Author: dave

German electronic musician Harald Lapp, who trades as Autrax, might be new on the scene, but he shares much in the way of lineage with the late Pete Namlook, his fellow countryman and sound artist-in-arms. On this, his first full-length, it might well be no coincidence that he’s named a track “Alien Community” as both an homage and shout-out to Namlook’s work of the same name. Stylistically, Lapp’s catalog of noises bears much in the way of Fax-ian fruit: the aforementioned track revels in the former label’s high regard for blurp, bleep, and deep space ritual, nine post-trance minutes of sequenced mercury, acid-test spittle, and cushiony keyboard stabs. “Deep Bass 9” reasonably Faxes its own brains out as well, the vintage 707 squiggles creating instant recall for the likes of early Namlook sides from Sequential, Datacide, Coeur Atomique, and many other classic tales from the much-heralded (and greatly missed) Teutonic 90s. Anyone with even a passing interest in the kinds of analog perambulations Mr. Namlook and his band of merry knob twiddlers exorcised will be quite taken with Lapp in his Autrax guise—it’s a rearview mirror glimpse into the past that looks to harness the future.

Lee Norris and Matt Hillier have been busy in the studio over the winter months and present their fourth album as Plank and Ishq.

The organic and melodic sounds on Zeal Monachorum seem to have been sourced from deep woods and underground tunnels, where mysterious life forms breed and grow. Assembled within hours, they manage to distil, like a magic time capsule, the essence of eternity in a few minutes. With a careful listen one is able to recognize, briefly, familiar sounds; a cricket on a hot summer night, boats dancing in moving waters. Blended with carefully filtered analog recordings and surrounded by an ensemble of vintage synthesizers. Plank and Ishq’s music not only exists within those sounds but in the space between them and in the way they interact with each other.

American composer Raymond Scott (1908-1994) had a long career as an innovator in the field of music. He formed the Raymond Scott Quintette in the 1930s, writing jazz novelties like ‘Powerhouse’ and ‘Dinner Music for a Pack of Cannibals,’ which are familiar to every earthling from their use in Warner Bros. cartoons. Though not composed specifically for cartoons, Scott’s music has also been used in The Ren & Stimpy Show, The Simpsons, Animaniacs, and various films. Scott had a big band during the 1940s, and led the orchestra on TV’s Your Hit Parade from 1950-1957. Along the way, Scott invented electronic instruments and developed pioneering studio techniques. He recorded Soothing Sounds For Baby in 1963 using electronic devices such as the Ondioline, homemade rhythm and tone generators, and tape echo. This series of ‘aural toys’ was designed for babies in three age groups (1-6 months, 6-12 months, and 12-18 months). The simple rhythms and melodies were intended to be ‘pleasantly stimulating,’ while providing a ‘quieting’ atmosphere of relaxation, warmth, and contentment. The original releases did not generate much interest in 1963, but in hindsight they are the undiscovered roots of ambient minimalism, predating works by Eno, Fripp, Steve Reich, and Philip Glass. These reissues, carefully remastered from the original tapes, were lovingly restored and include an informative insert by Raymond Scott archivist Irwin Chusid. ‘Astoundingly ahead-of- their-time examples of inspired and impeccably recorded electronic music. Predating by more than a decade such innovators as Brian Eno and Kraftwerk, Scott’s work exhibits impressive sophistication, both conceptually and in terms of the performances.’ –Paul Verna, Billboard ‘[Scott’s] endlessly pinwheeling, trance-inducing grooves were far ahead of their time: we suspect that more than a few techno artists heard these records in their cradles, and though they’re playful, pretty and simple, they have a depth and peculiarity that prefigures minimalism as well.’ –CMJ Music Report ‘Sounds like Kraftwerk for the kiddies; for adults, it can function as hip ambient music… a major find for Raymond Scott fans and for those ambient/drone fans interested in precursors to Eno and Neu.’ –E-Pulse! (Tower Records online) ‘This once-neglected rarity… should be welcomed by fans of esoterica and hardcore electronica alike. Far from being soothing, Scott’s electronic lullabies are often skull-splitting, a mixture of high frequency easy listening and sonic space-pop that, when cranked up, would keep not only the baby awake and bawling, but half the neighborhood, too. Beware, warped genius at work.’ –Edwin Pouncey, Vox (UK) The Soothing Sounds For Baby series were pressed in limited quantities and have been out of print for almost over a decade. Due to high demand, Music On Vinyl in cooperation with Basta Music pressed a limited edition of 1.000 copies on silver colored vinyl. The 3 records are housed in a thick cardboard jacket and the package includes a download coupon containing all the tracks of the albums + an insert with credits and detailed information about this extraordinary release. 180 gram audiophile vinyl includes insert/free download.

In the body of work of Cologne artist Wolfgang Voigt – who, like few others, has informed, shaped and influenced the world of electronic music with countless different projects since the early 1990s – Gas stands out in particular, a saturnine sound cosmos based on heavily condensed classic sequences. Even after nearly 20 years, the sound of Gas doesn’t seem to have lost any of its luster, as shown by the commanding success of Kompakt’s fall 2016 re-release of the essential back catalogue as a box set (KOM 370LP). The overwhelming feedback from a loyal international fan community and worldwide media outlets attests once again to the sheer timelessness of Gas. Which is why it will feel like hardly a day has passed since the release of the last official album Pop nearly two decades ago in 2000, when Wolfgang Voigt resumes this specific creative path with the upcoming new full-length Narkopop. Even in the here and now, the unmistakable vibe of Gas immediately hits home, taking the listener on an otherworldly journey with the very first sounds, drawing them into an impervious sonic thicket, down to the depths of rapture and reverie. From wafts of dense symphonic mist emerges a floating and whirling feeling of weightlessness, before the listener steps into an eerily beautiful forest of fantasy, pulled in by the allure of a narcotic bass drum. While earlier Gas tracks were often based on the hypnotic effects of looping techniques, the ten new pieces on Narkopop unfold their magic in a more entwined manner, sometimes with the sonic might of an entire philharmonic orchestra, at times subtle and fragile. A main characteristic of Voigt’s oeuvre, the coalescence of seemingly contradictory stylistic aspects such as harmonious and atonal, concrete and abstract, light and heavy, near and far is also a decisive feature of Narkopop. In accordance with the transgressive spirit of his collective work, Voigt carries the aesthetic conceptions of his music over to the realm of the visual. Based on his abstract forest pictures, the Gas artwork addresses Voigt’s artistic affinity to romanticism and the forest as a place of yearning. For the first time, a closer look at the cover of Narkopop reveals signs of architectural fragments which hint at another, maybe parallel world behind Voigt’s forest. Truth is the prettiest illusion. CD version comes as a hardcover book with a 24-page booklet.

3xLP vinyl artbook edition with CD, 24pg booklet and a vinyl-only bonus cut. In the body of work of Cologne artist Wolfgang Voigt – who, like few others, has informed, shaped and influenced the world of electronic music with countless different projects since the early 1990s – Gas stands out in particular, a saturnine sound cosmos based on heavily condensed classic sequences. Even after nearly 20 years, the sound of Gas doesn’t seem to have lost any of its luster, as shown by the commanding success of Kompakt’s fall 2016 re-release of the essential back catalogue as a box set (KOM 370LP). The overwhelming feedback from a loyal international fan community and worldwide media outlets attests once again to the sheer timelessness of Gas. Which is why it will feel like hardly a day has passed since the release of the last official album Pop nearly two decades ago in 2000, when Wolfgang Voigt resumes this specific creative path with the upcoming new full-length Narkopop. Even in the here and now, the unmistakable vibe of Gas immediately hits home, taking the listener on an otherworldly journey with the very first sounds, drawing them into an impervious sonic thicket, down to the depths of rapture and reverie. From wafts of dense symphonic mist emerges a floating and whirling feeling of weightlessness, before the listener steps into an eerily beautiful forest of fantasy, pulled in by the allure of a narcotic bass drum. While earlier Gas tracks were often based on the hypnotic effects of looping techniques, the ten new pieces on Narkopop unfold their magic in a more entwined manner, sometimes with the sonic might of an entire philharmonic orchestra, at times subtle and fragile. A main characteristic of Voigt’s oeuvre, the coalescence of seemingly contradictory stylistic aspects such as harmonious and atonal, concrete and abstract, light and heavy, near and far is also a decisive feature of Narkopop. In accordance with the transgressive spirit of his collective work, Voigt carries the aesthetic conceptions of his music over to the realm of the visual. Based on his abstract forest pictures, the Gas artwork addresses Voigt’s artistic affinity to romanticism and the forest as a place of yearning. For the first time, a closer look at the cover of Narkopop reveals signs of architectural fragments which hint at another, maybe parallel world behind Voigt’s forest. Truth is the prettiest illusion. CD version comes as a hardcover book with a 24-page booklet.

Nagual 3 is housed in a square black box with mini cards for assorted artwork. Each box is numbered in gold ink. The third and final Nagual collection from txt collates 18 odd albums together into one vast, mind-meltingly beautiful mass. Spiralling illusionary circuits of sound once again taking us out past the edge of reason into a reality of the imagination focused on the trip itself, not the future, not the past, not now. Limited to 70 copies worldwide.

Music by

Ambidextrous
Darren McClure
Nacht Plank
Reverberant Evenings
James Shain
Joel Tammik
Cryostasis
Sleepy Town Manufacture
Ishq
Hakobune
Bauri
Off Land
Juta Takahashi
Mick Chillage
Tim Koch
Tsone
Murkok
Abandoned Communities