Eskaton - 1981 - 4 Visions

 

Eskaton was a French prog rock (zeuhl) band from Paris that released three albums back in the early 80s. 4 Visions was their second and most acclaimed of the three (or that's what the internet tells me at least). I never really looked into the other two albums, apparently they are also pretty good but I'm not a prog fan enough to search out for the other two. This one is enough for my zeuhl interests. Probably the most distinct quality of this album is that the vocals are female entirely which is refreshing. In terms of instrumentation you have your standard set of 70s prog instruments keyboard/synths included. The vocals, very pronounced bass and an eerie darker tone makes this album a fantastic experience throughout its runtime. Very intense and cosmic, obviously if you like Magma you'll find some enjoyment here but I would urge others to also take a peek as this is an album very much worth your time.

Get it / Stream it

Miyuki Hara - 1989 - 凛

 

Speaking of death metal Miyuki Hara was/is a pop artist from Japan that was briefly active in the late 1980s. More specifically she was of the City Pop variety with lots of synth parts on her tracks. There is not much information about her or her discography on the English side of the internet so I can't really comment or provide any kind of context to the music on the album. Looks like she has at least 4 albums with this one being her second one and it's the only one I could find. It seems that she retired in the early 90s and is living in Europe with her family. but yea, who knows. 

The album starts with a very upbeat  almost "anime opener" tempo and energy but you'll quickly notice that her vocals aren't matching the energy completely. Her vocals are very subdued almost like they lack in interest of what is going on around her. I like it but it takes some time to get used to it, there is certainty a lot of strangeness in her songs from weird synth sounds to janky passages or bridges in the middle of songs. Her somber tone obviously fits better with the more slower paced and sadder tracks while the more upbeat ones are just kinda strange and detached. It still is a pop record so ti is relatively safe and accessible but some parts of it stick out which makes it more memorable to me. As with most city pop albums it is best experienced at night with a comfy cup of tea.

Get it!

Warp Chamber - 2018 - Abdication of the Mind

 

As you probably guessed looking at the cover: Warp Chamber is a death metal band. They are relatively new but their first album released in 2020 was received fairly well from what I remember selling out quickly. Two years prior to that album they released a demo with two tracks. These two tracks would also find themselves on the album as well but I prefer the versions on the demo as they are more grimy and raw.

Warp Chamber plays fast, crunchy and thrashy death metal with a lot of riffs mostly played at a fast pace. To my ears they remind me of a much more death metal influenced Insect Warfare with solos and tempo changes. There is some contention with the vocals as they are mainly one note and not exactly fit in with the rest of the music but honestly I don't really care. The vocalist just blurghs and rasps all over the place filling in the space. Stupid and fun, what else could you want out of a death metal demo?

Get it!

Stream the demo or the album.

Boris - 2013 - Boris Performing Flood

 

As time goes so does my attitude towards Boris shift back and forth. A love-hate relationship one might call it. Gone are my idealistic youthful days where I adored almost all Boris recorded and released but also are gone the days where I hated almost all of their output. There are some albums from this band that I will keep listening throughout my whole life probably and Flood definitely is one of them.

Recorded now way back in the, what I like to pretentiously call, golden era of their existence the studio album Flood definitely at the time was curve ball but surely signs of their will to experiment and change were all over the album prior this one called Amplifier Worship. This was the year 2000 and a lot of things changed for Boris since that album came out  but the legacy of their golden era stayed ever present. The year 2013 and s couple of next ones after it seems to me were of a retrospective tone, almost melancholic in terms of what they released. Aside from revisiting Flood in a live setting they re-released a compiled Vein album (initially released back in 2006), Solomon box set with some more unreleased tracks and an archival compilation of their glory days of Pink and Heavy Rocks. This sentiment of "back to the roots" peaked next year, 2014, when they would release an album called Noise which had nothing to do with the genre noise and three more albums next year which were very much noise in all but name (and were also fucking terrible). This is just my conjecture though, I'm probably reading all of this wrong but it seems like this period of trying to grasp at something they lost lasted until and including the album Dear. 

While I adore the album Flood I also think it's first and last part are self-indulgently too long and not that interesting. Exactly those parts are either trimmed or missing on this live record which makes it my preferred version to listen. If only it weren't so fucking rare to get it physically but at least we can enjoy it digitally. Maybe one day they will reprint it. 

If you are new to Boris or haven't heard the original album my suggestion is to go with the initial release first and then come back to this version. For all you seasoned fans I warmly recommend for this version to be checked out.

Get it.

Daudadagr

Daudadagr is a "band" I discovered by pure chance but their sound captivated me on the very first listen and I can't seem to kick them out of my head ever since! Looking a millimeter deeper I found out that this is yet another project from the now very famous (in black metal terms at least) Swartadauþuz. So not a band. I was fooled! If you're not familiar with him or his bands I think his most recognizable/known project is Bekëth Nexëhmü and probably Azelisassath closely following it in terms of exposure. As is the case with hyper-productive people like him a lot of projects sound similar or the same and there is a lot of filler (sometimes good, sometimes not). From projects that I've checked out I can safely say they mostly fall into the "noisy lo-fi but not really lo-fi" bucket of black metal bands and projects. Some of his projects are crazy energetic, some are more subdued but all of them are consistently frosty. I've enjoyed Gardsghastr the most and of course there's only one fucking album under that name. But anyway... The project that I'm posting is somewhat similar to Gardsghastr as in there are synths and there is a noticeable Emperor-esque grandiosity to the songs and also the galloping drum beats of projects like Burzum but the sound here is much more subdued and contemplative compared to the very striking approach on Gardsghastr. 

Under this name there exists only two demos released in 2012 and 2014 so I don't have high hopes of seeing anything new under this name any time soon. The first demo is very in tune with the 90s albeit the "demo" production is much more polished and cleaned up. Sure it is raw but it is very pretty and every instrument can be distinguished even the bass gets some spotlight on the second track nicely filling the sound that the very thin tremolo riffs made room for. In general it is a very good proof of concept that will be expanded on in the next demo which can be more or less be considered to be a full length album clocking in at 45 minutes.

The "album" omits the song titles and switches to the old reliable roman numerals but the production remains loyal to the ethos of the 90s, tape hiss and all but it is noticeably thinner, I think, compared to the previous demo. Here the pace quickens, synths and effects get more noticeable and everything seems more lively in general. The liveliness certainly comes from the continuously rising and falling, all good stuff. Man sure knows how to pace his songs to get a very good flow throughout.

Both demos are real good fun and are worth checking out!

Get them / Stream(1) Them(2) 

Maki Asakawa revisited

Hey all! Been a while I know but finally I found a little time to re-share albums of this wonderful artist. I did a "all I have" share back when she passed away and you can read about it here but I've decided to make a separate post now because of two things. The first is that I have a couple more albums compared to before and second is that I have previously posted albums I've shared in better quality now (more or less). 

Some of the albums are in flac and I know some of you have a distaste or preference for it so the ones in flac will be marked with a * at the end while my favorite albums will be bolded. The rest should be in acceptable bitrates.

Maki was a jazz/blues vocalist from Japan that enjoyed a popular and cult following mostly in Japan. From what I've managed to read she started out singing in American army bases which explains a lot about her style (earlier one anyway). He vocals are not so typical of Japanese female vocalists, it's raspy, deep and almost folkloric.

Back during the golden days of blogspot shareblogs her album Cat Nap would be shared a lot. This is how I discovered her but I can't really say I've enjoyed it that much over the years. It's very funky sprinkled with some weirdness but I can rarely be in the mood for it. 

The purely blues and jazz style of music prevails in her early career but gradually she will include more rock and funk elements to her music with free jazz elements also influencing her on albums like One from 1980. At about the start of the 80s her style will shift to a more electronic sound that dominated Japan and world in general in general (oh lord the snares). I'm not so big on her later albums but they can be enjoyable. They're not bad but it's just not what I prefer so I'm not really in a position to claim which is best or which one is most worth listening to.

Included with the studio albums I'm also sharing her compilation series that are titled Darkness, there are several volumes of it all featuring hand picked songs and live sets. Mostly following some kind of theme or time period.

If you're in doubts as to where to start I still think 灯ともし頃 (Hi Tomoshi Goro, 1976 album) is her best work and is my go to album when I want to listen to her. So if you don't know where to start that's a good stepping stone in my opinion. Going through her discography chronologically is also a good option as you can sense her change or progression in sound much more deeply rather than jumping around the timeline. Whichever path you decide to go I'm sure it'll be a lot fun as she really was one of the best. Enjoy!

Albums:

1967 - 東京挽歌 (Tokyo Banka)*

1970 - 浅川マキの世界

1971 - Maki II*

1972 - Blue Spirit Blues*

1973 - 裏窓*

1974 - MAKI VI

1976 - 灯ともし頃

1977 - 流れを渡る

1978 - ライヴ 夜

1978 - 寂しい日々

1980 - One

1982 - Cat Nap

1982 - My Man

1983 - Who's Knocking on my Door*

1983 - 幻の男たち

1985 - Some Years Parst

1986 - アメリカの夜*

1987 - Underground

1987 - こぼれる黄金の砂~ What It Be Like

1988 - Nothing At All To Lose*

1988 - 幻の女たち

1991 - Black -ブラックにグッドラック*

1994 - 黒い空間

1998 - Yami No Naka Ni Okizari Ni Shite-Black Ni Good Luck

Compilations:

1988 - Darkness*

1995 - Darkness I

1996 - Darkness II

1997 - Darkness III

2007 - Darkness IV

2010 - Long Good Bye* 

[CD1][CD2]

Blue Mitchell - 1965 - Down With It

All this jazz posting makes wanna listen to some more jazz! We are still kicking in the 60s and we are still keeping it relatively orthodox - actually in this case we are keeping it completely orthodox. It's a 60s Blue Note record so you can't really go wrong too much with it. Yes it is very by-the-numbers but the album does not sound tired or derivative at all. Perhaps influenced by The Sidewinder this album also starts with a blues banger that is mid tempo and smooth enough for you to be able to dance to. The rest of the tracsk aren't as impactful as the opener but still offer a lot of fun. The standout for me is the melancholic Alone, Alone, Alone which draws out some very good passionate playing by Blue Mitchell. Blue Mitchell while not being as technically apt or talented as Lee Morgan he still is among the best trumpet players of his era offering a lot of good fun solos. The rest of the cast (excluding the great Chick Corea) is more or less there on the record but they aren't so detrimental that it makes their solo sections a tedium to listen to. Overall a very solid album that's worth checking out if you're into more relaxed jazz.

Get it / Stream it 

Ron Carter - 1962 - Where?

 

Since I mentioned Ron Carter in the last post I thought maybe I should share this little gem as well. It's kinda wild to think about that this album and The Soul Society is only two years apart. Jazz really was jumping all over in the 60s. As you might have guessed by looking at the line up on the cover this album is much more out there than the album from previous post. Naturally the main fucking weirdo as always is Eric Dolphy but the rest aren't that far much behind him as well. Principally you will be exposed to Dolphy and his dimension defying baritone clarinet (he mans other woodwind instruments as well) but the pianist, Mal Waldron, offers much jagged chords and solos bound to upset the established order of music. Despite these qualities the album still is very much rooted in order and tradition, this isn't exactly a foray in free jazz. Some tracks are more relaxed and conventional but there are certainly wild moments as well. There is a second bassist here who shares melodies and solos with Carter on several tracks which make their soloing much more interesting and avoids the cliche of everything quieting down for a bass solo.

I wouldn't call this album essential but is a nice breath of fresh air and feel unique enough to warrant repeat plays.

Get it (flac) / Stream it

Sam Jones - 1960 - The Soul Society

 

Here's a jazz album I've been meaning to share in a good while. Aside from Charles Mingus and Jaco Pastorious I don't think there ever was a very visible bass player in the world of jazz. Sure - Ron Carter was an omnipresent figure throughout most of jazz history but the spotlight rarely shined on him. For this (real or not) reason I always had this fascination with bassist led albums and groups. They hit different.

Sam Jones recorded a lot as a sideman most notably for Cannonball Adderley but he had a slew of his own albums as well with this one being his debut album according to Wikipedia at least. Interestingly the line up is bigger than what is on the cover but I guess Riverside decided these dudes will draw the most eyes in the record store. As is maybe evident from the cover Jones switches from double bass to cello per track keeping things fresh.

The album is a hard-bop treat that isn't treading any new ground but it does not need to nor it proclaims to be. There are two standards here and the rest are compositions from various members of the group offering mostly mid tempo grooves and solos. Jones tends to be a bit too high in the mix which might put some people off but I had not so much problem with it. Aside from that I can't really think of anything to complain about this record. It's just good and varied fun session.

Get it / Stream it

Eiskalte - 2020 - Demo MMXIX

 

Continuing with the theme of obscurity here's another black metal band that's largely unknown (not even on Metal Archives at the time of writing!).

This tape runs for 13 minute and the cover should give you a pretty good idea on how it sounds. The closest comparison would be, of course, Paysage d'Hiver but the project is distinct enough to no be just a clone of it. The mixing is a little weird because the tape essentially has two layers of sound. The first, dominant, layer is the melancholic synthwork which is of a significantly better sound quality (and it sounds much louder) than the guitar/drums/vocal work which make the second far less dominant and softer sounding layer. The black metal part is traditional atmoshit done well with piercing vocal shrieks, blastbeats and buzzing guitars. The synths are melancholic, slow and very winter comfy. I adore to listen to bands and albums mixed like this in the middle of the night with just me and my books or whatever. The only bad thing I would say about this tape is that the jumps between the black metal and ambient parts are at points done very jarringly and definitely get you kicked out of the intended mood. Despite that I would still recommend this a try when you're in the mood for some introspective lo-fi stuff.

Get it!

Stream it!

Alpgeist - 2020 - Bergteufel und Waldgeister

 

Hey folks! I'm all healed up and I have albums to share. Last time I was posting something it was November (black metal time) so I think I'll continue with a couple more black metal albums I've discovered recently.

Alpgeist is a relatively obscure German black metal band from Bavaria that has this one long form song EP and a demo prior. I've not checked the demo but this EP is a gem that definitely needs much more (internet) exposure than it got initially back in 2020. The EP title roughly translates to mountain devils and forest spirits and as soon as it starts you'll get hit by a comfy barrage of atmospheric keyboards and melodic tremolo riffs. The atmosphere of the EP certainly is "foresty" but it is very upbeat and dynamic. The production is crisp and audible making the synths able to stand out every time they kick in. Often the nature inspired bands get bogged down in monotony but this release provides a lot of changes in tempo and riffing making these 20 minutes feel way too short. Looking forward to hear where this band goes next and in the meantime if you're in search for some solidly made black metal be sure to check this out!

Get it!

Stream it!

End of one year and start of another one!

Hello everyone and happy new year!

I hope everyone is alright and that the year of 2022 was decent enough for you. For me it was mainly alright and with a lot of traveling as was the case for the last few as well.

Perhaps the biggest thing that marked this year for me was the passing of my grandfather who was a major influence to me in a lot ways especially in music. I don't think I would ever be that much into jazz if it weren't for him. Although someone passing is always a sad affair he was 94 years old at the time so it's not like we didn't have enough time with him and he was getting tired of life anyway. Especially after his wife passed away. "After you hit 80 you should just be taken outside and shot in the back of your head." is what he would say (half jokingly) whenever we would have to drive him to the doctor. While I already did share a lot of artists that I'm listening to specifically due to his influence (Bix Beiderbecke, Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Louis Armstrong etc.) there are still some artists I haven't reflected on and I hope to in the following years.

The blog, as usual, isn't as active as it was in its heyday of sharing but I hope to pop in and share stuff when I get the time and inspiration.

Unfortunately I recently suffered a ruptured eardrum so listening to music has been particularly hard this past month or so but I should get into surgery to get that fixed hopefully relatively soon. I might actually focus more on some reading in the meantime or something...I don't know. We'll see how it goes!

2022 IN MUSIC

Musically I'd say this year was pretty good. I can't really say I was amazed by a lot of albums but the output was pretty good overall. Obviously I was looking forward to new Deathspell Omega but in the end it left a fairly lukewarm impression on me. I am looking forward to studying the lyrics a bit more in depth as I hear from others they're a good read. A lot of good jazz came out this year, most notably for me the Sun Ra Arkestra put out a fantastic album that I revisited a lot this year.

My list is in alphabetical order but the bolded albums are my favorites. Hope you will find something you like!

BLACK METAL

Acherontas - Malocchio - The Seven Tongues Of Ahmon [bandcamp, youtube]
Aerdryk - Met De Drietand Op Mijn Huid [bandcamp, youtube]

Bekëth Nexëhmü - De Evigas Gravrit [bandcamp, youtube]

Bhleg - Fäghring [bandcamp, youtube]

Blut Aus Nord - Disharmonium [bandcamp, youtube]

Coscradh - Nahanagan Stadial [bandcamp, youtube]

Dark Funeral - We Are The Apocalypse [spotify, youtube]

Deathspell Omega - The Long Defeat [spotify, youtube]

Doldrum - The Knocking, Or The Story Of The Sound That Preceded Their Disappearance [bandcamp, youtube]

Drudkh - All Belong to the Night [bandcamp, youtube]

Falls Of Rauros - Key to a Vanishing Future [bandcamp, youtube]

Gevurah - Gehinnom [bandcamp, youtube]

Gnipahålan - I Nordisk Vredeslusta [bandcamp, youtube]

Hate Forest - Innermost [youtube]

Häxenzijrkell - Urgrund [bandcamp, youtube]

Kathaaria - To be Shunned by All... as Centres of Pestilence [bandcamp, youtube]

Krallice - Psychagogue [bandcamp, youtube]

Medieval Demon - Black Coven [bandcamp, youtube]

Misþyrming - Með hamri [bandcamp, youtube]

Mortuus - Diablerie [bandcamp, youtube]

Nokturnal Mortum - To Lunar Poetry [youtube]

Nocturnal Triumph - Nocturnal Triumph [bandcamp, youtube]

Swampborn - Beyond Ratio [bandcamp, youtube]

Ultha - All that has Never been True [bandcamp, youtube]

Vehemence - Ordalies [bandcamp, youtube]

White Ward - False Light [bandcamp, youtube]

Ymir - Aeons of Sorrow [bandcamp, youtube]

OTHER METAL

Altars - Ascetic Reflection [bandcamp, youtube]

Artificial Brain - Artificial Brain [bandcamp, youtube]

Brii - Corpos Transparentes [bandcamp, youtube]

Conan - Evidence Of Immortality [bandcamp, youtube]

Desolate Shrine - Fires of the Dying World [bandcamp, youtube]

Elder - Innate Passage [bandcamp, youtube]

Faceless Burial - At The Foothills Of Deliration [bandcamp, youtube]

Hissing - Hypervirulence Architecture [bandcamp, youtube]

Immolation - Acts Of God [bandcamp, youtube]

Luminous Vault - Animate The Emptiness [bandcamp, youtube]

Phobophilic - Enveloping Absurdity [bandcamp, youtube]

Ripped to Shreds - Jubian [bandcamp, youtube]

Scumslaught - Knives and Amphetamines [bandcamp, youtube]

Sedimentum - Suppuration Morphogénésiaque [bandcamp, youtube]

Sumerlands - Dreamkiller [bandcamp, youtube]

Triumvir Foul - Onslaught To Seraphim [bandcamp, youtube]

UIV - Frigus [bandcamp, youtube]

Wormrot - Hiss [bandcamp, youtube]

NOT METAL

Akira Sakata & Takeo Moriyama - Mitochondria [bandcamp]

Alvvays - Blue Rev [bandcamp, spotify]

Cecil Taylor - Respiration (1968) [bandcamp]

Chip Wickham - Astral Traveling [bandcamp, youtube]

Connie Han - Secrets Of Inanna [bandcamp, youtube]

Gard Nilssen - Elastic Wave [spotify]

Horace Tapscott - The Quintet (1969) [bandcamp]

Jasmine Myra - Horizons [bandcamp, youtube]

Keith Jarrett - Bordeaux Concert (2016) [spotify]

Mark Guiliana - The Sound Of Listening [bandcamp]

Sun Ra Arkestra - Living Sky [bandcamp]

Tigran Hamasyan - StandArt [bandcamp]