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Split into two sides (literally and thematically), Transtilla III, by the eponymously named Dutch duo, covers a range of moods and emotions as it takes the listener on a pretty gnarly journey through drone and dark ambience, all made with some form of guitars.
Here’s a lavish package from Arash Akbari on Farpoint Recordings: a small book containing a CD of tracks by Akbari, accompanied by poems by Christopher Doherty-Ingram. Each track has a corresponding poem, displayed opposite a visualisation of data pertaining to the same theme, for example: ‘Economic inequality - Gini index, 1946-2016’; so it’s an ambitious project which, if not all-encompassing, certainly works to cover a lot of ground and material.
Avant-garde jazz composer John Zorn continues his ongoing series "The Bagatelles", in which different ensembles play interpretations of pieces chosen from a book of 300 total compositions, the "Book of Bagatelles". Despite being a Zorn fan, this 16th volume is my introduction to the series. For this recording, the arrangements are handled by Sam Eastmond and his ensemble of twelve total players, resulting in a fuller, denser sound than is heard on most recordings to Zorn's name. With eight tracks with running time between seven and eleven minutes in length, this is an epic affair.
From acclaimed director Robert Altman (The Player, Gosford Park, M*A*S*H, McCabe & Mrs Miller) comes Thieves Like Us, based on the 1937 novel of the same name by author Edward Anderson. After escaping from prison in 1930s Mississippi, criminals Bowie (Keith Carradine), T-Dub (Bert Remsen) and Chicamaw (John Schuck) go on the run from the law and hide out at the house of T-Dub’s sister-in-law. Soon Bowie begins to fall for garage worker Keechie (Shelley Duvall), but Bowie can’t find it in him to turn his back on this whirlwind life of crime. A life which is all about to fall apart.
Terror At The Red Wolf Inn (aka Terror House) sits somewhere between mystery, low-key horror, pitch-black comedy, and proto-slasher. The early 1970s film features a selection of quirky to low-key sinister characters, a feeling of building unease/ foreboding, and some neat moments of creepiness/ darting terror. Here from Cheezy Movies is a recent bare-bones region free DVD of the film.
The Iron Prefect is a crime drama directed by Pasquale Squitieri (Gli Invisibili, L’Arma and Claretta) in 1977. The film stars Giuliano Gemma (Tenebre, The Leopard and Day of Anger), Claudia Cardinale (Once Upon A Time in the West, Federico Fellini’s 8 ½ and The Pink Panther), Stefano Satta Flores (Salon Kitty, The Girl with a Pistol and Four Flies on Grey Velvet), and Massimo Mollica (No Alla Violenza, Napoli, Palermo, New York – Il Triangolo della Camorra and Joe Petrosino).
Pathos is a new c60/ digital release from France's King of walled noise Vomir. It features two thirty-minute ‘walls’, which very much adheres to the project's crude & unrelenting sound- though on the second track, there are a few slight surprises…though nothing drastic.
Focus is a four-track album from Worship- the decidedly mysterious wall noise/ textured noise project. It themes all of its releases around a non-smutty/ arty celebration of the female form- with its sound often gently pushing & pulling at the genre's tropes/ ties.
Static Black takes in four new ‘walls’ from Cincinnati, Ohio's Whore’s Breath. Each of the four tracks hits between the eleven & eighteen-minute mark- moving between more muffled ‘n’ hazed static affairs. To hollowed-out & numbing bass-bound walling.
Here’s a recent two-track release from Occlusion- the French walled noise project that focuses all on their release on medical operations. With each of the 'walls' featured here landing around the twenty-two-minute mark.
Brazilian death duo, Fossilization, return to Everlasting Spew with their debut full length, Leprous Daylight. Spawning from the sludge/doom band Jupiterian, Fossilization utilize their dark, heavy energy to the fullest and forge a grim and grave slab of death metal fury. Leprous Daylight shows how much pummeling darkness can be put forth by a two piece while brutally raising the bar for all death metal duos to follow.
100 Years Of Dub is a forty-eight-track compilation focusing on material released by respected Jamaican producer/ DJ Joe Gibbs, and his band The Professionals during the years 1975 & 1978. Thirty of the tracks featured here have never been released on CD before- and we certainly get a bumper crop of 70’s dub- with all its groove, creativity, and smoked-out bass-heavy vibes.
Appearing in the year 1975 Extravaganza was the fourth studio album from UK’s Stackridge. It saw the band pare back their folk-rock side- for a blend of pop prog rock, musical hall pomp, jazz-rock, and playful pop rock with a nostalgic and musical tilt. As part of the Esoteric Records series of reissues of the band's back catalogue- here we have a two-CD release of the album- bringing together a remastered version of the album, and a complete live recording from 1975.
The Man In The Bowler Hat was the third album from Bristol/Bath-based Stackridge. Appearing in the year 1974- the ten-track album saw the band adding an even more pronounced pop-rock edge to their folk-rock & light prog-rock sound- though still retaining a feeling of both quirkiness & mixed genre elements. Here from Esoteric Records, as part of a series of reissues of the band's back catalogue, is a two-CD release of the album.
At the midpoint of Tomotsugu Nakamura’s Antenna, a tiny finch appears, in one of the most captivating and convincing compositions on the Tokyo-based ambient composer’s latest release. The finch’s arrival is short-lived, sadly. The interlude in question, “Finch-2023-07-29”, clocks in at a paltry 44 seconds, though the other eleven cuts on the album are no drawn-out feats either.
Released in 2022 Crimes of The Future is the eighteenth feature film from Canadian writer-director David Cronenberg. It’s set in the near future where humans have adapted to their synthetic surroundings- by either evolutionary deviation or self-modification. It’s a world where surgery & pain are used for sexual pleasure, and performance art either relates to organ removal, deranged body modification, or autopsies. The film sees the director reconnecting with his body horror routes, as well as weaving in elements of dark humour, troubling drama, and satire. Here from Second Slight is a new UHD/Blu-Ray boxset- taking in a new commentary track, and a few other new extras. As well as archive commentary/ interviews- with the set coming presented in a ridged slip sleeve, a one hundred- & twenty-page book, and six art cards.
Industrial and dark sound juggernaut Cold Spring Records is very well known for their vast and ever-expanding catalogue. To keep listeners abreast of their new findings and releases, the label often puts out large samplers that cover different genres and showcase both classic CSR stalwarts as well as new acts to the label. Their latest of these samplers comes as the beefy Arise, sporting two discs and thirty-two artists. Always nicely priced, those familiar with these sampler CDs know that CSR packs in far more than the price of admission, so checking these out is a no-brainer.
From the mid-1980s, The Abomination is gooey ‘n’ gory, at points downright ridiculous micro-budget/ Super 8 filmed creature feature. It regards an elderly woman who one night coughs up what she thinks is a tumour- that grows into a rubbery tentacle and razor-tooth monster, which likes to munch on folks. Here from Visual Vengeance- those resurrectors of trashy low-budget fare, wacky ‘n’ deranged SOV, and similar fare. With this recent region, free Blu Ray been stacked with extras & bonus goodies with the set like a comic book, mini posters, etc.
From the late 1980s, The Stay Awake is a South African-made supernatural slasher. It’s a largely bloodless/ gory-less affair, though it has a fair bit of POV stalking, twists of arty Euro horror, demonic shenanigans, and a fair bit of high camp/ 80’s dumbness in its make-up. Here from Cheezy Movies is a recent region free DVD, of this lesser seen/ known slasher.
Volume 49 of the Made to Measure series of albums is Ensemble 0’s Jojoni. Made to Measure is an imprint of Crammed Records, that set out to collate some of the most interesting instrumental music of its era. Some thirty-five volumes of music that sounded like they could have been “made to measure” as a soundtrack for film, theatre, dance or video, were released between the years of 1983 and 1995. In recent years Crammed have revived the series, of which this is the latest entry.
Following is a late 90’s crime mystery- filmed in black & white, with neo-noir/ arty touches, and a few decent enough plot twists. It’s most notable for being the first (near) feature-length film from celebrated & highly praised filmmaker Christopher Nolan- The Dark Knight, Inception, and most recently Oppenheimer. Here from 101 Films is a new Blu-Ray of the release of the film- with a new commentary track, and a good selection of new stuff.
Released on digital platforms on 25 September ‘Don’t Look Away’ is a new horror film directed by Micheal Bafaro. It regards a young woman called Frankie (Kelly Bastard) who is been stalked by a murderous supernatural presence that takes the form of a mannequin. Its face is defined by bony ridges and a creepy Joker-like smile. At first, she can only see it, but as the attacks/ kills continue her other friends start seeing it too.
MetaMorph is the debut album from Austria three three-piece Other:M:other. The eight-track album is an attempt to bridge the gap between improv jazz & abstract electronic dance music- with the tracks flirting between angularity, building detail, and sometimes even groove.
Normal is album number three from Sutcliffe No More. It finds the British two-piece severing up nine tracks- which blend together elements of extreme electronica, muffled ‘n’ deformed beats, and noisily swooping bays ‘n’ drones. All topped off with male vocals that shift between ranting, unhinged, chilling & vein-popping.