Even though I enjoy the work of noise-head Damion Romero, I didn't initially buy this 7" single for the music; it was the Maya Miller artwork and white vinyl combo that dragged me in.
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While some of this album is fun, there is not enough fun to go around. Many of the songs are boring, trying to counter a lack of imagination with volume. Listening to this album does get my foot tapping but so do most bar room blues and covers bands. There is nothing to engage with; I am not yearning for anything particularly intellectual but something more than rehashing the same blues scales and vocal histrionics would be nice.
I love music that forms images in my mind because the transformation from one medium to the next seems so mysterious to me. That a musician can turn sound into the most vivid photograph ever without defaulting to the ease of field recordings seems a metaphysical conundrum, but some are quite good at it and others are veritable masters of the process. Tim Hecker may be the finest sonic photographer around, the rerelease of Radio Amor being further evidence for this claim.
The three piece improv group return with their second album which is more of the same structureless music that brings to mind John Cage's prepared piano works if they were disarranged for a free jazz ensemble. This album is interesting (in a beard stroking kind of way) but the group does not challenge the listener enough for all its pretenses. The players hold themselves back more often than is necessary; the power of their music is reduced greatly as a result.
Chemism is the "mutual attraction, interpenetration, and neutralisation of independent individuals which unite to form a whole". Strangely though, the collaborations here tend not to come across as collegial, not through any enforcement or dictates by the duo, but through the strength of the chemistry between this collective's core. Black Sun Productions may have gathered a cast of like-minded souls to shape this album, but this still feels like the work is led by the distinctly European vision of the single mind of Massimo and Pierce. In this way, it seems like an ideal description of their working process.
This debut from Doueh and his group is outstanding. His playing is electric in all senses of the word; he effortlessly channels all the power of a sandstorm onto the six strings of his guitar. The recording quality may be patchy but the power of the music still comes through strong. The celebratory nature of the music combined with the skill of the players make this vinyl only release a joy to listen to.
The old saying about books and covers come to mind when I look at the sleeve of this album. Instead of austere, minimalist electronica; Per Henrik Svalastog serves up some gorgeously vibrant electronic(ish) music that uses the warm tones of traditional Norwegian instruments where normally glitches and icy synthesisers would be the first port of call. Solidly produced and performed, Woodwork is a marvelous album well worth investigating.
The third full length release from Scott "Wino" Weinrich's current band is a concept album but don't hold that against it. It is a fine collection of retro-sounding metal. Granted the songs can get a little samey—any of them could be switched around and I would be hard pressed to notice—but there is not a bad song in sight. Unfortunately, listening to them all in one go is an unrewarding experience as there is not enough variety to make this work as an album.
This two tracker (one 15 minute studio thrashing and one 20 minute live and liquifying boiler) feels a lot more organic than their debut, relying less on electrics and letting the group dynamic push further. Again featuring Giffoni on electrics (albeit on subdued form), man of the moment Chris Corsano and Trevor Tremaine (Hair Police) as a duo of drummers and Brian Sullivan (Mouthus) on Guitar, this is the sound of an irreverent collective throwing grenades into Sonic Youth's tour van.
In 2002 Steve Silverstein and Nick Forte released an album on Kranky that challenged the fractured guitars and distorted compositions of many popular and respected musicians, all of whom received far more attention for fewer reasons than I care to think about. Not to be deterred, Christmas Decorations have returned with an even more impressive record this year, their fragmented guitars and willingness to take chances in tow.
