Saito Koji – Tokyo Morning Loop

Hello!!!

I haven't been there for a while, and I think I won't be much able this month. So just a short post about one record I have come across lately.


Rate:5/5

Saito Koji – Tokyo Morning Loop

Just one loop expaniding and changing through a 45-minute Nippon-journey. Worth checking, even if you're not patient enough to go through the whole thing.

The label? But of course, it is Resting Bell.

Farewell to garageband

So long!!! It's been pleasure to be there!

a_forced_fixed_image - weak wrists

Rate:4/5

extremely weird
This is nice industrial music collage, extremely not appriopraite to the label of reviews (Heavy!Heavy!Loud1) but still, it's an engaging piece of music anyway. There is one nice guitar riff around 6'00'', but it's more electronic industrial than any king of loud guitar stuff.

song's site

NEVER WAS - Truth issue

Rate:5/5

surprisingly good
This is a really nice electronica/rock mixture, evoking the best years of Stabbin' Westward or Nitzer Ebb. There are few nice samples, great heavy drums, a crushing bass and a neat composition. The only drawbacks are a bit unprofessional production and too quiet vocals. It needs to be done once more, but overall impression is more than positive.

song's site

a_forced_fixed_image - Distressed Little Lamb

Rate:4/5

Nice
It is both engaging and disturbing sound collage, taking it all back to the days of glory of SPK or Psychic TV. The production is pretty neat and arrangements are deminic, so one must like it, if one like this particular genre, of course. The mood is pretty depressive and abstract, but basically... That's the point.

song's site

a forced fixed image - Hypocrite

Rate:4/5

Interesting
This is yet another industrial sound collage I stumbled upon, and it is indeed interesting. The timing in sequencing is quite well synchronized, and although this is a bit experimental it's not boring. I loved the end of it, with a children song. That was pretty catchy. The whole tune sounds like some PTV or SPK trip, and I must say it's quite enjoyable.

song's site

The Phantom Carriage – Skull exposed to March rain

Rate:9/10

This is quite an extra ordinary release. I do like the way it was edited – with four pages of extra artwork and very decent cover it is a thing that invites you warmly to listen to. The music itself is also a bit out-of-there. There are nice, lyrical ambient, spoken word voyages, overlaps with the folk songs reminding me of Bonnie Prince Billy. It’s hard to put the album into a genre, but I suppose that’s the way the beauty of it comes. Personally, I prefer the folk ones ober the electronica, so I will distinguish a cappella Blood, and a very sentimental Hawthorn Tree, however one cannot neglect the rest, especially a nine-minutes long Folly, very much in Philip Glass/David Bowie collaboration style with a country guitar twist or extremely psychedelic Three Wishes. Well... electronica covers most of the album, with its end being a very M83 Skull exposed to March rain. It is skillful and neatly produced, but I’ll wait for the whole folk The Phantom Carriage album – really, they can’t be wromg there.

Stay cool,

gz.

Sonic aliance - Engage

Rate:4/5

There is something poppy about it
Which is not bad. I didn;t like cursing in the chorus, it spoils lyrics and an overall mood of the song. It is a song - it's melodical, vocals are good and it has a nice choir in the chorus, there is a bridge, decent verses, everything. It definitely got it, but the production is a bit amateurish, a thing that spoils an overall impression to a large extent.

song;s site

This is my 201 post

Hip hip hooray!!! Two times one hundred exceeded!!!

Level 21 - Facial features

Rate:4/5

It does rock
Good keyboard sound, rich arrangement, simple, but powerful and catchy guitar riff, a sensible composition including - I'm surprised myself that I dig the track so much. It is created by an evergreen NIN or even MM formula, but it does engage a listener. Distorted vocals annoy a bit here, but if a skillful producer worked on it, we would have something really industrial instead of Cher like vocals (it's just for some seconds, but still it spoils a mood). Regardless of these little drawbacks, the composition impresses as a really recommendable thing.

song's site

Lord Numb – Comfortably Numb EP

Rate:9/10

Now, that’s an EP to cherish! I did like all the tracks there, beginning from extremely New Order like A question mark for a face through even more similar Stackridge and experimentally ambiental A song for the numb to electro clashing Webcore, webcore. The whole album has a great dose of self-consciousness musical irony, a quite professional production and catchy riffs (unfortunately, it’s quite minimal, so no melodies). The only drawback I sense here is lack of vocals. I think lyrics and a good singer would give compositions a more complicated texture and greatly enhance the overall quality. By this only my humble opinion, of course. Also, the cover being nice and not hideous, taking under consideration the growing standards of netlabel design it is somewhat cliche. My overall impression, however is more than positive.
BTW – the album is released under the banner of dedpop, a very interesting, rock-folk-indie oriented netlabel worth checking out. I think in the nearest future I will report more both on Lord and the netlabel.

take care,

gz.

FANOE - Only you

Rate:4/5

An interesting song
This one has a lot of rock energy in it. I miss the samples in arrangements, a staple thing for an industrial band in my opinion. The band sounds like industrial-metal bands, basically it's like Ministry rehearsal, not exceptional, but not phony either.

song'site

Grammar – EP

Rate:4/5

This one is a nice piece of experimental electronica, that I stumbled upon while I was checking 49manekinow net label. EP consists of six, rather short (3 minutes, 4 the longest) compositions in Autechre and generally warp records based style. My favourite tune here is Jnry Crush, which very neatly combines abstract samples with composition and Offsediment, when the breaking really takes place. Everything is quite nice and decent about this record, and if one likes that genre he will enjoy this EP. The shame about distributing it is that you got the record cover only after downloading the whole, so visual guys may simply ignore the release and the net-label as well. Apart from that it is a recommendable album, truly a chalenging, but rewarding thing to listen to.

take care,

gz.

New review of our song on garageband

INCREIBLE
Amigos, que calidad tan lograda, los felicito. El ritmo, las trompetas increibles, que ambiente que creado. La combinacion perfecta de elementos sonoros para mi.

Extra Credit: Drums, Bass, Keyboards, Programming, Production, Melody, Beat, Mood, Originality, Best Feel Good Track.



- 8000
Argentina, Santa Fe, Argentina
April 10th, 2010

!GRACIAS ARGENTINA!

New netlable worth recommending

You may stumble upon my review of Tom Woxon's Kickstart. Do check out other releases from 8-bit, chip-tune oriented da!heard it records.

see you soon,

gz.

Repose - Solace

Rate:5/5

Piano gently begins its melody. The beat is trip-hop, and the girl's voice is just sweet as honey. The melody gently flows, taking the listener into moody but catchy piece of very neatly produced music. It's quite useless to speak about what's hot and what's not in this piece, because it's almost perfect. I loved the lead vocals - the singer definitely has a big talent. She doesn't have to sing in all pitches to create the atmosphere - and that counts a lot. All the samples, keyboards and the beat are also very professionally produced. A composition is also interesting. There are two breaks (1:10 I believe, and a similar one around 1:55) than creates a dramaturgy of the record. Overall it's a strong proposal for an underground hit. I like more darker side of trip-hop (if you know Tricky records than you know what I mean), but that track is also undoubtedly recommendable.

song's site

The Metronomus Project - Took Away

Rate:4/5
nice but not extraordinary
This is a very good draft to a composition. A riff and rhythm section is more than okay, but the composition itself it's not really elaborated. The production is almost perfect (I would work on the bass), but still... Where's the chorus and some changes in the mood of the tune (some samples, perhaps?).

song's site

Zodiac - End to Chivalry

Rate:4/5

Well.. That's engaging
How do you sound like? You do sound like NIN or some lighter side of KMFDM but it's still intersting and quite engaging. There's a nice balance between manic Trent-like vocals and hypnotic samples. I liked electronic drums to. The tune is just right - not too long, not too complicated. Right there - an industrial electronic composition at its best.

song's site

a_forced_fixed_image - A Fractured Girl

Rate:4/5

A psychotic piece
I loved it!!! This is a Tarantino soundtrack piece-like tune. Just kidding! It's more like Jodorovsky one! You're lucky because I do enjoy such out-of-head stuff.It's long, it's 12minutes-long and it's more, just as I said, more a out-of-space, Residents-like soundscape than a regular track. Well... It's a regular track in PsychicTV terms ;-). Generally, a recommendable tune. For psychotics. I nominate that song for A best tune suited to an elevator.

song's site

Tom Woxon – Kickstart

Rate:10/10

Now, that’s something! I have stumbled recently at this netlabel Da!Heard It Records and I decided to sample one of their menu at random. I knew there would be some breakcore, 8-bit stuff going on there, but I didn’t know that it would be That 8-bit. Kickstart is a great tribute to a world of commodore/amiga scene, nad it was truly extremely enjoyable to go through the tracks. Tom Woxon’s album is not a simple reconstruction of the sound of those great machines of the 80’s, but more an impression of it. House vocal samples weren’t in use at this time as I recall, I suppose not many people knew about house music in the first place, so those rich vocals that dwells Sofachips or Kickstart tunes are just a sort of interpretation, though it is quite nice and accurate. As much as I liked those, I simply loved those who are more similar to the imaginary amiga games soundtracks such as Casio Dream or Amiga Bass. Overall, this a great LP, very engaging though it has got 14 tracks. It is a definitely recommendable production and I’m looking forward to check something else from this netlabel.

Stay cool,

gz.