Lucky number 13. Even more reviews around the corner...
. Alva-Noto: transform cd (Mille Plateaux/Raster-Noton)
With 'Transform,' alva-noto's second release for mille plateux, he
delves back into the realm of pristinely crisp minimalism more
commonly associated with the Rastermusic label releases. Pulses,
beeps, drones and glitches all combine on the 10 untitled tracks of
'Transform' to create rhythmic arrangements over cold ominonously
sparse digital soundscapes. 'Transform' resides firmly in the
microsound/clicktechno genre and it's sound is reminiscent of the
works of Ryoji Ikeda, Pansonic, Akira Yama????, some Taylor Deupree,
and previous Noto releases (especially his Empty Garden ep).
'Transform' is another great release from the Raster-roster (with the
help of mille plateaux on this one) that is perfect for your
passive-listening needs. For more information check
http://www.mille-plateaux.com or
http://www.raster-noton.de
. Lali Puna: scary world theory cd (Morr Music)
After their excellent collaborative ep with Bomb The Bass earlier
this year I was excited to hear this new album form Lali Puna. "Scary
World Theory" features ten tracks of laid-back pop-electronica
highlighted by the vocals of lead-Lali Valerie Trebeljahr. After the
first few listens I loved the album musically but wasn't as impressed
by the lyrics on 'Scary World Theory' as I was on 'Tridecoder,'but
repeat listens changed that opinion to a more positive one. Tracks
like 'Nin-com-pop, Scary World Theory, Don't Think, and Come On Home'
feature Valerie's vocals nestled in layers of warm synth beds &
guitar whereas tracks l ike 'Middle Curse' & 'Bi-pet' feature a more
staccato hip-hoppy approach with vocals that range from to spoken
word to drawn-out singing, and some tracks like 'Contratempo, 50
Faces Of, & Lowdown even feature an new wave-electo edge. But
regardless of what approach Lali Puna take on their tracks, this
album is another pop-electronica gem for Lali Puna & Morr Music and
is highly recommended for fans of releases by Styrofoam, Ecstasy of
Stain Theresa, and previous Lali Puna releases. Also, I'm especially
exited to hear the forthcoming Two Lone Swordsmen remixes of Lali
Puna because the Lali Puna remix of Two Lone Swordsmen on the Further
Reminders album was so good.
. DNTEL: life is full of possibilities cd (Plug Research)
After a handful of more experimental releases for the Phthalo label,
Dntel delivers his first album for the Plug Research label. 'Life is
Full of Possibilities' featuers a delightful mixture of My Blood
Valentine-like vocal pop-electronica, with warm droney-melodic
Opiate-sounding instrumentation, and Safety Scissors-like casual
vocal snippets. Basically this album is a relaxed & mesmerizing
ambient glitch-pop-drone outing enhanced with a variety of vocal
talents on each track track including Chris Gunst, Mia Doi Todd,
Meredith Figurine, Rachel Haden, and Benjamin Gibbard. From the
mesmerizing synths & cut-up vocals of 'Anywhere Anyone,' to the
skittery percussions of 'Fear of Corners,' to the rather housey
upbeat 'Why I'm So Unhappy,' Dntel has delivered one of the most
impressive marriages of vocals & electronica to date. Highly
recommended. Also of note is the DNTEL: anywhere anyone 12" which
came out quietly last month. it features the album version & a remix
of 'anywhere anyone' plus one previously unreleased track 'this is
how it will all be over.' if you enjoy the album then this ep is a
necessary companion. For more information check the Plug Research
website at:
http://www.plugresearch.com
. Geoff White: questions and comments cd (Force Inc)
With eps this past year for Cytrax, Delay, Morris Audio, and Force
Tracks, Geoff White is definitely a name on the rise. 'Questions and
Comments' is the debut album fo Geoff White and it featuers 10 tracks
that range fro warm dubby clicktechno to midtempo minimal clickhouse.
A few favorite tracks from 'Questions and Comment' include 'Light
Bright' which is a warm clickt-techno builder with the perfect mix of
subtle melodic chords & clicky midtempo techno and 'Wubub' which has
more of a clickhouse edge not unlike some of the luomo tracks.
Overall'Questions and Comments' is a decent release covering familiar
ground that fans of a more skeletal farben or a fuller donnacha
costello might enjoy. For more info check the force inc website at:
http://www.force-inc.com
. Mum: please smile my noise bleed cd (Morr Music)
With 'Please Smile My Noise Bleed' the icelandic quartet, Mum, submit
their brand of meloncholy poppy-electronica to the remixing talents
of the Morr Music roster - Styrofoam, I.S.A.N., Phonem, Christian
Kleine, Arovane, and B.Fleischmann - resulting in this 9-track, 45
minute ep. The first two tracks are original Mum compositions and are
beautiful in themselves. But next come the remixes which range in
style from Styrofoam & Christian Kleine's twinkly reinterpretations
to I.S.A.N. dark forboding remake to Phonem's slow building example
of percussive complexity to Arovane's perfectly polished piece of
percussion paired with melody and finally B.Fleischmann's
slowly-evolving downtempo hip-hopper. Overall, 'Please Smile My Noise
Bleed' is a superb and highly enjoyable release showcasing the
different flavors fo poppy-electronica as seen through the eyes of
Morr Music. This release will be a highlight for 2001 for me.
Questions, comments, chalupas welcome...
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