Reissues
Solaris. The Mirror. Stalker (1972-1979)
Another addition to the early electronic music from Russia, this album is a compilation of music drawn from three Russian movies directed by Andrei Tarkovskiy - not having seen any of them I know of "Solaris" only by repute. The music here, composed and performed by Edward Artemiev, is mostly electronic and extremely evocative. "The Stalker Theme", which opens the CD, is very wistful and gentle and leads into "Train", which carries on some of the same themes mixed with the sounds of a train pass…
Electroacoustic Music (IV) Archive Tapes, Synthesizer ANS 1964-1
again, long out of print, beautiful CD with pioneering electronic music from the period 1964 – 1971, which is a period when the somewhat lighter hand of Nikita Krushchev was replaced by the much sturdier and more repressive totalitarian reign of Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev. This CD is a great revelation to the world outside of Russia, giving insights to the experimentation of sound during that important period, when so much was happening in the U.S.A. (San Francisco Tape Music Center) and Europe (The…
50 ans de musique électroacoustique - GRM
This is a long out of print (1998) beautiful glossy magazine, written in 5 languages with a great collection of visual material, giving some background on French and Italian electronic music history, practice and institutions - along with it, a double CD with 57 short pieces or extracts covering the first 50 years of the work of the seminal Groupe de Recherches Musicales in Paris, starting with Pierre Schaeffer (1948) and ending with Christian Zanesi (1998), selected and compiled by INA.GRM its…
May
May is the latest collaboration between New York composers Taylor Deupree and Kenneth Kirschner. Recorded on May 9, 2008 at the OFFF Festival in Lisbon, Portugal, the album represents the first available live recording of Deupree and Kirschner's concert performances. Continuing in the direction of their acclaimed post_piano series, Deupree and Kirschner's live work explores the intersection between piano and digital music technology. For this performance, Deupree and Kirschner took an even more …
For The Whole World To See
Classic proto-punk from 1970s Detroit. Raw with little polish, the record showcases the organic power relationships within the trio of brothers. The Hackneys were first influenced by soul & funk music but it all changed when they saw Iggy and the Stooges. Inspired by The Who, Alice Cooper & Led Zeppelin; the brothers finally see their first full length release, remastered & ready for the world to hear.
Individuellos
Released in 1980, is the 3rd & final release from these German proto-punk/Krautrock legends. Ranging from ambient to sound collage to motorik synth & guitar workouts,Êthis is a fine feather that is reissued here domestically for the 1st time ever!
Immolate Yourself
Their last, and one of the more experimental so far "On wikipedia there are 'facts' pertaining to Joshua Eustis and Charlie Cooper of Telefon Tel Aviv suggesting that the former has the Fibonacci sequence tattooed on his arm while the latter changes outfits three times during live sets. I'd very much like to believe these things to be true, though I suspect at least one of the statements to be mere apocrypha. Regardless, there is something about Telefon Tel Aviv that suggests they'd be a little …
Orchestral Works & Chamber Music
He was truly one of the greatest. A collage portrait of Luigi Nono, from Due espressioni, premiered at Donaueschingen in 1953, to Post-Prae-Ludium (1987).
Como una ola; Epitaffio No. 1; Epitaffio No. 3
Luigi Nono began Como una ola de fuerza y luz (Like a wave of strength and light) as a piece for piano and orchestra in 1971, at the instigation of Maurizio Pollini. While the composition was in progress, Nono learned of the death of a young Chilean revolutionary and recast the work in his memory, with added parts for soprano soloist and tape. The resulting half hour work is clearly a lament, encompassing various expressions of grief, from stunned sorrow to anguish to the fiercest rage. As a kin…
Wee Tam
Originally released as a double album Wee Tam & The Big Huge for some reasons gets commercialized as two separate Cds, the first called Wee Tam and the next being The Big Huge. Again the Boyd/Elektra connection is present, the pastoral setting of artwork (both albums photos taken from the same shoot (same clothes) and the group was at its apex. This Cd reissue of Wee Tam should read side 1 & 2 of the double vinyl issue Well no matter how you look at it, ISB’s better moment had turned with Hangma…
Liquid Acrobat As Regards The Air
During their lifespan, The Incredible String Band contained several wives, children and pets, and were a five-piece when they disbanded in November 1974. Basically, everyone else acted as a supporting cast to the songwriting nucleus of Robin Williamson and Mike Heron. Liquid Acrobat As Regards The Air marks the halfway point, more or less, of the Incredible String Band. This 1971 release was their first for Island Records, following Joe Boyd (formerly Elektra UK's director of A&R) to the label. …
The Hangman\'s Beautiful Daughter
Credited with being the first artists to fuse folk and psychedelic sensibilities, the Incredible String Band benefited from having two very complementary frontmen. Robin Williamson and Mike Heron were also extremely versatile musicians, as this, their third album, indicates: he two of them play 17 instruments here, including harpsichord, water harp, sitar, and oud. While Hangman's is a fascinating record dense with exotic rhythms and instrumentation, it also suffers in spots from the airy excess…
I looked up
New remastered edition, originally issued in 1970, I LOOKED UP represents the end of the Robin/Mike/Likky/Rose period of the Incredible String Band. Later that same year would see te release of the 2-lp set U, which would introduce new faces and influences into the melting pot that was the 'sound' of the ISB.Other than being the last album by this line-up, I LOOKED UP is notable for several other reasons -- for one thing, it was the last album they recorded that was mostly acoustic (I don't cons…
U
Their 1970 album intended as a soundtrack to their theatrical stage show, this was subtitled A Surreal Parade in Song and Dance. Includes the epic 'Rainbow'. Never before on CD, this the amazing Elektra remastered edition."U" is something special, and almost accidental. Its structure, dictated by its title, seems almost unapparent in the music itself. Look closely at the cover: it represents a "Siddhartha" like journey from the purity of innocence, down into the temptation and turmoil of the phy…
The Chelsea Sessions 1967
This album is essentially the first recording by Robin Williamson and Mike Heron as a duo. What's most exciting about this album is that fans can witness these songs take creative flight for the first time. Most of these selections found their way onto subsequent studio recordings, but there are also a few unreleased songs, including Williamson's "Born in Your Town" and Heron's "Lover Man," which was later recorded by Al Stewart. The discovery of these tapes was made in 1985. They finally saw re…
Dr. Ragtime And His Pals
Jack Rose's new full length, Dr. Ragtime And His Pals, coupled with a reissue of last year's self-titled CD/LP housed in a custom designed and fabricated off-set printed card cover with j-card style obi (there is also a jewel case version on the UK label Beautiful Happiness). Limited edition of 1000. "The Appalachian Trail runs 2175 miles south from Mount Katahdin in Maine to Springer Mountain in Georgia, though there are those who want to stretch it further, into Alabama, because the mountains …
Changing Horses
They really don't write them like this any more. "Big Ted's dead / He was a great old pig," sings Robin Williamson. "He'd eat most anything / Never wore a wig." Although the Incredible String Band had always been delightfully ramshackle, 1969's Changing Horses found the innovative folk-rock duo of Williamson and his mate Mike Heron becoming almost a slipshod stoned parody of themselves--with assistance from their girlfriends Rose and Licorice. Of the six tracks, two ramble on at such length (ove…
The Big Huge
This quartet incarnation of the Incredible String Band featured primary songwriters Robin Williamson and Mike Heron as well as their significant others, Christina "Liquorice" McKechnie and Rose Simpson. The ISB's tradition of quirky, and at times atonal, acoustic material is well served by the nine compositions on this platter. The lengthy opening track, "Maya," foreshadows their less-focused upcoming works I Looked Up and U. Although there are a few moments of brilliant playing, the ambling nat…
The 5000 Spirits Or The Layers Of The Onion
The 5000 Spirits or the Layers of the Onion was the second LP by The Incredible String Band, released in July 1967. Since recording their debut album the previous year, the original trio had been reduced to two, Mike Heron and Robin Williamson. They recorded The 5000 Spirits... in London in early 1967. The album also featured Pentangle's Danny Thompson on double bass, Williamson's girlfriend Licorice McKechnie on vocals and percussion, master sitar player Nazir Jairazbhoy (credited as "Soma"), a…
Valentine
The songs are also a rather gentle and melodic bunch, with "I'll See You Again" and the tender "Forever" being particular highlights. Harper's usual collection of heavy friends are present, including Ian Anderson, Keith Moon, Jimmy Page and David Bedford, all of them contributing well. But as always, this is strictly Harper's show. 10 track album originally released in 1974. Guests include Jimmy Page, Keith Moon, Pete Sears and Max Middleton. Originally released on Valentine's Day 1974, VALENTIN…