A new year... 2000, at that! Yikes! Fortunately I don't have time to ponder the ramifications as I've been too busy listening to these discs to bring you the best in ambient/electronic opinionations. As always, it's a mixture and you're bound to find something that appeals to your highly personalized listening tastes... Koji Asano Ensemble: Flow-Augment   (Solstice - 1999) (8.6) Besides composing and performing his piano, electronics and computer synthesis works, Koji Asano also runs his own record label in Barcelona. Here he directs his ensemble in three of his compositions which were recorded live in Tokyo. In I (14:24), violin, viola, cello and contrabass are put through some unpredictable, earbending manuevers; strident siren-like wails, ominously churning spirals, screechy tremolos and periods of silence expressively tell their story, even though it sounds a bit confusing to my untrained ears. Oftentimes the music sounds like a soundtrack theme for when the lead character has gone deliriously insane... not that this is a bad thing. II is generally less hyperactive, with additional piano joining in the staccato notes which seem to be continually tuning up. This opening gives way to emotive strains from the string section and widely ranging interplay with the piano, spanning several moods with various approaches. Asano even plays on III (19:23), which begins subtly enough with piano notes and violin/viola phrases dancing slowly around each other. Adroit finger workouts are undertaken by all performers in interludes which range from beautiful to busy to outright spastic. In my own limited grasp of the subject, I'll just slap a broad label like "experimental chamber music" on these artful proceedings. There is a certain avant-garde, upper-crustiness about these sounds and arrangments which takes me to places I don't normally go. Such blatant inventiveness is always welcome, as is this reminder that otherworldy sounds can be created on "conventional" instruments. A visit to the Solstice website should make things a bit clearer for you. Brume & Toy Bizarre: Brume & Toy Bizarre   (Staalplaat - 1999) (8.5) Very strange sounds abound in my personal introduction to these artists. Zee part one leaps right into the sonic mishmash of found sounds and other unknowable noises; dogs, chickens, backward voices, muffled symphonics and random creaking and clunking of unkown intent are only a small part of this meandering panorama. An extended tapestry of murky noises unfolds with Zee part two (14:30) and its unintelligible spoken bits, grinding feedback, rhythmic pulsations, etc., etc. Zee part four (6:39) wanders between raucously rippling tones and quieter interludes of strangeness, and thus concludes the Brume & Toy Bizarre section (composed, recorded and mixed September/October 1997). Now it's time to enter the zone of Toy Bizarre & Brume (composed, recorded and mixed January/February 1998) by way of the electric thrums, whispery glitches, escalating/retreating loudness, wailing sirens, multilevel drones and generally uneasy atmospheres of KDI DCTB 57a, a very nicely rendered audiocollage of obtuse bleakness. The clamorous machine-like clatter of KDI DCTB 57b is offset with eerily hushed passages. The closing track basks in a softer, though still spookily surreal, chaos. If you like it weird, this disc could be a treasured addition to your collection. DNA LE DRAW D KEE: DNA LE DRAW D KEE   (Soleilmoon - 1999) (8.4) In 1996, Edward Ka-Spel of The Legendary Pink Dots was asked to make an "ambient" sound construction, which he did with then-wife Elke, infant son Calyxx and fellow Pink Dot Ryan Moore. The results were released on vinyl for Korm Plastics. Soleilmoon has re-released the album on this two-track CD. Decay (21:13) meanders through assorted soundworlds including (but certainly not limited to) the introductory oscillations which are joined by distant, buried voices, a hazily chiming zone of tinkling beauty, a couple different tribalbeat interludes laced with spacey, wavering electrons and ghostly female vocals, concluding as a rippling electronic pulsation. DNA (18:09) begins with soft notes awash with electric waves and faraway surf thunder, to be replaced by a cacophany of clocks which quickly segues into bells and drifts, then buzzy glitches and symphonic strings. The unpredictable journey continues through spooky realms, baby cries, soaring ephemera, even a brief musical segment amid floating soundwaves, followed by guitar pluckings and surging atmospherics which close out the disc. Assuredly, it's much more interesting to listen to than read about these seemingly random sonic encounters. in the nursery: stormhorse   (Sweatbox Records - 1987) (8.8) Stirring neo-orchestral sounds from England's Humberstone twins, Nigel and Klive provide a moodily suspenseful soundtrack to the cinema in your mind. Stormhorse is also notable as the introduction of long-time accompanists, vocalist Dolores Marguerite C. and percussionist Q. From the swirling synthstrings and booming brass of Tempest, to the percussive power of Hit, to the woodwind-y overtures of Portamento, all manner of pseudosymphonics are explored. Blind Me adds more modernistic beats and brief spoken bits. Elegy (6:40) closes the show with string and organ arrangements topped with French female words. Even a non-classical fan like myself can appreciate the accessible sounds and furies released from this disc. Tune into next month's upload for more recent sounds and words from in the nursery; until then delve further at the official in the nursery website. Lustmord: Paradise Disowned   (Soleilmoon - 1999) (8.4) Soleilmoon Recordings has recently re-released Lustmord's somewhat noisier precursor to Heresy. Like that black masterpiece, field recordings on this disc include those taken in crypts, caves, undersea and even in an abbattoir. Somber monastic chorals echo through the darkened hallways of Utterance, backed by dreary machine-like drones and other edgey noises. Among the myriad of subterranean swells, rumbles and ghost choirs of Pyre (Necro Cristi), occasional tortured saxophone outbursts wail (I like to pretend it's Kenny G in Hell...). The electronic grunge, chants and telecasts of Terror Against Terror receive a drummier treatment, though the beats are plodding and methodical, whereas Comahon Q. Q. Comahon's beats are much dancier, simplistically pounding amid buzzy growls, sax and other sonic abrasions. Pure (7:19) certainly shows off Williams' talent for creating sounds, which has obviously aided him in his film sound work. Worthy of a re-release mainly to fans, who will especially appreciate hearing the early machinations of a dark ambient/noise master from whom we don't seem to hear enough these days. According to the Lustmord website, Brian Williams has indeed been keeping busy (with video game music, film scores, remixing and a new release somewhere in the works). Stephen Philips: Cycles 2   (Dark Duck Records - 1999) (8.3) Consisting of one 61-minute-long piece, Endless Dream, this disc billows out as a continuous tapestry of soft shapeless tones. Ideal for deep immersions where the flow is uninterrupted by track breaks, beats or samples. Long, slow, interwoven waves crest and recede almost imperceptibly evolving. Soundforms range from fairly lush, low drones to shriller hightones all just fading in slow motion from one to the next. Stephen Philips has been at the helm of deep-chill-ambient flagship Dark Duck Records for more than 10 years and is obviously dedicated to his craft. While there's always room in the "less is more" category, and indeed ambient music is partially defined as being "ignorable", I found myself wanting a little more "something" out of these soundwaves. For an hour of ambient listening though, these extended tendrils of sound certainly are fit to the task. Pseudocipher: Pseudocipher   (Rhythmsick Records Ltd. - 1998) (7.8) The acoustic/electric guitar, beats and male/female vocal harmony of 11:14 merge with wafting electronics effectively blending two very different soundworlds. This turns out to be the modus operandi throughout this disc... Confession and Time mix soft-edged rock and electronica, with Rhonda Amber's soulful vocals soaring to the heavens then screeching through the depths. Disoncertingly sweet, daddy's girl is sort of a pyschological-electro-rock-opera with a child-molestation theme. Purge Obviously non-ambient, but skillfull arrangements impressively mix-and-match genres; experimental and contemporary electronics are well-represented in these 12 tracks, alongside moody rock, ethereal pop, and assorted vocal stylings, oftentimes rather Depeche Mode-ish. You can hear for yourself at this Pseudocipher page. Strategy: Intense   (ArtOfFact Records - 1999) (8.2) Slickly produced electroGoth broods amid 12 tracks of beats and shimmering synth. Strategy's monstrously modulated voice is buried under layers of soaring electronics and e-drumming in opener resist. Sci-fi effects seep into the background of dancefloor-ready intelligence where vocals are again piled high with musical layers which cannot conceal their undeniably theatric prescence (which comes across as perhaps too theatric in the world-weary croak and affected baritone of stone of passion). For all the dark posturing, Strategy's black heart beats warmly, as demonstrated by the peace-loving message of war, the affirmative pep talk of get it right and the sweet gloom of guardian angel. The disc closes with confidence, with which Strategy liberally plunders and reworks Metallica's "Unforgiven" into a majestic display of ethereal power. While not exactly my cup of venom, I can appreciate the amount of earnest work and sweat that was obviously put into this production. The folks at Canada's bastion of electronic darkness ArtOfFact Records can surely tell you more. Various Artists: Ambient Dub Volume One: The Big Chill   (Beyond - 1992) (8.5) Back in 1992, Beyond Records added fuel to the fire of future ambient/world/beat fusions with this 79:25 collection of 10 globalized trans-genre pieces. The disc begins on the rather-too-contemporary crooning of Sexy Selector by Original Rockers (one of several participating artists who fall into the the "Where Are They Now/ Who?" category). Banco De Gaia's Desert Wind warmly blows with breezy rhythms, serpentine basslines and sinuous vocal strands. (BDG's Toby Marks delivers another standout track with Soufie...) The (literally) continually- repeated "OK, let's do it" sample really wrecks my enjoyment of the otherwise listenable electro-space grunge/rhythmics of Strawberry (5:55) by Mimoid (126 times!? I counted!). The reverberant spoken word of Angelica in Delerium isn't nearly so offsetting to G.O.L.'s drummy Middle Eastern sounds and dub bass. Mimoid appears again with the more-organic, less-repetitive long-runnner Tree of the Sun, Tree of the Moon (13:26) in which extended synth drifts are festooned with warbly soundwaves and low-key syncopation. A visitation to Planet Hoskins by Alphanex reveals a well-done blend of smooth ambient dub with bleepy electronics. Higher Intelligence Agency offers a particularly dancey beat (and a message, of sorts) with the elastic radioripples of Ketamine Entity. The disc ends with Something Started, a nicely groovy, if somewhat metaphysical, offering from 21st Century Aura. While neither the beginning nor the end of the whole ambient dub subgenre, these early tracks display a formative sense of progression and are well-worth a listen for history's sake, or just plain soaking. Posted January 26, 2000 | 1999 Overviews Index

AmbiEntrance © 1999-97 by David J Opdyke (except CD cover art, rights retained by original owners).