Another day, another unsolicited album, and another absolutely pleasant surprise! Bohmig are an Austrian band who produce a novocaine-like fuzziness housed in a dream pop vibe. This is a lo-fi affair, but with gentle vocals, a wispy guitar and, as mentioned, just enough buzz to give this an edge. Fine work.
The near-legendary Old Heaven Books presents another fabulously bizarre album (also available as a CD and reel-to-reel tape) of Chinese guitarist (of Kazakh extraction) Mamer. From the release’s Bandcamp site:
“Mamer first became known as a dombra virtuoso and a modern master of Kazakh folk music. Over the years, he has evolved into a prolific and versatile artist, working across the boundaries of both tranditional and contemporary music. Mamer leads seven band projects: IZ, Bande, Mekrop, TAT, Mask, 51-Rayon, and Kunakar. He has released over 30 records, presenting a diversity of distinct styles including folk, ambient, industrial, noise, improvisation, and drone music.
“Every Mamer is brand new”. On stage, Mamer gives absolute control to his artist ego, surprising his audience in every next performance. An artist who refuses to repeat his past, Mamer creates, solely for the call of his inner world and the vast universe. The only tradition he commits himself to is that of innovation: electric bass, classical guitar, dombra, Dolan rawap, bouzouki, Jew’s harp… Mamer transforms every instrument in his hands, no matter classical or folk, into sound machines from a different planet, sending out outlandish harmonies made up of myriad sound particles. With a remarkably unwavering approach to composition and almost stifling calmness and self-restraint, Mamer has built up a sonic kingdom of his own: of darkness, profundity, and boundless mysteries.“
For those of you who like lo-fi guitar with hints of an instrumental Big Black along with an ominous vibe, you will definitely love this.
From the Urban Waves Bandcamp site:
“Seba Ramirez’s “Untied EP” invites you to explore a world of sound, emotion, and creativity. From intricate melodies to rhythmic grooves, this collection of tracks weaves a captivating narrative.
Joined in the studio by talented musicians, Pablo Selnik (flute), Eddie Mejía (guitar), Alex Reviriego (bass), Seba (on drums) originally from Paraguay recorded this album while he was studying music abroad in Barcelona, Spain.
Created by the talented Sara Alfonso, the EP cover captures the essence of “Untied” with vibrant colors and a touch of mystery. Each track has a photo associated (which can be viewed when you click the tracks) which visually accompany the journey of the album.”
Here we have Hull of Light, an “…international collective of cosmic cowboys and cowgirls with members from Megason, Suffering Hour, Zeresh (our beloved friends), Underground Spiritual Game & Sleepwalker [夢遊病者].” The music was absolutely not what I was expecting, as a few of these come from a raw, powerful black metal background. Not this EP. This sounds like it would have fit with early 1980s post-punk. There is an aggression, a lo-fi quality to it that screams to be noticed. I thoroughly enjoyed having my ears blasted by this.
This is the second time I have the pleasure to share the work of Bay Area guitarists Ezra Sturm and Ernesto Diaz-Infante. Maybe it is because this is recorded live, but I get the vibe of something crossing free-improvisation, lo-fi garage guitar and something that reminds me of the work of SST Records boss Greg Ginn. Minimal, noisy, but this works well!
Hugo Əspirito Santo is a Portuguese composer based in France who manages to tie together a cold, ominous synth sound with lo-fi techno beats. Disturbing, but quite a good listen.
This is the first time I had the pleasure of reviewing something from Start-Track, a fine small label run by our friend Filip Zemčík. Porch Kiss’ music is sparse and lo-fi, reminding me of a lot of British indie band from the 1980s with lower production values and fine songwriting. Pensive music, and a great listen.
Our friends at Jettenbach, a fascinating project from England, have prepared for us a Martian travelogue. The concept sounds like something taken directly from a sci-fi movie, dialog and all, and it’s quite an interesting thing to hear. The music drifts from floating experimental ambient to hard-beat. This shifts genres rather quickly, so listening was a bit of an adventure, though a worthy one.
Our beloved friends at Russia’s finest indie music magazine, Meticulous Midgets, has released their annual compilation of weird experimental, lo-fi and avant-garde music.
Featured artists include Russia’s own Assembly of Honey, the Italian ambient sound sculptor Marco Lucchi and Latvia’s Шумилов Бор (Shumilov Bor) among a host of talent worldwide.
Za! were introduced to me by a friend in Spain, and I have to say, both the band and their label, Galleta Records, are putting out fine minimal post-punk.