CLVII. Requiem In White | Requiem In White

REQUIEM IN WHITE

Requiem In White

©First Communion. US, 1990.

‟The R.I.W. (formed - 1985) is the U.S. band which played very impressive guitar gothic music with female vocals; in terms of influences I could say that Requiem in White is where The Cure and Dead Can Dance meet - the influences of these two giants can be heard quite clearly. They have a very small discography, but actually the band played for 10 years. During that time they were never into "self-promotion", i.e. no promo shots, no interviews and a very limited, only local touring: NYC, Connecticut, Boston, Providence, and Bennington, Vermont, USA. The song-writing was shared between three members of R.I.W. - Eric A. Hammer  (guitars) and Lisa Hammer (vocals) (both now are at Mors Syphilitica) and Christopher Walsh  (now at Judith). There were several drummers in the history of the band and Javier Madariaga  was the last one before the band (unfortunately...) broke up at 1995.
The album which came to my hands, which are always greedy for all that sounds, is Of The Want Infinite, 1994. Very good work: Lisa Hammer  has got a strong "ethereal" voice which fits perfectly to the guitar/bass/drums framework. The bass & drums lines remind a lot of The Cure, but still they are as unique as everything else. It is extremely hard to say what tracks I liked more - all of them are equally good, but Everlasting Peace , Santonin Kiss  and Centuries  were the best for me...
As I said, the internet lacks information about this very impressive band and I think that the people which really dispose of any valuable info on R.I.W. should come out with it and share! Nevermind that the band does not exist anymore - the music is all that matters.‟

Wirecrawler

 

CLVI. Psychic TV | Pagan Day

PSYCHIC TV

Pagan Day

©Cleopatra. US, 1994.

‟This recording was first ever released as catalogue number TOPY 003 on thee 23rd december 1984 as a Picture Disc limited edition ov 999 copies. One side was a full colour photograph ov Caresse P-Orridge as a baby, thee other side had text in red on white. It was only available to shops and distributors between 11am and 12am on that actual day! Rough Trade co-ordinated this through their telex lines for us. All thee music was recorded on a 4 track cassette machine under thee guidance of Alex Fergusson, thee original co-founder and partner, with Genesis P-Orridge, ov Psychic TV. "Pagan Day" was subtitled "Pages From A Notebook" because that is precisely what it was. Thee revealing ov thee process itself. Most PTV songs in their earliest era began life as these kinds ov cassette sketches often recorded in Alex's room at thee YMCA over coffee. "Pagan Day" is not therefore a "finished" recording in thee commonly accepted sense, it is an intimate glimpse into a place where "Source Are Rare". However, thee simplicity and privacy of it's evolution onto a record makes it appealing in quite a special way. Some songs were never intended to be heard outside our own living rooms but to conceal thee frailties would we felt, compromise thee integrity and honesty ov this chronicle. Due to popular interest, and extremely high "collector" prices being paid for thee original Picture Disc, "Pagan Day" was re-issued on normal vinyl, in a card sleeve as part ov Temple Records Library Series as a matter ov completeness, and as a matter ov fact.‟

Cleopatra

 

CLV. Daniel Ash | Coming Down

DANIEL ASH

Coming Down

©Beggars Banquet. UK, 1991.

‟A remarkable late night trip to a Quaalude & absinthe world wearing an ensemble of darkest black hole black (including accessories). Utilizing the space between notes, echoes from down the hall and a tortured lounge vibe at the back of the S&M bar, proves that "Coming Down" is a rich, delectable view of decadence and regrettable hang overs. The record holds up with a restrained malevolent glee and surprising playfulness. Reverb snare drums and haunted figures drift in and out of focus while a mid eastern vibe somehow seeps under the doors. Guitars are distorted and Natascha Atlas's voice weaves along side in a sorrowed counterpoint.

This is a fantastic rediscovery for me - out of print and picked up for $2 @ the pawn shop after almost 20 years. One of those long lost growers that got under my skin and still sounds great on a rainy day or a full moon's lonely night. While it seems haunted these ghosts conjured are of the hip and benevolent type. Nothing to worry about here, as it sure ain't Ian Curtis discussing Eternal Decades or isolated Atrocity Exhibitions. Sure Ash tries to scare you but he can't lose that pop sensibilty and you know he's just a little hurt and he simply can't not be cool as it all unfolds. At turns experimental and moody when not off on a twisted pop trip, file this one next to: Darklands, "Earth • Sun • Moon" and Music for a New Society. Essential (for moping about with your shades on).‟

Ramdom

 

CLIV. Killing Joke | The Peel Sessions 1979-1981

KILLING JOKE

The Peel Sessions 1979-1981

©Virgin, UK, 2008.

‟Killing Joke una de las bandas underground por excelencia de fines los 70′s y principios de los 80′s. Además de ser una de las bandas culpables de influenciar a diversas bandas de metal, punk, grunge, industrial y alternativas. Aquí nos muestra un compilado en la BBC de Londres con el Locutor de radio John Peel en una sesión que grabaron; además de traer como bonus track tres rolas hechas también para una sesión de la BBC entre 1979 – 1981 pero en este caso para otro locutor de radio como los es Richard Skinner.  Conteniendo clásicos como 'Pssyche', 'Wardance', 'Complication', 'The Fall Of Because', 'Tension' entre otros.‟

Conkeysound

 

CLIII. Raison D'Etre | Within The Depths Of Silence And Phormations

RAISON D'ETRE

Within The Depths Of Silence And Phormations

©Cold Meat Industry. Sverige, 1995.

‟Within the Depths... is the third Raison D'être album for CMI, and it sees a return to the themes, and musical expressions of the "Prospectus I" album. Where Enthralled by the Wind of Loneliness sounded slightly new age, Within profits on the excellence of the Gregorian Chants, subtle percussions, and ethereal keys, and choirs. Raison D'Etre is the kind of ambience that only comes with years of work, and it is a triumph to hear such orchestrations with the degree of balance that these pieces possess. Rich, dark, mysterious, and enlightening. There are few that reaches the grandeur and expansive elloquence of Raison D'être.‟  

CMI

 

CLII. Antony And The Johnsons / Current 93 | Live At Saint Olave's Church

ANTONY AND THE JOHNSONS / CURRENT 93

Live At Saint Olave's Church

©PanDurtro. UK, 2002.

‟British experimental musician David Tibet of Current 93 heard a demo and offered to release Antony's music through his Durtro label. The debut album, Antony and the Johnsons, was released in 1998. In 2001, Hegarty released a short follow-up EP, I Fell in Love with a Dead Boy, which, in addition to the title track, included a cover of "Mysteries of Love", a David Lynch/Angelo Badalamenti song and "Soft Black Stars", a Current 93 cover.

Producer Hal Willner heard the EP and played it to Lou Reed, who immediately recruited him for his project The Raven. Now gaining more attention, Hegarty signed to US-based record label Secretly Canadian, and released another EP, The Lake, with Lou Reed guest-performing on one of the tracks. Secretly Canadian also re-released Hegarty's debut album in the United States to wider distribution in 2004.

This tape Recorded live at St. Olave's Church, London on April 5th and 6th, 2002. Antony dedicates his performances in loving memory of Nellie Hegarty.‟

Deathwish

 

CLI. Nurse With Wound | Chance Meeting On A Dissecting Table Of A Sewing Machine And An Umbrella

NURSE WITH WOUND

Chance Meeting On A Dissecting Table Of A Sewing Machine And An Umbrella

©United Dairies. UK, 1980.

‟En el año 1980 apareció el disco de Nurse With Wound llamado "Chance Meeting On A Dissecting Table Of A Sewing Machine And An Umbrella".

 
Cuenta Steven Stapleton : "Dos meses antes Throbbing Gristle sacaron su álbum debut "Second Anual Report" y lanzaron 'Industrial records' - el de estos eran semimprovisados ruidos electrónicos e imagenería oscura-. A través de una debil lógica, en el surgimiento de "Chance meeting..." fue etiquetado de industrial. Una macana."

 
"Nosotros fuimos asociados con la 'industrial music' debido al hecho que nosotros surgimos en el mismo tiempo y que la tapa de nuestro álbum era 'dark', no importaba como sonaba la música. En realidad nuestra música estaba mucho más cerca de la libre improvisación. No hay comparación entre la música industrial y Nurse With Wound. Para mí la música de Nurse es música surrealista. Es un desplazamiento de algo ordinario a un montaje extraordinario, tomo cosas ordinarias - instrumentos, solos, y los coloco en un montaje inusual, dándole un ángulo completamente diferente en la manera en que instrumentos y composición son mirados habitualmente".

 
Así como el Surrealismo funcionó como una ruptura o una avería en el teleología de la realidad empírica, una exhumación del subconsciente, para que 'el ruido' exponga el caos sónico a la base de toda música. El surrealismo de NWW es una ruptura maliciosa e impetuosa, un ataque al orden y la forma, atado con el más negro de los humores.‟

El Sitio Del Topo

CL. Hungry Lucy | Apparitions

HUNGRY LUCY

Apparitions

©Fishtank Soundworks. US, 2000.

‟Noche húmeda, noche lluviosa, desesperada… el paisaje a lo lejos plomizo y mi corazón distraído, perturbado; noche bella, triste noche, la ausencia de las estrellas no me inquieta, sé que están ahí aguardando detrás de ese inmenso telón horizontal umbroso, que llora incesantes migajas de agua como de vástagos se ahoga el mundo. Procedo. Necesito música, ese corazón distraído que cubro con armadura endeble, y que no encuentra paliativo perpetuo, clama por un destello, por alguna resonancia del espacio que ambicione varar en esta inhóspita estancia. Busco por entre los cajones de ese inmenso mueble que embellece grotescamente mi habitación, ultrajó cada uno de sus rincones, no entiende el porqué de mi acosador trato el herrumbroso armatoste, pero seguro agradeció el final estridente de mi búsqueda alocada, cuando despojé de su cansado interior, alejado de la realidad y la luz, un disco extraño. Los coloco, el disco en su lugar y mi ser en otro… no entiendo lo que pasa pero sé que estoy hipnotizado, o quizá solamente he pedido auxilio del alelamiento, caótico, lujurioso… las sombras se extienden, me tienden su irreparable contoneo, las notas vacilan por la habitación, chocan entre sí, se reservan la pantomima de su jugueteo y me la conceden al final con altanería. Malvadas. Allá, fuera de este refugio, detrás de esa inmensa ventana, de ese ojo cuadrado y furtivo que me comunica con la realidad, el sonido fastidioso de los brotes celestiales, que al impactarse con todas esas superficies agobiadas por el frío, el agua y las energías que sostienen, crean pequeños conciertos, efímeros y desestimados, que me recuerdan que aún tengo algunas invitadas difuminadas y ennegrecidas bailando para mí, están ahí, por todas partes; afortunadamente están ahí enloquecidas por esa voz humana, femenina, dulce y encantadora que sabe postrarse por encima de esa vestidura musical que la cobija en ritmo monótono, decadente y sempiterno. Divinos momentos, ya extintos, se instalan en mi mente  y aunque el bacanal de sombrías y primitivas siluetas se desdibujo, me queda el cobijo de esta fría noche, de esa bruma lobrega que atiza las calles y que armoniza mi guarida.

Me queda claro que hay discos para escuchar, la gran mayoría; los menos son para sentir, para soñar y para suspirar, este es uno de ellos…‟

Crimsondelator

CXLIX. //Tense// | Consume EP

//TENSE//

Consume EP

©Disaro. US, 2010.

‟Straight out of the wet and hot city of Houston, //TENSE// delivers a great follow-up to the Memory album with this 6 tracks EP.

Released on vinyl for the first time (the EP was originally out on the hype label Disaro as a limited CDr), Consume EP presents a new angle to the hard hitting EBM tracks the band has already released. The sound is cleaner and sharper. It mixes hard beats EBM style with more ethereal and atmospheric ambience of the shoegaze bands of the early 90s.
Think Ministry jamming with Slowdive and produced by Salem with the help of DJ Pierre!

After an acclaimed tour opening for Nitzer Ebb in North America, //TENSE// is back in their creepy studio writing new tracks for a forthcoming split EP.‟

Desire

CXLVIII. Rising Shadows | Falling Deep Within

RISING SHADOWS

Falling Deep Within

©Twilight. Argentina, 2006.

‟Falling Deep Within is the debut album of RISING SHADOWS. A beautful journey into the darkness of ourselves and our past. Featuring the enchanting vocals of Linda-li. This is music for the soul and it will paint your mind images and dreams.

Rising Shadows started back in 1996 under the name Shadow of the Concealed. Within the first year of existence The Gathering was made. The demo however remained unreleased due to quality reasons. Work instead began on a second tape called The Seventh Gate.

The release in autumn 1997 coincided with the change of bandname into Rising Shadows. Still the only person involved was Fredrik Klingwall. Another cassette was recorded to promote the change of name but it wasn´t exactly wellspread. The first Rising Shadows release worth of it's name came over a year later. In autumn 1999 Delirium was released. It passed by rather unnoticed and Fredrik started writing more filmmusic and solowork instead. While Rising Shadows more and more plunged down into oblivion. Over the years some material was made and the concept became clearer, in 2004 the time was right to bring life to this project. Together with singer Linda-li a new demo was created. Horror Vacui was released in August 2004.
 

Early 2005 the track 'Vacui' was contributed to the Waerloga Compilation; A Tribute To Uglakh. Along with such acts as The soil bleeds black, Za Frûmi, Sagor & Swing, Autumn tears and many more.
 

In February 2006 the debut album Falling Deep Within was recorded. For release through Argentinian label Twilight Records later this year.   
 

Soon the shadows will rise again!‟

Twilight-records

 

CXLVII. Eyeless In Gaza | Drumming The Beating Heart

EYELESS IN GAZA

Drumming The Beating Heart

©Cherry Red. UK, 1982.

‟After this side one is left almost in ruins, and "Dreaming at Rain" can only really rake through the embers (it's an instrumental that harks back to the sounds on Pale Hands). Needless to say, for a duo Eyeless in Gaza shaped a huge sound and in certain key ways I think this LP (and "Photographs as Memories") are amongst the most unique from the time.   

Whilst this is admittedly a consequence of their songwriting it's also due to their choice of instrumentation. Like "Photographs as Memories", the arrangements on "Drumming the Beating Heart" are spare, sparse and manage to spear the heart accurately. One key texture that you won't find on Photographs however is the strange, emotive tremolo string sound that darkens every corner of "Drumming the Beating Heart". This comes from a keyboard called a Gem Europa. I only know this because I emailed Pete Becker and asked him! The tones created by this portable, late '70s organ were probably intended for quite other uses than furnishing the efforts of a duo positioned at the poetic end of post-punk. In their hands it sounds a little like a cross between a Mellotron and the synth used by Joy Division on Closer's Decades. In other words, it's a mournful, minor key piece of machinery that seems custom built for songs like "Picture the Day" and "One by One". Indeed, I doubt whether the band would've written them without it.

The more I think about it, the closer I come to concluding that the first side of "Drumming the Beating Heart" has one on the strongest openings of any LP. Those first four songs are perfectly sequenced and there's very little between them in terms of raw quality. Underpinned by a percussive, pulled bass line "Transience Blues" brings a set of cold atmospherics that are sustained throughout side one. True, I do have a something of a taste for songs about rain and night, particularly when they're as passionate as this! Its stormy reflections provide the perfect soundtrack to lonely winter evenings. Then track two, "Ill-Wind Blows", introduces a slight note of calm. It's the stillness before the real storm arrives, maybe. And "One by One" sustains this mood. With its vaguely menacing rhythms and cascading, candlelit organ chords (the Gem Europa again) it creates probably the most haunting song ever written by the band.‟  

Trevor Machine

CXLVI. His Name Is Alive | Livonia

HIS NAME IS ALIVE

Livonia

©4AD. UK, 1990.

‟His Name Is Alive evolved dream-pop for the new decade. Thus, set in a far more electronic landscape, "As We Could Ever" brought the Cocteau Twins into the 90's. Then the ghostly soprano vox and desolate loops of "E-nicolle" occupied a haunted dimension. It wasn't surprising that "Some And I" embraced dark-punk atmospherics, a la Siouxsie And The Banshees (circa A Kiss In The Dreamhouse). In the meantime, their dream-pop seized a disassembled futurist structure in "Fossil". Even more ambitious, the reprise of "E-nicolle" was built around a future-primitive dance in a void - raising memories of Jon Hassell.

In contrast, "Caroline's Supposed Demon" was more or less medieval folk. But then "Reincarnation" was comprised of industrial loops in it's entirety. As if troubled by turmoil, and never staying somewhere for too long, "You And I Have Seizures" displayed a baroque and dream-like neoclassical dream-pop. Then the stark and desolate distortions of "How Ghosts Affect Relationships" followed a parallel course as the Slowdive of the first EPs. In a final great touch, "Darkest Dreams" embosomed the subconscious grand folklore of the fairy-tale element.

A very intriguing album by Warn Defever Aka His Name Is Alive.‟

Ily

 

CXLV. Black Tape For A Blue Girl | Mesmerized By The Sirens

BLACK TAPE FOR A BLUE GIRL

Mesmerized By The Sirens

©Projekt. US, 1991.

‟On Black Tape's second album, Sam Rosenthal and his rotating pool of collaborators create another fine release, much more textured and atmospheric than The Rope and more in line with the future of the band's career. While there are again a couple of songs that have a much more conventional rock air (unsurprisingly, these are the ones again featuring drummer Allan Kraut), many now embrace unconventional verse structures and eschew immediate hooks -- it's a quietly bold move that works wonders. The mix of singers (about eight all told) and instrumentation again creates a striking variety through Mesmerized, even while still maintaining an overall unity in presentation. Rosenthal's own musical voice is his work on keyboards, soft, minimal swells, sweeping orchestrations, and more all coming to the fore, especially on such solo cuts as "Dark Skinned and Inviting" and "With a Million Tears." As before, Oscar Herrera is the evocative voice at the center of key songs, most notably "A Teardrop Left Behind," a majestic, obsessive portrayal of love further fleshed out by Walter Holland's subtle acoustic guitar and Rosenthal's own strong synth arrangements. It's perhaps one of the band's most self-consciously goth efforts, but of a very Romantic (with a capital "r") bent, made all the more intriguing by its distinct two-part structure, with wordless singing matched with spoken word in the calmer conclusion. Another standout with Herrera is "Beneath the Planks," with Rosenthal's harpsichord-sounding keys and Richard Watson's clarinet providing the bed for the singer's bravura performance. The contrast between Herrera and Holland, who sings on "Lie Broken, Bleeding" is pretty clear, the latter's somewhat strained vocals not quite fitting with the album's overall flow. An amusing moment happens at the start with "Jamais Pars," where singer Sue Kenny-Smith audibly fluffs a line and laughs. It's a nice, human touch to leave in.‟

Ned Raggett

CXLIV. Rozz Williams And Gitane Demone | Dream Home Heartache

ROZZ WILLIAMS AND GITANE DEMONE

Dream Home Heartache

©Triple X. US, 1995.

‟This 1995 collaboration between Rozz Williams and Gitane Demone finds them abandoning their death-rock origins, instead attempting a more esoteric stance. It works in their favour.

The album kicks in with a nightmarish cabaret take on the Roxy Music classic "In Every Dream Home A Heartache", which explodes in a frenzied litany in the end with Demone's wailing vocals. Similarly, "These Vulnerable Eyes" finds Demone in full-blown jazzy cabaret diva mode. The mood is that of an autumn walk by a river in an elegant European city. Rozz then takes over with "The Pope's Egg Hat", a somber piano meditation, with Gitane in the background playing the muse enchanting lost souls.

Things get slightly more lively with "Flowers", and the almost vivid "A World apart" (yet still enclosed in the album's sense of tragedy). The album reaches yet another peak with the lullaby "Moon Without A Tear", with Gitane's tender vocals contrasting a menacing drone. And finally, the reprise of "Dream Home Heartache" swirls with almost apocalyptic intensity. The album has completed a full circle.

Rozz Williams and Gitane Demone may well have found their true niche here.‟

Ily

CXLIII. Test Dept. | Proven In Action

TEST DEPT.

Proven In Action

©Ministry Of Power. UK, 1991.

‟Another live Test Dept. album, recorded in 1990 in Montreal, Canada. This disc includes compositions from Pax Britannica and shows Test Dept. successfully augmenting their pounding percussion with bagpipes, organs, a live choir, and classical accompaniment with thundering and rousing results; Siege Of Quebec and Emigrant (aka From The Land / As An Fherann) in particular are worthy of attention.‟

We.Have.Esplosive