• Music

    Various Artists – Meticulous Midgets compilation 2021

    May 13, 2021 - By 

    I almost feel bad for only promoting the download of this release.  Our dear friends over at Meticulous Midgets, one of Russia’s finest experimental/avant-music record labels also releases a magazine to go with the album, and it’s a stunning affair.  This is the second one I have had the pleasure of reviewing, and it makes me pleased to know that promotion of new music in the country is in good hands with my Moscow-based colleagues.  What’s more, they don’t rest with promoting local acts.  The artists on this comp hail from the United States, the United Kingdom, German, Spain, France,…

  • Music

    Albaluna – Heptad

    May 12, 2021 - By 

    Our friends at Tejo Milenario have introduced us to yet another one of their brilliant band and we are expecting to highlight quite a few more as the weeks pass by! Albaluna are a project from Portugal whose stage performances blend together music, poetry and dance, combining cultures of the Silk Road into one well-woven tapestry.  The music is a mix of electronic progressive music, pure folk forms from the Mediterranean, North Africa and even hints of Chinese music.  They literally sound like they are able to vacuum a genre of music and easily mix it into their palette.  They…

  • Music

    Albireon / Zeresh – No Longer Mourn For Me

    May 11, 2021 - By 

    Our beloved friends from Israel, Zeresh, have collaborated with Italian project Albireon for an apocalyptic doom-folk classic.  Considering the state of the world, I choose that word advisedly. This album has something special to it because so many parties come together and work seamlessly, something rare for a split album.  The music is both spacious and claustrophobic at the same time, as the tones are dark, a bit creepy and haunting.  This would compare rather well to the early acoustic forays into folk that Current 93 took decades ago, though with a gloomier feel about it. Take, for instance, the…

  • Music

    David San – Frabulloso EP

    May 10, 2021 - By 

    Thanks to our dear friends at Colombia’s fine techno label, Miniline, for introducing us to the work of David San.  This is a one-track release of danceable tech-house from a composer, whom I believe, works out of Colombia.  There seems to be an amazingly active electronic music scene popping up, to go along with the other, more traditional music which the country is noted for.

  • Music

    Various Artists – That Sounds Greek To Me | Apr 27 | Muses & Sirens

    May 10, 2021 - By 

    First, a debt of thanks goes to Dimitris Tsironis who took the time to send me this compilation for review.  His label, 1tracktape, is doing a great service exposing Greek experimental and avant-garde music to the world, and the quality of this compilation is superb.  What’s more, the label is unique in that it releases albums every New Moon and (most of) Full Moon dates.  I can’t say I’ve heard of any other labels maintaining such a specific schedule, so each moon that pops up will be an opportunity to check out what new releases Mr. Tsironis has in store for…

  • Music - Youtube

    The Beatles – Julia

    May 9, 2021 - By 

    The Beatles offer up one of the most loving tributes to a mother ever written in the rock format.  A Lennon-McCartney classic, and a bit of a cleansing after seeing such hateful garbage on both Twitter and Instagram regarding mothers today.

  • Music

    Various Artists – Anthology Of Experimental Music From China

    May 8, 2021 - By 

    I don’t do top-ten lists, and I don’t ever plan on doing that in the future, but things can change at any moment.  Still, if I had to nominate a favorite record label at this moment, there’s no doubt it would be Italy’s Unexplained Sounds Group.  Each compilation is a tour guide of experimental music from select parts of the world.  This one is near and dear to me, as China was and shortly will be my home for quite a while, and Raffaele Pezzella does yeoman’s work documenting what is happening in the Middle Kingdom experimental-music-wise. Here are some…

  • Music

    Gralitsa – Little Mosquitoes Are Sleeping This Night

    May 7, 2021 - By 

    Some time ago I had reviewed the work of an ethno-folk-jazz band from Kostroma, Russia called Gralitsa, and I found them favorable.  I have to say that I find this album at least as favorable, but it sounds like a totally different band.  This sound is far more affected by genres like trip-hop, downtempo music, and darkjazz (a touch, anyway).  There’s also a slightly ‘free’ element to the music, though it never sounds disjointed. The track Echo Poor Heart is the cornerstone of the album, showcasing the vocals of Olga “Gralitsa” Rodionova layered on top of a dark, jazz noir…

  • Music

    IO – ∀LICE

    May 6, 2021 - By 

    I have a particularly strong attraction to Porto Alegre, Brazil.  I have a few friends from there, one in particular who was a charmer, and it seems that everything from jazz to progressive rock seems to do well there. This is the breeding ground of IO, a visual artist, scenographer, fashion designer, performer and musician from Porto Alegre.  She uses a more cinematic approach to musique concrète music, and the pieces play like wordless stories that play for the cinema in your mind.  It’s a very well-recorded album, easy to get lost in, and it was a pleasure to listen…

  • Music

    trajedesaliva – Ultratumba

    May 5, 2021 - By 

    It’s so nice to see new music come from Galicia, where my paternal ancestors hail from. trajedesaliva are from Vigo and seem to be influenced by dark ambient, ritual music and post-Industrial soundscapes, though it doesn’t try to overwhelm the listener. Something I really liked about this album is that it sounds, in parts, like 1970s Kosmische Musik (think of Tangerine Dream in their 70s prime), which makes this unique among darkwave or dark ambient bands.