Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Aufgang (2009)


No longer an experiment for "old school" electronic artists, younger artists are more intentional when it comes to experimenting with crossing classical and electronic music.

"Formed of classically trained pianists Rami Khalifé and Francesco Tristano, who met ten years ago while they were studying at the world-renowned Julliard School in New York, who, beside sharing a common interest in their study, also enjoyed the club scene that the city had to offer, and drummer Aymeric Westrich, also a classically trained musician who studied percussions at the Conservatoire de Boulogne in France, Aufgang became a proper entity in 2005 when they played at the Sonar festival in Barcelona." (Source

Good stuff.

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Sunday, November 27, 2011

Francesco Tristano - Not For Piano (2007)


I stumbled across Francesco Tristano during Murcof's FACT mix.

Turns out he's made quite a name for himself at a very young age.

"Tristano is one of the last students at New York’s Juilliard School to complete Bach legend Rosalyn Tureck’s master class. He also studied at the music academies in Brussels, Riga, Paris and Luxembourg as well as the esmuc in Barcelona...

Not for Piano (2007), presented his own compositions as well as versions of techno classics at the piano. Idiosynkrasia, his third album on the label inFiné, recorded at Carl Craig’s Planet E-communications in Detroit, was released to critical acclaim in 2010."

Shows the far reaching effects of electronic music...

Couple of bonuses included here as well.

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Saturday, November 26, 2011

Saite An Saite (A String Based Compilation) (2009)


Not really "classical" but it has "strings" in the title so close enough...

Found this one because of the track by Relapxych.0 (aka Anders Peterson). It was his music that first captured my interest but over time I have come to realize how often his production/mastering work graces recent releases. If you see his name, you know the caliber of the release is high.

Here's the details on this one:

"Guitar-based CD with long tracks from Aidan Baker (Nadja), Relapxych.0 and M. Sandbleistift (Licht-Ung). Sandbleistift's gauzy drones hover above a thick amplifier hum, coupled with metal-on-metal scrapes, electrical interference directed into the pick-ups, and spidery textures that wiggle into the mix as he plucks away at the bridge of his guitar...

Aidan Baker steals the show on this album. Even with his esteemed catalogue of ethereal ambience and doomdronedirge excursions, "One Step Ahead, One Step Behind" is pretty exceptional. A desolate guitar melody repeats throughout the entire track, alluding to the doom of Nadja had he kicked on the distortion pedals. But without, there's a sadness which permeates the track, accompanied by ghostly flickers of complimentary drones, bursts of static, and a slow-burning roar of distant distortion that eventually consumes the entire piece.

Relapxych.0 holds his own in creating a series of guitar-meets-the-laptop abstractions that looks to Fennesz and Tim Hecker for inspiration, and does a pretty good job in the way of an homage." (Aquarius).

Limited to 300 copies.

Try

Friday, November 25, 2011

Akira Rabelais - Spellewauerynsherde (2004)


Tagging on to the "modern classical" vibe...

This is one of the tracks that captivated me on the Reflections compilation posted earlier.  The story of this album adds depth to the music much like the story of Basinski's Disintegration Loops.

"Undertaking a project to transfer from tape to digital some old tape recordings of Icelandic vocal lament songs presumed to have been recording in the 1960's Akira claims to have been completely obsessed by them to an extent where he wished to incorporate the vocals into his own music." (Source)

Has a Johann Johannsson/Sigur Ros kind of feel to it (something about Iceland I suppose...) but it is quite unique and is quite moving.

Highly recommended (preferably in a quiet listening environment and/or with headphones).

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Thursday, November 24, 2011

Carl Craig + Francesco Tristano + Moritz von Oswald

Lately my interests seem to have found a hybrid between dub techno in all its varieties and modern classical.  If you listen closely to the last compilation posted (and follow the link to Murcof's FACT mix) you'll hear a tune by a young wunderkind named Francesco Tristano.

I  stumbled across him through the Murcof mix.  He overtly blends the classical with the club as can be seen by his reworking on piano of Derrick May's "Strings of Life."  He is a member of the group Aufgang, another electronic/classical hybrid with some other classically trained artists, and recently released an EP with Moritz von Oswald reworking his track "Bio."

Does this elevate electronic music?  Does it dilute the classical?  Or is it just the collision of traditional forms opening up new worlds, kind of like splitting the atom?

Not a big fan of labels, tags or other superimpositions on what music is "supposed" to be, I choose the latter.

Couple of posts to come but in the meantime, here's a taste of some of the masters of the form:

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

XVI Reflections On Classical Music (2009)


Tagging on to the last Murcof post, this is a killer compilation of "modern classical" music.

If you don't think you're a fan of classical in the traditional sense (and if you aren't, give these a try) then you might just find these just what the doctor ordered. 

Put this on, open your mind and let go.

Or give Murcof's FACT mix a go.

Wonder if in 200 years this will drop the "modern" tag and just be considered "classical" as well.  

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Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Rapidshare bye-bye...

After November 28th, all posts on the blog that have links to RS will be under the "delete if inactive" status meaning that if they are older than 30 days with no activity, the files will be deleted.

This will not affect posts within the last year or so as I have generally stuck with MF and MU. Most of the older files are either active enough that this won't happen or they've already disappeared even if the posts remain.

Just send updates if you find anything that needs fixed and I'll do what I can.

Thanks for sticking around!

Sunday, November 20, 2011

Fernando Corona (aka Murcof aka Terrestre)

The Tijuana Sessions Vol. 1 (2001)


"The term Nortec is a conjunction of Norteño ("of" or "from the North") and Techno, but mainly describes the collision between the music, style and culture of electronic music with those of norteño and tambora, two popular music genres from the North of Mexico [to] create a sound that is very Tijuana." (Source)

A group of various producers came together under the Nortec Collective banner and the result was this album. The collective achieved a healthy level of recognition in Mexico and beyond.

Though it seems to still exist in some form or other, all the original members have moved on to other individual projects.

Fernando Corona's "Terrestre" project has two tracks featured here.

Tijuana Sessions

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Secondary Inspection (2004)


The last project under the Terrestre name has taken the syncopated dissection of sounds found on Murcof's essential Martes album and has added a distinctive, hypnotic beat pattern.

The first two tracks are the show stealers but the whole album is a nice adjunct to those familiar with his more modern classical leanings as of late.

A very pleasant surprise if you haven't heard it.

Secondary Inspection

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Saturday, November 19, 2011

Futur[e]cho


1. Coppice Halifax – Royal Acre
2. A. Mayer – Sky
3. Soap – Syncro Fall
4. Dublicator – Vibronic Transition
5. Spiral Dub – Axiom Dub
6. Textural Being – Homage à Maurizio
7. ISA – Filtered
8. DeepWarmth – Cold Cities
9. As If – Rose From Above
10. Spaceci – µ2 Receptor
11. Fingers in the Noise – l’Acrobate [Ambient Version]

While listening to the Variations in Height comp, I was instantly hooked by the first track by Spaceci.

Like all junkies I go where all junkies go to get the next fix and stumbled across this one.

Dub tech goodness...

Info and free download

Friday, November 11, 2011

Moby - Destroyed (Deluxe)


Moby has been one of my favorite artists since circa 1994. Yes, I know all the criticisms leveled against him. Don't care. Love the music he makes. Respect his views and the fact he really has basically done it his way.

Anyhow, if you've got the time, I've got a story (some of you may have already heard it...).

Around the time when this album was first released, I had escaped from the 9 to 5 grind by going on a road trip to one of my company's suppliers which, in reality, was more an excuse to get out of the office for a few days. I was really struggling with feeling overworked (or, more accurately, feeling like work was getting in the way of figuring out what’s gnawing at me), fretting over being trapped by the stuff of the world and a longing for a sense of freedom. Working upwards of 80 hours every week, I was bugging out, swimming toward the deep end.

Over 900 miles of driving in two days was exactly what the doctor ordered.

On the way home I was listening to this album for the first time. I pulled off for gas at an exit in the middle of northern Michigan on the way from Muskegon to Toledo. I spotted a Goodwill. Didn't know it was there...it just seemed to materialize out of nowhere.

Now you have to understand that for many, many years I was a thrift store junkie. Any new town was a chance to scour the thrift stores (primarily looking for vinyl). I passed up more than a few Goodwills on my little walkabout, er, business trip. Yet I was drawn to this one. It had a "glow" to it.

What did I find there? Moby's Play DVD. So what, you may say. I have always been guided by signs or signals that "someone" is watching over me. For the most part these have always had to do with music.

Perhaps the most significant one I can recall was Melissa Etheridge's first album. Late 80s, school, lots of personal trauma, her first album on non-stop repeat, a balm to a wounded soul.

Six years later, at the apex of my trip to Seattle circa 1994, on the last stretch of the 2,300 mile journey home, crashing and burning all the way, I passed the same exit to the school I attended and on the radio was a Melissa Etheridge song from that very same album.

Her music by this time was just a memory for me as I was fully immersed in the burgeoning electronic music scene, Moby being pivotal in this regard. She was no longer all over the airwaves, her star slowly fading, and this song was not one of the "hits" from the first album ("Late September Dogs" I believe it was...).

Yet at that moment, at that exit, that song from that album was too obvious to miss. Coincidence? Not by my definition. It was closure. I could move on.

Anyhow, I knew immediately that this was another one of those moments. All the doubts, frustrations and fatigue I had been feeling were replaced with a moment of joy. I was excited about the DVD, certainly, but the odds of finding this DVD at this thrift store while a Moby album played in my car at this point in time hundreds of miles away from my home was no mere coincidence.

As I hopped back on the highway feeling pretty good, the album continued to play. By the time I got to "Lacrimae" at about 70 mph I was in bliss. It was one of those rare, memorable moments of sober ecstasy. I was exactly where I was supposed to be and my troubles evaporated.

Everything past was laid to rest, no regrets. Moving forward was not really on my mind. It was quite "Zen" in the sense that I was in the moment enjoying the feeling of the speed of the car, the sounds in my ears and the sensation of being guided.

Try listening to “The Right Thing” through “Lacrimae” in one sitting, either undistracted or completely absorbed in doing something like driving. It may just take you into one of those deep, personal states of being where you just know. No thinking, beyond feeling, beyond mere reminisce...just a knowing.

Why do I bring this up? Happened to have another one of those moments today with this very same album (and Florence + The Machine's "Shake It Out"...). Thought I'd share.

If you got this far, thanks for listening. May you find your bliss in those rare, pristine moments that make up a life.

This album is out in about a billion versions and I'm sure everyone has at least one version but just in case...

Here's a link to one of 'em.

Here's a photo of mine:

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Land of Baboon

Volume 1 is an essential smattering of the illbient sound.

On Volume 2 that Middle Eastern illbient vibe laid over some killer basslines never sounded sweeter...

Volume 3 spins in alternate musical territory adding a jazzy kind of touch with a roster of new artists.


Try

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Friday, November 4, 2011

Zoo Rave 1 and 2

Also by request...

Hate to say it but it's "old school" but man does it bring back memories of when the rave was about, well, raving.





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Thursday, November 3, 2011

Assemblage Compilations - Extreme

By request...

Assemblage Volume One (1994)


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Assemblage Volume Two (1996)


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Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Dub Gabriel - Ascend (2003)


By request...

Hint: soulseek

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P.S. Good stuff. Thanks for the recommendation.

Angelo Badalamenti in the fog...


My drive to work this morning in the fog was with music in the spirit of Angelo Badalamenti hovering around me...simply perfect, especially the Terminal Sound System track...

1 Robert Curgenven - Acciaccatura Amplificata
2 Biosphere - Iberia Eterea
3 Circle - Bakkis
4 Terminal Sound System - Duchamp Falls
5 Pjusk - Dempet
6 Æthenor - Untitled
7 Stars Of The Lid - Music For Twin Peaks Episode #30, Part 2
8 Julien Neto - V (Rivers)
9 Yoga - Dreamcast
10 Zelienople - Aging
11 Philip Samartzis - Gut Bucket Blues
12 Windy & Carl - I Have Been Waiting To Hear Your Voice
13 Jasper Tx - Black Sleep Pt. III
14 Pluramon - Log

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