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PRINCE CHARMING - DRAGONS OF THE SKY DRINK THE BLOOD OF THE SUNSET

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojtP77juVf8

PRINCE CHARMING - GARLANDS OF FROZEN SUNS

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5pmyQYzza7s

WHAT THE PRESS SAYS:

ULNA - FRCTURE

Rares sont les productions purement électroniques capables de concilier densité visuelle et pointillisme structurel. Au rang de ces précieuses exceptions figure cette production signée d'un duo italien méconnu. Publié par un jeune et prometteur label allemand, ce premier opus de Ulna apprivoise graduellement l'auditeur pour l'installer dans une position contrastée mélant inconfort et séduction. Possible avatar d'hallucinations urbaines, cet album progresse dans une ambiance de polar noir au fil de saccades anxieuses mais entêtantes. Ici, l'environnement sonore se veut résolument techno et minimal, mais constellé de détails et d'assemblages audacieux tant sur le plan des rythmiques que des textures. Une brêche inattendue semble ainsi s'ouvrir entre l'ambient stellaire de Paul Schütze et la techno-culture berlinoise de Basic Channel. Sculptée telle un diamant noir , cet enregistrement s'anime au gré de courbes et palpitations luminescentes, dénotant d'une acuité « sonique » autant que d'une maîtrise de l'informatique musicale élevés. Mais au delà de son caractère abrasif et mutant, cette machination digitale déroule des paysages sonores sombrement contemplatifs. Du coup, les frontières entre techno abstraite, ambient filmique et breakbeat déviant s'altèrent avec bonheur, abandonnant l'auditeur dans une friche hypno-industrielle définitivement captivante. (solenopole.org)

ULNA - FRCTURE

Frcture ist das Debut der Italiener Valerio Zucca Paul und Andrea Ferraris, die jeweils auf eine Reihe von Veröffentlichungen unter diversen anderen Namen zurückblicken können. Über Karlrecords, das sympathische deutsche Label, das uns u.a. diverse Bill Laswell Projekte gebracht hat, gibt es nun die erste Kollaboration der beiden Elektroniker. Bedrohlich wirkende Synth- und Geräusch-Schleifen dominieren das Bild, dienen hier aber nicht dem Noise-Selbstzweck, sondern werden stets zum richtigen Zeitpunkt von Beats und Loops so geordnet und strukturiert, dass die Sounds plötzlich in einem neuen Zusammenhang stehen und einen neuen rhythmischen Sinn bekommen. Dadurch werden die Elemente zu Musik gemacht und dem Hörer ein leichterer Zugang ermöglicht. Im dritten Track kommt über lange Strecken richtige Mitwipper-Laune auf, da nimmt man es auch mal in Kauf, wenn der Beat aufs halbe Tempo runtergepitcht wird. Eine erstaunlich gute Platte dafür, dass sich die beiden größtenteils im harmonie- und melodiefreien Raum bewegen. (Jochen Gutsch / TRUST MAGAZINE)

ULNA - FRCTURE

Andrea Ferraris è un giornalista e musicista con un background proveniente dal circuito rock sperimentale. Ha collaborato e suonato tra gli altri con Airchamber 3, Deep End, Luca Sigurtà, Ultraviolet Makes Me Sick, Burning Defeat, Onefineday. Ulna è il suo nuovo progetto, in compagnia del “compositore elettronico” Valerio Zucca Paul (Abstract Q, 3EEM). 'Frcture' (terza uscita della tedesca Karlrecords) è presentato nelle note come “electronic-experimental-noise music”. Glaciale laptop music ed isolazionismo aggiungo io, un triste Thomas Koner che incontra chitarra, grockenspiel, synths e cello gelando il sangue. Oscurità ed astrazione, il contesto ambientale più consono per coloro che nel solipsismo ripropongono la propria fede. Ascoltando Ulna pensi che tra un attività umana ed un'altra non esiste relazione, e che la musica è collegata solo allo stato mentale di Ferraris e Zucca. Un processo di intenso coinvolgimento psichico per il compositore e l’ascoltatore, una totale immersione-introversione nella piu' oscura e inclassificabile esperienza umana e sonora. Questo è un suono che deriva dall'ambient, ma i suoi paesaggi oscuri e alieni nulla hanno a che fare con le utopie illusorie di certa scena ''ambientale'' destinata ad un arredo elegante e consolatorio degli stati d'animo. E’ sospeso tra conscio e inconscio, tra incubo e sogno, tra silenzio e rumore, galleggiando in un limbo che non dà possibilità di interazione tra la dimensione sonora e quella dell’immagine. Ascoltando Ulna pensi a te stesso ed alle tue problematiche, tutto il resto è fuori. Per me questo disco è 8/10. (Gaetano Lo Magro - Nerds Attack / Musicaroma Underground)

ULNA - FRCTURE

Il progetto Ulna nasce dall’incontro delle menti di Valerio Zucca Paul ed Andrea Ferraris, entrambi ai computer come fonte sonora privilegiata di ricerca musicale. Già il titolo del disco, “Frcture”, permette un primissimo approccio al concept consapevolmente rappresentato in quest’opera: rendere in suono quella così vaga idea di frammentarietà (e di unità formale al tempo stesso) che permea l’ascolto e che ne consente un’ampia riconoscibilità e coerenza discorsiva. I punti cardine di “Frcture” sembrano così essere frattura e ricomposizione, frammentazione, analisi delle varie microstrutture via via rilevate e loro superamento tramite (ancora una volta) ricerca spasmodica di senso e continuità. Su Blck Crss Shde incombe una sorta di ‘nube tossica sonora’ (grazie ad un beat ‘cardiaco’ costante), minacciosa nel suo progressivo avvicinarsi all’ascoltatore e foriera di immagini cupe e spettrali che finiscono per ‘definirsi’ in una cellula distorta e stridente, preambolo della ‘frattura’ con le comuni immagini di ‘senso’. Attorno a questa ‘nube’ si staglia idealmente Fterhr Mldy con nuclei ritmici ‘scomposti’, accompagnati da suoni ‘tintinnanti’ river- berati e agglomerati di interferenze. Più ‘luminosa’ e distesa nell’espo- sizione si rivela la seguente Recmpsng The Frctre, con isuoi glitch e numerosi e piace- voli piccoli effetti di ‘saldatura’, tesi insieme su un orizzonte melodico ‘ambient’ ed uno sfondo ritmico rassicurante, ripreso sottoforma di sfumatura accom- pagnatrice. Gli stessi effetti glitch di saldatura sono ripresi in Smll Prts Recol- lected almeno all’inizio per delineare il campo sonoro; poi faranno spazio, in cross-fade con una ‘solida’ interferenza, ad un groove centrale trascinante ed efficace (potremmo benissimo dire: cool e ballabile). All’esplorazione di questo continuum ugualmente denso e spezzettato sembrano indirizzate anche le tre tracce successive: Lndn Lvs N, Lce e Hgh Freqncy Smb, volte all’estrapolazione di barlumi di umanità e di significato da un caos post-apocalittico (fitte nuvole di rumori, distorsioni e fruscii – spesso quasi industrial – contro altre linee, ben più pulite e ‘melodiche’). Notevoli, perché funzionali alla qualità del ‘messaggio’ espresso (opposizione – superamento), i disegni timbrico-melodici di violon- cello realizzati da Andrea Serrapiglio, ‘guest’ in Lndn Lvs N mentre risulta essere eccezionale la resa sonora degli spazi in Cld Sndy Evenng (special- mente nella progressione preparata verso gli otto minuti), suite in cui sono perfettamente realizzati gli equilibri costitutivi della poetica di questo combo. (Oscar Cacciatore / musicaround.net 3)

ULNA - FRCTURE

"Dr. Paul und Dr. Ferraris bitte sofort in den OP!" Zwei Männer in weiß stürmen einen langen Flur entlang und durchbrechen immer wieder große Flügeltüren. Während Dr. Valerio Zucca Paul zwei andere Patienten namens Abstract Q und 3eem kurzzeitig ihrem Schicksal überlassen muss, schiebt Dr. Andrea Ferraris einen Rollwagen mit einem Haufen Instrumenten vor sich her. Im OP angekommen, wird schnell der Befund diagnostiziert: Ellenfraktur. "Schwester! Laptop, Glockenspiel und Cello!" Die Not-OP verläuft zufrieden stellend, doch der Patient scheint nicht nur auf den Arm gefallen zu sein. Er redet unzusammenhängendes Zeug, seine Wörter weisen einen chronischen Mangel an Vokalen auf: "Ftergr Mldy" brabbelt er. Mit rhythmischen Frequenzen im Downtempobereich, pulsierendem Bass, heiterem Glockenspiel und sanften Melodien versuchen die beiden Ärzte, die Symptome zu behandeln. Da der Patient daraufhin keinerlei Anzeichen der Besserung zeigt, werden tiefenpsychologische Methoden wie Geräuschmodulation und Tonmanipulation zu teils harmlosen, teils bedrohlichen Szenarien zusammengefügt. Der Patient windet sich entweder in wilden Zuckungen oder wird bewusstlos. Die Temperatur im äußerst sterilen Operationsraum schwankt ab und an um einige Grad Celsius, bleibt aber stets recht kühl. Nach über 37 Minuten Arbeit wird der Patient für stabil erklärt und auf die Intensivstation verlegt. Dort wird er für über 11 Minuten in ein künstliches Koma versetzt, um auch den letzten konventionell denkenden Dämon auszutreiben. Klicken, Sirren, Pumpen, Melodiefetzen und Piepsen sind alles, woran sich der Patient danach erinnern kann. Eine mit Sicherheit außergewöhnliche Behandlung, die ihre Wirkung zeigt, die aber auch nicht bei jedem Patienten erfolgreich sein dürfte. (VEIT / Der Medienkonverter)

ULNA - FRCTURE

Ulna pairs Andrea Ferraris and Valerio Zucca Paul - the two playing laptops, Andrea instruments, Paul editing mixing on Karlrecords. Frcture is an immediately appealing album, based on rhythmic smooth ambient techno - which is a possibly sterile field, but these two have created an engaging warmth. Blck crss shde reminds me of Porter Ricks with an insistent bass loop building together with with a rapid pulse providing a bed for ambient tones and colours, a delicately balanced dichotomy before a strange scream ending. The next two tracks explore similar territory, mixing ambient and beated components, with expected breaks for short instrumentals before beats return. Both are very enjoyable with excellent sounds and mixing, but seemed a little formulaic. I was wondering where this would go when Smll prts recolleted came along and took a long time to introduce the rhythms, which were uncertain, and showed subtlety and restraint. Faster again for Lndn lvs n, but there is a lovely Middle-eastern feel that gives it a strength, reminding me of the aoundtrack to Exotica. The American west is suggested by the tones and spaces in Lce, slow beats, distant guitar and a quiet simplicity. A searchingly tenuous beginning for Hghfreqncy smb then a half-hearted abstract beat, becoming a bit more hearted and dirty, strings and wind before the break after which this samba gets it a bit more together, but a little madness invades the close. We close with an extended Cld sndyevenng which is spacey and spacious in its bobbly development. Empty and varied, a beat in after 5 minutes, awoobly mass squelches to a big tone, and then a playful outro which keeps changing proteanly. Some of the terms here may sound negative - but they aren't - this is polished effective intelligent dance music which appeals particularly when it moves away from a straight beat and into something more exploratory, which it does for the majority - and the more straightforward beated tracks create a strong balance. (Jeremy / ampersandetc.com)

ULNA - FRCTURE

In the vast land of the laptop there is a multitude of apprentices playing to be alchemical masters of sound. That basically means, many are available but only a handful will be chosen. We, the listeners have the ultimate word about their abilities and future possibilities. Although it is in them where reside the power that makes them shine above darkness and that power basically consists in giving something that combines a synthesis of our own prosaic vigil state and the imaginary that constitute the whole magic from life. A portion of mystery, of adventure, dream, tragedy, love and death. Isn’t that what alchemy and ultimately life itself is all about? Constructing a whole from a great diversity of elements. Well, Ulna summarise such conditions, that is why it is ahead of the pack. Their creed is invention and their limit lies in the infinite. Just like a true alchemist, of sound.Ulna is the first common project composed by Valerio Zucca Paul (From Abstract Q, 3EEM) and Andrea Ferraris (Airchamber 3, Andrea Marutti, Deep end). Both are music experts and advanced laptop explorers. Their debut “Frcture” is their first attempt to demonstrate their immense creativity and in doing so Karlrecords label from Germany has certainly collaborated to make this project a living thing.Frcture is a constant evocation of contradictory forces where they finally reconcile in the audible spectrum. Imagine a balance of ambient experimentalism with cold and hazy undertones with a hyper-modern notion of body moving electronics in a frenzy broken beat, drum n’ bass cascade of unconventional rhythms. Add to the whole plot other distant connotations such as cloudy atmospheres within the boundaries of strong organic drone layers and a multiplicity of slivering sounds, radio waves, high frequencies and noise carpets where they all twist in constant progression. Organic instruments such as Cellos, guitar and glockenspiel meet cold ambient soundscapes and dynamic rhythmic sets in some pieces that results in strange waves of new formed beauty.Dreamy vs. hyperactive. Ecstatic vs. moving. Contemplative vs. extroverted. Synthetic vs. organic. The result from contrasts is certainly eerie but absolutely tasty, excellently executed and invigorating for the listener, creating a state of constant aural demand. There is an evident love for the detail in the album, everything seems to have been carefully chosen and placed in. Every movement studied and specified with no space for filler sounds or structures, from rhythm to ambience the delicacy preserves a stand in here. The rhythm sequences are remarkable. Not falling into inane repetitiveness and always keeping a bizarre dynamics in all the aspects included in the music. The ambience created in each song is always varied and mysterious, giving space for thought and movement. Ultimately smart and intuitively inspired. Their ace is their eclectic approach to composition without leaving anything behind and giving space for sonic paradoxes.The incursion of the Cello is noticed in the song “Indn lvs n” but it is just because it was noted in the booklet,the presence of the cello is ghostly, bizarre, the re-accomodation of the instrument through electronic influences make it sound alien. And the song has this strange mystic feeling with some eastern flavour acclimatized in a blizzard full of sand. Radio waves float around a space full of throbbing pulses, beeps and bleeps chopped by samba like broken beats... Bass lines, broken beat jazz sequences, crackling textures, cloud like layers, quartered drones, all earthly elements converge in waves of organic delight.The whole repertoire in “Frcture” is daring and always moving away from conventions and the norm. Complex arrangements cast their way through the perennial progressiveness of the work, giving a touch of breezy airiness and playfulness with time for smart intensity and some emotive brushstrokes of darkness. No time for monotony or repetition here, constant movement and evolutionary steps are the norm. Multifaceted, eclectic and hypermodern. Their music is fresh and smart, intelligent and versed, ultra detailed and cinematically urban following the course of a new millennium in terms of trespassing the norm and able to bring a clue of a new dawn of huge proportions. In league with their own and surely years ahead of the vast crew of beginners around. Recommended. (Jack The Ripper / HEATHEN HARVEST)

ULNA - FRCTURE

You don’t need a degree in rocket science to determine the relative niche character of experimental electronica. Whether in a club or at home, most people want music to be about drama, dialogue and interaction – and most laptop artists simply aren’t offering any of it. In a highly competetive environment, Italian duo Ulna therefore certainly hold an important advantage over some of their colleagues: “frctre” is as eloquent as Drum n Bass, as cool as IDM, as insistent and emotional as Rock, as spacey as Ambient - and as vividly organic as all of them bunched together. In a way, this convergence of styles into a single, sexy and subversive sound is a red thread in the catalogue of Karlrecords, whose previous release by Fanu and Bill Laswell already roamed the intersection between Breakbeat and Fusion Jazz. While there is a clear preference of rhythm and texture above melody and harmonic development on “frcture” as well, the album’s stuttering forward propulsion and weightless airpads turn it into a both more uplifting and eccentric proposition. At times, the warm bass lines and dreamy chords seem to be buildups to electronic pop songs, but then their development becomes textural, the beats take over and pieces drift off into a hazy heaven. This is not a political stance against repetition or routine, but a technique motivated by spontaneous decisions. The duo lovingly waters the fragile sonic plants, sizzling acoustic highwires and translucent atmospheres leading into “SMLL PRTS RECOLLECTED”, but gladly throws away the ewer barely seconds later, engaging in an irresistible groove gently penetrated by swelling layers of tonal clouds. “RECMPSNG THE FRCTRE” evokes nostalgic memories of Tangerine Dream’s more playful Sequencer runs, but breaks down half-way, recomposing the piece from a state of stasis. Grand finale “CLD SNDY EVENING” even moves from dense, crackling morse code-abstractions to the cluttering echoes of a Dubchamber and a yearning Ambient conclusion over the course of its eleven minute duration. Seagues between these different passages are never completely seamless but always smooth, never disrupting a texture for the sake of a cheap shock effect. On other occasions, meanwhile, Ulna show themselves perfectly capable of holding a mood, discreetly attending to details. Determined and grim opener “BLCK CRSS SHDE”, for example, is nothing but an industrially distorted bass line growing in volume and depth, “FTERHR MLDY” a vibraphonic vision disturbed by nervous percussion spasms and “LNDN LVS N” an oriental bazarre featuring Andrea Serrapiglio’s cinematically transfigured Cello. There are different ways to be “contemporary” or “up to date”, but Ulna have certainly chosen one of the most honest trajectories. Unperturbed by terms like “Crossover” or crude talk of progress, they have incorporated the eclecticism and multipolarity of the 21st century into their music simply because it mirrors their personalities and suits their flexible and funky arrangements. Their music moves swiftly and intuitively, avoiding the mechanical mantra of repetition and replacing it with a ceaseless energy flow: These are full-fledged jams by laptop artists, who have made their powerbooks their instruments. (Tobias Fischer / TOKAFI)

ULNA – FRCTURE

Breaking your arms - softly, versprechen Valerio Zucca Paul (laptop/mixing desk), bekannter als Abstract Q und mit 3eem, & Andrea Ferraris (instruments/laptop), die sich röntgenologisch ULNA getauft haben. Frcture (KR 003) zeigt die zarten Knochenbrecher im lokomotiven Uptempogroove oder mit melodiösen Breakbeatz, zwitschernd, zischend, auf vollen Touren. Gar nicht mal vorwiegend mit typischen Laptopsounds, statt dessen klingt das Schlagzeug nach Schlagzeug, wenn auch öfters mal beschleunigt oder gegen die Laufrichtung gedreht und überhaupt gilt 3 Schritt vor, 2 zurück, Sidestep, Pirouette nicht als Umweg ins Dancing-in-your-head-Glück. Glockenspielklingklang kippt beim nächsten Track gleich mehrere Etagen tiefer in den Darkstepkeller. Selbst dort gilt: Harmonie ist keine Schande, schnell sind wir auch ohne Licht. Schon wallt die nächste Dröhnwelle daher, dahin, es flackert und bratzelt und diesmal scheint die Kurbel zu hängen, bis ein Hoppelbeat einspringt, der die schleifende Zeitlupe überrollt. Der nächste Hop funktioniert auf Anhieb auch mit Moonboots, im Hintergrund dröhnt ein halluzinatorisches Hubkonzert, wie überhaupt in dieser rasselnden und stampfenden Dreh- und Wabermühle Sachen mitgeistern, die bei klarem Verstand nicht da wären. Track 6 hält bei aller Unruhe im Detail stoisch an seinem Downtempopuls fest, legt ein paar Wechselschritte ein - nur keine Hektik. Auch danach kommt erst mal kein Beat so recht zum Zug, turbulente Geräuschschlieren und echolotende Pings, die eine Tonleiter abtasten, lassen die Action im Spannend-Unklaren. Zum Finale folgt noch ein 11-Minüter aus Tüpfel- und Sirrmustern und handish traktierten Cymbals, der Beatdoktor diagnostiziert einen Splitterbruch. Kaum ist die Elle geschient, kann der Schwof wieder losgehn. (Rigobert Dittmann / BAD ALCHEMY)

ULNA - FRCTURE

Se cercate questo disco su Google trovetere "A ulna fracture is an injury to one of the bones in the forearm", aggiungendo il nome dell'etichetta troverete che sulla tedesca Karlrecords c'è pure Bill Laswell: ma non è per sciovinismo che recensisco questo disco italiano, e neppure perché Ulna è formato dal nostro Andrea Ferraris e da Valerio Zucca Paul dei 3eem, (peraltro gruppo per un terzo imparentato con Sodapop tramite Danilo Corgnati... noi italiani siamo famosi nel mondo per i conflitti di interessi). Il motivo vero è che sto ininterrottamente consumando il disco da settimane, facendo rimbalzare sul vicinato una massiccia dose di basse frequenze. Elettronica fredda ma per niente "asciutta", anzi imparentata nelle basse frequenze con il dub digitale: come se ne fosse una reinterpretazione "gelida", con un suono quindi pieno e rotondo sui bassi molto presenti; basi melodiche dall'umore paradossalmente al limite tra il solare e il cupo, tanto da far pensare (per restare in tema) più che alla colonna sonora per il reparto di ortopedia, a quello di terapia intensiva, per quel suo essere sospeso in un limbo che rende tutto irreale. Un disco costruito con campioni di strumenti passati attraverso elaborazioni con i laptop, e una manciata di effetti a fare da corredo senza mai "riempire" troppo il suono, ottenendo il risultato di lasciare il disco in sospeso anche tra sintetico tout-court e analogico/suonato. A far assaporare meglio il disco aiuta una registrazione di ottimo livello e anche delle grafiche degne di un disco su Warp... e in fondo non ho citato un nome a caso: questo è un disco che nella perfida Albione potrebbe dire il fatto suo. (Emiliano Grigis / Sodapop.it)

Fanu / Bill Laswell - Lodge

Wilde Drum..n Bass-Zuckungen und ätherischer Nu-Jazz – ein Allstar-Quintett zeigt, wie es immer noch gehen kann. Zuerst eine ernüchternde Mitteilung: den Innovationspreis 2008 wird dieses Album nie und nimmer bekommen. Was andererseits aber auch wieder ziemlich egal ist. Denn im Recycling selbst bestens vertrauter Hybrid-Sounds gibt es kein erleseneres, weil magmaheißeres Kollektiv als das, was Bassmann und Sound-Aktivist Bill Laswell mit dem finnischen DJ und Breakbeat-Spezialisten Fanu zusammengestellt hat. Da bearbeiten die Trompeter Nils Petter Molvaer und Graham Haynes ihre Instrumente bis an den Rand des Schmelzpunktes. Funkadelic-Keyboard-Größe Bernie Worrell sorgt an Hammond-Orgel und Fender Rhodes für psychodelisch-spacige Klangraumfarben. Und manchmal braucht Worrell nur ein kurzes, fast unschuldig wirkendes Fünfton-Motiv auszulegen („Transfer Code“) – und schon wird daraus eine Startrampe für ein Rhythmus-Geschoß, das im Teilchenbeschleuniger in nur einer halbe Sekunde von Null auf Highspeed abgeht. Kollisionen sind dementsprechend vorprogrammiert – und gewollt. In der fast rotzig rockigen Drum..n Bass-Mutation „Hollow Grounds“ verschnürt Laswell meterdicke Dub-Beats. Und in „Fourth Voice“ gibt Fanu mit maschinengewehrgleicher Jungle-Rasanz den Takt vor – während Molvaer mit magisch-mystischer Spiritualität dagegenhält. Neu mag das alles eben nicht unbedingt sein. Aber der Verblüffungs- und Unterhaltungsfaktor ist atemberaubend enorm. (Guido Fischer / MUSIKEXPRESS)

Fanu / Bill Laswell - Lodge

Der CD-Ausstoß von Bill Laswell ist in den letzten Jahren wesentlich geringer geworden als zuvor, und das ist gut so. Der Meister aller Bässe nimmt sich wieder Zeit für seine Produktionen. So entstehen kleine Meisterwerke aus der Hexenküche unter dem Hut eines Mannes, der in allen nur erdenklichen Stilen, Epochen und Ethnien zuhause ist. Auf „Lodge“ findet er sich mit drei anderen Tüftlern zusammen, die ganz unterschiedliche Schnittstellen zwischen Jazz und elektronischer Musik verkörpern: dem norwegischen Trompeter Nils Petter Molvaer, dem New Yorker Kornettisten Graham Haynes und dem ehemaligen Funkadelic-Keyboarder Bernie Worrell. Was sich laut Besetzung zunächst sehr trompetenlastig ausmacht, ist in Wirklichkeit ein dichtes Ambientalbum, auf dem akustische Klänge eher eine subliminale Rolle spielen. Der Futurismus der CD erinnert an die Neunziger Jahre, als Ambient und Drum’n’Bass in den Jazz einschlugen wie ein Torpedo. Auf diesem Weg wird „Lodge“ ein beinahe nostalgischer Trip in die Zukunft. (Wolf Kampmann / Eclipsed 103)

Fanu / Bill Laswell - Lodge

Il y a du nouveau au rayon des sciences rythmiques à vocation climatique. En tandem avec Fanu, la révélation finlandaise du breakbeat déviant, le bassiste Bill Laswell a organisé ce décapant télescopage d’éléments funky, jazzy et drum n bass. Ajoutez à ce copieux menu la trompette stellaire de Nils Petter Molvaer et le clavier lunaire de Bernie Worrell et vous réunissez toutes les conditions d’une opération schizo-hallucinogènes apte à brouiller une fois encore les plus élémentaires repères de notre géographie musicale. (solenopole.org)

Fanu / Bill Laswell - Lodge

Bill Laswell hat bereits seit Ende der 70er als Produzent, Labelboss und Musiker bei unterschiedlichsten Platten seine Finger im Spiel gehabt, bei Künstlern wie Mick Jagger, Peter Gabriel, Laurie Anderson, David Byrne, John Zorn, PUBLIC IMAGE LTD. oder den RAMONES. Laswells große Vorliebe als Musiker liegt aber vor allem bei bassorientierte Stilen wie Dub und Funk, und so ist auch "Lodge" wieder eine sehr rhythmische Angelegenheit, wo sich Breakbeat und Jazz gekonnt verbinden. Sozusagen Tanzmusik, die zuerst durch den Kopf geht, bevor sie im Bauch ankommt, aber für ein Mainstream-Publikum dennoch zu sperrig sein dürfte. Weniger rocklastig als sein langjähriges früheres Fusion-Projekt MATERIAL, aber eindeutig geprägt von improvisierter Experimentalmusik, was die Platte wohl vor allem zu einem Fall für aufgeschlossenere Jazz-Fans machen dürfte und weniger für ein hippes Club-Publikum. Auch wenn Breakbeat nicht unbedingt mein Ding ist, begeistert "Lodge" durch seine rohe Energie und die exzellent integrierten Jazz-Anteile, die der brutalen Rhythmik immer wieder warme melodische wie disharmonische Elemente gegenüberstellen. Das klingt manchmal fast so, als ob Lalo Schifrin damals sein legendäres "Mission: Impossible"-Titelthema vollkommen zugekokst und nach intravenöser Verabreichung von drei Kannen Kaffee komponiert hätte, womit man vielleicht eine vage Vorstellung vom hypernervösen, energetischen und messerscharfen Sound dieser Platte bekommt. (Thomas Kerpen / OX)

FANU / BILL LASWELL - LODGE

Bill Laswells neuestes D&B-Projekt mit Fanu funktioniert durch die Jazzbreaks und das Dirigieren der Protagonisten Es gibt die vielen Musiker, die sich in großer Leidenschaft dem Selbstcovern hingeben. Und es gibt die wenigen Musiker, die sich in einer großen Liebe zur Musik per se stets wandeln wollen und dieses Herumprobieren zudem auf recht hohem Niveau vollziehen wollen. Der Tausendsassa und notorische Zuspätkommer Bill Laswell hat sich erneut ein Projekt erschaffen, um den letzten Weg weiter zu schreiten. Nach dem Industrial-Drum-&-Bass-Projekt Method Of Defiance erforscht der 53jährige nun den D&B, als dieser noch aus wilden Jazzbreaks zusammen geschraubt war. Wie eh und je stürzt sich Bill Laswell nicht allein in dieses Unterfangen. Mit dem finnischen Breakbeat-Musiker Fanu, dem Jah Wobble’s Solaris Trompeter Graham Haynes und recht altgedienten Gastmusikern wie Bernie Worrell von ehemals Funkadelic/Parliament sowie dem Jazztrompetern Nils Petter Molvaer hat er sich eine passable – wenn auch mit Nils Petter Molvaer etwas kitschbeladene – Truppe zusammengetrommelt, um den wilden Jazz in das eingeschlafene Rhythmusmuster des Mainstream-D&B zurückzubringen. Es mag dabei ein gewisses 1990er-Retrogefühl Einzug halten, doch das dürfte Bill Laswell nicht weiter stören. Den Anspruch auf Modernität und Aktualität hatte er noch nie, was ihm bedingt vorzuwerfen wäre. Es scheint ein sehr idiosynkratischer Ansatz zu sein, der seine Suche bestimmt. Pünktlichkeit bleibt da außen vor. Es ist eher ein Ausloten der eigenen Möglichkeiten, als der unbekannten Musikkonzepte. Spannend kann man Bill Laswells Musik daher nicht bezeichnen. Vielmehr interessiert das Wissen des langjährigen Musikers, wie viel Freiraum der Projektmanager Laswell dem Jungspund Fanu lässt, während er die Altmeister enorm in Zaum hält. Bernie Worrell hat schon bei Funkadelic Keyboard-Chaos fabriziert. Auch Nils Petter Molvaer ist eher dafür bekannt, seine Drum & Bass Exkurse in Grund und Boden zu trompeten. Auf »Lodge« dagegen treten sie sehr in den Hintergrund, vor dem die hyperaktiven Breaks durcheinander wirbeln. Die Melodien und Flächen der Tasten- und Blasmusiker geben nur noch ein bisschen Senf hinzu. Man könnte auch sagen, es ist das beste Album, das Nils Petter Molvaer jemals aufgenommen hat. (Jens Pacholsky / GOON MAGAZINE)

FANU / BILL LASWELL - LODGE

Amidst a media landscape which rarely flexes more than its eyebrow muscles unless there is a clearly, easily and widely marketable story, scene or scandal attached to a record, an album like this one must seem something like an alien spaceship in the middle of Times Square: It doesn't have a rigid concept, it doesn't sell a message, it follows no trends, delivers no hypes and promises no instant revelations. Some Drum n Bass critics will find it too little Drum n Bass. Dub and Dubstep audiences will think it too much Drum n Bass. Jazz listeners will probably refuse to even listen to it. And yet all of this explains why „Lodge“ could end up victorious nonetheless. Bewildering and beguiling at the same time, it bridges the differences between several genres, arriving at a beligerent release of the pure will to create. It is also proof to a theory Bill Laswell has long argued in favour of: That it is not endless pondering in lonely bedrooms which shapes the music of the future, but going out there and interacting with others. More and more experimental artists are challenging the traditional notion of a prolific oeuvre, but with few others, the complete irrelevance of this perspective is showing as openly as with Laswell. Does anyone ever question why a chef prepares hundreds of delicious cremes brulees a week? And just like him, the New York-based Bassist neither meditates on nor makes a point of the mushrooming catalogue of releases he has by now amassed. There is a job to do, there is music to be made, there are befriended performers to be helped, there is something to be said. On „Lodge“, the full weight of this mission statement comes pounding down on the listener, as an ensemble of experienced and fresh instrumentalists develops a sound both granitic and malleable, equally heavy and weightless, resting in itself and of a compelling forward propulsion. The foundation for the eight tracks collected here is the long-distance, yet luminously direct interaction between Laswell and young Finish Drum n Bass producer Fanu. The thick melodic Bass lines and metallic, Jazz-oriented Percussion rolls are the red threads which guide listeners through an album squeezing a daunting array of colours, timbres, moods and grooves from this fundamental instrumental combination. The reason why it works at all is that Laswell and Fanu are never content with working along the lines of readily available blueprints. On opening track „Orh“, they reverse the usual responsibility assignment, with Fanu's funky polyrhythms dancing themselves immovably towards ecstacy, while Bill's Bass provides for the typical breaks at the end of each cycle. On several other occasions, his freewheeling inventiveness disconnects the link between them, with Drums and Bass running ever-so-slightly out of sync and in different mindsets, before crossing swords again only seconds after. The constant change between slower, more relaxed and Dub-heavy tracks and hollering uptempo material, played with ferocious intensity and a frigthening physicality, also awards the album a nervous, neurotic and breathless pulse. It turns out to be just the right heartrate for the illustrous ensemble of guests which makes their appearance on „Lodge“. Bernie Worrell sets the studio on fire with his moaning, groaning, huffing, puffing, screaming and scolding synthesizer lines on „Bloodline“, while Nils Petter Molvaer's Trumpet haunts the ghostly shadows of „Transgenesis“. Jazz veteran Graham Haynes is also part of the line-up and on the six-and-a-half-minute madness of „Transfer Code“, frenzied Hammond Organ, Trumpet erruptions, Fender Rhodes interludes and a rhythm section with a burning urge to burn down the house with their razor-sharp performance, the group reaches for the stars in a piece, which doesn't care one bit about being a composition in the classical sense of the word. Quite a lot of the material here works along similar lines, presenting a theme once, before forgetting about it and rather employing sounds or micro-glitches as its lead motives. With this approach, firmly rooted in minimalism, „Lodge“ does present itself in direct proximity of Drum n Bass, Dub and Dubstep, after all, without ruminating its cliches. This may well the most astounding fact about a record which can do away with clear-cut concepts, messages, trends or hypes: It is accessible and catchy, infusing its audience with energy and having a blast while pushing the limits of at least three genres further north. (Tobias Fischer / TOKAFI)

FANU / BILL LASWELL - LODGE

Multi-tasker extraordinare Bill Laswell was one of the first champions of drum..n..bass from beyond the inner circle of proponents and true believers. Subsequently, this interest and investment has evolved into unexpected encounters first spurred by working with artists like DJ Ninj, DJ Disk and in latter years so-called "darkhop" enthusiasts, until finally exploding with a series of important and effervescent cross-genre works with solo beathandler Submerged. While these meetings have been wild, speedy and, to snatch a word from one title, doggone brutal, the present session with Finnish wunderkind Fanu is crisp, fresh and reminiscent more of work Laswell did a decade ago with the artists of the now-defunct Brooklyn crew he helped finance, WordSound. About his take on drum..n..bass, Fanu (real name Janne Hatula) has stated that his long love of the genre has him "creating today..s drum and bass with the aesthetics that come from [that] past." Thus what we have here are two veterans of the genre meeting for the first time and hopefully pushing at the proverbial envelope. But Lodge is also a record of another tradition, a kind of jazz-funk record. In tow to the sessions Laswell has three experts - Parliament/Funkadelic keyboardist Bernie Worrell and trumpeters Nils Petter Molvær and Graham Haynes. NPM himself is known for his own groundbreaking cross-genre jazz/d..n..b albums, while Haynes boasts not only an impressive solo career but has also accompanied Laswell on many of his more adventurous expeditions. Which is not to say that compared with this starting line-up, Fanu has little to bring to the table - he goes ape already on the second track, "Bloodline" and later on "Transfer Code". At calmer times, one or two tracks sound as though they were recorded during Laswell..s "Dub Chamber" sessions, but that doesn..t make it any less welcome. Bill..s bass takes centrestage on the closer,"Shroud", a virtuoso narrative surrounded by swirling keys and hammered at by Fanu..s insistent snare. Taken as a whole, Lodge is not a spectacular breakthrough but rather a deftly arranged and coherent piece of work by two very compatible artists. Hope to hear more of Fanu in Laswell..s future work - or Laswell in Fanu..s. (Stephen Fruitman / SONOMU)

FANU / BILL LASWELL - LODGE

Hey, this another fine product featuring Laswell as a producer and Robert Musso as engineer, do you need anything more to figure out how the sound is like? Beside the production the mighty hand of the "white ambassador of bass" Laswell and Fanu's break-beat skill characterize the rhythm section of this cd. Soft and groovy bass, stylish and pounding rhythms but differently from the collaboration with Submerged there's no trace of break-core, don't worry the usual "drum and bass" element is there but the atmosphere this time is way more jazzy, you have break-beat and classy fusion but also splinters of the post-Miles Davis era scattered all over the crime scene. Nils Peter Molvaer is a member of the crew as well as Bernie Worrell and Graham Haynes and with sailors like these you can bet the ship is gonna sail thru the warm water of modern black music, but at the same time don’t expect it to be a black album to the core. I think what this people really inherited from Davis (sorry for repetitions) is the global approach to music, atmosphere and introspection, that’s why I think they get the most right when they twist and reshape jazz and funk to melt them together with dance-floor beats and/or nightly moods (like in Orh). I can’t say in which percentage Fanu did this and Laswell that for their styles on this work are really complementary and probably the arrangements of these top class hosts helped a lot to refine and keep together what was an already well assorted combination. Poor Miles, I’m sure he would have loved to be featured among the guests. (Andrea Ferraris / CHAINDLK)

FANU / BILL LASWELL - LODGE

setzt das Fusion-Konzept von Laswells Method Of Defiance fort, das auf Inamorata die Breaks von Submerged, Paradox, Black Sun Empire, D-Star, Amit, SPL, Outrage, Evol Intent oder Corrupt Soul kollidieren ließ mit Saxophon-, Trompeten-, Gitarren- und Keyboardsounds von Altstars, Fusionlegenden und NowJazz-Größen wie Cosey, Hancock, Kondo, Liebman, Sanders, Taborn oder Zorn. Bei ‚Black Water‘ stießen Graham Haynes & Byard Lancaster auf Fanu aka Janne Hatula aus Helsinki. Dieser Verehrer der synkopierten RhythMotions machte auf Laswell und seinen Innerhythmic-Mitstreiter Robert Soares dermaßen Eindruck, dass er nun mit den bereits Inamorata-bewährten Trompetern Graham Haynes & Nils Petter Molvær und dem P-Funk-Keyboarder Bernie Worrell neue Rezepte urbaner Bitches Brew anrührte. Natürlich lässt Laswell seinen Bass auf allen Tracks unken, knurren und blubbern, quasi das Gütesiegel dafür, dass Fanus Essenzen aus Photek, Goldie, Roni Size, DJ Shadow, FSOL oder Amon Tobin, zuletzt auf Daylightless ausgiebig demonstriert, die MegaRhythMachine speisen, den Ultra-Fusionsreaktor, den Laswell visioniert. Sauberer Strom aus dem Soundfeuer, der globale, transkulturelle Potlatch positiver Energie. Flexible Kollaborationsstrategien und Collagetechniken bieten Alternativen zum Bandmodell ebenso wie zu Computer-Eremitage. Der DJ, der Massen pumpender Lustsklaven dirigiert, kann ebenfalls nicht das letzte Wort in Sachen Selbstorganisation von postmodernen ‚Electribes‘ sein. Fanu / Laswell feiert die ‚gegenstrebige Fügung‘ von Strom und Bruch, deep atmosphere und sharp breaks, dark fun und psychosis, Jungle und Tekkno. Der oxymoronische Dauerbeschuss führt zu einem mentalen Juckreiz. Man möchte gleichzeitig aus der Haut fahren und sich in Laswellness suhlen. (Rigobert Dittmann / BAD ALCHEMY)

FANU / BILL LASWELL - LODGE

Fanu ist Finnlands bekanntester Breakbeat-Schneider und Produzent; Bill Laswell braucht man seit "Material"- und Herbie Hancock-Tagen nicht mehr vorzustellen, denn er ist einer der besten Basser der Welt. Und zudem ein ausgewiesener Drum'n'Bass-Freak, der die freigeistigen Strukturen der Zappelbeats zu Sessions und Improvisationen rund um den Globus nutzt. Zusammen mit Größen wie dem Keyboarder Bernie Worrell (Parliament/Funkadelic), Nils Petter Molvaer und Graham Haynes schwelgt er auf "Lodge" (Karlrecords/Broken Silence) mal in den Tiefen des Reggae-Funk-Jazz-Kosmos, in dem sich auch Molvaer-Fans wiederfinden dürften, mal in schnell und schwer rollendem Drum'n'Bass, der in der Drum'n'Bass-Hochburg Nordbaden durchaus auf dem Plattenteller landen wird. (Roger Waltz / INKA-MAGAZIN)

KAMMERFLIMMER KOLLEKTIEF / STRINGS OF CONSCIOUSNESS – Split-10"

Tuning a voodoo ritual, Kammerflimmer Kollektief, propels a languid sojourn of tribal rhythm and yawning sounds where quivering vocals ululate soft consonants and vowels over the trio who with percussion, guitar, and electronics richly colour an etheric experience. Melodies slump and slide, the lilting vocals shudder like rushed but delicate breath. Following from the first track on this split album is a more sombre track of leisurely rock reminiscent of the quieter moments of SWANS’ ‘Soundtracks for the Blind’. Guitars funnel haunting cadences and double bass groans the guise of cello, spidery electronics stilt gently amid the mournful dirge. The ensemble of eleven that make up this Strings of Consciousness contribution has less of the lidless distress of Kammerflimmer Kollektief but mesh together such panoply of avant-garde sound that makes this a complimentary reverse. Electronic percussion doses out noisy rhythm, xylophone rummages improvised melody, saxophone floats above long strains of wavered guitar, barely a fragment of the boutique that is Strings of Consciousness. Forest of Spades is an eerie dose, unlike the more modernist Fantomastique Alaska that is less striking where the saxophone pulls away from the rest of the congregated musicians with smooth dulcet lines. The jazz influence is not just saxophone, with all instruments exploring improvised motifs based on a very loose central head, but the saxophone stands out as one of the more salient of the instruments, sometimes a little too much at the expense of the other musicians though its squealing and straining breathing during Crests & Watersheds makes up for the second tracks lounge feel. The package is a delightful gatefold cover on thick glossy black and white stock, warped bole and boughs on the cover open to a large internal spread where, seated with glass of wine, a bizarre treant reposes facing outward, a head of branches. Each side of the 10” vinyl, limited to 500 copies, is dressed with the respective iconic artwork/logo of both bands. ("symbolique" / HEATHEN HARVEST)

KAMMERFLIMMER KOLLEKTIEF / STRINGS OF CONSCIOUSNESS – Split-10"

Für den Auftakt der halluzinatorischen Wahrnehmungen gewidmeten Parakusis-Reihe des mit Bill Laswell gestarteten Karlsruher Labels, variieren Thomas Weber, Heike Aumüller & Johannes Frisch zwei Tracks ihres Staubgold-Releases Jinx, bei denen der Musik Flügel wachsen, die einen in eine Art ‚out of body experience‘ davon tragen können. ‚Jinx (Excursion)‘ klopft, rasselt und dröhnt und Aumüller kaut mit zittrigem Gesang die Luft weich, damit das Karlsruher Schamanen-Kollektief an der Weltachse entlang in die Anderwelt gelangt. ‚Both Eyes Tight Shut‘ (Instrumentalversion) bringt Strings - Frischs Kontrabass arco, Heike Wendelins Viola und Martin Siewerts Lapsteel - so in Schwingung, dass die Phantasie auf sanften Langwellen den Orbit verlässt und durch Outer Space driftet, nirvanasüchtig wie der finale Surfer in Dark Star. Zwei astrale Trips in der Tradition krautiger Space-Psychedelik. Hinter fest geschlossenen Augen öffnet sich die Tür des Cactus Tree Motels auf den Mäanderweg in Sound, der in Altered States lockt. Stringtheoretisch versiert zeigt sich auch das von BiP_HOp-Macher Philippe Petit versammelte 11-köpfige Ensemble STRINGS OF CONSCIOUSNESS. Saiteninstrumente haben die absolute Mehrheit gegenüber der Fraktion aus Trompete, Saxophon, Vibraphon, Sampler und Petits Laptop. Nach einer ersten Duftmarke auf der BiP_HOp-Compilation Generation v.8 wird man hier entführt in den ‚Forest of Spades‘ mit seinem von Streichern und Vibraphon gestreuten Nadelteppich, von Perceval Bellones süßem Saxophon in ein ‚Fantastique Alaska‘ und von Andy Diagrams Trompete auf Bergkämme, auf denen sich nicht nur die Wasser scheiden. Diese Fourth World hat ihren Magnetpol im Osten. Die Musik verflüssigt das Bewusstsein so, dass es dem Sehnsuchtshorizont stetig zuströmt. Wenn nicht auch die Anderwelt ein Kugel wäre. (Rigobert Dittmann / BAD ALCHEMY)

KAMMERFLIMMER KOLLEKTIEF / STRINGS OF CONSCIOUSNESS – Split-10"

This split ties the knot between String of Consciousness I’ve just interviewed for Chaindlk (so watch out since you’re gonna read it sooner or later) and Kammerflimmer Kollektief I didn’t know anything about. This slab of vinyl has been a real surprise: I’ve been listening to the songs repeatedly and the first obvious conclusion I’ve come to is that this 10” joins a beautiful pair. I’m not just speaking about the top notch quality of both of the bands, what I’ve written is mostly referred to the fact if you listen carefully to the five tracks here included they all make sense on the same release even though the bands are not that similar style-wise. Cinematic music takes over on both of the sides and I’m also tented to say that the matter is filmic but also nocturnal, it’s mainly instrumental material with a really elegant approach for what concerns arrangements and taste. Kammerflimmer Kollektief officially enter in the ranks of interesting bands, later I’ve found they’ve some material out on Staubgold which perhaps doesn’t mean that much, but you’ll agree with me it could be a good hint to suspect they’ve the quality trademark. An interesting blend of influences for they play with a subtle krautesque (…Can anyone?) aftertaste you can sense in both of the songs. Believe it or not the first track made me think to post-krau-tronic bands as we could have classified mighty Salaryman hybridized with the vocals of Meredith Monk, the second song instead reveals an all german taste for sadness, it could have been part of the soundtrack for one of those tv-dramas or even the main theme for Wender’s “Alice in den Städten” (if Can had not arrived first when we all were young and cute). On the other side of the 10” you have String of Consciousness with no famous guest and no vocals...does it cheapens the result? No, therefore turn down your scepticism since this’ the proof you needed if you were just trying to get if they “had it or not”. S.O.C are probably one of the most jazzy bands hailing from the post-rock, post-modern, post-whatever scene, this probably what would happen if you put some ECM (let’s say Jan Garbarek), some New Wet Kojak, a good but discrete dose of electronic sounds and a spruce of Morricone in the same shaker. You think it’s an odd mixture?! Come on, think about it carefully and you will be with me thinking the combination was somehow quite logical. (Andrea Ferraris / CHAINDLK)

KAMMERFLIMMER KOLLEKTIEF / STRINGS OF CONSCIOUSNESS – Split-10"

Nach der "Bill Laswell vs. Submerged"-Platte auf Karlrecords wirkt die zweite Veröffentlichung auf dem Label wie ein Gegenpol: hier regiert die Wärme, die Sehnsucht, die Welt der Farben, die Freiheit der Kreativität. Das Kammerflimmer Kollektiv gibt sich noch geruhsamer als gewohnt und hält so manchen Ton voller mütterlicher Fürsorglichkeit über eine angenehm lange Zeit. Eine sehr entspannte Herangehensweise, wenn man bedenkt, dass nur eine Seite einer 10" zur Verfügung steht. Das elfköpfige, internationale verstreute Ensemble mit dem seltsamen Namen Strings Of Consiousness passt so gut zum Kammerflimmer Kollektief, dass man den Übergang kaum wahrnimmt, bis die ersten knisternden Elektronik-Beats einsetzen. Hier geht es etwas jazziger und postrockiger zu, man spielt ein paar Noten mehr und doch bleibt das tragende Element die Soundmalerei. Insgesamt ist dieses auf 500 limitierte Stück Vinyl ein wundervoll ausbalanciertes Werk, das viele Freude in allerhand verschiedenen Szenen finden sollte. (Jochen Gutsch / TRUST MAGAZINE)

BILL LASWELL VS. SUBMERGED - BRUTAL CALLING

New cover and new label for what I’ve read it’s a reissue of the mighty Laswell vs Submerged originally released in 2004 by Japanese Avant label exclusively for Japan. Should I introduce Bill Laswell? Should I tell he he’s played with everybody, he’s produced everybody, he’s one of the main responsible for the fact dub got fashionable again back in the days and for having done almost everything? Should I mention he’s one of those two, three musicians together with Zorn (executive producer of this release with engineer Robert Musso) and Frith whose discography is so vast it’s almost impossible to make a reliable list? I’ll just say he played in three of my all time favorite bands: Painkiller, P.I.L., Ashes. Here we go with a breakcore, drum’n bass rhythmical release where you’ve that characteristical Laswell bass/touch you recognize in a split second married with Submerged “in yer face” drums. While this rhythmical approach is going trendy again thanks to a whole wave of new breed of Laswell/Harris-sons like Bong-Ra, Venetian Snares and so on, some will surely recognize something you may have heard before in many of the “fast” rhythmical release by New York based producer be it on Axiom or on other labels. I dunno that much Submerged but I see his beat-approach gets along really well with this long-respected producer/musician, it’s music you can move your feet to it’s aggressive but being this bass-hero a soulful white man with a foot in black music, he didn’t limit himself to dance till you drop music without heart and here and there you’ve some visceral sounds and melodies. Visceral, yes…I think that’s the proper adjective for many releases signed by “uncle Bill” (just to quote mighty Burroughs, I’m sure both Laswell and Submerged would appreciate), you always have that nocturnal feel plus a strong narcotic post-dub flavour flowing underneath like in the closing killer track. Thought being one of those who prefer the american producer in his more relaxed, slowed down, ambiental salsa (just to contraddict my Painkiller infatuation) the release has its say above all if you’re into the most elegant breakcore materials or into many of the releases on Ohm resistance. (Andrea Ferraris / CHAINDLK)

BILL LASWELL VS. SUBMERGED - BRUTAL CALLING

Breakcore meets bass in this ‘versus’ ‘tween Bill Laswell and Submerged. Laswell, long-respected producer and bassist takes on the breakcore rhythms of Submerged. It is a tense furore that brims with anxiety and a raw jarring collaborative effect. Patterned as a reaction in 2004 to the terrorist attack of 9/11, this reissue album on vinyl captures a fury and energy that is dark and scattered. Disruptive drums clatter the skull like falling steel, fractured and twisted chunks cloister the speakers with geometric innards spilled. The bass of Laswell is a significant inclusion, bulbous and organic, consummating with the contours of destruction the bowel-loosing horror of the event. Encrusted with blood and immersed in swift oblivion each track strikes like an airline into a tower and there is little one can do to bear witness even after repeated listens as the music as an event usurps all sense. One of the hardest hitting is Decapitation Strike with its pummelling bass and drum precisely punching together with scratched and reversed inlets into inferno. Deeper and deeper into the six tracks, the chaos grows, the aftermath worse than the impact in its maelstrom. The collaborative effort is a puissant one, hard to delineate ‘tween the forging as so comprehensive is their delivery of hard-hitting rhythm and gut-writhing melody. That a bassist shares duties with such an electronic demagogue makes for a more respected output than simply laying down some virtual instrument to the skitter-scatter of rhythm. Couple that with the dark response to such an event it’s a worthwhile session for them and us. Originally released on Avant-jazz guru, John Zorn’s AVANT label in Japan only, this full length vinyl only of one-thousand copies is slicked with aesthetics. The cover is black, spilled with an embossed oil slick – or perhaps more fitting given its 9/11 reaction: blood. It glistens. The insert inside is a full colour wraparound of dark skies occluded in heavy clouds. ("symbolique" / HEATHEN HARVEST)

BILL LASWELL VS. SUBMERGED - BRUTAL CALLING

Diese Kollaboration von Bass-Master Laswell mit dem Drum‘n‘Bass-Finsterling und OHM Resistance-Macher Kurt Gluck war 2004 zwischen der Photo Op Before A Long Hard Fuck-Split-10“ (2003) und Todd Bridges On Lockdown (Temulent Remix) / Summery Execution (Corrupt Souls Remix) (2005) als CD beim japanischen Label Avant erschienen und wurde nun für Vinyl-Liebhaber neu aufgelegt. Optisch verfinstert mit Totenköpfen Schwarz auf Schwarz, wird nun auch deutlicher sichtbar, dass die beiden New Yorker mit ihren Breakbeats und dem untergründig grollenden Bassbeben einen Nachhall von 9/11 inszeniert hatten. Auf Anschlag, was die Raserei der Beats angeht, hallt in Tracks wie ‚Mass graves‘ oder ‚Decapitation strike‘ Panik wider. Venetian Snares zerrt ähnlich an den Nerven, Brutal Calling greift aber direkter an, durchwegs fiebrig überdreht und bei ‚Lockdown on bridges and tunnels‘ mit einer WahWah-Gitarre, die Hals über Kopf Treppen hinab kreischt und blind nur noch dem Fluchtinstinkt gehorcht. Laswell zeigt hier den zerstörerischen Aspekt Shivas (wie in Chaos Face, Death Cube K, frühe Painkiller, Time Zone), den Crooklyn-Pol der Existenz, zu dem die Deep Vibrations seines Sacred Dub, die Healing Force seiner Ambient-Mantras, Innerrhythms und Space-Psychedelix (Asana, Charged, Divination, Equations Of Eternity, Pete Namlook, Tabla Beat Science, Jah Wobble) die Gegenkraft bilden. Wobei nach Laswells Philosophie wohl nur unterschiedliche Aspekte der gleichen Kraft ihr Spiel treiben. Seine Basslinien pulsieren nämlich hier wie dort mit der gleich sonoren und souveränen Vitalität und Funkiness. Falls Brutal Calling den Fall der babylonischen Türme kommentiert, dann jedenfalls nicht larmoyant. Und wie sehr auch Glucks D’n’B- Hysterie sarkastisch helterskeltert, durch Laswells Bass werden selbst Kalis Tanzzuckungen auf dem Ground Zero zu Dynamiken der Transformation. (Rigobert Dittmann / BAD ALCHEMY)

BILL LASWELL VS. SUBMERGED - BRUTAL CALLING

Die erste Veröffentlichung auf dem kleinen deutschen Label Karlrecords ist gleich ein heftiges Schwergewicht: Der große Bassmeister Bill Laswell trifft auf den Breakbeat-Chaoten Submerged von OHM Resistance. Was dabei herauskommt, kann man sich beinahe ausrechnen: auf der Oberfläche schraddeln die Breakbeats, während drei Etagen tiefer der Bass grummelt. Das derbe, oft gemein verzerrte und wild gefilterte Drum'n'Bass-Geballer basiert auf dem Schub der typisch-dumpfen Laswell'schen Bass-Patterns, die wir auf seinen mehr am Dub ausgerichteten Platten so lieben. Die Tatsache, daß dieses Album als Reaktion auf die Terrorattacken von 9/11 konzipert wurde, erklärt die launische Agressivität und freudlos-industrielle Athmosphäre. Urspünglich bereits im Jahr 2004 auf John Zorn's AVANT-Label in Japan auf CD veröffentlicht, zeichnet sich Karlrecords für die auf 1000 Exemplare limitierte Vinylveröffentlichung verantwortlich. (Jochen Gutsch / TRUST MAGAZINE)

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FANU / BILL LASWELL - LODGE CD

€ 15 incl. shipping anywhere in the world

KAMMERFLIMMER KOLLEKTIEF / STRINGS OF CONSCIOUSNESS - Split-10"

€ 15 incl. shipping anywhere in the world

BILL LASWELL vs. SUBMERGED - BRUTAL CALLING LP

€ 19 incl. shipping anywhere in the world