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Appearing from the prog/experimental rock scene of the late 1960s/ early 1970’s Third Ear Band where a British collective who centred their mostly instrumental, often fairly free-form & experimental sound around the core use of violin, cello, oboe and percussion. Here on Esoteric Records is a three-CD disc release of their second 1970 album Self-titled/Elements, & recordings from the time- expanding the original 35-minute album to three-plus hours of material.
Jess Franco stands as one of the most prolific, versatile & at times creative directors to appear from with-in the exploitation genre. Between the late 1950’s & mid 2010’s he directed one hundred & fifty films, which saw him dipping his toe in pretty much every exploitation sub-genre going from: gothic horror, erotic horror, Women In Prison, cannibal & slasher films, trippy erotic, hard & soft-core porn, 80’s action & adventure, and so on. This just shy of two hundred page book attempts to pick-out some of the gems from Franco’s truly massive filmography- giving each one a critical overview.
This is an expanded rerelease of a three track EP put out by Ulver at the end of 2017, functioning as something of an addendum to their very enjoyable album of messianic synth rock, The Assassination of Julius Caesar. The title - Thus passes the glory of the world - continues the themes of fallen empires and millenarian portent found throughout that album. Appropriately, given that the phrase was transmitted to modernity as part of the Papal coronation ritual, the EP is adorned with one of Francis Bacon's most well known Pope paintings based partly on Diego Velázquez portrait of Pope Innocent X. What we have is the original three studio tracks (one of which is a cover of Frankie Goes to Hollywood's The Power of Love) and four live recordings of songs off the Julius Caesar record. The extra live tracks bring the record to over forty minutes in length.
On VCI Entertainment/ MVD Visual here is a recent duel format release of the classic & genre-defining Mario Brava film from the mid-1960s. Many of Brava’s films have made a big impact on the horror film form, but I think it’s safe to say that Blood & Black Lace is one of his most far-reaching & influential of his films- so it’s great to get this new Blu ray/ DVD edition of the film- which features a new 2k restoration of this classic, two new commentary tracks, and a few other bits & bobs.
Common Eider, King Eider are a California based project who work in a style that can be briefly described as Dark Ambient / Drone. Since 2007, the project has released twelve full-length albums and two EP’s. Initially, the collective started with a sound close to the likes of Birchwill Cat Motel, Pocahaunted and Natural Snow Buildings, with subsequent releases bringing in darker Ambient and distorted drone guitars into their sound, giving them a Drone Doom label.
Here on Second Sight, we get a much-deserved reissue of A Strange Calls- the late 1970 ’s blend of slasher & police drama, and it’s not often seen follow-up 1993’s When A Stranger Calls Back. Both films nicely mix together some very un-nerving chills, believable characters, and effectively twisting & turning plots. This new reissue offers up a two-disc & forty-page book set- which takes in the two films & extras on the Blu Ray, and on the CD the soundtrack for the first film.
After a few years of dormancy Hunting For Manflesh is the first new material from this notorious cannibal themed German HNW project. The release comes in the form of either a C30 cassette or digital download- both of these offer up two fifteen minutes examples of grittily seared wall-noise brutality.
The Graven Realm is a somewhat out of the blue release from a project I thought long-dead. Around 2015 this Newcastle project released a handful of decidedly grim & necro focused walled-noise releases, then promptly disappeared. This double disc CDR set appeared on Altar Of Waste in May of last year- so I’m not sure exactly when the material here dates from.
Brain Tingle Crackle finds this respected Serbian based walled- noise project severing up two slices of creative & brain-searing static texturing. The release appeared as a 3inc CDR on Florida based Inner Demons Records- it came in a scene generous pressing of forty-two copies, so you should still be able to hook a copy of this.
Formed in Wisconsin, USA in the early 2000s Vanishing Kids are the brainchild of guitarist Jason Hartman (Jex Thoth) and vocalist/organist Nikki Drohomyreky. Growing up on a mixture of doom metal, heavy psych, alternative rock and shoegaze has led to the band developing their unique sound. The current lineup is completed by bass player Jerry Sofran (Lethal Heathen, Mirrored Image) and drummer Hart Allan Miller (Wartorn, Death Wish, Tenement). Heavy Dreamer is the band’s first full length outing in over 5 years.
Russian ritual throat singing group Phurpa performs a droning, monotonous style of music which envelops the listener within a reedy coccoon of deep rattling resonance. The group has created countless recordings since 2007, ramping up their pace all the more in last couple of years. This double album "Ya Tog Rid Pa'i Gyer" is one of nine albums from 2017 alone.
The "Shadow Reworks" split album is the 513th release from the powerhouse that is Altar Of Waste records. It features the label head Cory Strand alongside 'fellow Minneapolis droner' artist Adam Biel, both take up the entire side they're on with one long drone 'rework' just over twenty minutes in length - the track being reworked here is 'Shadow', originally written by the Chromatics and performed in the debut episode of the new season of Twin Peaks.
From the early 1970s, Gator Bait (Les Marais De La Haine) is a classic- if fairly tame example of the Hicksploitation genre. Here on French cult film label Artus Films, as part of their Redneck series, is a recent region two DVD reissue of the film- featuring both English & French languages cuts of the film, and a few extras.
Here from Full Moon Features is a fully uncut DVD release of Rolls-Royce Baby. A near plot-less mid 70’s sleaze feast focusing in on Lina Romay- the queen of euro exploitation and one of Jess Franco’s main muses.
Cinder: Ember: Ashes is the solo debut album from Aviva Endean- a Melbourne based clarinet player, improviser & composer. The seven-track CD sees her offering up a selection of both composed & improvised works, which see her pushing her craft in an often moodily ethnic manner- dipping down in Eastern, African, and hauntingly tribal flavours.
Originally released in the early 1990s, when the modern world of personal communication via the use of mobile phones was born, Mass Observation appeared- the album is probably the most known & far-reaching release from this Uk electronica project. It blurred together various snippets of stolen conversions, official instructions, private chatter & emergency services banter, with a shifting & morph sound soup hazed beatscapes, swirling electro texturing & ambience. Here on Room 40 is a full & expanded edition of the release- coming as either a CD or digital download.
Patrick Grant is an American composer who lives in New York and composes music in an experimental style close to minimalism the likes of Philip Glass and John Cage, with a more creativity leaning to his compositions. Patrick is also very closely involved in producing live concerts and installations of both other composers and his own performances. He’s also a professor in the Film School at NYU Tisch School of the Arts.
French composer Laurent Perrier has a number of projects all built around a central idea, with Zonk't being the ambient arm of his creative beast. Returning again to the Sound on Probation label, Zonk't brings forth the LP Banburismus, a 37 minute, four track exploration into ambient and minimalist dub. Composed entirely with modular synthesizers, Banburismus is a meditative journey through the creation of sound and feeling.
Originally released in 1999, Cold Spring has brought back the collaboration between scene legends Merzbow and Genesis Breyer P-Orridge for a third issue. Not only available in an 8-page digipak, but A Perfect Pain is now on vinyl for the first time. With both black and limited flaxen gold versions available on 180g vinyl, new purchasers and those looking to upgrade have nice options in front of them. In addition to the new packaging and vinyl issue, Cold Spring has had both versions of this 20th anniversary remastered by The Cage Studios. This upgrade in both sound quality and packaging shows Cold Spring's dedication not only to releasing new sonic mayhem, but also ensuring that their classic catalog titles sound and look their best
Cold Spring Records presents their 2nd release this year from Italy's She Spread Sorrow. This time it's a reissue of SSS's 2nd album Mine. Originally released last year on vinyl, Cold Spring offers a new digipak CD edition with two bonus songs not found on Mine's original pressing.
Formed in 1984 by tragic guitarist/band leader Euronymous, bassist Necrobutcher and drummer Manheim, Mayhem are a phenomenon that have never been far from controversy, whether that is the suicide of frontman Dead, Euronymous’s murder at the hands of Count Grishnakh (varg Vikernes), church burnings, accusations of racism, the list goes on. What often gets overlooked is the amazing music the band have produced during their long and mostly successful career.
Appearing two months after the first Vol, here’s the second in the new series of albums from Austrian sound artist Rudolf Eb.er. Much like the first vol, this new thirty-one track CD release once again offers up a decidedly queasy & unbalancing blend of pared-back psycho ambience, weird body sounds, backwards texts, amped-up tape hiss, drowsy siren waves, and creepy field recordings- adding in more strange percussive elements, and a generally more unsettling ‘n’ truly uncomfortable vibe- all making this one of the most disturbing, and truly unnerving sonic experiences in recent memory.
Ultrafunk where a seemingly faceless & mysterious collective from the Uk- who during the mid-1970’s released a selection of singles & two full-length album, then promptly disappeared. The project summoned up an often fairly gimmick bound, yet always brightly grooving mixer of funk & disco- with forays into tribal percussion & flute heavy jiving jazz-ness. Here on Robinsongs, one of the Cherry Red labels is a double CD reissue bringing together the bands two albums, and a good selection of bonus material.
God Knows Where I Am is beautiful crafted & conceived, yet deeply moving & achingly sad documentary about self-confinement, mental health, loss & the human condition. Originally released in 2016, here from Juno Films is a recent region free DVD release of the film.