Hintergrund is responsible for some of the haunting, art-damaged noises currently emanating from Columbus, Ohio. Undulating tones that drift along for light years, punctuated at times by more rapid cosmic radiation. This is some quality drone-y, noisy stuff utilizing loops, prepared saxophone, and circuit bending. No songs shorter than six minutes, titles like "As the Elk Lays Down to Die" (an eleven-minute séance with synths and gods-know-what-else overlaying each other to form chords that are simultaneously unnerving and musical) -- those of you who will like this probably already know who you are. For ambient music, though, it really does reward active listening as there is a well-executed sense of dynamics throughout. Compared to the dark, brooding mood intimated by the album title, for example, the galactic-scale disinterest of "Empty Space" or "Circuit" sounds practically joyful.
This would appeal to folks who are into stuff like Barn Owl or Hanetration. You can stream Nemesis on soundcloud, or snatch it here. Get comfy, pack the pipe, and prepare to explore the dark expanses of yr mind.
Sometimes I'm shooting the shit about music with someone or having some other idle conversation, and one of us will mention Dog Faced Hermans. Inevitably we'll both crack a grin of having the shared knowledge of the band. Because they're criminally overlooked among your Sonic Youths and Chumbawumbas of the late '80s/early '90s. Their sound really cannot and should not be aped -- much in the same way that Can made music that was singularly Can, the Hermans' music was a convergence of four personalities whose expression at all times openly defied the restrictions of a 'style' that might be copied or clotted into some fad subgenre. Musical and philosophical connections with the Ex are readily discernable, as Andy Moor was playing with these guys in Scotland for years before he joined up with those Hollanders, and the two bands frequently collaborated and toured together.
"How We Connect" is a perfect example of what makes the Hermans so great. Stomping, bassy drums, excavator-engine bass, aggressive horns, and guitar that scuffles and screes on a no-wave frequency, only to stop on a dime and change to something resembling West African highlife. And then there's Marion's vocals. She never really yells so much as sings fiercely, with a poetic clarity that demands your attention and thought. Definitely a good LP band, because these folks know how to exercise song dynamics (for all the experimentation the Hermans engaged in, they wrote good songs, first and foremost). They close this album with Ornette Coleman's "Peace Warrior," a rollicking punch in the gut of a cover that fuses free improv jazz with punk in the most brilliant and intuitive way.
Hum of Life has been out of print for a long time, but in 2009 the vinyl was reissued on Mississippi Records, a very cool-sounding establishment in Portland. I don't know if it's still available, and the store/label's web presence is rather scant, but see if you can get in touch with them to find out: their facebook page has their contact info. For those of you who aren't registered on that NSA shadow site, there's always the old-fashioned physical location/phone number:
Mississippi Records
4007 N Mississippi Ave
Portland, Oregon 97227
(503) 282-2990
This has been my night music for a little while now so I'm posting it tonight. If you are into what Mark McGuire does, have at this, 'coz it's a good one. In his words:
"NIGHTSHADE"
was originally released in May of 2012 on cassette, for a short tour in
Japan. Although there were 50 or 60 copies made, only about 30 or 40 of
them ever got assembled and out, so it's fair to say it won't be
popping-up in stores anytime soon. Originally inspired by a deep,
nocturnal journey that took place in New Zealand earlier this year,
these tracks were made as a devotion to the spiritual elements of the
infinite space of the night sky. Electric & acoustic guitars, and
vocals run through guitar-synthesizer and other electronics, calling
back to the voices in the sky. A small, dark stage in the open air, a
light drawing constellation trails on the hills, underneath the infinite
Recorded Spring 2012 in a big, empty house in Portland.
Guitars, vocals, and electronics recorded during the
first first-quarter, and the last first-quarter (the waxing gibbous and
the waning gibbous) of March 2012 at Heavenly Bodies, Portland, Oregon.
This music was first inspired under the bright and beautiful night sky
of the southern hemisphere. More specifically, at 41° 15 41.12 S, 174°
57 3.04 E, Wainuiomata, New Zealand, February 11th, 2012
This music is some top shelf latter-day American kosmische; in my light-polluted corner of the world, music of the heavens has to substitute for the sight of them. Good for reading, headphones, sleep, ambience or active listening, pondering, etc etc etc. Get into this you heads.
Since I mentioned these guys in my End Result post, I figured I should bring it to your attention that ONO released a new record on Halloween. It is a hell of a thing. But before I get into the record perhaps some introduction is in order:
Around 1979 or 1980 the two founding members of ONO, P. Michael and travis, started playing dirty R&B tunes at strip clubs, weddings, wherever else would have them. They were as likely to play stuff by King Crimson as Rufus Thomas or Bo Diddley. Eventually they found their way into the punk scene via queer bars like La Mere Vipere, O'Banions, and Medusa's (travis had been on shore leave from the Navy in time to be around for the Stonewall riots in NYC), freaking out the audiences at shows they played with Chicago bands like Naked Raygun, the Effigies, Algebra Suicide, and of course End Result. Actually their first gig in late 1980 was opening for Special Affect, which featured a pre-Ministry Al Jourgensen. Whenever out-of-towners like Lydia Lunch or Cabaret Voltaire would roll through, ONO would bring the noise.
During that first decade ONO released two LPs, 1983's Machines That Kill People and 1986's Ennui. Two slabs of true weirdness ... people were not particularly receptive to the industrial-noise-gospel-synth dirges contained on those albums, especially when confronted with the band members' outlandish stage attire and unsettling ritualistic behavior in live shows. Still, the band continued to perform through to 1990, appearing on compilations alongside Algebra Suicide, Portland weirdos Smegma, and a whole rabble of forgotten groups. For more info on the band's history, consult the writeup/interview in Roctober, always an authoritative source for Chicago punk and outsider musics.
There wasn't much noise from the ONO camp through the '90s, though travis and P. Michael kept themselves busy with other projects. Then, in the late aughts the world seemed to catch up to them, and ONO started gigging again at various DIY venues throughout Chicago. Which brings us to Albino: a haunting summation of the dark magic the group have generated over the past three decades. I could tell you about "I Been Changed," with its gospel-tune lyrics of redemption sung over a Birthday Party-style blues-punk din, or the excellent cover of the VU's "All Tomorrow's Parties," but really my words can't do this album justice. Just hit play:
Albino is out now on Moniker Records in a pressing of 300. You can stream the album and purchase it on the label's bandcamp page.
So I dig this Puke Skywalker stuff for a couple of reasons. One is that it's a name I was often called in grade school by the ever-so creative dipshits with whom I was educated. Another is that this dude used to maintain an excellent music blog that had a lot of influence on the stuff I've listened to in the past few years. A third is that this guy makes some sick, often bizzare, always interesting remix music.
This EP is a different animal than the Tripper Crust EP I posted some months back. While that one dealt exclusively in blastbeats and grind sounds, Poison has an almost optimistic sound (I'm reminded of James Ferraro's Far Side Virtual stuff), and could even be perceived as 'danceable.' It opens up with a reworking of the VU's 'I'm Set Free,' followed by an Alan Parsons Project tune. He still manages to work in some early 90s powerviolence samples, but it doesn't run the show this time.
Ever since I first heard Dive Signals, the solo electronic project of Californian Angel Ortega, I have been curious to know what motivates his work. Much of his music makes use of drone to effect a mood that is simultaneously distant and inviting. You can read my writeups of a couple of his albums here. But first, hear the truth from the man himself.
When I heard 10,000 Tropics I immediately got a coastal, Southern California sort of feeling. Do you think your location has much influence on your music? Do you do most of your work in Orange?
Indeed a sunny coastal sensation is eminent in 10,000 Tropics, but I tried to embed deeper in the tracks a certain ambiguous lonely, claustrophobic sensation – a lower mood basically. For instance the track “Mother Says Please Come Home” is followed immediately by “May the Circle Be Unbroken,” a song about a man’s mother passing.
My location is very influential on my work and that location is the suburbs of Orange County. House after house, telephone wires following bland sidewalks – the environment is stifling to my creativity. My studio is a bedroom. Amidst the creation of 10kT I became extremely reclusive, almost to the point of depression. 10kT was birthed out of desperate frustration and longing for something greater, something bigger than my surroundings. Regardless of whether or not listeners see the tonality I was trying to produce I feel a sense of great emotion is unconcealed.
How long have you been working as Dive Signals? Have you been/are you involved in any other musical projects?
Dive Signals began about a year ago … I had a good amount of equipment stolen and was forced to look for other methods of creating music. This was both a depressive time and a growing experience in terms of artistic matters. About 3 years ago I was in a collaborative group with fellow label mate Opacities. Together we conjured experimental harsh noise and abrasive drones following the exuberant influence of bands such as Wolf Eyes and Sunn O))). And then came a time where we both felt it would be healthy to explore what we were capable of as solo artist. We do collaborate here and there – a split is on the way actually.
What are the details on the Opacities split? Any word as to what we might expect from your contribution?
The Dive Signals / Opacities split / collaboration EP was released digitally in July and features a collaboration track and a few remixes of each other’s tracks. Sound-wise it varies up a bit yet bears a unique flow as our sounds are both formidable yet deeply involving. On this album, we are both trying to push our boundaries as artists in that field of thinking. The tracks thus far are a bit darker and lean towards some kind of odd psychedelic meditation. It’ll be an interesting listen.
Last time I checked, you have something like 14 releases out this year. What drives you to stay productive? Do experience any 'creative fatigue' when working at this pace?
I’m not sure what drives me … I suppose it’s just in my system. Though I never settle in comfortably with one genre for too long I maintain a certain consistency that somewhat strings my releases together, but it’s loose as is the process in churning out the final product which keeps the experience fresh and challenging. I need this in my life though. I love what comes with creating music, the burdens and the triumphs – especially with me being something of an outsider amidst the current music scene. There’s an odd passion that drives me to create something bigger and better than the previous releases.
Besides the swiftness of your release schedule, I've been impressed with the variety of styles present on your recordings. Does this stem from whatever you're listening to at the time, or is it a conscious effort?
It’s most definitely a conscious effort. The last thing I want is to feel overly comfortable recording a track. Dive Signals is a free form project, an extension of my thoughts – it goes down to my very core. I should be pushing my personal boundaries. Music is obviously an art form, thus it being an expression of self; one, I feel, should grow from such experiences. And, damn do I want to grow as an artist. There’s a certain urgency in this matter that I maintain, and I’m not all too sure why… but it feels significant day in / day out. I seem to see my passion as a musician is never at the level I care for it to be. It’s difficult to maintain a fan base this route, but I’m not doing this for other people. It’s a deeply personal excursion.
Who are some of your influences, musical or otherwise? What are you listening to lately?
As production is always the primary focal point in creating my tracks I really don’t look at musicians for inspiration, but rather producers – Phil Spector, Martin Hannett, Steve Albini, Brian Eno and Mark Linkous, are some of the few – a varied group.
Lately I’ve been spinning a lot of Stax artist such as Otis Redding as well as Songs: Ohia’s Ghost Tropic, AFX, Miles Davis/Gil Evans collaborations, the electronica work of David Holmes (From which Don’t Die Just Yet was heavily inspired) and Opacities’ Field Reconnaissance – all really good stuff.
After listening to some David Holmes (his '90s stuff at least), I can definitely hear some similarity with how dynamic musical elements are presented on Don't Die Just Yet (which, I am learning from youtube, is the title of a David Holmes song ). He does a lot of film soundtracks, right? I think your work has a certain cinematic quality to it – have you ever thought of making music for films?
Don’t Die Just Yet was a straightforward ode to David Holmes; his manner of looking at music has been very influential on all my works (at least his early years as an artist) and yes, he frequently works with director Steven Soderbergh among others. Holmes’ albums are known for their cinematic nature and I fire for that aesthetic in my music. That’s part of my love for the full album experience – going from track to track conjuring mental images based on the atmosphere of each song and having an overall journey.
To work in film would be wonderful. If the occasion were ever to arise I would most certainly jump on it. My love for music began with film. Composers such as Ennio Morricone, Max Steiner and Henry Mancini, creating colorful sounds and having them matched with lush visuals – it affected me greatly.
What is your setup like? Computers? Analog equipment?
My setup consists of really the cheapest equipment around. I have a 75-dollar organ – which is always in rotation – a few pedals, a glockenspiel … most of the effects used are created in mixing: meticulous EQ laboring, heavily altering samples such as brass instruments and drums, reverb, compressors – all digital computer work basically.
For independent (and especially solo) artists, there are obvious practical reasons for using cheap equipment, but do you think there is any particular aesthetic value to producing this way?
I was once at a place where I had vast amounts equipment and that time came to an end – just stolen, all of it – and I never really recovered what was lost. I was then put in a position where I had to find other ways of creating the sounds I wanted. These moments were influential on the sound I have now, though I’m not one to particularly shoot for lo-fi production, à la garage rock, or anything of that matter. My core point with music is creating atmosphere and ambiance that is deep, enticing, and involving. I go to great lengths to achieve the sounds I produce. If that should mean my production style is to be categorized with the lo-fi genre then so be it. I have no qualms with the matter. I’ve seen both ends of the spectrum and I prefer the route I take.
Well, I guess what I was trying to get at is that while your setup is very lo-fi, the actual music sounds anything but. As a non-musician, it appears to me that the availability of a wide range of (often freely acquirable) production software makes ostensibly 'lo-fi' equipment potentially more powerful for recording than it might otherwise be. Do you think this is the case?
My equipment is ridiculously cheap; what one can do with software these days is astonishing. My early base tracks sound just bare-boned and thin. Some computer magic goes a long way. Working with Bryan Schuessler of Opacities was an experience. Him being a laptop based glitch artist who utilizes MAX/MSP, high fidelity mics, etc. – it was just something else. My production style does indeed maintain a lot of PC work: extensive EQ, multiple overdubs, reverb and heavily altered samples, but I personally don’t use high-end software, though I now understand the unlimited possibilities of its practice.
Your recent EP, 1989, makes me think of the drone work of This Heat and Future Days-era Can (especially the track 'Pop Route Love Song'). I guess the highlights of the EP for me are opener 'Slow Kitten' and 'Holly.' Those two in particular have such a well-conceived sense of spatial sound; I feel like I'm being led around in the song as if it is a real place. It's very psychedelic. You seem to approach songs in terms of space and orientation, changing in time, to the end of crafting a rich and unique experience that is an EP or album. I don't really have a question related to this, but I was curious about your thoughts on this topic, and/or on 1989.
1989 was me making a bold effort in culminating all the ideals I carry when creating a Dive Signals release: lush atmospherics, loose cinematic notions – just a dreamy wall of sound platform for the imagination to run rampant and do what it does best. I tend not to look at typical song writing for direction when putting together a track, but rather psychedelic production and crafting textures that mix and mingle with a unique sense of space. Upon close inspection you can see that these are the elements that tie my releases together – from Don’t Die Just Yet to Mesa Verde as different as they are from each other genre wise. 1989 was just me striving to push these ideals to their full extremities.
How does a Dive Signals song get written?
Well, it depends on the vibe I’m shooting for. There’s no real formula – what really matters is showcasing the center piece that will drive the track, be it a drum skit, a guitar strum, anything really and just building drones and vibrations to amplify the center piece and mood, but keeping the process loose to allow for mistakes and surprises to happen as to make the experience of creating the track interesting.
I know very little about ambient/drone music myself, but I think what puts a lot of people off it is the relative "inactivity" of the music. But when I listen to a Dive Signals recording, I've found it works well for both ambiance and active listening. Is there anything in particular you do to keep listeners engaged?
As I stated before, production is my main focus – that being said, upon careful listening a lot of crucial elements are brought to the attention of the listener – vibrations, tones, unique atmospheres all hidden beyond the foreground. Amidst this I try to implement multiple genres into one track – the most blatant would probably trip hop, dream pop, or shoegaze – basically, just creating something unique from pre-existing statements and letting the drone ride.
People seem to look at music these days as tracks rather than the whole album experience. A lot is lost skimming through albums rather than playing the beast straight through and really sinking into the subject. Artists such as Spiritualized and early Cure albums are perfect representations of this. I feel when the vinyl scene slowed down this matter came up.
Is Dive Signals a studio-only project, or do you play live?
I do play live, but Dive Signals Live and Dive Signals Over Cushiony Headphones are completely different entities as I cannot replicate what I do in the “studio” live at this point in time.
So what is Dive Signals like live? Do you present the material differently onstage?
Dive Signals live is mostly original drone work, often improvised and varies tone-wise from show to show. Sometimes a calm atmosphere is presented and other times more abrasive vibes are emitted – simple instrumentation backed with live, almost metronomic drum work and heavily altered vocals. Playing live is as of this time is not really a priority, though this may change soon.
Whenever I google "Dive Signals," most of the results have something to do with scuba diving. It seemed an apt term, given the sense of place and atmosphere communicated nonverbally in the music. Do you partake in any such hobbies?
Dive Signals is a term used to describe hand signals scuba divers use to communicate with each other underwater. I suppose a sense of irony is embedded in the name, though I did not know this at the time I picked it. I thought of Dive Bars and lo-fi frequencies – fused the two … I dunno, the former is pretty cool I guess. I do like dive bars though.
Can we expect any other new Dive Signals releases in the near future?
I may take a short break in releasing material after this Opacities split to focus on expanding the label I co-run: Static Reason Recordings. So far we have a few artists’ releases coming that we’re very excited about. 10,000 Tropics will be re-issued and sold as a CD-r / Cassette package. I may also be producing an upcoming Static Reason artist’s EP. I don’t know though, an EP or single may slip at some point in between all that. I have a few ideas I’m tossing around, but we’ll have to see.
Finally, what can you tell us about Static Reason recording artist E. Bry? The double single up on bandcamp is a real jam, and I'm intrigued.
Well, we’re releasing an upcoming LP of his. The album is expected to drop around early winter. From what I hear the general sound is going to be a bit different from the single released through Bandcamp. Be sure to be on the lookout for it – I expect really great things from this up and coming talent.
Well, it was a pleasure discussing all this with you. Thanks for your answers and insight!
Thanks for doing it, I really enjoyed the experience.
I don't know that I need to make any introduction here ... with Faust you kind of know what you're going to get, even when you don't. They've been in the experimental game for some four decades now, and all the recent stuff I've heard from them has been top-shelf. When I listen to Faust, I mostly go for the textures rather than songs -- though they have no lack of great songwriting -- because they are master producers, repurposing all manner of sounds for musical utility. Anyway this disc is a good'n, sounds great as usual.
Something Dirty sounds pretty great as a continuous piece (and fairly well-pissed-off much of the way, too), but the 13 songs are undeniably different from each other. And that's all I'll say; nobody should have to convince you to listen to Faust.
This is a submission I've been meaning to post for a while now, so behold: Hanetration hail from the UK and secretes some excellent IDM jams -- and this EP is full of them. 'Rex' opens with electronic ripples, letting little quanta of musical information escape until an off-kilter rhythm breaks a hole in the wall and staggers into your ear, phasing in and out as if a dish is struggling to keep the signal. The vibe is not unlike This Heat's 'Fall of Saigon,' which is a welcome influence to my ears.
I could go on about each song like this but the overall sense I get from Hanetration is of some meticulously crafted ambient-but-active-listening music, defying expectation without getting you totally lost. The four compositions all move in and out of each other unnoticeably, morphing from jagged riddms to undulating drone tones with natural ease. Hanetration makes good use of (what sound like) non-electronic instruments the way much of the best electronic music does -- such that the sound is not perceived as 'synthetic.'
I highly recommend this EP to anyone who liked my Dive Signals posts (more of that on the way as well), or the late UK electronic guru Muslimgauze. And like that stuff, this EP is a Quality Headphone Experience™. So plug in, light up some incense, alter yr consciousness if you care to, and let the madness pour in.
As this prairie spring starts to feel like prairie summer (sure are a lot of 90+ degree days for May in Illinois, anyway), I am increasingly in need of music to cool the air. Enter this new(-ish) Dive Signals release, which has been consistently successful in shading me from the Midwest Sun. I have been vibing to this ever since it was sent to me, but finally have overcome the fatigue of exams to tell you about it.
I am always interested to hear what new sounds this guy is coming up with, because it seems like every Dive Signals release (all of five in the first half of 2012) has had a different sort of vision behind it. Don't Die Just Yet, which came out about a month ago, exemplifies this: whereas 10,000 Tropics built on a sunny, Californian ocean-breeze atmosphere, this set grows in the opposite direction, meandering unpredictably through New York streets and alleys, with the sounds of jazz gigs escaping the windows. The trademark Dive Signals spacey drone sound remains, but while on 10kT this effected a wide, sky-filling ambiance, on DDJY the environment feels more like the inside of a near-empty subway station, with the noises of traffic, other trains, crime and degradation, creativity, death and wealth -- The City -- all just on the other side of a wall or ceiling. My favorite passage on here is probably the suspenseful, eight-minute centerpiece '17 Patterns' (which could ably stand in as the soundtrack for a crime film) and its cathartic transition to the more explicit groove of '2nd Notion.' Really, though, the whole effort works well as a continuous piece, and definitely rewards headphone listening.
I highly recommend giving the other available Dive Signals releases a listen; they range from strung-out electric folk ballads to the aforementioned tropical drones to the musique concrète and noise stylings of Mr. Ortega's most recent release of older material, The Grey Tense. It's all free +PWYW on bandcamp, so show some support if you like what you're hearing.
Here is a sweet submission from Chicago. It's another one-man avant-pop project, this one by a certain Jamarcus Drake, and it's pretty crazy. Supposedly created by turning on some TV show and making music while the show is muted, the songs are meant to be partially formed by the subconscious inspiration provided by the shows' images. Or something. It doesn't really need any backstory to be appreciated -- this album's worth hearing on its own merits. The different songs all have pretty different moods, and the music ranges from weird ambience to fully-structured pop (but still kinda weird) songs. There seem to be quite a few instruments one here, all played by Mr. Drake.
The fifth song, 'The Good Ol' Jay Turser, Back in Action,' sounds like Future Days-era Can, which I've really not heard a lot of people steal from very often. Some other sounds I can hear in various parts of the album are Pavement and Sonic Youth-isms, but there is too much originality throughout (jazz breaks, unexpected vocal harmonies, drum solos, boogie piano, beatboxing, wildly optimistic-sounding guitar melodies, etc.) to dismiss this as derivative or something. I dunno, hearing this will give you a better idea than I can provide in words. Best heard in sequence, all in one go.
This album (as well as two other releases) are available for free on MaoTzu's bandcamp.
This album is a good introduction to This Heat, if you haven't heard Deceit already (which I recommend seeking out). Made Available consists of two 1977 BBC sessions done with the incomparable John Peel, who dug the band's bridging of krautrock sonics, world musics (before that term was pillaged of all meaning), tape magics, pioneering electronics, 'truly' jagged rhythms, and subversive politics. These guys were way ahead of their time, as evinced by the body of work they had produced by the year of 1977, when most people were making a bigger deal about 'White Riot' (which, much as I like it, sounds like 'classic rock' compared to this).
The standout songs on here are 'Horizontal Hold' (superior to the version on their first LP, in my opinion), 'The Fall of Saigon,' and the early version of 'Makeshift Swahili,' which would be laid down again on the aforementioned Deceit.
I dunno, this music is all over the place. It is the ultimate '77 punk record insofar as it sounds so unique. But enough of my incoherent babbling, try it out yourself.
Here's the most recent from everyone's favorite Dutch improv-anarcho-post-punk-world collaborators the Ex. They've been called the Dutch answer to Crass, but the Fall might be closer to the mark (but without the associated dickishness). Maybe This Heat? Most all comparisons fail though, as the Ex is a pretty unique group. Some bands just get better with age and these guys are one of them. This album (their 25th, I think) is a jam, front to back. The opener, "Maybe I Was the Pilot," is different from the version released as a single earlier in 2010, with the new horn section. Really, the dissonant trumpet adds a lot to the sound of this album; it's well-executed and improves the urgency of the record. Katherina Bornefeld's propulsive drumming has a singular rhythm which is an absolute joy to watch live (see video below). And there's plenty of electric guitar free-kout stuff, like in "Bicycle Illusion." "Keep On Walking" is a triumphant anthem, totally accessible and inspiring. I can only think positive things about this band and this album. Highly recommended.
