Alan's Free [Prog.] Electronic Blog

I dedicate this post to my friend Horizons. Recommended to me by my friend Guldbamsen is this album called Hechos Tocantes al Joven Kostia Bogomov. Moradores del Otro Mundo by Koroiev, an artist who apparently is from Spain. I have no idea what the title means and I kind of don't care, but the music is very clean and modern sounding Berlin school type of electronic music. One of the standout elements of this album is the increased attention on the lower register sounds, booming and pulsing throughout where most Berlin school simply slacks off. Something that really entranced me on the first listen was the middle portion of the second track that includes booming percussion similar to the buildup sections on Sigur Ros' Takk... album that is combined with a somber accordion melody and sweet vocaliztions -- very interesting for this genre. Much of this album relies less on repetition than some other Berlin school-inspired albums that I've heard, which I guess would make it a good start for someone who already has negative thoughts on the genre. Also, word is that this artist might be added to PA soon.

Worth mentioning also is Vompatti's new new album, Light Bright Enough to Eclipse the Arrayed Constellations of the Midnight Sky, or LBEtEtACotMS. Enjoy!

Our resident wombat, Vompatti, has recently released a new album, so I feel obligated to share it with everyone who is unaware. Reverberations of a Disquieting Wail is 27-minute minimal noise epic focused around fuzzy industrial free-form melodic sonorities that sound like upsetting whale calls. The track starts off calm and collecting but becomes more and more unsettling and distorted as it wears on, progressing clearly from whispery ambient to harsh industrial noise to almost an electronic grunge distortion-fest. Like many industrial electronic works by Maurizio Bianchi, this album has a very raw production sound to it that only enhances the otherworldly mechanical quality that makes it so compelling. Reverberations of a Disquieting Wail is the perfect audio-depiction of those times where you just hate yourself and can feel your consciousness releasing a deafening scream that only you yourself can actually hear and understand, and Vompatti deserves a listen for being able to clearly put this emotion into recording so we can know that we're not alone. Huzzah!

Did you know that the beginning of the title track on Massive Attack's Mezzanine sounds just like Between the Wheels by Rush? Anyway...

I've got a couple of new things to share today. First, brought to my attention by my friend Polo, is a grumbly noise-influenced drone album called Levante created by artist Matt Beattie under moniker Mane. In the artist's own words, 

"A piece of music inspired by and devoted to the victims of the Levante phenomenon in Tarifa, Spain" 

, which is something I know absolutely nothing about but I'm sure it was devastating. I've never been to Spain, personally, but I've seen TV specials and read about Spain and it seems like a place that is definitely worth visiting and I hope the people are Tarifa have been doing well since the "Levante phenomenon". As for the music itself, it's very rumbling and brooding, and the only real harsh noise element is the constant popping effect that isn't unlike the sounds heard naturally while flying in a commercial airplane. The three lengthy tracks run together as a single epic with occasional breaks of neutral "door ajar" type ringing that adds a little variety to the mix. Everybody say "thanks Polo!"

I'd also like to share with you a more commercially accessible album, which will also be my second featured album to be stolen from Anthony Fantano. Before today, I hadn't heard of producer Evian Christ, but I saw Fantano's video review, saw that it was a free download, and decided that it sounded pretty good. So I present to you Kings and Them, essentially a chill dubby and instrumental hip-hop album with bass heavy enough to rattle your brain until the resulting goo oozes from your face. Some of the tracks feature rather annoying rapping that is seriously uninspiring, but the instrumentals sound good and fun, in my opinion. Still, it's free. Why not waste some time giving it a listen? If it's not already obvious, this album isn't very progressive. You can listen to this album on the link provided below, and the new download link (mediafire) is located in the comments section.

The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble is a group that I've been following for about a year now, but somehow their recent live album I Forsee the Dark Ahead, if I Stay had completely been missed by my radar - luckily I finally learned about it. The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble play in what I like to think of as an electronic ambient jazz noir style, which is somewhat close to post-rock but engaging and progressive enough to not sound stagnant. Essentially, this is nu-jazz in the same vein as Nils Petter Molvaer and Eivind Aarset but amplified in murky drama. Also, the lineup isn't just simple rock instrumentation; there are brass instruments, strings, piano, in addition to guitar, upright bass, drums, and the obligatory electronic elements. It might be worth mentioning that these folk aren't actually Japanese. If you like this live album (doesn't sound live at all, due to studio trickery), then you should check out their other albums and also their is a live improvisational/doom/jazz offshoot called The Mount Fuji Doomjazz Corporation. Enjoy!