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'Your Loss Was Never My Gain' is a self-released C60 HNW release from the project We Also Let Blood, a US-based noise project predominantly working within HNW - the tape takes in two half-hour walls on either side, 'Solemnity' on side A and 'Futility' on side B. This project is from a relatively young noise artist, Harrison Phillis, and has released previously on such labels as Lurker Bias, Big Pharma, Personal Archives and Altar of Waste.
Four years since his last release, and eight years since his last for Cyclic Law, Norway's Svartsinn is back with another lush slab of wonderful dark ambient. His latest, Mørkets Variabler (which translates to "Variables of Darkness"), makes use of varying levels of darkness and gloom to bring across a deep, dark, sprawling record. Although very bleak at times, Mørkets Variabler has brighter, more inspiring moments as well, and really helps reinforce Svartsinn's album take on more breadth.
John Frum is not a person but a four piece technical death metal band featuring current and former members of The Faceless, Dillinger Escape Plan and John Zorn. Their debut album "A Stirring In The Noos" came out this year on Relapse Records.
Vangelis’ score for the original Blade Runner is not only one of the most iconic film scores of all time but also a landmark in the history of electronic music. There had been many sci-fi scores which made use of electronics before – notably Louis and Bebe Baron’s work for The Forbidden Planet – but never such a rich and coherent body of work that complemented so perfectly a film’s world creating look. It forever altered how we think sci-fi should sound, just as Ridley Scott’s film opened up new territory in visual effects. It influenced popular music and virtually every form of industrial, EBM and synthesiser music which followed. Bearing all this in mind it was no surprise that anticipation for Denis Villeneuve’s sequel Blade Runner 2049 included the hope for an equally worthy musical companion.
Black Bag Chapter II is the third release by this French walled noise legend for Signor Ward Records- an Italian (mostly) HNW label, that focuses in on nylon/ leg fetish wall-craft. The release came in three editions- a basic digital download, a standard tape version (which I’m reviewing), and an ltd VHS edition, featuring a tape, CDR( of Black Chapter I) & extras. Sadly all but the download is the only thing that is available on the label now.
Here’s a self-titled C30 split from early summer this year- and it brings together more shifting & unsettling textured noise-scaping of Michelle, with the weighty & bothersome wall grind of Rien. Michelle is the Denton Texas-based project of Mitchell Rotunno( The Ebony Tower, Morality Declined, Tjere). And Rien is the project of Stockholm Sweden based Johan Strömvalll Hammarstedt (Gamiani & J S H).
Raskolnikov is a two C50 set from Russian walled noise project Bitum, and it’s themed around the infamously bleak-yet- Philosophical novel Crime & Punishment by respected 19th-century Russian author Fyodor Dostoyevsky.
Death Trip are an experimental side project with links to seminal Finnish hardcore punks Terveet Kädet. They have been around the Finnish metal scene for almost three decades and Madhouse represents their first full length release. They have quite a reputation, described as one of the most frightening bands in Finland, they number an interesting and diverse range of influences, from The Stooges and Hawkwind, to Swans, The Cramps and Spacemen 3 all channelled through their love of horror and gore films. Madhouse takes up where the band left off with a succession of early 7” singles (Death Trip, Chainsaw Goddess, Please! Skin Me Alive), all of which were an influence on current underground Finnish legends Circle.
Released on the excellent Zoharum label, this limited edition eleven track compilation was produced for the CKiS Wie¿a Ciœnieñ , A centre of culture and art based in Konin. Its the second of such compilations, and follows the 2010 release of the same name.
F.Guyana is a collection of soothing, detailed, often layered, and lush field recordings from forests and the costal regions of French Guiana. The CD appears on the always dependable & quality bound German label Gruenrekorder- either as a CD( which I’m reviewing), or as a digital release that features a bonus batch of tracks.
Death Has No Companion stands as one of the more terminally bleak releases from this British dark ambient/ ritual doom project. The CD offers up just three lengthy tracks built around an often pared back sound that sits somewhere between mournful soundtracking, acoustic doom, and dark ambience with subtle ritual & industrial elements.
Effects is a 1980’s slow-burn thriller/ horror focusing in on a crew filming a horror film in rural Pittsburgh, and whether or not the cast/ crew are been killed for real. It’s somewhat of a lost film, only getting it’s first official release back in 2005 on Synapse Films- here we have the first region free Blu ray release of the film.
Lea Cummings (Kylie Minoise) and Sarah Glass (Grimalkin555) are back with their Okishima Island Tourist Association project. Breaking from the noise routine, Okishima peddles their wares in other electronic realms, with rough and grim, but exciting results. Blurring the lines between EDM and industrial, Evil Ok is a fun foray into electronica.
Another of the classic Skyclad reissues is their full length debut The wayward Sons of Mother earth. Originally released in 1991, the album is the first of its kind to blend folk influences and thrash metal. Formed in Newcastle by Steve Ramsey and Martin Walkyier the band would go on to reinvent and reinvigorate the metal scene, making huge strides forward at a time when most metal bands had collapsed or had gone into hiding, grunge ruled the waves and metal was about as popular as leprosy, but none of this disheartened Ramsey and Walkyier who continued to forge a well-received career throughout the 1990s until they went their separate way in 2000 after the release of their tenth studio album Folkémon.
Avant electronic duo Atonalist paired with Irish vocalist Gavin Friday for this 2016 full length, "Atonalism", their debut collaboration. I am unfamiliar with any other works by Atonalist or Gavin Friday, together or apart.
The rather puzzlingly named Stack Waddy where a British three piece who created ultra crude, noisy, and boisterous blues rock. The band where briefly in existence in the mid sixties- but seemingly only became a firm project between the years 1970 & 1972. This three disc CD set on Cherry Red Records brings together their two 1970’s albums, and a disc of live/rare recordings.
This untitled cd is a compilation of six untitled tracks originally released on various compilations across a couple of labels. Ahlzdeveloper themselves are a (harsh) noise duo who’s only release is this album and a cassette of twofurther untitled tracks.
Of all the films to appearing in the Italian horror cycle of the late 70’s/ early 80’s Buio Omega( aka Beyond the Darkness) stands as one of the most transgressive & disturbing entries. It an unsettling (after-life) love story that blends together elements of necrophilia, cannibalism, limb hacking, nudity & all manner of depravity. From Severin Films here we have a double disc Blu Ray/ CD soundtrack reissue of the film.
Every Worthless Moment presents the listener with two thirty minute journeys into terminal bleak & at times suicidal ambience, which sits somewhere between oppressive drone & pared back walled noise. The release appears in the form of a C60 on German based label Geraeuschmanufaktur, in an edition of 35 copies, and as of writing the label still has copies.
Split releases can often be a little hit & miss, and sadly more often than not there are issues with them- and a perfect split is a fairly rare beast. Either one contribution is better the other, there’s a lack of flow & themes between the two contributions, or one contributor is just plain bad & the other is mediocre. Here we have a split C20- focusing in on wonky keyboard atmospherics & creepy synth scaping, and sadly it’s another problematic split.
This is a reissue of French trio Instantaneous Musical Drama's second album which was originally released in 1980 on their own label GRRR. I must say I'm a newcomer to their brand of surreal avant-garde happenings; my only previous exposure being the track Tunnel Sous la Manche which appeared on the Steven Stapleton curated compilation In Fractured Silence in 1987 and which is included here as a bonus track in extended form. The three members: Jean-Jacques Birgé, Bernard Vitet and Francis Gorgé bring together a wide variety of electronic and acoustic instrumentation, sliding to and fro from free jazz experimentation to more contemporary rock, electronic and classical styles.
Producer Lee Bannon continues his experimental/ambient work on Dedekind Cut's newest release, The Expanding Domain. With the help of a handful of other musicians, Dedekind Cut's newest 12" deftly dances between thoughtful ambient to smooth electronica. With delightful bits of crunch added, The Expanding Domain is a very entertaining listen.
Skyclad have been around for 27 years and for no good reason I’ve largely ignored their output, so the release of these new reissues provides me with an opportunity to see what I’ve been missing all these years. Originally formed from the ashes of English thrash metal legends Sabbat by Martin Walkyier and guitarist Steve Ramsey formerly of Satan and Pariah, Skyclad were one of the pioneers of folk metal, long before it became a popular subgenre of metal. The band have released a respectable 13 studio albums during their lifetime thus far. Walkyier left the band in 2000 and went on to form Clan Destined, whilst Ramsey has remained the driving force behind Skyclad. A new album Forward to the Past was released in April of this year and highlights the fact that there are no signs of the band stopping any time soon. This seems like the perfect time for the reissue of some of their classic material.
Of Grog Vim is a cinematic take on the epic life of an apparent visionary legend called Grog Vim. However I’m of the opinion this is a fictional character as I can’t find a single reference to this person barring this album!.Moving on, this is the 15th album from Italian cult band, Larsen, who happily play and frolic in the mixed arena of sound-art and avant-rock.