ok, slight change of plans, before i dive into the rest of wwdis, i should get to this record that raven chacon sent to my old address awhile back, which just made its way back to me less than a week ago.

snow white in hell 12"
[2007, anarchymoon / bastardised]

more noise supergroup action! the formerly los angeles-based kilt is comprised of the recent portland resident bob bellerue (redglaer, halfnormal, feed the dragon, anarchymoon recordings), raven chacon (death convention, dog shit taco) and sandor finta (auto da fe, dog shit taco, andorkappen, harrasor, the abstractions, wounded head, bastardised). i've had this cd split between andorkappen and the cherry point, but didn't know who the hell andorkappen was until i got this record. i believe the other two members still reside in the la area, and i'm semi-curious to know if bellerue's relocation has affected il corral... i'm also firmly convinced that the city of portland steals everyone's good musicians. luckily for me, portland isn't very far away.

you know how when you play a record, even without speakers, you can faintly hear the music? well, the screeee emanating from my turntable as i was ripping this was damn impressive. it's even more impressive now that i'm actually listening to it. snow white in hell is the kind of noise record that dares, nay, double dares you to listen to it with headphones on. i'm not that crazy. this shit is brutal and made even more interesting by being (generally) baseless and not relying on the shrill / dense dynamics which have become commonplace. what's really going to get you during this lp are the high-pitched squeals and feedback, prevalent throughout, but the more scaled down works, tracks two and four, that's where we get the full force. piercing feedback in all its glory with nary a shred of rumble to cloak itself with. as much as i dig that, i'd have to say that the album's other three tracks are really kilt's money-makers. can i say money-makers? it's with these that the trio incorporates a broader range of sounds (all noisy!) and flesh things out while still managing to avoid coming off as retreads. i definitely recommend checking out this record, but remember, please listen responsibly.

here's a live video of kilt performing in vancouver:


Snow White in Hell 3

be my lonely night / golden greats 2 x 12"
[2007, zeikzak / lal lal lal]

the ray pacino ensemble is a three-piece coming from sweden, a country which lal lal lal humorously credits as having "the lamest beer on earth". maybe they'll change their minds when they leave the states after their avarus tour. so, not a lot of info about these dudes other than they were formerly known as johannes nilsson. the first of these two records, be my lonely night, is a reissue of the lal lal lal cassette of the same name. it seems as if fusetron still has at least one copy of this left for interested parties. it's only $6.50, too. golden greats was previously unreleased but it came into fruition at about the same time as bmln, so one would assume that the chance of continuity between the two records is pretty high.

if these guys lived over here, they'd be somewhere secluded in the appalachians getting sloshed off moonshine and playing in a jug band. i've seen the words "caroliner" and "sun city girls" in response to their music. hmm. i'm not really a fan of either. both bands project an overbearing image of weirdness, the ray pacino ensemble isn't weird, they're whimsical. these are hillbillies with synthesizers and it's fucking great. throughout be my lonely night trpe do a phenomenal job of bringing joyful, toy-like, drum machine rhythms (reminiscent of the beginning to death cab for cutie's photobooth. what, you're too cool to have ever listened to dcfc? f you) with rollicking folk music, which edges on bluegrass. now, the two different musicalities are rarely interlocked, and, as a matter of fact, my favorite songs on the record are the ones that are strictly one or the other, which speaks towards their diversity, not my lack thereof. i'd have to say that as far as this whole folk thing goes, this trio's got it down with their nice mix of banjo, flute, harmonica, acoustic guitar and tamborine. this is fun, upbeat, foot stompin', thigh slappin' goodness that doesn't have a single somber moment. there's enough sad folk musicians out there. the vocals are sung mostly in swedish, but the couple of cross-overs into english don't drop the quality at all. also, for a band that draws comparison to some kookier acts, the singing isn't in some ridiculous tone or manner, it's pleasingly well-suited to the music instead of forcibly going against the grain.
before you even listen to it, it's easy to think of golden greats as some ironically titled collection of miscasts from a fruitful recording session. i mean, things are usually not released for a reason right? ahh, not so fast! this is pretty dang good, too. i would have to say that it's slightly more experimentally inclined, but i'm talking like 1% slight. the differences between this second record are mainly more instrumental songs, and i think that there's also fewer songs involving electronics. regardless, much to my delight, golden greats can stand on its own and has some terrific songs as well.

this double album is highly recommended and i'm really stoked that jelle sent it to me as i doubt that i would've discovered this on my own, since no one's really talking about trpe. well, i did see one moron complaining about not being able to play the records because the center hole wasn't punched out. first, the holes are punched out, they're just covered up by the paper label. line the record up on top of the spindle, like you'd normally do, then push down. wow, that was exhausting! back to what i was saying, most of the words about this record are regurgitated from lal lal lal's description. andrew (ironing) was just talking to me about people doing this very thing recently. it is frustrating. be my lonely night / golden greats is a bit pricey if you live here in the states and want to get it from fusetron, as it's thirty-two bucks (before shipping). thankfully, jelle doesn't live in the uk where their version of the board game monopoly is played with american dollars. the euro's trending the dollar at about a 1.3 to 1 ratio (edit: not so sure about this anymore, it might be more like 1.87 to 1), and lal lal lal's selling these for fifteen euros. i'd recommend getting this from jelle himself since his happy hour policy is free shipping on all orders sent in at uneven times. ha.

Be My Lonely Night 2
Golden Greats 6
(the songs on this double lp all have titles, but the way that they're presented inside the lps' cover makes it reaaalll hard to decipher)

autoreverse variations c47
[2007, puik]

micht, françois haidon, comes to us from namur, belgium. word has it that dude isn't the most outgoing guy around. that's not a knock against his character, but he's just recently gotten to the point where he'll play live shows, despite the fact that he's been making music for awhile. that's due to the lack of a personal comfort level, not because he hates people. speaking of performing live, autoreverse variations was taken from one such performance, which transpired last january in brussels. i'm not sure what his complete discography is, but i know that, additionally, it includes releases on imvated, audiobot as well as smell the stench.

the packaging for autoreverse seems to match up well with haidon's demeanor: low-key. black tape, black font on a black background, with the name of the tape on the back only noticeable if you look at it from the right angle. tricky, tricky.
micht's minimally inclined tape manipulations will, unfortunately, appeal to a narrow range of people. you've got two tracks that are twenty-three minutes apiece. if long running times aren't a bother there's also the matter of autoreverse's slow-pace and relatively constant sound. having said all of that, i actually really dig this tape. there's bits and pieces of different experimental genres such as ambient, drone and (a smidgeon of) noise. i kept going through my albums looking for something that i could compare this to, but no one that was popping into my head synced up very well. maybe brandon labelle a little? an inorganic birchville cat motel? admittedly, both might be stretching it. anla courtis' dronier tendencies? ah, i think i'm getting warmer.

both tracks are held together by a strong howl-like drone and the additions to it are rather simple, but do indeed give it a bit of character. françois mostly relies on intermittently placed beeps (think about the sound answering machines make when you're prompted to leave a message) and brief waves of a dense rumble. dense rumble? yes, but it's nothing like the cherry point or anything. this is far less obtrusive and all i know is that it sounds perfect in conjunction with the beeping and the droney atmosphere. like i said, there's not a whole lot happening outside of what i described, but side a does manage to subtly achieve a little welcomed bit of dynamics towards the end.

if you're a fan of drone, it'd be beneficial to keep micht in mind the next time you're looking for something new. if the word drone is instantly synonymous with background music to you, this probably won't be your thing.

Side A (excerpt from 3:29 to 7:05)

so here's the first album from package number one of two that got sent to my old address before i could forward my new one. it's another nice one from belgian jelle crama's puik and zeikzak labels and includes a double lp that was co-released by finland's lal lal lal.

double c20
[2007, puik]

out of the three albums that i received, this is the only one that there's no info readily available for me. okay, that's a partial truth. inside of the tapes' pouches there lies some info, including nice artwork, but you can't really see it because the middle of it is hand sewn together. i'm not going to ruin some nice design effort just for some track titles (possibly?). the exterior cover features more nice and colorful abstractions by jelle. also, i don't know who the artist responsible for these sounds are. the bit of searching i did on google wasn't too fruitful, as wildlife tapes portal jams is the only name listed for the release, period. i'll update this if and when new information becomes available.the first side of the wildlife tapes cassette starts out with nice fluttering synth sounds paired with sporadic percussion. the following piece is more cohesive, beginning rather slowly but by the second half it builds itself up with terrific synthesized whoops and some frequency tuning happening behind the scenes. now side b, that's a completely different story. lounge jazz? crazy. there's a bouncy little bassline, a bit of airy synth noise in the background, next enters the piano and then the cherry on top comes by way of the prototypical minimal jazz percussion. in the album's context, it's a bit odd, but damned if i wasn't snapping my fingers to the beat. it gets even better at around the six minute mark with a complete shift. it might be the previous section's music being affected to a staggering degree, or someone might be trying to play their synth leads while submerged under water. either way, it sounds great.

the b side of the first tape might've provided for the set's most upbeat number, but all six tracks on the portal jams cassette have a warm feel to their sound. on at least one occasion, it brought to mind neil campbell's astral social club. the most prevalent component to the music on portal jams would be the synthesizer. more often than not the results are either going to be a flowing ethereal type of sound, or lasery and sci-fi-esque. the interesting thing to note is that with the more sciencelike noises, they're being paired with sparse instrumentation or other manipulations, which serves to create a unique sound dynamic. where one might think laser sound? kind of corny, it's not the case here.

there's a distinct thread of levity that's woven into quite a few of these pieces of music. wildlife tapes portal jams is experimental, at its very foundation, but there's a breezy nature in the two tapes, combined with a sense of focus, making for a rather enjoyable listening experience. this is not that i want to listen to something challenging for the range of interesting sounds kind of experimentation. with eleven tracks (spanning both cassettes) totaling thirty-two minutes, it's a joy to listen to. i'd suggest this to anyone looking for something experimental, but who wants a reprieve from noise and the time vampirism of minimal music.

Wildlife Tapes 1

woah, john from the seattle-based experimental label whatwedoissecret recently gave me a bag with a plethora of releases in it. coincidentally, there's also a tape by plethora. it's not quite his label's complete discography, but man, do i have a bunch. i'll just do this review for now, then i need to get to jelle crama's latest batch, and then some more from wwdis.

for everyone who has sent music in to me, first, thanks a lot! second, i have a ton of stuff, right now i'm looking over at a stack of twenty-nine albums, with four more packages of god knows what still on their way to me. i appreciate your patience and don't worry, i'll get to everything eventually.

borre fen (one-sided picture disc) 12"
[2007, whatwedoissecret]

bsbc is more all-star noise action, this time from seattle. someone correct me if i'm wrong here, but i'm under the assumption that the core of this group is just wm. rage (enterruption, electric heavyland (r.i.p.)) and stan reed (broken penis orchestra, plethora, psychform). borre fen; however, sees the line-up expanding for jeff stentorian (stentorian tapes (r.i.p.)) and levi berner (machete mob, visible/invisible wall, algiers). noise fun fact: did you know that there's also a french experimental / noise duo named blue sabbath black fiji? what are the odds of that? somebody needs to buy a lottery ticket.

when i first heard the name blue sabbath black cheer, the first thing that popped into my head was ugh, this isn't going to be weird stoner rock is it? when i was finally able to check their music out, i wanted to slap myself for thinking such silly thoughts. in fact, the only thing that this group shares with black sabbath is maybe an affinity for evil, but where ozzy talks a good talk (mumbles a good mumble?), listening to this record will make you feel like the devil's trying to communicate with you, and i for one, am all ears.

before the needle even makes contact with the wax these guys want to make sure you know what you're getting yourself into: let's see, there's the screen printed skull on the cover, the different skull adorning side b of the record, six rad inserts of mummified corpses and the info sheet that says blue sabbath black cheer has that creepy dripping paint thing going on. lastly, there's the album's name. borre fen is a peat bog in denmark. in ancient times people found these bogs to be quite nifty for human sacrifices and burial. this should explain the mummy theme.

i can sum this one up rather easily: creepy as fuck. your run of the mill noise music this is not. three out of the four guys all supply vocals, some as eerie ambiance, others to channel the spirit of the great beast. my word. the rest of the noise is comprised of tape manipulations (by everyone), affected guitar and 'clatter' (to which stan's accredited for). that clatter plays a key role, i can tell you that. the record wastes no time in establishing some terrificly haunting atmospherics. you, alone, in some dark woods at night, more and more the fog's wrapping itself around you, you start hearing some weird shit coming from the trees, that thumping in your chest begins to turn into panicked throbs. i think you get the picture. this stays in creepshow mode for half of the lp's painfully short twelve minutes. then the vocal groaning begins, so too do the pounding sounds (guitar made?), then some dense rumbles. it's all coming to a head and then here comes the sinister vocals. daaamn. the combination of the noise (by this time we're well into the thick of things) with the slowed down yells and shouts is fucking great.
ridiculously good record by some guys who have quite a 'forthcoming' list on their myspace page, including a twelve inch on troniks. that should raise the awareness level a bit. anyway, this record'll set you back ten bucks (twelve with shipping) and for that you're getting some great music (that your friends might look at you rather strangely for playing), packaging and artwork. that artwork's supplied by local artist nic schmidt, whose talents were also used for pulse emitter's planetary torture album, which i reviewed awhile back. this is bsbc's first vinyl release and it's in an edition of three hundred.

bsbc playing live in seattle on 2/13/07

Borre Fen (excerpt from 4:00 to 6:30)

cassingle c09
[2007, d.i.h.d.]

ah, thee black one, a harsh noise super group, new brunswick style, with kevin winter (asps, penis in vagina, 2673), king darves (gorgot, human adult band, jenny haniver, asps...) and trevor pennsylvania (human adult band, trevor penn & th' enforcers, d.i.h.d.). if you've kept up on my jersey reviews, you may have noticed that a) these dudes have a lot of projects, b) they're all in each other's bands. luckily for us, the musicians are good and the sound varies.

a noise single? interesting. cephia's treat, they put out some cassingle's too, don't they? anyhow, you don't see these very often. something that makes it worth it for me, right off the bat, is the tape's artwork. dark, ugly, black, photocopied slop. punk as hell and i love it. the tape's pretty raw looking, too: recycled, wrapped with masking tape, name scrawled with a black marker and then scratched out. call it art for the don't bathe regularly set. killer.

okay, the tape doesn't look very pretty, nor does it sound it. not in the traditional sense. in the ears of this beholder, it's quite comely. the tape's a little dense, but there's some great feedback peeking out from beneath the filthy muck that these guys are joyously splashing around in. i'm totally in love with the feedback, especially around the middle section of the first side when the thickness dissolves a bit, highlighting it. trevor used the words "sounds like dog shit" to describe this to me. it does sound awful, but in the best way possible. you either get it or you don't.Side B (excerpt from 0:00 to 2:30)
(note: kevin informed me that each of the cassingles is a different excerpt taken from a single show, so yours might not sound exactly like mine)