A Short post about Shorts

Making my way through a big ol' pile of emails that have accrued over time, whittling through the many Bandcamp ones at the minute - part of the reason they pile up is that I never like to bin a 'new release from x' one without at least checking it out first.

I did a double take when I read the description for this one - a new release from Squarepusher x Adam Buxton? An oddity to be sure. A little context for those unaware, Adam Buxton is a comedian, best known for his array of musical earworms - every so often I catch the infectious Moby Song creeping into my skull. Suffice to say, not the first choice that comes to mind when thinking about a collaboration with Squarepusher (though saying that, the Moby Song does have the amen break in it, so maybe not a million miles removed!)

So what's on the menu when Buxton meets 'Pusher's brand of breaks? Well, we're treated to a mashed rework of My Red Hot Car for starters, which is one of my favourites from SP anyway. Here, it's been reformed into a short form sub 50-second number, in keeping with Adam's 'Jingle' format. Buxton's lyrical accompaniment is typically silly - making the whole thing closer to something 'Pusher's brother would make; some of the Ceephax tracks are definitely a bit of a piss-take. Truth be told it works pretty well, the rework of Red Hot Car is brilliant and Buxton's accompaniment retains that earworm-y nature of his other jingles, it's only been a couple of days and I can already tell that the shoutout of "Middle aged man legs!" is going to join the Moby Song in repeating on me randomly in the years to come.



It's not just an audio shitpost though, the reason behind this collab is laid clear on the tune's bandcamp page: "HotBox in Chelmsford, Essex is a welcoming venue for live entertainments and revelry which stands out a nautical mile. It's an essential lifeline for local culture, but like many smaller venues in the UK saddled with post-lockdown debt, it is finding it more and more difficult to stay in business. So please offer a donation and in return we offer this short piece as a token of appreciation. Let's help HotBox remain the local community's top spot!" It's not embeddable so you'll have to visit the page to get the legit player, but at £0.50, it's well worth adding to your own collection.

I've still got other stuff in the pipeline, it's looking like it might be a series of bandcamp-less players unfortunately, but in one case there might be another stream I can use, we'll see when the time comes. In the meantime, I hope you've liked this short look at Shorts - and until next time, as always, stay safe and enjoy the muisc.

-CVF

As is tradition

There's no shortage of tracks out there with dates attached - now, I'm not normally one for date-posting over here, but I usually make an exception for this one - It's not the only one the Boards Of Canada boys have either, but I like to shine a light on it around the date in question. Hailing from their early pre-Warp days on Skam records, it perhaps a little less known than their later works. Annoyingly, this also makes it very hard to post a legal stream of it.

Normally, I'd go for a hooky Soundcloud upload but I don't quite feel like it this time, so instead we're reverting back to the old tried and tested YT players. With a twist this time! The first video is from an old community video contest that was judged by the band themselves, which ended up coming second. The years passing (16 of them!) haven't been kind to it and it looks crunchy as all get out, but it makes a nice change from the usual cliché BoC fan-vid which leans heavily on the 70's nostalgia, but then again this track is quite different from your usual BoC affair as it is. It comes out looking a little more like the hi-tech Warp videos of old, think Chris Cunningham's video for Autechre's Second Bad Villbel.



Of course, I gotta follow that up with a newer upload, if only for the infinitely better audio quality. It was remastered/repressed in 2014 which in my head makes me think "oh that wasn't too long ago" before realising it's coming up on almost a decade ago... The rest of the Hi Scores EP is worth a spin, there's other bits on there that are more 'BoC' like in execution if the thundering tech of this one isn't for you.



And that'll about do it for today - I'll be back soon enough with more but until then, as always, stay safe and enjoy the music.

-CVF

Bandcamp Friday - May

Reporting in with this month's offerings. I thought it was going to be a little thin on the ground as I didn't have much lined up, but I managed to get some done in time. In a surprise twist, it also features a fair amount of new releases too! Let's take a look.

Kicking things off with some DMX Krew - Ed from DMX pretty consistently drops New releases to the point where it can be tricky to keep up. I heard the first track from Return To Jupiter when it was up for pre-orders and I knew then I'd get my hands on it soon enough. This is Ed's second release on Peggy Gou's Gudu Records, the first being the equally nice Don't You Wanna Play? EP. It seems to be that when DMX makes stuff for this label he switches focus to pure instrumental, there's no cheeky playful vocal as seen on some other DMX releases here. The title track is the one that sold me - it very clearly takes heavy inspiration from Underground Resistance, especially the Galaxy 2 Galaxy material. The end result is this fine slice of retro-futuristic techno, bouncy and airy, it's a lot of fun to listen to.



Next up is Yaga, yet another artist that until now I'd only really had bits and pieces from scattered across miscellaneous compilations. My experience up until this point was mainly bits from Rhythm Of Snow - all pretty minimal, at the border of my taste in the genre, anything further is a bit too minimal for me. I don't remember exactly how Faded Photographs came onto my radar, but I do remember being entranced by the one preview track at the time No Matter What.

Now, having spent a fair bit of time with the whole album, I can happily confirm the rest is very much in the same vein. I've seen a lot of discussion from fans of Yagya saying that this vocal-oriented shift he's taken isn't for them, but I quite like it, granted it is my first real experience with it beyond his older works.

It's an album that is pretty antithetical to my listening habits, my usual MO is a set of speakers and my entire collection on shuffle all at once. Faded Photographs by comparison is a much more intimate experience, one that benefits greatly from immersing yourself completely in it. I was a little on the fence about it until I threw on a set of headphones and listened to it front-to-back, it all flows together in a lovely way.

That said, there are still tracks that stand alone, my favourite still being No Matter What, but I'm really liking the whole thing, you can spend a lot of time picking out the delicacies on repeat listens and I just adore the moments of melodic vocal flourishes. It can end up sounding a little same-y in parts, but I'd definitely give it a spin if you're in the mood for some quieter, introspective listening.



Third is a compilation I'd had my eyes on for a while, one I'd assumed wouldn't be available digitally due to the label, Musik Aus Strom, being defunct. Turns out it was revived in 2022 by one of the founders and has almost all its back catalogue available, with more planned to come!

The compilation in question, the punnily titled MAS Confusion is a goldmine of lesser known IDM vendors and if you're a fan of then sound, especially around the early 00's when this compilation released then it is certainly worth checking out. There are some early highlights: the opening track from Metamatics that I've talked about before is beautiful, and Adamn Johnson's tracks are almost perfect encapsulations of what makes the 'IDM' sound. My choice for today though is Xela's Streetlevel, a lovely bit crushed nostalgia trip that also embodies all things IDM. Xela has a pretty extensive list of releases too, if you like this one I highly recommend For Frosty Mornings And Summer Nights for more in the same style (in addition to the rest of this compilation of course!)



Finally, a last minute addition in Sachi Kobayashi. It's been a little while since I picked up any ambient, so I went looking through my past purchases to check up on some artists. I'd only had a couple EPs from Sachi Kobayashi, but I very much liked them all - turns out there'd been plenty of releases between mow and the last time I checked in so I was a little spoilt for choice. I went one up from where I last checked in, Weathervane, a release inspired by the surviving Weathervane after the Notre Dame fire. For me, Kobayashi is at her best on tracks like Symbol, very roomy soundscapes with a hint of melody carrying throughout. A lovely closer to the experience, Weathervane is an ideal jumping in point for Kobayashi's work and it is currently 'name your price' over on Bandcamp, so there is no price barrier to entry if you enjoy it.



And that'll be all for today, so much for 'thin on the ground' after all eh? Part of me is considering doing a full review of the Yagya LP, but I also put most of my thoughts into this post here (hence the length!). At any rate, I hope you've found something to pique your interest here in this slightly eclectic selection. I'll drop by again with more in due time but until then, as always, stay safe and enjoy the music.

-CVF

Bandcamp Friday - April

It's that time again, and I'm actually on time this time! Bringing me down to only 1 month outstanding (which I'll get to in due time). Felt a little lighter this Friday, I had a couple of things lined up I knew I was going to get, but there were a couple of curveballs along the way and it fast became a little too much. So I settled for some smaller selections instead - wasn't a waste though as those other choices will no doubt come up again. Let's get stuck in.

Leading off we have Goldie's rebuild of his classic Inner City Life, part of the trio that forms the title track on his debut album Timeless. It's not too altered from the original but frankly it didn't need changing at all, and its thematically appropriate as well as this re-release is dedicated to Diane Charlemagne, the iconic voice behind the track. Inner City Life was always my favourite piece of the Timeless parts, so I will admit some slight bias there, but this version is very nice regardless. The Burial remix on the B-side is fine as well, it's not his finest work for me and predictably contains very little of the original. Not to rag on it too much though, there are some lovely moments in there, especially in the last quarter or so. It's fairly inexpensive as well, clocking in at £1 a track, I've found most of Metalheadz's library is very reasonably priced.



Keeping it Goldie for the time being, I picked up a copy of Sine Tempus again. I had a hooky one some years back but I'd lost a lot of the tracks over time, and it was a naff VBR rip if I remember right. It's been a long time since I talked about Sine Tempus actually, it has a bit of a tale behind it. In the early 00's Goldie announced he was working on a film - a coming of age story about an artist - which is no doubt semi-autobiographical if you know the man's history. The film has yet to materialise, but in 08/09 Goldie would release an album of the same name, billed as the soundtrack to the film. It certainly is very cinematic in parts, sometimes to its detriment, but there are also plenty of highlights - the opening track Letting Go has stuck with me through all this time, you can definitely hear that cinematic influence on the extended intro that sets up this foreboding atmosphere. It's soon pierced by Jenna G's signature vocals, coming to a peak around the 2:15 mark when the D*B kicks off in full force.



Moving into more IDM territory next, I've become a fast fan of Reporter, as mentioned a couple times in the past BC Posts. The brand of almost-IDM on show here is very much up my alley, as you no doubt know if you've been reading this blog for any amount of time. Opening track How Much More To Take fits that bill in a nutshell, this lovely combination of high-tech vibes and this fragile melody will always get top marks from me. That deceptively deep bassline is a lovely bonus to boot. There's not a ton of Reporter releases out there, but I have very much enjoyed my time with all of them. In a nice turn of serendipity, I found this wordpress through my research, detailing the work he's done in the past which as it turns out is a ton of audio work on some of my favourite bits of media.



I did end up picking up some non-electronic stuff, and this next one I didn't actually get *from* bandcamp but the artist's own website, but I'd stil say it counts. Some years ago now I talked at length about the weird, wild, wired world of music made by fans of Serial Experiments Lain, through both unofficial and official channels they've been making related works for many years now. Well, they've not let up in the interim - the man behind some of the original series' OST, Chikada "J.J" Wasei, has been putting on real life live events and releasing new entries in the Cyberia series (named for the club in the show) since 2018 or so, his latest being in December last year. After the release of Layer 3, Wasei teamed up with fans across the world to release a companion album fittingly titled After Hours. Covering a whole host of genres from the expected Techno to Synthwave and full on ambient in parts. It's a great way for Wasei to repay the community and shine a light on some indie artists in the process. I have a full extended Cyberia post cooking up in the background, but for now have the bouncy Replicant Funk to tide you over.



And that'll be all for today, I've been busy behind the scenes republishing old posts and I hope to get another post out soon-ish. I hope you've found something to enjoy here today in this admittedly eclectic selection! I'll be back soon enough with more but until next time, as always, stay safe and enjoy the music.

-CVF

Just missed

Jack Youngerman - Black/Red (1962)

Prepping to write out a big rundown of my Bandcamp Friday scoops, thought it best to do a quick 'honourable mentions' that didn't quite make it this time around - I've found it serves as a pretty good reminder come next time plus it's plain fun to talk about those almost records, let's have a look. First is some Machine Girl, with some bootleg mixes of cuts from the Jet Set Radio soundtracks. Between the track titles, the art and the description over on Bandcamp it can come across as a little obnoxious - this is the duo leaning heavy into their 'web-core' aesthetic. My favourite mix of the bunch is the one of Electric Toothbrush, which was already a favourite of mine from the OST anyway, this version given a Juked up makeover. Part of why I think it's the best mix of the bunch is it feels the most seamlessly intertwined, Electric Toothbrush isn't as sample based as the other tracks they chose to rework, iconic though they are.



I've been trying to take deeper dives into my Wishlist, one of the pitfalls of it is I usually end up scooping a release or two from the top so some things inevitably sink to the bottom. Way down there is a bunch of Misstress Barbara stuff, from her poppier album work to the proper full on House stuff. I have been finding some of it a little hit and miss, but there are moments that take me back to the tracks that put her on my radar to begin with. Talk To Me being a primo example, incredibly hypnotic and endlessly catchy, it's exactly the type of track I would come across in the early days of my electronic exploration, tucked away in some bootleg DJ mix without a tracklist. Misstress Barbara has recently overhauled her BC page and is still dropping new releases to boot - with older EPs like this one going for a lowly $2 Canadian, it won't be long before I grab a couple next time I stock up.



And finally, Gimmik. This one stings a little as I've *almost* copped this album about 3 times now, but I always end up putting it down again. Part of the reason it pains me is all I've heard from it has been great, all of Gimmk's work is the kind of IDM that is almost tailor made for me, very much in the same kind of vein as the work he was doing on Toytronic in the early 00's which first put him in my collection. The title track was the one used in the teaser trailer for the album and it is a damn near perfect example of what I just mentioned - I simply adore the sound on show here. That intro is deliciously techy in that slightly off kilter way, but the real star of the show for me is that sweeping melody introduced at around 50 seconds or so, it adds this whole layer of electronic emotion to things that I just cannot get enough of. By the time the big swell at 1:23 came around I was already grinning ear-to-ear. Simply wonderful stuff. If this is your preferred kind of IDM as well I would highly recommend other Gimmik releases, with my personal suggestion being (Back To Basics).



And that'll be all for this super quick tour of what might have been, I'm going to try and find time to do my Bandcamp scoops sometime soon, I figure I might split it out into smaller posts like this in order to make it easier to write (and potentially more focused too, I know there's at least one record I picked up I want to spend a fair bit of time talking about). Until then, I hope you've found something to enjoy here and as always: stay safe and enjoy the music.

-CVF

Welcome to the world of Tomorrow

Doesn't seem that long ago I was putting together the NYE track dump, but I figure the sooner I get my head down and writing again the better. What a wild few days it has been so far eh? Every year since 2019 it's been funny seeing which Sci-Fi dates we're passing, from Blade Runner to TimeSplitters, there's plenty of 'futuristic' dates that are now in the past. So with that in mind, let's revisit some of my favourite futuristic sounding tracks!

Jackson Pollock - Number 23 (1948)

We've got two feet firmly planted in the world of what's termed IDM today, a longtime favourite sound of mine partly because of that super hi-tech vibe and the occasional glitchy aesthetic. Kicking off with a recent addition I mentioned not so long ago onesix-four by Superstructure from the third entry in the Ghostly Swim series. And my thought are pretty much going to echo what I said about it in passing last time: I am madly in love with this one, it sounds very much like an off-cut of AFX's Analord series. It had been a long time since a track made such an impression on me so quickly, it wastes no time getting down to things and I knew from that intro I was in for a good time. Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant.



Delving a little deeper into the more obscure side of things with Karsten Pflum, another artist I found via Worm Interface's back-catalogue, which I in turn found from Toytronic. I've taken to searching Bandcamp for releases like this, despite them being from decades old defunct labels, a lot of them do appear on Artist's pages, as is the case with Karsten. I started with his debut album, the unassumingly titled Tracks. As you might have guessed from the cover, Karsten's brand of IDM fits into that more playfully eccentric type of IDM - more Plaid than Autechre, lots of squelchy detunes and lovey light sounds. Alberts Dag is exactly the tune I'd point to for a quick summary, wonderfully melodic throughout but especially so here, I can wholeheartedly recommend the full thing if you like this one.



Rounding out with one of those Toytronic releases with Links Berge Rechts Seen. Another case of the above, I had a hooky copy of it for ages before finding it on Bandcamp one day. It's a fine little album, one that is for sure more on the techy glitchy side as you might have been able to tell from the artwork. Much like the artwork, there are times when it feels very much like it's channeling Autechre circa Amber or Tri Repetae or so. That isn't a bad thing at all mind you, but it does mean that most of my choices were a little too glitchy in comparison to what I've posted so far today. Luckily there are plenty of lush examples on the album to go in their stead. From the spaced out ambience of The Light to the subdued Artificial Intelligence-esque Phase 4. I've gone with Planquadrat this time though as I feel like it shares the most in common with the other tracks above, albeit a little more frantic. Still, if you like your IDM a more melodic, give this album a spin and you won't go too wrong.



And that'll do it for the first post of the year! hope it's treating you all well so far, I'm planning on trying to get the remaining few hundred archived posts republished soon enough, though as I get further back the more and more of the tracks featured aren't available anymore. At any rate, I hope you've enjoyed today's selections and I will be back around soon enough with more. Until then, as always, stay safe and enjoy the music.

-CVF

Last Minute Additions

Took some time to catch up on the old release radar, I normally miss a thing or two here and there, but there has been a real bevy of releases as of late. Naturally, in true CVF fashion, not all of these are going to be brand new but hopefully they are still at least new to you as they are me! Let's go.

Jacek Yerka - There is peace in the Block (1994)

The biggest one that caught my eye was an anniversary re-issue of Justice's debut with some bonus tracks - it activated that part of my brain that still loves all things electro house and I dove right in. The album itself is killer as ever, and the bonus tracks are a nice treat if a bit underwhelming - I wasn't expecting to have my socks blown off or anything, but even so, some of these bonuses are just 'OK'. Still, it's always interesting to hear demo versions of the tracks - some of them are wildly different. Out of all of them though, Donna is the one that took my heart. It instantly transported me back to the heyday of this sound, back when I was an absolute Ed Banger fiend. I'd be lying if I said I didn't still have a lot of love for this sound, part of me always thought that was tinged by nostalgia but after hearing this 'new' piece for the first time I'm starting to think that's not so true. Hop in this little time capsule with me!



Keeping in reissue town with a whole heap of remasters from Makoto. Makoto's been on my radar for a long time thanks to LTJ Bukem, I have a long and well-documented love of that era of D&B after all. But it's something I don't go looking for often, plus I do like to support the artists as and when I can, and a lot of Makoto's earlier work isn't readily available digitally. Enter the Yearbook Vol. 4 compilation to see to both of those - a whole heap of remastered versions and a previously unreleased track? Yes please. And you don't have to get far into the tracklist to see the appeal for me - Joy starts off a little heavy, but that sample is just so.. well... joyful you can't help but grin, and it doesn't let up for the full 7 minute runtime. Lovely stuff.



Something else to round out the selections, Ghostly were ever so kind as to email me a 20% off code for things on their bandcamp, so I thought I'd get around to picking up Ghostly Swim 3, the previous 2 I have already from when they were freebies. I do like picking up compilations like this, it's a great way to quickly get a lot of variety and potential new artists to follow in one swoop. I've not gone far in the tracklist for my choice today, but there's plenty of goodness on offer here, from the sinister seven minutes of Redux (GAD Mix) with it's Carpenter-esque stabs to onesix-four sounds like an offshoot of Aphex Twin's Analord series in all it's squelchy glory.

Bogdan Raczynski leads the compilation - another artist who was a mainstay of Aphex Twin's Rephlex records and, like DMX Krew, is now starting to make those Rephlex releases available on bandcamp. Ggowwksstane shares a lot of that AFX mentality actually if the purposefully mangled title wasn't a clue enough. There's a lot of playfulness here without going too hard into proper full on the breakcore side of IDM. Imagine an alternate universe Richard D. James Album and you're in the right ballpark.



And that'll about do it for today, I'm going to maybe put together a little something for NYE which I've missed in previous years, but failing that I'll try and get another regular post out before years end. At any rate, hope you've found something to pique your interest here and until next time, as always, stay safe and enjoy the music.

-CVF

Feelin' Fragile

'Bout that time of year where everything catches up with me and it all just feels a bit 'eh' you know? Not helped by Friday's night out I imagine, but also this year in general. Still, things are winding down so I'm taking the time to sit and write a little bit more than usual. I've been keeping rolling lists of stuff I've been listening to and have plenty to go at, so let's dive right in.

Sam Gilliam - This Time (2008)

To match the title, I've chosen a selection of fitting songs to go at - not all ambient but all very much under that kind of fragile umbrella. Starting with some Arovane. Lilies is an album that I keep thinking I should do a full deep dive on, Arovane pretty much disappeared for about 10 years after it came out which makes for an interesting tale. At any rate, plenty of tracks from this album could have gone here - it's a gorgeously produced album, very accessible and never straying to hard into hardcore IDM territory. Tracks like Passage To Nagoya are what spring to mind for me, especially considering the content of this post, but this time I've gone with the hauntingly beautiful Tokyo Ghost Stories. The sparse piano soon gives way to something that sounds very Trip Hop in its execution, I've been playing this one a lot as of late.



It ain't all doom and gloom though, the intro for DMX Krew's December Darkness sort of fits this bill as well. Tucked away around the midpoint of the unassumingly titled Bass Drop EP, it quickly became one of my all time favourites from DMX's catalogue, and remains so to this day. Once again it's like DMX had my number completely, this kind of luscious deep house vibe is supremely up my alley. I'm a total sucker for the slow introduction of new elements too, just when I think I could be getting a little tired, something new drops into the mix to inject it with a fresh coat of paint. The EP is wholly instrumental (save for some vocal samples on the title track) so there's no tongue in cheek lyrical content like you might expect from DMX if you've heard his other work. That said, this EP is still very much a love letter to his influences, there's a whole heap of electro and acid to get at on here.



And finally, I've fallen back in with Everything But The Girl, as I seem to do every winter. Tracey Thorn's delivery is impeccable and twins oh-so-well with the Drum & Bass direction they took toward the tail end of their releases. Walking Wounded is the obvious highlight, and an album I've talked about at length before, it's the album that marked that hard shift into the electronic side of things. Unfortunately it's a little difficult to post legitimately, EBTG are one of those artists where a lot of it is gated off behind Soundcloud premium otherwise I'd probably mention them more - I'm going to make do though. I've gone with Above The Law once again, a previously unreleased demo of what would become Before Today given the shared lyrical content. It's a little more raw feeling than the rest of the album as you might expect from a demo, but it sounds incredible regardless - the production and Tracey's vocal are absolutely perfect together.

Everything But The Girl · Above The Law (Demo)

And that'll be all for now, as I mentioned up top I'm going to try and write a little more in the coming weeks, I have plenty to go at as usual - I still have to do this month's Bandcamp findings after all! I might even try and get something a little more long-form down as well, I'm starting to feel the itch a little again. But I'm going off track once again so I'll wrap up here - as always, stay safe and enjoy the music.

-CVF

Playing catch up (November's Friday Results, continued)

Yes, I am well aware it's December, but between tech issues™, life™ and being a li'l sick for the first time in a long while over the weekend I am way behind schedule. An entire month later, here I am finishing up the November's Bandcamp Friday scoops. To be fair, it was always going to be two parts because November was a particularly big entry but I never expected it to be delayed this much. But at any rate, let's get stuck in.

Maynard Dixon - November in Nevada (1935)

Keeping in theme with heavily delayed, here's an artist I've been meaning to post here for months - Sound Synthesis. Long enough that I don't quite remember how they came up in my recommendations, but I knew from the get go I was going to enjoy pretty much everything I'd hear from them. Much like E.R.P., it's that very specific kind of spacey electro that really really appeals to me. There are releases where the two are quite close in terms of sound, on Orbital Frequencies though, Sound Synthesis does a fantastic job of carving their own image. I was torn between choosing Thinking Of You or this track - this one keeps that hi-tech vibe but feels a lot brighter than the other electro I've posted in this vein in the past. Lovely stuff.



I got around to picking up some more from Sense too, another artist on the more obscure side of the IDM world. I've gone back to A View From a Vulnerable Place this time, his debut - coming to us from Neo Ouija circa 2001 originally, I knew what I was getting into from those facts alone. It's a label with a short, sometimes sparse release history but equally is home to some real quality among those few. Coming back to this LP, it's perhaps a little generic in parts, but it is the better part of 20 years old by now and as you all know by now I have a lot of love for the genre either way.

There's still plenty to get at here though, the main barrier to entry is going to be the length of a lot of these tracks which average around the 6 minute mark. The track I've chosen, View From Another Place, is no exception to this rule, clocking in at a hefty 12 minutes. It is by far and away one of the standouts though, despite me saying it suffers from being generically IDM, this one in particular sounds quite a bit different from the rest of the LP. Among the classic juxtaposition of broken beats and airy synths are lots of lovely delicate touches and flourishes that make it a joy to listen to.



Swinging from hi tech to something comparatively lo-fi - Komëit have been on my radar for a while, hot off the heels of my lo-fi dive into the world of Casiotone For The Painfully Alone I was ready for more. Komëit's work is a lot less raw than CFTPA's, but still carries that unmistakable bedroom production. Following a tried and tested formula of simple, sampled guitar backed with these tinny drums that lovingly contrast with the acoustic elements. Top with some distant, incredibly softly spoken vocals and I don't think you could come up with a finer recipe for a indie electronic pop record from 2000.

It can be a fairly intimate experience, sometimes cinematic in parts, I've very much enjoyed my time with it. As if to illustrate how thorough the formula is, I wrote the above with the intention of posting Thanks + No, but changed my mind just now to Don't Call and I haven't had to alter a single word. Don't Call is the track I first heard from the duo actually, and I think is a fantastic intro to the album as there's a lot going on beyond my basic description above. The rest of the album comes highly recommended if you like this one naturally, you'll find yourself in familiar sonic spaces throughout!



And that'll be all for this quick roundup of last month's scoops, I still feel like I need to take a deeper dive into the other releases I mentioned in the prelude post, but in the interest of catching up I think we can swing back around to them some other day. It's been pretty enjoyable to write this up after my little break, doubly so as I didn't really get to immerse myself in these records too much before wading into the sea of tech issues - it's been a bit like putting on an old jacket and finding a bit of cash in the pocket! I'll be back soon enough with more but until next time, as always, stay safe and enjoy the music.

-CVF

Flying Visit 2

Monique Orsini - Untitled (from Collection Resonance) (2011)

Another quick one to tide things over - I'm probably not going to get my last Bandcamp Friday roundup done before the next one comes around! No matter, that just gives me even more to talk about as and when. I've got a couple others in mind as well, I'm going to see if I can finish them up and schedule them out over this weekend. In the meantime, I've been drawing up a list for this upcoming (and final) BC Friday of this year. I don't think it's going to be as big as last times, but it is shaping up quite nicely.

I've been diving back into the archives and seeing if there's anything major I've missed - and n5MD makes up quite a significant chunk of that, they keep coming out with albums faster than I can pick them up! A great roster of artists and a fairly complete archive of their entire label on BC means that I have plenty to go at for a long time to come. I've gone way back to the very first thing I picked up from the label, before I really looked into them and saw that they were the current home of many of my favourite artists operating in the 'IDM' sphere. Light As A Feather is an album I found way back in the Grooveshark days. There are a few tracks that always stand out to me from it, and I'm surprised I haven't posted Resonance as of yet - it embodies the sound I think of when I remember this album, a unique kind of gritty yet airy IDM. This one in particular reminds me of some of Clark's work, albeit a little lighter on its feet than the sometimes grinding melodies of Clark.



Keeping things in an IDM style lane for now, with another cut from Touched Two, the massive charity compilation I've mentioned a few times now. I am still no closer to plumbing the entire depths of it's 200+ strong tracklist, but every time I come back with more gold. There's no shortage of big names on the comp, but I'd like to shine a light on Ochre - another discovery from my Grooveshark days, go figure. Ochre is the one who actually put this compilation on my radar way back when with Rowing to the Riverhead. The player on the original post is broken now, so I thought why not talk about it again here? A lovely meld of glitchy percussion and gorgeously smooth melodies, if you are at all a fan of IDN, you will find yourself in good company. My only complaint is the same one from that past post - I would have liked to have spent a little more time in this space.



And that'l be all for today, another short one I know - but I promise I will be back soon enough with more. After all, like I mentioned up top I owe you all a full breakdown of last month's Bandcamp scoops, and I will be adding even more to that come tomorrow! Until then, as always, stay safe and enjoy the music.

-CVF

November's Friday Result: Prelude

Just a quick post here before I dive into the full fat of my last Bandcamp Friday. It was a pretty big haul, more-so than usual and I'd like to take my time with a full writeup. But, I am also aware it's been a little while in my last post, so I figured why not cover all those bases (and the added bonus of troubleshootin' the old Hype Machine again) in one swoop with a little quick update? Let's go.

Sarah Morris - The Mirage (Las Vegas) (1999)

As I mentioned up top, a fairly big haul this time, a few records I've been eyeing up for a while, one of which I think may pan out into a Retro Review down the line. There were some last minute additions as well in the form of two more compilations from Touched Music, the charity label I've talked about before. I scooped their absolutely massive second entry Touched Two some months back and I've still yet to full digest the depths of it's 255 tracks. I've had a few more in my wish-list since then, including the Found Sound series, a much more 'IDM' focused set of compilations from what I'd read. The label mentioned via email that for a limited time the two of them would be 'pay what you want' as they also announced an upcoming third entry in the series too, so at the very last minute I gave both of them a spin and added them to my cart.

Much easier to get into than the big 255 tracker one, the two Found Sounds clock in at a much more readable 59 tracks. It's early doors yet so I don't have any absolute favourites to report back with as of yet, but there are plenty of contenders. From volume one I've chosen Fxmas mod DAISY CHAIN 25o [brkn rotary hesitant snr] which sounds like some of the names I give my project files. It's a playful little number that evokes that Aphex Twin vibe circa Richard D. James Album. It's been quite a while since I delved into the 'fun' side of the IDM world, my favourites tend to be a little more cold and technical feeling, so having this one come on was very refreshing indeed.



From the second entry we have something more in line with what I just mentioned, as the title Beta might give away. It's perhaps a little generic if you're fully immersed in the world of IDM, especially as the original release this track appeared on is from 1999, but it's a style of sound that I have a lot of love for. It's been quite a long time since I really sought out anything that sounds like this so I will admit some bias there as well! I just can't help but love that really specific brand of hi-tech sounds like this that was coming out around the late 90's to early 00's, which makes sense as my last real deep dive into this sound was a combination of releases on Toytronic and early net-label pioneers Monotonik. That's part of the appeal of the Touched releases for me actually, you get a whole heap of new names to check out if you dig their stuff.



One last track to round things off, I had the lone Reporter EP I talked about a while back come on - Seasonal Rhythms - which spurred me on to get some more. It's a very pretty release and I'd plain forgotten to wish-list some other Reporter releases so it served as a good reminder. I settled on the Guggenheim EP, originally released as a CDr in 2004. I must say the updated artwork is much nicer and very much suits the slick electronics contained. Each track named for a location, they really could all go here quite comfortably. I've chosen Vegas this time around - by far the darkest sounding of the bunch, it's much closer to that cold and artificial feeling I described really enjoying a few paragraphs back. Not sure it's my favourite of the lot, but you can certainly expect to see not only more of this EP, but more Reporter in general in the posts to come.



And that'll be all for today, I know I said up top I'd left it a little longer than I'd like between posts but that might not be as bad as I made out, this post felt really speedy to write! That might be due to the sheer amount of new music I got recently though come to think of it, but maybe an extra day or two isn't so bad. At any rate, I'll be back soon enough with more - a full writeup of the rest of my Friday scoops coming up next with some more from the releases mentioned here and some others that I haven't brought up as of yet. There's some public transport carnage in my neck of the woods this coming week so no doubt I'll find some time to sit and do a full writeup. Until then, as always: stay safe and enjoy the music.

-CVF

Not Quite

So some things are still broken, but I'm making baby steps every time I sit down and take a look at things, it's fast becoming one of those tech troubleshooting tales where it could be one of a million things at hand - compounded further by the fact I inherited this site and really don't know anything about the inner workings AND having to troubleshoot across multiple sites. Still, I'm trying to keep active despite it all. I think I can do this, I just need a hand is all.

Friedensreich Hundertwasser - The Endless Way to You (1967)

So this one is gonna be extra short as a result, here's a selection of troubleshooting tracks I've had on in the background. They're all of a specific type, each one very fitting for scrolling through bug reports, fixes and everything in-between while neurons fire and my eyes glaze over a bit. Starting with a bit from the massive Touched Two compilation, a fittingly hi-tech almost ambient piece - a perfect accompaniment and another high quality offering from the compilation.



Moving back to more familiar faces next with Boards Of Canada. A piece from The Campfire Headphase that I initially wasn't too hot on but have since come around to in time. To paraphrase myself from ages ago: Slow This Bird Down captures a muggy, close night in audio form. On the whole Headphase is not as sinister as Geogaddi, it's been a long time since I listened to it as I completely burned myself out on all things BoC a little while back, but coming back to both this and Tomorrow's Harvest has been a real delight.



And finally some Washed Out. I have mixed feelings about Within & Without - from the artwork down to the songs themselves, it's Washed Out at his most twee 'indie' chillwave style - drenched in reverb and with distant almost mumbled vocals. And yet I can't find myself disliking it. Yeah, the content is a little dated but I've got a lot of love for the formula - I do prefer the version of this track that appeared on the 2010 edition of the Adult Swim Singles Program, I'm not sure if it's the lower bitrate playing tricks but it sounds a little rawer in execution, giving a nice extra lo-fi feeling to everything. A fun record to dig out once in a while, if a bit formulaic, especially if you've come off the heels of the Life Of Leisure EP



And that'll be all for now, a very much cut down post compared to my previous efforts, but once all this mess is sorted out I promise I'll be back to the regular jaunt! I'll be back around soon enough with more but until then - as always, stay safe and enjoy the music.

-CVF

Fixed Up(?)

Back again with another test, just got word back from the powers that be that the site should be indexing again. Or at least, I assume so - they added the missing posts to the page at least but didn't really mention any cause or if I needed to do anything more on my end... So the more I think about it the more unsure I am, but then again I am also a chronic over-thinker. At any rate, I figured I'd do a quick one to test that theory and also just keep me otherwise occupied. Truth be told I haven't really been in the mood to write too much, there's been a lot of bullshit going on my end and it's killed any desire I might have had to really sit and write as before - so this one might be a bit short overall!

Peter Phillips - Select-o-Mat Tempest I (1972)

In keeping with the dour mood here's some more Casiotone For The Painfully Alone. These first two albums are perfect for this actually - I adore each short little vignette, and the distortion on tracks like Bus Song and this one is a joy to listen to, there's a beauty to the rawness that I am very much into at the minute. The first couple albums are a little simple (which I can understand being a bit of a deal breaker for some what with the literal preset Casio sounds and all) but if you appreciate the songwriting like I do, give the later CFTPA albums a listen as they branch out in terms of instrumentation. Owen Ashworth, the man behind the project has since retired the CFTPA name, but is still producing music with the same feel under the moniker Advance Base - definitely worth a look if it appeals to you.



I might as well round up the last bit of the Ian O'Brien EP as I've posted the rest of it. Each track is a highlight in its own regard, but the last one is lovely and a fitting end to the EP, a short and sweet ambient piece that brings everything to a nice close. Not quite as hi-tech sounding as the rest of the EP but a gorgeous warm listen nonetheless. It reminds me a lot of the softer parts of Röyksopp's Sophomore LP The Understanding which I haven't revisited in a long time. Perhaps its time to give that one a re-spin.



It's the time of season where I dig out more downtempo stuff in the same vein as the cosy vibes above. I've gone with a bit of a deep cut this time with some Reporter - an act with an incredibly difficult to search name to begin with, but I've also chosen a release that isn't even on Discogs in Seasonal Rhythms. I knew when I saw the cover it'd be very much up my street, and it wasn't long util I was proved right. It is lovely cosy electronic that leans slightly on the IDM side - think again the more ambient bits of The Flashbulb's discography and you're in the right kind of area. I've been hanging onto this release for exactly that reason, it is the perfect soundtrack to the tail end of the year, highly recommended if you're after some comfy electronic.



And that'll be all for today, hopefully we should be back to regular programming from now on, I do plan to do a bit of tinkering over the weekend which may break things further but with any luck at least some of it will work for the time being. Hopefully after that the only limiting factor will be how busy I am IRL! Until next time, as always, stay safe and enjoy the music.

-CVF

Digital Digging Returns

Apologies for the delay on this one, had a busy couple of days - I did manage to get some old posts republished but nothing major as I had planned to do that old republishing-as-new trick I mentioned in the past. No matter though, I've cooked up some tunes to talk about in the meantime to tide things over. Let's have a look-see.

Emilio Scanavino - Quadro (1972)

Bit of an odd one to start off with, a remix album that sort of... isn't at the same time? What we have here is an album by Komëit - Falling Into Place, only this version has been completely redone by Robert Lippok and titled Falling Into Komëit. I've liked what I've heard from Komëit so far, very much up my street being a slightly obscure electronic act from the early 00's and all. Lippok's treatment of their second LP cranks the ambient parts up to 11 and I am very much into that as well. Take I Can Tell, this reworked version coming out all skeletal and fragile - it's gorgeous stuff, the intro to this one is just lovely.



We're actually keeping that theme going next with a little bit from Roger van Lunteren, although we wouldn't find out for years after the fact. See, Lunteren originally recorded a track called M-2097 in 1996, but it didn't get released until it appeared on his album Satori a good few years later in 2016 Satori. However we actually heard an alternate, once again more ambient version back in 2000 on a compialtion from City Centre Offices called Cashier Escape Route - this version being dubbed N-2097! Which I guess technically makes that one the original and the 2016 release the alternative version. Of the two, this one is my favourite, much like the above it is lovely and suitably spacey in parts, it mostly just feels very warm and comforting in the meantime. City Centre Offices is defunct as a label now so I've had to go with a YT embed for this one, but it's at least from van Lunteren's personal channel.



Saying that, I have been pleasantly surprised what you can find on bandcamp, when I stumbled across the compilation MAS Confusion (a fitting title given the stories above!), I assumed like with so many other compilations it would have to be something I'd sail the seas for. Not true this time, the label it was originally released on has done a great job of archiving most of their releases after relaunching in January of this year - Musik Aus Strom, a creation of Funkstörung. I found this compilation on a recent-ish search for more early 00's IDM stuff and it did not disappoint, the opening salvo of tracks are all great but the opener is exactly what I was looking for when I went on that search for more of that sound. Takes me right back to those late nights working in After Effects.



And that'll be all for this time around, slightly shorter than usual. Hope you've enjoyed the tales and tunes above, I've been hanging onto them for a while now just making sure it all made sense before I wrote it up! I'll be back before long with more but until then, as always, stay safe and enjoy the music.

-CVF

Retro Reviews: µ-Ziq - Lunatic Harness

It's been a while since I sat down and did one of these long form Retro Reviews, and there's been one album staring me i nthe face all this time that I can't really figure out why I didn't do one of it already, though I think I might have done a quick overview of it way back when. Regardless, we're here now - taking a look at µ-Ziq's 4th LP, Lunatic Harness, which is especially topical because like Daft Punk's Homework it is also getting an expanded reissue this year.

I have always loved the cover art, it's very iconic and very well composed. I will admit that I have a weakness for Helvetica in all its forms, but the way it pops on that orange background is just lovely. It's a bit odd for this series for me to dive into the middle of things, normally we start with debuts or maybe even second albums, but fourth ones is a bit of an oddity. Widely considered some of Mike Paradinas' best work, this album is a great jumping in point if you're new, and home to some of my favourite 'IDM' jams for this era.

Yet Lunatic Harness is a record I have a complicated relationship with, for what seems like a very silly reason now I'm preparing to type it out. As many of you know, I typically shuffle my entire collection when listening day-to-day - For many years, the music player I was using didn't have the capability to remember where I left off, so would re-shuffle every time I started it up. This isn't a bad thing in and of itself, where the problem comes in is how it would shuffle - it would always start alphabetically by artist, which means I have heard the opening bars of Brace Yourself Jason and others perhaps thousands of times. But if I power through the sections I've been overexposed to, the LP is just as good as ever.



Tastefully skirting the balance between your more intense IDM, the main memory that comes to mind for me when I think of Lunatic Harness is the strong melodic streak that it has - this does wonders to make the album more accessible but is also just a really great addition to the soundscape. The first 5 tracks all do a wonderful job of showing this off, as you might have heard on Brace Yourself Jason, but my favourite has always and will always be Hasty Boom Alert, which effortlessly dances between the madcap beats emblematic of this time in the history of IDM and these lovely, airy synths that make the whole thing feel a lot lighter. The little section after the break at 2:03 where they get to take the lead is just divine.



I try not to draw comparisons between Aphex Twin and µ-Ziq too often, but its inevitable that it will come up at some point, the two's sounds are of course quite similar and they have also collaborated in the past as well. It comes up now because I think that Mushroom Compost carries with it that same kind of playful messing around that appeared on Aphex's Richard D. James Album, more in the vein of Fingerbib than the slide whistles of Logan Rock Witch. That said, I wouldn't want to write this one off as 'just' one of those tunes though, the same melodic streak I mentioned just above in once again on full display and makes it an absolute joy to listen to.



Moving on to the title track - Lunatic Harness kicks off with a marked difference in sound, in which Mike Paradinas cuts & pastes and otherwise tweaks a sample from Fat Boys' Human Beat Box from 1984 for a full minute, my favourite part being the glitched out section around 53 seconds in. After that though, it's a return to the same light synth sound as before, though the sample crops up a couple more times throughout. It's an interesting spin for sure, but one that I could understand might turn some off. I know there's been plenty of times where I've hit skip because I didn't really feel the intro, which is a shame becuase at it's heart it's another good addition to the tracklist.



Speaking of changes in sound, there's an even more drastic one coming up next - all the light and melodic synths of before go out of the window with Approaching Menace. Befitting of its name, the intro alone gives away that this is going to a different beast that what came before. It comes a little out of left-field and there's not really anything else like it in terms of sound on the album - but this little bit of intensity nestled about halfway through the tracklist is certainly a highlight. Incredibly rough 'round the edges and with two feet firmly planted in the experimental breakbeat side of the IDM world - I could understand this being a bit of a sticking point for some folk who've fallen in love with the atmosphere of the other tracks, personally I still like it quite a bit because I think it absolutely nails the atmosphere set up by the title.



Rounding out with a couple more melodic entries with the Secret Stair parts. Part 1 shows off that melodic side to this album once again, that synth sound that was so prominent on tracks like Hasty Boom Alert is here again and I absolutely adore it. Around the 1:25 mark we again return to familiar territory with some breakbeat accompaniment, I think the way it fades into the mix can feel a little odd coming back to it - it sort of overpowers the melodics before they come back together in a kind of harmony. I've listened to it for so long that I'm just used to it by now though. Part 2 is similar, albeit a little more sedate. There's no breakbeat on the sequel (or at least, not the extent of part one), instead opting for more of that sort of Aphex-esque styling of the Richard D James Album era as mentioned before.





Unfortunately the wheels fall off a bit in the latter half of the album for me, I've always felt this way about it actually. I could never get on with a couple of the final few: Wannabe is a bit cacophonous, coming out like a hybrid of the Aphex Twin tracks I posted above and that one abstract jazz record Squarepusher did called Music Is Rotted One Note - by the midpoint we get a (presumably Paradinas') whispered vocal stating Wanna be your lover baby, I don't wanna be your friend, a line more suited to something from DMX Krew and not this darkness that is Wannabe. I can tolerate it for about as long as it takes to get to the midpoint but it loses me not long after. London takes things in a slightly more abstract orchestral direction, one that µ-Ziq would continue on the follow up album Royal Astronomy - twinned with a fairly generic 'IDM' bassy accompaniment come the two minute mark. It's not bad as it were, but it certainly isn't Hasty Boom Alert.

The other two final tracks I have a bit more of a warm reception to, Catkin And Teasel once again bringing that playful feeling back into the mix, twinned with some suitably ludicrous beat work that you've probably become accustomed to at this point. It's a fun listen for sure, but one that's easy to overdo very quickly, having played through the LP a couple of times in the writing of this I have found myself growing tired of the rising-and-falling motif that introduces the track - granted there are plenty of other elements to distract from it. Midwinter Log closes the album in much the same fashion, it's a tour de force of all the elements of the album thus far, even carrying with it some signposts to the sound µ-Ziq would adopt on the follow up. They're fine tracks, but I still do think the album's opening quarter is the strongest.





Worth noting that this 25th anniversary edition includes some bonus tracks and the Brace Yourself and My Little Beautiful EPs as well. I haven't had a chance to spin the bonus tracks yet but I can heartily recommend the EPs if you like the content of the main LP - I love the stylistic synchronicity between them and the main album as seen above, it really makes the releases feel part of a larger body of work with different 'flavours' as it were. Some of my favourites from the additional EPs to round things out: Summer Living which could easily slot into that strong first quarter on the main album and would have been a nice bridge into Approaching Menace (Curiously it's titled Summer Living 2 on this re-release).



Abmoit takes things in a surprisingly ambient turn for µ-Ziq, I think this one would have made for a great album closer, it's very pretty sounding, even when juxtaposed against a rough 'n steady beat later on - very much embodying the quote on the Bandcamp page of "atmospheres of ethereal colour and shimmering melody", true for a lot of the album but especially so here. The same goes for the Reprise of Brace Yourself, which IMO should have been the album closer, and not just because it's a spin off of the original track, though it would have made a nice bookend in that respect. Something about the reprise just feels much more climactic than Midwinter Log which would make sense as its the final track of the EP and all - but even then it still just kind of 'ends' abruptly.





And that'll about do it for this time, it's been a long time since I've done one of these so apologies for the length! I'm happy to see plenty of artists taking the chance to do more with their anniversary editions, be it including demos and remixes or accompanying EPs as above rather than just a plain reissue/remaster. As I stated before, if you're new to µ-Ziq this is a great jumping in point, its still my favourite but I think a large part of that is because it was my first proper listen to his work as well. A fantastic and relatively accessible entry in the world of 'IDM', Lunatic Harness is definitely worth a listen - be you new to the genre or just looking for some new additions to your library.

I'll be back around soon enough but until next time, as always, stay safe and enjoy the music.

-CVF

Winter Wishing

Hitting that point of the season where I get pretty sick of it. Me and Summer don't get on, heat makes me super irritable and it's just plain uncomfortable. Figured I also owed you another quick post as I've since realised the Soundcloud players in the last post aren't available worldwide for extra annoyance. So let's take a trip down to the chill side of things, might not be cold in person but at least we can keep it cool on the audio front.

Eyvind Earle - Red Barn and Tree Trunk (1974)

Starting with another entry in the 'let's see what artists I have single tracks of from compilations are up to' - Reporter with a release that's a touch on the obscure side. Reportedly released in 2008 but there's no discogs listing for it, Seasonal Rhythms is perhaps a bit of a digital deep cut, I'm one of only 7 other people who own it. A lovely little EP that hits all of my favourite early 2000s chill notes, from the album art down to the tracks themselves. It didn't take long - from the intro of track 1, the aptly titled Winter Sunlight, I was enamoured. Think of it as a tone setter for this post, its certainly one that I've had kicking around in my head for a little while.



Dipping into ambient territory a little next with another aptly titled release - Whatever The Weather, ambient focused side project of Loraine James. I've not spent a lot of time with this album, I did almost pick it up on my last Bandcamp trip - it's been a while since I got any new ambient stuff and its a genre I have a well documented love for. It takes a brief excursion into Drum & Bass territory on 17°C, but otherwise the whole thing is very lush. I've gone with opening track 25°C, again a perfect mood setter and again an apt title. Fittingly a little bit warmer feeling than the usual ambient that I post, I recommend the full thing if you're looking for more lushness like this.



Something I've been sat on for a little while now, the upcoming Gimmik LP. Since I started following there's been no shortage of new releases coming out of the Gimmik camp - Sonic Poetry being the latest coming later next month. The title track is the only one up for preview at the moment, and it kicks off in suitably IDM fashion, no surprises there if you're at all familiar with his output over the years. Gimmik has always done a great job of hitting the exact balance between the melodic and the glitchy elements that I like when it comes to IDM style works and Sonic Poetry certainly doesn't disappoint on that front.

The waves of melody introduced around the 50 second mark are just lovely, but when they get layered up around 1:20 or so they become divine. Things get a little acidic in the latter half too to keep things fresh, couple that with an extended ambient outro and before long that 6 minute runtime has just melted away. Mark me down as quite excited for the full thing.





Swinging back around to another aptly titled example, a little more from Alucidnation. It's been a long time since I picked up Get Lost and if I'm completely honest I'm not sure why I haven't picked up more in the meantime, it's always been a good time whenever I've returned to it. My usual go-to from the track list is The Message, a firm holder of its place on my 'Coffee Shop Electronic' playlist, but really you can drop the metaphorical needle anywhere on it and have a good time it's a great downtempo record. Enter 15 Below, of the same school as the Whatever The Weather track up top, a cosy number to wrap yourself in for when the cold comes. It does cut off slightly abruptly as it mixes into the next track, but that's all the more reason to check out the whole thing if you like what you hear!



And that'll be all for this time, went a little longer than usual in order to make up for the player issues for those of you not in Europe on the last post. Just proof-reading over a preview now and I really like how all the album art for this one looks, very in keeping with the theme, I'd like to say it was intentional but I also can't complain! Hope you enjoy some of these tunes as much as I do but until next time, as always, stay safe and enjoy the music.