• Music

    Siavash Amini & Eugene Thacker – Songs for Sad Poets

    Siavash Amini, an Iranian sound artist and composer, collaborates on this album with author and poet Eugene Thacker on Songs for Sad Poets, though I hear no vocals on this disc.  What is on offer, however, are incredibly bleak soundscapes that range from engaging dark ambient music which settles well in headphones to abrasive post-Industrial music which tears at the eardrums in a most pleasant way.  From the pair’s Bandcamp site for this release: The collection of eight pieces draws its inspiration from the legacy of the so-called cursed poets (»poètes maudits«) as well as the German-language tradition of song…

  • Music

    Various Artists – Anthology Of Contemporary Music From Greece

    Our dear friends at Unexplained Sounds Group in Italy continue to delight us at MYNTH!  This is yet another collection of the best of ambient music from around the world – this time concentrating in Greece.  Artists such as Costis Drygianakis, Savvas Metaxas and adarcah lead the way, but every artist in this comp contribute to avant-garde music mightily, and it is again that we thank our friend Raffaele Pezzella for bringing us such amazing and challenging music from all corners of the Earth.

  • Music

    Various Artists – Paroxysm: A Benefit Compilation For Leslie Keffer

    Paroxysm: A Benefit Compilation For Leslie Keffer Unfortunately, there is no way to embed into the website in the normal way, so please click on the link above to get a taste of some of the bands contributing to this noble cause.  From our friends at No Part Of It Records: Leslie Keffer began making noise music with radios and vocals in 2003. Since then she has toured a good amount, and collaborated with key figures. Activity had to slow down when Keffer’s symptoms of epilepsy accelerated to the point of her being unable to work. She has been trying…

  • Music

    Various Artists – Nyarlathotep – A Tribute To Howard Phillips Lovecraft

    Eighth Tower Records never disappoints!  Each compilation they put out is so well put-together that the themes fit the subject material perfectly!  This one is, of course, no exception.  It is a paean to H. P. Lovecraft, perhaps America’s foremost horror and science-fiction writers.  At least to my taste, Lovecraft is second only to Edgar Allan Poe. The comp features artists like Kirlian Camera, Gerstein and T.A.C., so rest assured that the quality is exceptional.

  • Music

    Ophtalmologist – Julius Vernus Explorator

    It’s quite a rare thing for music titles, especially instrumental tracks, to actually match the music produced.  A case in point was a four-album noise release whose name I happily forgot trying to reference a classic of literature.  No need to embarrass the artist or the writer, but it seemed that the choice of subject wasn’t appropriate for the music (at least to my humble ears).  This is not such a case.  Ophtalmologist is the artistic name of Theodoros Hernandez, a Greek-Mexican composer who might be working out of France. He specializes in what I would assume is ambient drone,…

  • Music

    Yamila – Visions

    Mexican composer Yamila produces music similar to Rock-In-Opposition legends like Art Zoyd, Univers Zéro and fellow countrymen Decibel. The music is heavy, brooding, and dense. From her label, Umor Rex’s Bandcamp site: “Her voice and music –sometimes torn and others buoyant– could resemble the score for a biblical passage (ie. visions of the Apocalypse), for they are overflowing with physical ecstasy and sounds that one can touch. Visions is composed of different forms and rhythms. Pieces like “Visions V” evolve intensely with sharp and systematized hits ––powerful layers that bring us closer to Alessando Cortini’s Forse era. “Visions II”, for…

  • Music

    Various Artists – The Dystopian World of J​.​ G​.​Ballard

    Our dear friend Raffaelle Pellezza has curated another masterful compilation of dark ambient music focused on the British writer J. G. Ballard.  From the release’s Bandcamp site: “In April 2009, J. G. Ballard died at the age of 78. By the end of his life he was recognized as one of the greatest British writers of the latter half of the twentieth century. The acclaim his work has garnered stems from its unsettling ability to describe the present in collision with near but unexpected futures. His narratives operate according to the temporalities of car crashes, epidemics, and physiological shocks. The…

  • Music

    Internal Fusion – IWWA

    I suppose we can coin a new term for this magnificent music out of Breton dark ambient composer Eric Latteux (who composed under the name Internal Fusion): Kosmische dark ambient. I seem to be finding a fair amount of music like this these days, and our dear friends at Mahorka have released another gem.

  • Music

    Chris Child & Micah Frank – Tape Pieces Vol​​.​​ 3

    Chris Child & Micah Frank are two incredible composers out of the New England area of the United States.  From this particular release’s Bandcamp site: Tape Pieces Vol. 3 represents the final installment in the collaboration between composer/producer Chris Child (Kodomo) and sound artist Micah Frank. Volume 3 culminates in a rich cacophony of noise and emotional charge while still remaining subdued in a contemplative state. Chris and Micah continue exploring simple asynchronous micro loops, layering upon them until what emerges becomes a rich ecosystem of interwoven parts, embracing unexpected noises and sounds disintegrating. It is perhaps the most experimental…