Zarko

Iron Path – Last Exit (1988)


GENRES – Rock, Noise, Avant Garde Jazz, Experimental

Prayer – 4:38
Iron Path – 3:28
The Black Bat (For Aku Ikuta) – 4:33
Marked For Death – 2:21
The Fire Drum – 4:22
Detonator – 3:47
Sand Dancer – 1:56
Cut And Run – 2:30
Eye For An Eye – 4:54
Devil’s Rain – 4:15

I thought I would try and make some interesting triplet thing going, so I picked yet another Laswell project to review, from the 80’s, so we have 3 concurrent Laswell projects, one from 88/97/07 to give it a fascinating twist in regards to Laswell’s progression over the last few decades. Last Exit is another one of Laswell’s jazz super groups. He just has the talent to drag them all together. But as we know famous musicians does not equal a famous nor memorable performance. This time he has assembled some masters of their area; Sonny Sharrock - guitarist. Peter Brotzmann – Insane free jazz saxophonist. Ronald Shannon Jackson – drummer, and of course, Laswell himself. The band was together from 86-94, when they produced some of the most amazing life improvisational performances in the genre. They were loud, aggressive and never let up. Unfortunately, the band had to disband after Sonny Sharrock passed away in 94. This, along with Tony Williams’ early death, forced two amazing bands to stop production.

Iron Path is the best of the few studio albums they released. They put all of their live show power into a studio form, with great results. Unlike the ethereal space mood created by Arcana, Iron Path is no holds barred, crashing, stomping noise and violence. Brotzmann, despite being on sax adds more to the hard rock feeling that I could think possible for a saxophonist. This is an astonishing album, to say the least. NOTE – Best listened to full boar…

‘Prayer’ opens with some foreboding signs… Some far off animal call, a bell ringing… Before the pitter-patter of Jackson’s drumming hits the scene, Sharrock following suit. The ultimate goal is to make as much noise as possible, as quickly as possible. Sharrock is in stunning form Laswell all the while is doing his thing, as they introduce Brotzmann to the group… His trademark sounds are already in practice, the low pitch of the sax screaming out. The Machine Gun comes out to play, as Brotzmann rips out note after note, trying to out do Jackson behind the kit. Hardly a track that words a lone can describe.

‘Iron Path’ carries on the slowed lull that was present after the end of Prayer. True to Laswell form, the album is almost one long piece rather than a group of songs. Iron Path is a purely suggestive piece, as the four main artists avoid interfering too much. ‘The Black Bat’ follows on the themes of the previous track into rock form. The deep bass twangs, Jackson’s suggestive drumming of some hostile force, and before it all explode in a cacophony of violence. This process is repeated a few times, as the beast’s influence grows.

‘Marked For Death’ is a slow, melancholic drum piece to begin with… I am not normally big on drum solo’s, but its not really about the technical skill but rather trying to convey a mood, so it was okay… It is only a short piece used as a go between the previous and next piece. ‘The Fire Drum’ is a groovier, psychedelic chill session, thanks to Laswell’s laid back twangs and Sharrock’s non aggressive approach. Brotzmann is a bit bluesier than his usual self, which is an interesting twist. It carries the slow nature of the previous songs but it makes it more upbeat, a much needed change (Although I wish there was more noise sometimes). Brotzmann gets a bit sick of the slow and quiet approach and breaks out his screeching sax a bit in beaut fashion.

‘Detonator’ turns up the volume again, and attempts to make everything as raw as possible. Sharrock’s guitar and Laswell’s bass have some intense distorting effects going on, which is awesome to say the least. Brotzmann rips out a few lines here and there as everything picks up a bit of tempo, and he really gets going. ‘Sand Dancer’ follows on the blues elements of Fire Drum, and is another short interval to show off some skill, particularly Sharrock’s.

‘Cut And Run’ is a full on attack of noise as quickly as possible… Brotzmann is certifiably insane, and this track is what gave me the most love for him as a saxophonist (Hadn’t heard much else before). All four of them are trying to out do each other. It isn’t that structured, they know when their turn is, but other than, it’s just an amalgamation of their fastest playing… LOVE IT. I’ll leave it to the video (Though I am sure not everyone will love it).

‘Eye For An Eye’ sadly breaks away from the fast stuff once again and goes into the slower, droning, repetitive agitated state the album is directed to earlier. A nice track nonetheless. The production is awesome, as they layer three of Brotzmann timbre’s one upon another, before he hits out in a solo. ‘Devil’s Rain’, the final track on the album is an awesome ending to an awesome album. An amalgamation of a lot of sounds already, Sharrock is once again the standout, Laswell’s licks are quality, and Brotzmann gets all his frustrations out in an all out attack. Again, it is better for the video to do the talking.

Unfortunately, the album comes in at a meagre 36 minutes…

TOTAL SCORE

9.1/10

– Cut And Run
- Prayer
- Detonator
– Devil’s Rain

In regards to which was the best Laswell era? They are all different and great for their own reasons… I obviously prefer the jazz-rock era’s though, as obvious by the rating of Arc of The Testimony and Iron Path. It is a shame that both bands had to end due to the unforeseeable death of two jazz legends.

Zarko

Unless anyone thinks otherwise, I will probably start cutting down on review length...

jackhammer

Inamorata sounds absolute killer judging by those tracks. Luckily I like Drum N Bass anyhow so it's instantly likeable.

__________________

Zarko

Yeah it is pretty solid from the genre considering I can't stand it... The fact I got through it is a testament to it

Zarko

闇のなかに置き去りにして~BLACKにGOOD LUCK – 浅川マキ (1998)


GENRES – Blues, Folk, Singer Songwriter

INTERLUDE – 6:18
向こう側の憂鬱 (Mukougawa no Yuutsu) – 5:18
別離 一本の毛髪にぶらさがる記憶のように (Betsuri (ippon no mouhatsu ni burasagaru kioku no youni))– 4:09
閉ざす (Tozasu) – 4:56
いい感じだろう,なぁ (Iikanji Darou, naa) – 5:19
無題 (Untitled) – 4:38
愛さないの愛せないの (Aisanaino Aisenaino) – 4:00
暮らし (Kurashi) - 4:42
あなた,オーライ(Anata, All Right) – 3:34
INTERLUDE(インストゥルメンタル) (Instrumental) – 1:28

Another Japanese 70’s folk artist, Asakawa Maki (浅川マキ) has been creating music for nearly 40 years. Over her career (Beginning in the early 70’s) she has tried to infuse various influences, such as rock, pop and blues into her folksy beatnik style. Good luck is one of her more recent forays back into the world of music. The result is an attractive union between her original stuff and some more electronic elements. It certainly has some of my favourite vocal performances, with a few that are only matched by ‘Blue Spirit Blues’ from the album of the same name. The piece was recorded when she was just over 56 years of age, and it offers up some of her best moments. It is more accessible than Kazuki Tomokawa, but stunning in her own way.

The opening track offers something different to the usual on her past albums already. ‘Interlude’ is a pure vocal performance which utilises key boards and shamisen to create an ethereal feel. The vocal performance is an absolute beaut, and probably my favourite of hers, save for Blue Spirit Blues. The simple guitar lines and keyboards add nice depth, but its Asakawa’s progression through the song that makes it truly worth sticking around for 6 minutes. As the song gets deeper, she starts interchanging some Japanese words with English words, which works an absolute treat. It just grabs our interest, especially with her powerful accent, its an interesting twist when out of no where you hear ‘Loving you’ in the mix of Japanese words. A perfect song to have with a few drinks in isolation and a ciggie or two (if that’s your thing).

‘Mukougawa no Yuutsu’ is a total change in direction, as Maki exploits a more upbeat tone to go along with her floating and almost haunting voice. She sounds as if she almost doesn’t care about the subject as she floats around looking in. Her dark, beatnik style is in full force over the guitar, with the addition of a small drum, its all in place. Not a great piece (I prefer her darker moments) but it is still a nice change, though a bit long at 5 minutes. ‘Betsuri’ continues the ethereal nature of ‘Interlude’ whilst adding a few folksy elements (Again, with the drums and whatnot). An electric guitar is added to add a spacey element, as Maki does her thing. The piece is more like poetry with Maki’s delivery, broken up, with little flow or continuity. Similarly, it is a nice piece, though hardly memorable.

‘Tozasu’ begins with Maki in solitude, expressing her loneliness in this quality piece. It is as if she is singing purely to comfort herself, rather than any outside and for now unknown entity. The piece is pure folk and emotion. The simply guitar strumming adds to this overall feeling. At moments it sounds as if she is going to cry, and forcing the words from her throat, as she gets lost in her own world. It’s another perfect song with drink in hand. The late electric guitar just adds a bit more depth, and is used to exacerbate the overall mood of the song.

‘Iikanji Darou, naa’ has a bit modern pop influence present throughout. The nature of the song construct, it just screams ‘happiness’. It’s a bit interesting, though nothing original, but Maki does fill out the song well. Sounding a bit like a clichéd happy ending song more than anything, it’s another one that isn’t great and the album would be fine without. The keyboard just makes it more annoying. ‘Untitled’ is a bit unique in that it utilises a piano as the base instrument. It’s a nice feature, and certainly adds some dissimilarity to the other quieter/solemn pieces of the album. Maki struggles to get the words out of her throat, and its more a reflective piece than anything. The piano apex in conjunction with Maki’s elegance and vocals is wonderful at about half way onwards. It is another song better experienced. Maki’s elegance, grace and sophistication make this another standout.

‘Aisanaino Aisenaino’ uses electronics in its production to make a repetitive back beat, along with guitar and shakers. Although it isn’t the ‘perfect’ vocals people are used to, her sound interests me, especially when going up higher consistently when she sings the title ‘Aisenaino’. ‘Kurashi’ has a bit more of funky rock sound, more so than other pieces, primarily attributed to the electric guitar, The song stays fairly consistent throughout, never really picking up at all. Until the end, the song drags along. ‘Anata’ is nothing new or special, but a nice, up tempo song, out of the upbeat songs, it’s probably my favourite. It has some nice blues guitar in the middle. ‘Interlude (Instrumental)’ is a nice piece, just displaying the instrumentals of Interlude, with the addition of a piano. It’s a nice addition, simply because I love the backing on Interlude, but its not my favourite way to end an album. I guess it does have a sense of finality to it though, so I can see where they’re coming from.

The album is definitely an interesting one. Maki’s voice has definitely aged well, as proof with some stand out performances in Interlude and Untitled, however on the whole the album drags on a bit. Late in the album its Maki being Maki, but we have heard it all before without it being special. There’s a nicer balance between upbeat pop folk tracks and her bleak, dark blues folk songs, and it makes it a worthy experience.

Maki is a true talent. She has an amazing vocal ability, as well as being a quality songwriter, however, half of her stuff doesn’t isn’t really my style. She would make an amazing compilation album especially, nabbing a song here and there, and it would result in something I would prefer (Which is saying something because I don’t normally like compilations). But there is enough good on the album to off balance the stuff that drags along. Because of the gold on the album, this or another would still rate highly in my favourite albums of all time, despite their inferior score to others. I find her vocals that amazing and rare. It’s a top album to have a drink or two to.

TOTAL SCORE

7.1/10

- Interlude
- Untitled

Zarko

Le Livre Noir Du Capitalisme – Sylvain Chauveau (2000)


GENRES – Contemporary Classical, Ambient, Electronic

Et Peu À Peu Les Flots Respiraient Comme On Pleure 3:28
JLG 2:10
Hurlement En Faveur De Serge T. - 2:54
Le Marin Rejeté Par La Mer - 3:39
Dernière Étape Avant Le Silence - 4:51
Dialogues Avec Le Vent - 3:35
Ses Mains Tremblent Encore - 1:58
Ma Contribution À L’industrie Phonographique - 2:47
Géographie Intime - 5:33
Je Suis Vivant Et Vous Êtes Morts - 6:42
Mon Royaume - 2:46
Potlatch (1971-1999) - 1:58
Un Souffle Remua La Nuit - 2:32

Sylvain Chauveau is part of my ‘Big French Pair’ of modern classical music, the other being Yann Tiersen. They’re quite a combination, each unique in their own way, and both especially talented (In my perception at least). Le Livre Noir Du Capitalisme (Or ‘The Black Book Of Capitalism’ in English) is Chauveau’s solo debut. Chauveau flutters from straight up contemporary classical, to electronic, to ambient, and likes to mix them up.

‘Et Peu À Peu Les Flots Respiraient Comme On Pleure’ is a stunning opening, though fairly simple in its construct. It is simply a classical composition filled with strings and a pianist. The string ensemble makes a nice backing to the solid piano work. The trumpet that enters the piece at around the half way mark is a nice addition, as it brings some variation, and the wind samples laid over the end of the track are an especially nice touch. ‘JLG’ is another piano composition, which is dramatic, aggressive, and beautiful; the piece just evokes so many emotions. At only 2 minutes long, it is almost perfect in its entirety, but sometimes I wish I could hear more.

‘Hurlement En Faveur De Serge T.’ is Chauveau’s first real mix up electronics wise… The song opens with a very violent sample of a tea pot about to explode (You know, those traditional stove pots). The piece is primarily dark and constructed of electronics and guitars… The track would fit in very well with a film noir scene, where the hero is trying to hide from the bad guys down alleyways and whatnot. Overlaid is a speech of some type (In French I presume) which sounds like its coming out of an old school ham radio. The repeating beats and drumming and scraping create the sense of foreboding to assist in the film noir feeling.

‘Le Marin Rejeté Par La Mer’ begins with pure silence… Then some crackling enters the picture, similar to that of listening to an old vinyl, which is what I presume Chauveau was trying to create a feeling of. Assisting the piano is a simple string ensemble, and a low humming vocal performance. Although nothing special, it is a nice small addition to the album, introducing some much needed vocals over the albums entirety.

‘Dernière Étape Avant Le Silence’ is a story unfolding before the eyes, of a man’s life before death… Chiming bells and fast paced violins consume the piece, with an overarching solo violinist present. Chauveau offers up an interesting distortion, almost an electric ripple early on to the piece. The faint hint of the fast strings ensemble adds nice depth. Although it is largely the same ideas repeated this track doesn’t lose much ground. It manages to maintain the listeners interest, hoping there is another turn in the story.

‘Dialogues Avec Le Vent’ takes quite an interesting turn from the rest of the album. It hits a post-rocky dream phase, as a single guitar performance owns the stage with some light vocal work and some light additions by other instruments. The song maintains the cinematic quality that the rest of the album possess’, and there is a constant feeling of fulfilment, embraced by the electronic backbeat and the horns section introduced around half way through. An interesting experience, before it is all quickly taken away from us.

‘Ses Mains Tremblent Encore’ is only a short piece, it is a nice addition, simple, beautifully performed and introduces us to some ideas Chauveau will be utilising later on in the album, particularly the electronic elements. ‘Ma Contribution À L’industrie Phonographique’ is an introduction of full blown electronics into the contemporary classical scene. He mixes his ideas well to create a sense that this is still a classical album. ‘Géographie Intime’ is almost a continuation of the post rock sound created in ‘Dialogues’, just more fleshed out, with electronic guitars, shakers, harmonica tones and the female vocalist from either tracks. The ethereal performance of the strings section is superb, as the piece induces raw emotion from the listener. The keyboard work assists in making this dreamy feeling come to life. It is a remarkable track, and it makes it difficult to imagine what this album is trying to convey. The second half is a quiet electronic dub-over…

‘Je Suis Vivant Et Vous Êtes Morts’ begins by conveying the chaos of life before the synth takes over, creating this nightmarish hell and scary quietness that is death. ‘Mon Royaume’ continues this hellish dream, using the sounds of a carnival, glass breaking, a man screaming to continue the ideas of the previous songs, before it all stops, and we are left with an out of place piano performance, which is interrupted by these metal scrapings sounds.

‘Potlatch (1971-1999)’ is an interesting piece, bringing in some more folk influences, including the instrument everyone loves, the accordion. Only a short piece, it is an interesting change so late in the album. It is layered nicely with some electronic sounds, piano, and some other samples. The final track, ‘Un Souffle Remua La Nuit’, creates the sense of finality. Personally, it evokes the idea of death, the chiming bells, and the music which is created to sound upbeat but has a sad undertone, like that at a funeral.

Le Livre Noir Du Capitalisme grabbed me from the first listen. It is an attractive amalgamation of contemporary classical and electronics, that doesn’t stray too far into the folk history of French music, as Yann Tiersen does. It has a lot of dark moments, but it does paint an interesting picture of life, the dizzying and fast paced highs and the nightmarish lows. It opened up a whole new world for me personally.

TOTAL SCORE

9.0/10

- JLG
- Dernière Étape Avant Le Silence
- Géographie Intime

NOTE – I will try to get my teeth into some albums I know I won’t give 9’s just to toss it up a bit… I just really wanted to review a few albums before I mix it up a bit (So there may be a few more )

jackhammer

This thread is so good with so many new names for me. Keep it up!

__________________

Zarko

Thanks, glad someone is liking it...

Zarko

Architechnology – Rubberoom (1999)


GENRES – Rap, Hip Hop, Abstract

Born - 4:48
Smoke - 4:52
Lock Jaw - 4:38
The Revelry (Acapella) - 0:22
Bleach - 5:06
The Shining - 3:30
Acid - 5:37
Vertigo (Extended Mix) - 7:19
Sector Rush Rmx (Rebuilt) - 5:39
Style Wars - 6:51
Architechnology Nine - 5:18
Pathway To The Abyss - 1:38
Offering 1366 - 2:44
Trial Of The Vampire - 3:41
Space And Time - 7:21
Operation Forever - 4:49

Anybody who knows me, knows that I am hardly the type to actively look for new rap music… It is my ‘nonchalant’ genre, in that more often than not, I can handle it in the background (Unless its Australian rap :p) and there is some stuff that I genuinely like (Run DMC, some Public Enemy) but more often than not, it’s a genre I can live without. I was about to pass up on Rubberoom’s 1999 release of Architechnology before I thought ‘What the hell, may as well use an extra 100MB here and there’ on some risks. Needless to say, it is probably one of my favourite risks in a while. My mates all listen to rap, of all types, but Architechnology was simply different and fresh for me. Some great beats, some nice lyricism, and just overall solid production has made this my favourite rap album of all time. Of course, it is still rap, so it won’t take to some peoples liking. Please note, I never review rap albums, and am overall ignorant on the genre, and have no idea how to describe some things, so bear with me. Also, given the beastly number of tracks, I won’t run through everyone to great detal, as I normally do.

The opening track, ‘Born’, at times is an example of why the album felt different to me… It had some more abstract beats that were implemented by The Opus to make the backing seem more important than just to add depth the rapping. The neoclassical string group with the mixing give it’s a dark/industrial sort of feel, as the artists, Lumba and Meta Mo, add to this with some raw and precise lyrics. They don’t **** around too much, tyring to overdo themselves as some rappers do, but use their voices in conjunction with the deep backing to create and awesome finished piece. In ‘Smoke’, is an attack on ‘mainstream’ hip hop and rap, and here the true value of the two artists become obvious. The contrast between the two is great, Lumba producing a nice legato in comparison to Meta Mo’s harsher staccato.

‘The Revelry’ is a nice interlude, just a simple accapella piece of pure rapping. ‘Bleach’ marks an awesome triplet of songs on the album. Bleach has more solid industrial and distorted backing, creating an image of a destroyed futuristic landscape. The lyrics revolve around this bleak idea, and it also introduces the best line on the album, ‘Keep it classic, so it lasts like acid’. I don’t know why it appeals to me, it simply does. ‘The Shining’ is another well constructed piece, great in its simplicity… The whole pace is turned down a beat, as the repetitive drumming leads Lumba through a half of the song. The song, as well as the upcoming creates a dark toxicity, as if they are dangerous to the listener. ‘Acid’ is my favourite song on the album, the lyricism and backing having a dark and twisted feeling. The backing is particularly splendid, with its simple fusion of electronics, classical aspects and industrial. The resultant ethereal and pronounced backing works fascinatingly in combination with the rapping, as they discuss the darkest aspects of humanity.

‘Vertigo’ is worth mentioning simply for the chilled dub trip hop opening. The background really is more important than the rapping in this piece for me. The light piano work and random sampling adds some beautiful depth, enough for it to be a solid trip hop song if left alone. The distorted vocals are also an attractive touch. The ending is just a lost collection of all the samples and sounds be used, more of the abstract beats that make the album my favourite.

‘Style Wars’ pulls out some of the fastest rapping on the piece, and it carries the dark, spacey backing that is present on other tracks. The echo used throughout the track is a good addition that keeps the track from getting too boring, same goes with the French horn introduced half way through the song. ‘Architechnology Nine’ is chock full of the experimentalism that makes these guys worth checking out. The opening back beat is some odd amalgamation of drumming and some ancient string based instrument sound. As the rapping is introduced, the electronics and dubbing pick up to create the image of a huge landscape, as the listener looks over this land. Something, however, is very wrong with this land, as the depth is overpowered by the harsh distorted drumming and vocals, and it gives the song an overwhelming yet amazing little build up. This is before it is all forced out of the picture and replaced with the harsh vocals alone. It’s a standout track on the album overall.

‘Trial Of The Vampire’ is another piece where the backing stands out over the rapping. The ancient base is mixed to bring it forward into the future, but it still has some telltale signs of being old… The piano, the old wolves howl, and light female vocalist, all add touches here and there to complete it into a full fledged section of the song that would remain interesting alone. However, in this case the drumming and vocals add to the depth and haunting nature of the song. ‘Operation Forever’ offers an strange almost alt rock electronic background to the rapping. The offbeat guitar plucking, with the other random instruments (Shakers, some unidentifiable wind/brass instrument) make this a song worth sticking through just to pick up on these oddities. The final song ‘Pathway To The Abyss’ is a short track that adds a sense of sad closure. The sax is a great addition to the final song, adding up some variety to this primarily instrumental piece. It is an awesome way to end the album, as it’s simply different.

Overall, this is an album that I fell in love with from first listen. Unlike a lot of 80 minute rap albums, which struggle through due to a repetitive sound sometimes, or just poorly constructed songs, Architechnology is a pleasure to sit through. It isn’t as harsh as some, it has some fantastic beats, and it’s just different to what you normally hear. It’s clean yet raw at the same time, and considering it’s a rap album, for me to love it is a strong suggestion that you GET THIS ALBUM if you have even a passing fancy in the genre. It would definitely fall somewhere in my top 20 albums of all time.

TOTAL SCORE

8.5/10

- Born
– Acid (Very poor quality, apologies)
– Architechnology Nine

Zarko

I decided to make a 10 track mixtape available for download of the 10 artists I have reviewed so far in my journal… For most of them the songs on the mixtape are not from the album I reviewed itself, but from another album of theirs that I felt deserved highlighting. Sometimes they are very different (Arcana’s Cold Blast) or much of the same (Last Exit’s Discharge). For the songs that I put on that are from the actual album, it’s a case of not having more of that artists work (Unfortunately in many cases).

Anyway without further ado…

Slowly Goes The Night – Volume One… Alternate Takes

1 – Acid by Rubberoom (Felt you deserved a good version)

2 – Cold Blast by Arcana, from their 1996 debut, The Last Wave

3 – Discharge by Last Exit, from their 1986 debut, Last Exit

4 – Frozen by Nils Petter Molvaer, from his 2002 release, NP3

5 – Humanoid by Method Of Defiance

6 – LOree Do Bois by Sylvain Chauveau, from his 2007 release, Nuage

7 – Rinjyu (Death) by Kazuki Tomokawa, from his 1978 album, Poem’s That Won’t Stop Crying From With Me

8 – Saturniidae by Worrytrain

9 – Wonderland Falling Tomorrow by World’s End Girlfriend from his 2002 album, Dream’s End Come True

10 – ブルー・スピリット・ブルース (Blue Spirit Blues) by Asakawa Maki, from her 1972 album, Blue Spirit Blues.

Slowly Goes The Night.rar

Enjoy

Apologies for the blatant promotion of my journal