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Muscle Memory/Holy Goodnight by The VibrationEP1 (untitled) by JavelinMother by Susumu YokotaMother by Susumu YokotaTerminal 3 / 2 Da Floor by RuskoI Can't Give You Up by Smoove & TurrellI Can't Give You Up by Smoove & TurrellTravels into Several Remote Nations of the World by Yellow Moon BandRed Velvet by Red VelvetRed Velvet by Red VelvetLunglight by The Shaky HandsOne Night In New York City by Various ArtistsBaby Show Vol.1 by Fabor E Le Sue TastiereBaby Show Vol.2 by The SwingersHumour Per Grandi E Piccini by FabourDiamonds, Furcoats, Champagne by Primal Scream, Suicide and Conrad StandishFrankie Teardrop by Lydia Lunch and SuicideHymns A Swinging by The Mike Sammes Singers & The Ted Taylor OrgansoundMilky Disco 1.5 by Various ArtistsGareth : The Early Years EP by The Late GreatsLibrary / Call the Incredible by SeelandLittle BIG Music: Musical Oddities From And Inspired By Little Big Planet by The Daniel Pemberton TV OrchestraThe Fuzzy Feeling EP by Various ArtistsChristmas TV by Slow ClubIf Ya Can't Beat Em by ResoIf Ya Can't Beat Em by ResoDust Till Dawn: 10 Years of Drop Music by Various ArtistsOne Night In San Francisco by Various ArtistsCity Of Christmas Ghosts by Goldblade and Poly Styrene

jamie tetlow

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Funfair

Funfair [ review of: Funfair by Child's View (CD Album) ]

Nobukazu Takemura has developed a sound quite unique. The releases with his band, Spiritual Vibes, and then later as himself, on the Bellissima label, placed him at the front of Japan's ever growing underground music scene. On these releases he'd proved his outstanding ability behind the desk (production and arrangement) not to mention himself being a multi-instramentalist. 'Funfair' sees the sampling and electronics of the early records pulled to the forefront. There is still a strong use of that distinctive child's voice but this time it's broken, fragmented and then reassembled. The vocal elements bounce off each other as if they were in 'Funfairs' very own hall of mirrors. 'The Cradle of Light' and 'Pendulum' evoke early memories of merry-go-rounds on sun bleached days; there is the clash of programmed sheet music from three or four nearby organs. Yet the clipping characteristics of a CD player fast-forwarding pulls the music into the present. 'Sabure' offers erratic drill & bass against nursery rhyme melodies; the schizophrenic? or the observations of a bystander? Takemura employs coarse looped samples on the penultimate track 'After Image'. They swirl in a bright haze for almost ten minutes, like Philip Jeck's 'Loopholes' album there is a relentlessness about this work; all variations on a frequency should be explored. The album closes on an acoustic note more on a par with his jazz dance workouts. Building a subtle up-tempo rhythm that gives light relief from the sometimes quite intense previous tracks. With his first solo release Takemura deserves to be walking in the footsteps of Cage and Reich. He's placed his view of this world within the child's eye creating a fantasy place, that place, like the child sees it, is a surreal yet luscious one.


Posted by jamie tetlow at 00:00, 22 Apr 1999

Horizontal

Horizontal [ review of: Horizontal by Puppy (CD Album) ]

David Hodgson's chosen title 'Horizontal' is, for me, an appropriate one. It doesn't so much describe the position one should acquire during listening (quite the opposite) but the path the music takes. From the opening clatters of 'Weightless' to the closing tones of 'Fight Scene' one never quite feels pulled in to a sonic journey (not to say one should). As soon as the first beats are dropped you're confronted with a barrage of persistent intensity. The drum patterns seem to systematically layer sometimes substituting one rhythm for another. The inorganic machine at the stage front. Throughout their given six minutes each track sees filthy, textured bass and scathing synths relentlessly looped so that they sustain a monochromatic wash. This all makes for a very dark soundtrack, and perhaps, indeed, that's what it is. The short stabs of sci-fi, that offer slight relief, certainly suggest this, though Hodgson's day job is the greatest clue. With the design of computer games any musical accompaniment is there to offer a mood. It never leads but moulds to the feel of the play, the 'game' seeking attention with its incessant demand for focus. So maybe all that's missing from the wonderful world of puppy is a visual foreground. Quite what it would consist of is an unknown and exists only in the head of Hodgson's alter-ego Puppy. For now you'll have to play your own mind games.


Posted by jamie tetlow at 00:00, 04 Mar 1999

The Collapse of Modern Culture

The Collapse of Modern Culture [ review of: The Collapse of Modern Culture by Urban Tribe (CD Album) ]

Look at this lps artwork and you'd be forgiven for thinking Mo-Wax had spent all their money on the UNKLE project. A simple design with black ink printed on flimsy unlaminated yellow card. Well, you shouldn't judge anything by its cover and this album is certainly no exception. Urban Tribe is the Detroit based project of Sherard Ingram in which he employs the skills of fellow motor city dwellers Anthony Shakir, Kenny Dixon jnr and Carl Craig. Their previous twelves on Lavelles label were a solid insight into what is a luscious album of meticulous construction and one that strongly harks back to the technology obsessed early Detroit techno sound. With the exception, maybe, of the Dixon written 'd2000' all the tracks drift in a cosmic like space resting on dub undertones but with the sparkle of synth washes and sample loops filtering through. All propped up with beautiful soft breaks and not a hi-hat, snare or base drum forced, perhaps the production influence of Craig. The writing, mixing and performing credits fluctuate from track to track, the four musicians swapping duties as they please, yet Ingram always seems to be lurking, keeping it tight, and holding together these creative forces.By the time you reach the end, the truly sublime 'peacemakers', you'll have learnt the Urban Tribe is not here to start a fight, their motives are more offworld......electronica for the 21st century.


Posted by jamie tetlow at 00:00, 09 Dec 1998

Munich Machine

Munich Machine [ review of: Munich Machine by Hell (CD Album) ]

Helmut Geier hasn't received much interest since "My Definition of House" was released on R&S. Post '94 he appeared to slip into the underground techno vaults of European club culture, a workaholic schedule, DJing and producing quality 12's. This four year hiatus of the media, time spent on the pulse, has come to a close with music of dancefloor burning class. Although the ten tracks don't sit comfortably together in the long-player format they all stand strong individually. Fusing styles from disco to industrial Hell has managed to replicate the production traits of Dave Clarke's "Red" series and the fucked up EQ of early Daft Punk with his own use of stereo channels and knowledge that any bleep or click is effective in the right place. The opening four disco-tech-house numbers are rounded off with the finest cover of Barry Manilow's "Copa Cabana"; quirky, energised touches that stay true to the classic original (?). From this point on Hell drives a darker path taking in the Euro-electro of single "Suicide Commando" (also a cover) the Jeff Mills like "Passion" and the breakbeat techno of "Bass Mechanic". This record maintains a sense of humour throughout, including the artwork, which combined with Richard Branson's new V2 label could see Hell reaching an unsuspecting public. "Munich Machine" is a port hole to the influences and working ethics of this veteran DJ, if that doesn't interest you then it's still a formidable tool for most record boxes.


Posted by jamie tetlow at 00:00, 03 Dec 1998

Ancient Termites

Ancient Termites [ review of: Ancient Termites by PhonopsychographDISK (CD Album) ]

Recent years have seen a growing revival in the old-school hip-hop scene (as it's broadly tagged) and with it the role of the scratch DJ U.S. collectives such as The Invisibl Skratch Piklz and The X-Men have brought the techniques employed to a previously unimaginable level. A DJ affiliated with the former, once hidden by the shadow of Q-Bert and Mixmaster Mike, has emerged with an album not reeking of DJ banter but of a strong sense of musicianship. Through the course of the 13 tracks DJ Disk not only proves that he has the skills to match anyones arsenal but also a greater understanding of the potential of the turntable as an instrument. It then astounds one to learn that every track was recorded in a single take. Bar some drums by Brain (Primus) and guitar from famous west coaster Buckethead all sounds are from vinyl source adding an extra dimension to the listening experience (how does he do that?). "Holidisk Inn" and "Bucktooth's Berry Binge" display Disk's cutting ability with a humorous edge, Dixieland jazz and the Laurel And Hardy theme respectively, but it's the rest of the album that proves to be of most interest. The first track "To me it's scrambled eggs" directly quotes John Coltrane bass and piano sections, subtly blending them as motifs. "Penguin Burial" has a driving Hendrix beat giving show to the strong rock influence. On "Thinking Room Sculpture" a wah-wah effect is added to the scratch and "Disk Drisks" sees engulfing feedback and flange thrown into the mix. It's on long tracks like these that you can feel his almost child-like obsessiveness as he teases and tweaks the same sound in a process of mutation. To take it beyond dexterity to a venture in sonic exploration. Disk's ability is purely to use the turntable as any musician would use there electric instrument, that is, to capture what it is to be electric. It makes "Ancient Termites" feel like the soundtrack to a nuclear meltdown....a potentially explosive situation.


Posted by jamie tetlow at 00:00, 03 Dec 1998

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