents new songs and remixes and the best tracks and remixes that have only been available on 12", all hand-selected by the artist himself. Artists in the mix also include: Klovn, Ane Trolle, Richard Davis, Mathias Schaffhäuser, The Blacksmoke Organisation, The Knife, Filur, Jokke Ilsøe, Robyn, Sharon Phillips, Tomboy, Moby and Djuma Soundsystem.

Artist:	TRENTEMØLLER
Title:	The Trentemøller Chronicles
Label:	AUDIOMATIQUE (GERMANY)
Format:	2LP
Price:	$18.00
Catalog #:	AM 002LP

Double LP version, with the best tracks off the double CD version. The Danish producer had built his outstanding reputation on not only his huge dancefloor hits, but also the remix work he'd done for other artists. Trentemøller's work is an organic combination of hand-played instruments and electronic sounds. Layer after layer of instruments fall perfectly into place and contrasting large and vast echoes and sharp, in-your-face sound bites mix with a dangerous but successful incompatibility. Included on this 8 track vinyl edition: remixes of The Blacksmoke Organisation, Mathias Schaffhäuser, Jokke Ilsøe, Royksopp, The Knife, plus these 3 Trentemøller tracks: "The Forest", "Gush", "Kink".

Artist:	BABICZ, ROBERT
Title:	Pingpong In Moonlight
Label:	AUDIOMATIQUE (GERMANY)
Format:	12"
Price:	$10.00
Catalog #:	AM 025EP

This is Robert Babicz's fourth release on Audiomatique. The Cologne-based Pole is one of today's most prolific producers. On the A-side the title-track "Pingpong In Moonlight" comes with steel-sounds, sharp hi-hats and a deeply pushing bass line. Once the groove kicks in, a mystic melody gives the song its very own moonlight feeling. Strong track! "Hope" is also a forward-moving track, with pulsing synth growls and neat drum snaps. Dreamy, throbbing and trance-inducing.

AUS MUSIC (GERMANY)

Artist:	SIAN
Title:	Apple Tree
Label:	AUS MUSIC (GERMANY)
Format:	12"
Price:	$10.00
Catalog #:	AUS 708EP

"Graham Goodwin aka Sian is a Dublin native raised gypsy-style in southern Spain. As a self-confessed workaholic spaced-out nature junkie, his commitment to the avant garde lifestyle has seen him grace decks at the nicest clubs and festivals in the world. He's also released two albums and many singles on labels as diverse as Pokerflat, Dessous, Karmarouge, Dirtcrew and Einmaleins. The title track is a lush techno affair that nods to old Detroit, building with rasps, clicks and clocks that drive through purring fx and melodic chamber resonance. A gentle synth progression moves towards the finish through metallic block echos and whirring tones. Berlin deep house mogul Efdemin invokes a sublime transformation and heads straight for the Balearic islands. The swinging 4/4 beat builds steam with shakers suddenly illuminated by bright resonating chimes and mellow melodic pulses. The warm melody floats like a scented summer breeze over a wave of hi-hats, stabbed synth and salt shake shuffles. Sunshine on a rainy day! Efdemin recently released his debut album on his home, Dial Records, home to Pantha Du Prince, Lawrence and Carsten Jost."

BAD INFLUENCE (UK)

BARGE RECORDINGS

Artist:	MULLEN, GEOFF
Title:	Armory Radio
Label:	BARGE RECORDINGS
Format:	2LP
Price:	$21.00
Catalog #:	BRG 003LP

"Referencing an old Providence armory in Geoff's neighborhood, Armory Radio is an ode to a specific chunk of time and space. Originally self-released as a double CDR in very small quantity, this limited double LP version features new material combined with reworkings of the original CDR version. Departing from last year's blues-influenced The Air In Pieces, Geoff surprises us once again with his creative diversity and his ongoing search for new sonic territory. At the start of the Armory Radio project in 2004, Geoff found a busted boombox in the trash with a barely-working short wave radio function on it. This roadside treasure was one of many found objects revived for unconventional reuse: handheld radios, cassette players and speakers which all play a role in structuring the album. This physical scavenging, along with other unplanned musical discoveries, led to the process-driven compositions on Armory Radio. Obsolete technology, found objects and a city's architecture are a few of the repeating themes embedded in Armory Radio's guitar-driven drones. Geoff's dramatic use of noise is prevalent as well, building thick fabrics of haze intertwined with fragmented feedback patterns that phase in and out with one another. Comparisons could be drawn to the ethereal short-wave recordings of William Basinski or Phil Niblock's massive drones, but Armory Radio is a more volatile work; no doubt influenced by the fertile noise underground in America (artists like Aaron Dilloway and Prurient come to mind, although not in too literal a way)."

BEDROOM COMMUNITY (ICELAND)

Artist:	SIGURDSSON, VALGEIR
Title:	Ekvílibríum
Label:	BEDROOM COMMUNITY (ICELAND)
Format:	LP
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	HVALUR 003LP

LP version. Valgeir Sigurðsson is a renowned Icelandic producer and engineer as well as the head of the Bedroom Community label, and this is his first solo record. Sigurðsson's sound, his distinctive artistic voice, has been filtering through the cracks of "mainstream" music for years: he has had a significant hand in Björk's seminal Vespertine and Medulla albums, the hushed confessions of Bonnie "Prince" Billy's The Letting Go and the cacophonous nursery rhymes of Cocorosie's Adventures of Ghosthorse and Stillborn. Ekvílibríum includes vocal performances from Bonnie "Prince" Billy, who helps craft one of the highlights of the album, "Kin," where rivers of strings flow around playful music boxes and prepared piano, as well as contributions from Faun Fables' Dawn McCarthy and J. Walker aka Machine Translations. It's an album that blends genres so effortlessly and gracefully that the word "genre" itself becomes obsolete, mixing all the vital elements like a bricklayer mixes concrete. Despite the solidity of Sigurðsson's ideas, there is also a fluidity between the tracks, and even within them. The theme of water trickles through the album, with direct references in titles such as "Evolution of Waters" to the general aesthetic feel of the album; from the dripping percussion of "Equilibrium Is Restored" to the tidal waves of strings engulfing the listener on the effervescent "Before Nine." With Ekvílibríum, Valgeir Sigurðsson has shown that he is equally as talented as a crafter of songs and instigator of a cascade of emotions. Fans of everything from Björk to Brian Eno to Telefon Tel Aviv will find themselves falling in love with the album's lucidity, its beauty and its emotional impact. Having worked on many era-defining releases of the past, Sigurðsson has now created one of his own.

BIRDWAR (UK)

Artist:	7 HERTZ
Title:	Tender Almost Vulgar
Label:	BIRDWAR (UK)
Format:	CD
Price:	$16.00
Catalog #:	BWR 006CD

"Fluid and engaging, 7 Hertz fluctuate and mutate live before your very ears. Incorporating all or none of the following instruments -- bassoon, violin, voice, double bass, French horn, glockenspiel, clarinet, mandolin, trumpet -- they create glorious pieces with total, beautiful spontaneity. With imaginations that rival those of Tom Waits and Stravinsky, this is modern 'classical' music that writhes and soothes. Their debut full-length, Tender, Almost Vulgar, is a record that mixes their own blend of improvised and composed work that walks the line between chamber, folk, jazz and a range of contemporary music. The resulting album (recorded in St. Mark's Church, Leeds, lends to the proceedings a hauntingly beautiful slant) is a unique and boundary-defying body of work from a band evidently confident in each others' company. As 7 Hertz themselves describe the process "...we find mutual ground through listening to each other, and making it up as we go along." To put it simply -- similarities can be drawn between 7 Hertz and a plateau of others -- Stravinsky, Ligeti, Terry Riley's Cadenza on the Night Plain, Gabriel Prokofiev's recent string quartets or anything from the New York downtown free music scene -- but this is a truly original listening experience. The Birdwar label seems to be going from strength to strength recently, but how they managed to wrangle 7 Hertz away from the heavyweights of the division such as Tzadik is truly admirable. One of the most delightful debuts of this or any year."

BLANK TAPES (UK)

Artist:	BASS CLEF
Title:	Zamyatin Tapes Volume 1
Label:	BLANK TAPES (UK)
Format:	12"
Price:	$11.00
Catalog #:	BLANK 008EP

"Bass Clef returns with this first installment in a two-part series. Picking up where 'Cannot Be Straightened' left off, 'One Hundred Point Three' is a cerebral assault on the dance floor. Constructed around a monolithic bassline, this track will shake the fillings from your teeth. Taking a sidestep to the left, '23 Tunnel Chords' tantilizes with meandering melodies reminiscent of mid-'90s IDM, before finally dropping with a free-for-all turbo-rave 2-step. The flip is dedicated to a bastard gabba-punk garage, somehow infused with a poptastic euphoria that has to be listened to to be believed."

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Artist:	PROPINQUITY
Title:	Propinquity
Label:	ASTERISK
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.00
Catalog #:	ASTERISK 003CD

Artist:	BAD INFLUENCE
Title:	Chat Bout
Label:	BAD INFLUENCE (UK)
Format:	12"
Price:	$11.00
Catalog #:	BI 001EP