Four remixes here from the Phonic trace album by these finnish ebm masters, two of the same songs though. However its a very god piece of post body music with clear sounds and amazing melodies.If theres anything to complain on i would have to say that the singers voice is a bit too smooth and the lyrics are a bit predictable, but that all falls into shade by the melodies. If you want to check them out this is a very resonable buy. 6/10
In the memory of now sadly deceased artist William Tisdale, Castel Von Buhler has gathered 21 music groups and 21 artist to interpret their work. The art partis fantastic, both the cd layout (made by works of William Tisdale) and the 21 art cards that comes with it are splendid and leave nothing left to wish. The music part sadly doesnt quite reach this level. The direction of the music is mainly alternative inde rock/pop, sometimes its great as in Symbion project, Coppé, the Moors ore Vastlessmudge but theres a lot of conventional boring and badly produced grops that doesnt quite reach the standard. Some groups also seem to have some growing to do before there ready to release a whole album.But thats also agood point of a collection, to have some width in the featured bands and different idees to taste. A very good initiative anyway. 7/10
Noise makers fifes: Public frontaion Cd Twin tub and beaver
This is the kind of music that requires total concentration to just not go by you without even being noticed. Needs preparation. Full sleep, no alcohol, no drugs, not even coffee and total calm. But its worth it. The whole cd is a collection of liverecordings with a surprisingly high quality, except for the one recorded by videocam . Nmf makes rich organic music, lots of samples but primarily made by selfmade instruments, which they use to make a rather complex ambient music. Often very subtle, very difficult and transforming it can at times be almost to hard to listen to and they also use a lot off odd sounds such as squeeking and creeking that can be irritating but when avoiding this they make some very good music
Pitchshifter: Infotainment CD Earache
Poor Pitshiter, from being just a ruff Godfelsh replicant they have really worked there way up,
got their own identity,omly to, when they have just the right hype create a rather bad
album.Infotainment smells of commerciallity and accesability and lacks those elemnts that
gave them something unique earlier in their career. All is there, the distinct and typhical
basslines, the sologuitar, guitar assualts and J.S Claydens vocals, but its all just a bit more
easy than earlier.Still, since Pitchshifter has achieved an own personality and its really no
other bads that plays like this, its got its charm.Fun to hear is also that they blend their hard
sampled filled industrial rythms with some fast jungle rythms, and the production is really top
class. 7/10
The first album by now so appriciated Mick harris, this was just after quitting Napalm death together with N J Bullen, and it shows! The first half of the cd is hardcore crossover, sometimes leaning over towards metal and sometimes more like Helmet actually, but then they change direction, probably the beginning of Harris experimentation, it goes from Dark abmient to more electro sounding pieces, somtimes good somtimes not so good, but the begining of a great career.Notice by the way Godflesh mastermind Justin Broadrick whos helped out with guitar playing on a couple of tracks 5/10
Debut album from the same people taht gave us Sirensong, which now seems to be dead (?) Theres a slight hope at first for a real innovative work in the first song with some turkish influences, rough and noisy drums andnastty slide guitars, but then it goes in the more commercial direction and turns into not very unusual pop with som techno and trip-hop influences. Its well done, comfortable, nice and doesnt affect yuo at all. It just is there in the background, easy and soft and floats by you, and if you dont look right at it you wont notice its there. Sometimes its good as in the ambient "running with scissors" ore the interresting almost jazzy sung "So ha" but the rest is just so unprovocative its diffcult to really notice. 5/10
Sub Version The winds of war Cd Mere Mortal recordings
Probably the ugliest Cd sleeve ive ever seen. Incredibly cheap looking. The music fortunatley doesnt show the same low quality. Former London After Midnight member and "Enigmatic" John K composes some synthie darkwawe, partly instrumental and partly sung with a smooth calm voice reminding somewhat of Finnish Neuroactive, but without Neuroactives sense for amazing melodies. Very slow and Etheral. It shows a lot of really good, but also some not so good. For exampel the basslines that are to synthie and as a whole the album lacks complexity and it's a bit to easy , but it also cointains some fantastic tracks such as Extinction and the production and soundqualtiy is really top class. On the last track John starts singing like Brett andersson so if you like suede this should be interesting. He he. 6/10
Swans: Die tur ist zu. cd Young god publishing
This is an amazing album.Legendary Swans have almost always realeased fantastic works and this is no different.They blend Experimental industrial parts with calm melancholic guitar songs, infact when i was playing this an older friend and rock fan asked me what it was that sounded like Velvet underground, so thats perhapse a good reference.The result gets very epic and the vocals perfectly fit that.The material has been realeased before buts its changed so much and is so good that this is an album you have to have. 9/10
Stützpunkt Wien 12: Ufo beobachtungen CD OR
This stixtracker was originally released as a double vinyl on the Mego label in 1993, and
apperntly sold very well or impressed the right people becasue the new started OR label
decided to make this their first rekease ever. Musically Sw12 makes an rather minimalistic
and difficult techno, totallt relying on drums and rytmihc samples and with a total lack of
conventional melody. Forunatley the composer ”Comander Elin” avoids all common tracks
that somteimes make this kind of music very boring and instead makes an deep, subtle and
epic work of dark techno that stands well out in the now rather overinfluated techno scene.
Also nice to here some great industrial influences at the end with some similarities to the great
Hybryds (!) 8/10
Taint: perverse Cd Red stream
"the more repulsive they are the better" it reads on the boklet of Taints "perverse" and on continues a story of there sexual interests, it seems perversion is a great source of inspiration for such bands, and in Taints case it must work, for it's a wellcrafted mass of power electronics that confronts you. Extreme sonic assaults and bizarre background voices gives some of the most intense lisetning you can imagine. The tracks are filled with alteration and are also quite short, which in this case is an advantage, it never gets boring. Theres realy only on thing say. "perversion at all cost" 8/10
Thorn: Bitter potion. cd Roadrunner
This is a crap album. It really really is. Three guys who got a record contract for being cool and hard or something not for their music anyway. They cant write melodies, the singer cant sing (not in the right tune anyway) they cant do anytihng you need to make a good album really.Bad lyrics as well. Really bad actually. Sometimes its just bad, not terrible like in "pacing" with some oriental samples but then its terrible again. "crossover will sell, yeah, doesnt matter what shit we make" 1/10
Touch sampler .3 Cd Touch
The third sampler from Touch giving exampels of current releases. Only eleven groups but as much as 27 tracks which is explained byt the fact that Touch beneath the real tarcks throw in small soundbites or voicesampels usually about 5 seconds long. Also six tracks are instrument demonstrations of a Tanzanian music group. Touch is for shure one of the world leaders in this kind of music and this cd shows it well, though as a whole it doesnt hold up properly, the six tanzanian tracks gets boring after the first listen and sungs such as Farmers manuals dspKILL i cant even listen to in fear of destroying mý ears. But individually there are some fantasic music here such as Panasonics , Aer or Disinformations monotomy.7/10
Swedish Memento materia has given us amazing bands such as Covenant and Mesh and is here with another swedish band. They describe themselfs as 50% classic body 25% Kraftwerk and 25% rave and that comes rather close to the truth, its clear analouge EBM with calm emotionless vocals and some really good melodys.I especially liked their interpretation of Wilfred Owens poem "for whom the bells tolls". A album definitly recommended to all Ebm freaks. 7/10
Waiting for god: Desipramine CD Reconstriction
The second album by Vacouver based waiting for god strats with an interesting piece of
ditsorted rythm and ambient backgrounds, but then turn into a much more conventional work,
a blend ogf goth vocals, a sort ofsioxsie a bit, and the rather typhical american way of doing
electro, sequences and sampled guitars. The music works for itself, it is sometimes good even
if its someting you hear quite , i dare even saying to ofen, but the voice of Demon Cadman
doesnt work well at all and is much to affected and laboured, and it brings the quality down
alot. Unfortunatlet i should add cause this could go far, now it doesnt.6/10
Four remixes here from the Phonic trace album by these finnish ebm masters, two of the same songs though. However its a very god piece of post body music with clear sounds and amazing melodies.If theres anything to complain on i would have to say that the singers voice is a bit too smooth and the lyrics are a bit predictable, but that all falls into shade by the melodies. If you want to check them out this is a very resonable buy. 6/10![](http://www.student1.lu.se/~jur95rlp/Memo017.jpg")
Swedish Memento materia has given us amazing bands such as Covenant and Mesh and is here with another swedish band. They describe themselfs as 50% classic body 25% Kraftwerk and 25% rave and that comes rather close to the truth, its clear analouge EBM with calm emotionless vocals and some really good melodys.I especially liked their interpretation of Wilfred Owens poem "for whom the bells tolls". A album definitly recommended to all Ebm freaks. 7/10
Waiting for god: Desipramine CD Reconstriction