Die Welttraumforscher - Das Licht Loon

Label : Edition Stora - Storage Secret Sounds 004

Country : Germany

Year : 2000

Format : CD

Another year is shining through the cracks of my curtains, and here I am posting music under the illumination brought upon by firework. For all the flack it has gotten, the observed year of 2017 was a very productive one for me, besting this very establishments two previous years combined in terms of posts. You know, the purpose of this whole enterprise? Anyway, I should probably get to talking about today's attraction.

Now, I've been voicing my pleasure in regards to this very artist for some time. Such a treat his synth treatments are. This particular album is no slouch in comparison to what I've heard in his catalog, though it does focus more on the realm of (synth)pop rather than the more ambient and minimal musings, and that's just fine. Pfluger is a fine songwriter, and oftentimes shines most when at his most "conventional". Beautiful stuff. Might be too late to put this on the Neu Year's playlist, but I hope you all have a good'un.

Here

Napalmed / Mood Nanamenicaca - Split

Label : Napalmed

Country : Czech Republic

Year : 1999

Format : 7 inch

What was a Christmas present to me is a Boxing Day gift to you, the reader. Hope you all have had a jovial holiday, and if not, I hope to at least spread some joy your ways. Here's some stirring sounds provided by Czech noise masters Napalmed and a sideproject of a blog favorite in Hachiman-Mae.

Now, I'm not sure if many of those who come by this blog read my reviews on rate your music, but I'll keep this brief so as to not create a retread of my review of this on there. This split was something of a surprise to me as it played along, shattering my expectations ov it. At first glance, I had thought this would be a coin of different sides in terms of sound: The harsh machinations of Napalmed and the lowfi junkfolk of Hachiman-Mae. But, as you may hear, it deviates quite a bit from my preconceived notions.

For one, the two sides do not present much of a radical difference from one another when it comes to general aesthetic. Two sides of electronic experimentation as it were. Though Napalmed's contributions fall more into the realms of industrial synth and Mood Nanamenicaca's in the ways of glitch collage, the aural arenas are not separated so much as they are in perpendicular realities. If that makes any sense at all.

Here

Smersh - AIP

Label : Albertine Records - ALB 1-12

Country : US

Year : 1989

Format : LP

The Piscataway legends return. Essential New Joisey indie-pain-dance, as you may know. Smersh has been steadily getting more coverage over the past few years it seems, though still not nearly enough. Such a great band with a monstrous sound unmatched by their distorted progenitors. This ee-pee is no slouch in regards to that voracious aesthetic.

This is another wreckord that I've held onto for awhile, mostly because it has been posted in the past on some faraway blog. Now with the links to it being apparently dead, I've decided to post it. This relative quickie parlays the familiar Smersh sound with its harsh, overgained vocals and incessant drumbeats and synthesizers. There's even a sax in the mix somewhere.

Anyway, it seemed worth mentioning I did some post-production on this number. The third track had a scratch near its end and was a bit annoying, so I applied some clickrepair to the wound. Now, instead of being a loud click, it just sounds like I'm lightly tapping the turntable cover.

Here

Various Artists - Tête De Bébé

Label : S-S Records - SS020

Country : US

Year : 2006

Format : LP

S-S is a fine label, with it releasing a ton of good stuff and repackaging just the same. And any-body who appreciates Monoshock is good in my book. This particular release, though, doesn't do much for me, toutefois. It's a foreign sequel to the early Ess Ess joint "Babyhead", composed mostly of synth heavy frog garage punx and occasional exp. spasms.

I've not found myself a fan of more straightforward punk musics, especially contemporary forms. I prefer a bit more of a looser structure I guess, though I can't call this uptight. Maybe my receptors are outta whack.

Here

Tsukimoto Tadashi [月本正] - 1983-1985

Label : n/a

Country : Japan

Year : 1987

Format : 7 inch flexi

Probably the sparsest record that's been shown a light on this blog. Each little track comes and goes as the needle crosses borders between grooves, leaving only jilted melodie and lowfi guitar and piano recordings behind.

I said before on a different site recently, this is one for fans of pseudo-children's muzak the likes of Uncle Calvin's Private Life, maybe Dragibus, etc... But this is a much more stripped down version of that kind of stuff, so donut expect some elektrik eccentricism. The influence of nursery chimes is obvious when he himself gives thanks to his childhood on the back cover. Placed above his halcyon days, he also gives thanks to the great D.D. Records, one of the greatest tape labels in Japon's fabled histry.

I believe Tsukimoto appears on the excellent DD comp "Disk Musik", performing a chune not unfamiliar to the stylings posed here. He also appeared on some compilations put out by the also excellent and eclectic Fifth Column label.

Here

Infektionsabteilung - Luzifer's Traum

Label : Narcolepsia - narco070

Country : Portugal

Year : 2015

Format : C30

Here's a more recent tape. Brief dark ambiance for that industrious thrill. Apparently, this is an Italian project. Expect heavy organ and primitive drone. Tiny pinch of noise, too.

Here

Sejayno / Maths Balance Volumes - Split

Label : 8mm Records - 8mm 031

Country : Italy

Year : 2008

Format : C44

This one's a bit odd, I feel like I got a bootleg of a bootleg. There is some sort of incongruence between my copy and everywhere else I've looked on the web, biggest glare being the difference in cover and tracklisting. Most places I see it's usually just the bird without a listing under it. Also, I can't find any place that links the "Blade Runner" track title to this release or to anything by Sejayno for that matter. Strange.

Speaking of Sejayno, whose name I always mess up for whatever reason, I have another release of theirs that I might post if I feel... Inclined to do so. You might also be familiar with MBV, but I don't have anything else by them. Though I did have Loveless a long while ago, pretty good album you might have heard of it.

Both groups do a noisy take on freefolk from what I see, Blastitude fodder from what I hear. Another Pierre ambiguity is the track order itself, my tape topside is dominated by Seyjano and the flipside likewise sublimated by Math Balances Volume, which contradicts what the "official" websites say... Odd.

Here

Shrug - Nevil Wanless E.P.

Label : Our Mam's Records - MAM 00001
Country : UK
Year : 1988
Format : LP

I was feeling a bit giddy this weekend and have been making more rips as per usual, so I figured I'd do a special edition: Harmful little Armful. It originally was gonna be a metapost with multiple rips on one post but then a lightning bolt came through the skies and ripped into my head like a thought, "Nutz to that" I say, archaically. Without any further transgression, here's the first approved vinyl rip of the special, twice in a blogtime extra-vagenza.

I was quite fortunate to find this in a Omaha record shop, though not that surprising considering it was one of my favorite stores I have had the pleasure of plunging into. Although when I bought it lacked both a sleeve for the record cover and the record proper, and the cover had an accursed price tag stuck onto its bearings (my feeble attempt of fully removing said sticker without consequence is seen clearly in the top right corner of my scan. Also note the damp 50% isopropyl alcohol stain).

Going back to the music--and really, that's why we're here--I had mentioned I was fortunate to find this, the reason being that I really like these lads' musings. I made a comparison to the incredible Tall Dwarfs of that one island nation, difference being that this clourish originates from that other island nation, the one that once owned that one island nation on some velvet morning. "Shrug", as weathermen do, is an apt name for this kinda music. Totally confounding in an enchanting sense. The organ heavy punk rhythms win me all over.

Here

Expect some more rips later on today and tomorrow, I have some free time left in my body.