|
Music > Dance
|
Bilious Paths
(CD)
Mike Paradinas; Performed by Mu - Ziq
|
R265
Discovery Miles 2 650
|
Out of stock
|
|
The chamber rock-cum-avant-garde ensemble Art Zoyd had a studio in
Mons. The contemporary Ensemble Musiques Nouvelles was based in
Maubeuge, just across the Franco-Belgian border. When musical
directors G‚rard Hourbette and Jean-Paul Dessy decided to work
together they formed the Centre Transfrontalier de Production et
Cr‚ation Musicales and began to welcome composers in residence.
Exp‚riences de Vol is a triple-CD set of recordings featuring
both ensembles performing works composed for this project by a wide
array of artists ranging from contemporary composers to names more
usually associated with the electronica scene. An Art Zoyd album
this is not; instead what you get is a strong collection of
challenging works. Some stay too close to the academic sphere to
light up any sparks, although Kasper T. Toeplitz's "Biel" is
delightfully minimalist and Christophe Jean Feldhandler and Dessy's
pieces contain some beautiful moments. G‚rard Hourbette and --
surprisingly -- David Shea provide the most Art Zoyd-sounding
moments. Atau Tanaka and Ryoji Ikeda are the two unknown variables
here, concert music not being known as their forte. They turn in
impressive contributions. Tanaka makes extensive use of Laurent
Dailleau's mastery of the theremin. Ikeda's "Opus 1" features a
peaceful section of long string chords, unlike anything else he has
done before. The stated intent of bringing together the worlds of
acoustic and electronic contemporary music may not be completely
successful, but the project has left in its wake interesting
results. ~ Fran‡ois Couture
Any album featuring Thurston Moore, Jon Spencer, and Dinosaur Jr.'s
J Mascis, and Murph would almost seem like a supergroup effort from
the 1990s, so their appearances on Cobra Killer's 2009 Uppers and
Downers gives a clear sense of past champions being given their due
by a newer generation. The fact that said representatives of the
newer generation are Cobra Killer gives it a better twist than
most, though, since the German duo's twisted way around
scuzzy/snarky new wave dance-punk for a new century is its own
merry aesthetic. Five albums and a decade into their formal
partnership under the Cobra Killer name, Gina V. D'Orio and Annika
Line still sound like they revel in their own way around pop on
their own terms with a fresh burst of youth, shifting from bright
chirpiness and clatter on "Hello Celebrity" and "Mr. Chang," to sly
swing on "Vitamine" and "Schneeball in Die Fresse," all while
sounding like nobody but themselves, rather than simply an assembly
of their many favorites. When their voices cross in call and
response on "Skibrille" over an arrangement that's part garage jam,
part wheezing machinery, and part minimal glitch percussion, the
result is pure, sharp joy. Perhaps the ultimate testament to Cobra
Killer's complete confidence in their own aesthetic is how the
various guest players are used -- "Hang Up the Pinup" features
Mascis, Murph, and Moore, but they all smoothly slot into the duo's
compressed, one-room-over rush of noise that the singing rings
across with both clarity and echo, giddiness that's at once alien
and rollicking. ~ Ned Raggett
The avant-garde, as a general catchall term for sound experimenters
in this case, transcends national and cultural boundaries as much
now as it ever did in previous decades and centuries, which is why
it's no real surprise to hear the work on Chinese artist Changcun
Wang's The Mountain Swallowing Sadness as something with roots
ranging from Merzbow's power electronics to (texturally rather than
specifically) Ligeti's innovations with string arrangements. Sub
Rosa is a logical label for Wang's work to gain wider recognition
from, to be sure, and this two-track effort is worth a listen for
those interested in such approaches. The first and much longer of
the two pieces, at nearly 40 minutes, "Grand Hotel" is described by
Wang as his wanting to "erect a building in the ear," though the
fact that initially the building sounds more like something
Einst�rzende Neubaten would be tearing down is perhaps
appropriate. Still, as the wash of layers upon layers of metallic
and static and feedback mutates throughout it actually does suggest
a swooping structure of sorts; at its roughest sonically, it
suggests Harry Bertoia's sound sculptures come to monstrous life,
while many pauses and quieter moments, increasing as the track
progresses, suggest distance and murkier corners of the mental
edifice in question, akin to the unsettling work of Robert Hampson
in Main but with less obsessive focus on rhythm. "King of Image
1995," meanwhile, is based on a tape Wang found that documented a
funeral service of an unknown-to-him person. It's a fairly
straightforward presentation in comparison to "Grand Hotel," with
the chanting of (presumably) Buddhist nuns forming the core -- the
effect is quite haunting and captivating all at once, especially
when the nuns suddenly shift to a swift, staccato delivery. Had it
been on a Sublime Frequencies compilation, nobody would have
blinked, which makes its inclusion here all the more interesting in
context. ~ Ned Raggett
|
Abeceda
(CD)
Larsen & Friends
|
R337
Discovery Miles 3 370
|
Out of stock
|
|
|
Late
(CD)
Herbert, Duo505
|
R317
Discovery Miles 3 170
|
Out of stock
|
|
|
You may like...
Fuse
Everything But The Girl
CD
R169
Discovery Miles 1 690
Therapy
Anne-marie
CD
R80
R57
Discovery Miles 570
Magneton
The Octagon Man
CD
R356
R315
Discovery Miles 3 150
Caracal
Disclosure
CD
R49
Discovery Miles 490
I See You
The XX
CD
R88
R60
Discovery Miles 600
|