Album: CHAZ KNAPP – Vie comme un Parasite Faisant la fête (Phantom Channel 2008)

Prescient. A visit to the Phantom Channel website is greeted with the phrase “These Are Troubled Times” – as it has been for the last few months. Makes you wonder if the good people there knew something the rest of us didn’t. Anyway, one way to cheer yourself up through the financial doom and gloom and the imminent collapse of capitalism (or not) is to get hold of the latest mini album by Chaz Knapp. It’ll cost you significantly less than the £80 each and every one of us in the UK spent yesterday to shore up Bradford and Bingley. In fact it’ll cost you precisely £80 less, coz it’s free.

Knapp is one third of Our Brother The Native, and the six tracks that make up Vie comme un Parasite Faisant la fête represent his first solo work. “Le Chien Mort” and “Mort d’une Veuve Solitaire” are both solo piano pieces, whilst the other four add a string quartet into the mix. The opener is particularly good, using a sequence of rapid triads to build an effective, slightly sombre melody. The tracks with the string section are ambitious and stirring. Both “Le Fait de Couler du Navire” and “Celebration a une Nouvelle Vie” are excellent compositions, although the string playing is a bit ragged – a case of ambition outpacing ability. It’s a fault, but not a particularly important one in my view. And not just because it’s free. I will take ideas over execution any day. “Le Fait de Couler du Navire”, in particular, is a piece that I can hear in my head with a full orchestration – and it sounds stunning!

It’s a good thing that Phantom Channel are doing. Hopefully a lot of folk will take the opportunity to hear new music (legally) for nothing. Knapp’s album may be a little rough round the edges, but there is some really strong material on offer. Go grab yourself a copy (the link’s below).

Tracks
01. Le Chien Mort 2:20
02. Mort D’une Vueve Soltaire 4:17
03. Le fait de Couler du Navire 4:39
04. Les Navires Perdus dans l’Obscurite 2:34
05. Celebration a une Nouvelle Vie 5:33
06. Question d’un Vide 10:14

Website
http://www.phantomchannel.co.uk/

Album: MAX RICHTER – 24 Postcards in Full Colour (130701 CD1307 2008)

24 tracks in less than 34 minutes. An exercise in sublime miniaturisation or a sketchy mish-mash of half-formed ideas? 24 Postcards in Full Colour was initially conceived as a collection of pieces designed to be used as ringtones. Whilst they would make a welcome change to the tinny cacophony that you usually have to put up with on trains, most of the pieces on the album are more fully formed than the initial brief would suggest.

Max Richter may be a pianist, but this is far from a collection of Satie-esque piano miniatures. Indeed, the instrument features on probably fewer than half the tracks of an extremely eclectic collection. The Satie comparison does hold true for “Circles from the Rue Simon – Crubellier”, and there are other solo keyboard pieces such as “H in New England” and “The Tartu Piano”. It’s also the lead instrument on other tracks. “Found Song For P.” adds a cello for colour, and “Cradle Song For A.” adds a gently plucked acoustic guitar to create an enchanting little lullaby.

There are some desolately beautiful string-led pieces, from the deeply sad “This Picture of Us. P.” for violin and cello to the strange combination of humming engine and violin that makes up “A Sudden Manhattan of the Mind”. Preston Reed’s guitar sounds like it was recorded down the phone on “In Louisville at 7” and “A Song For H. / Far Away”, in both cases being swathed in radio static and randomly semi-tuned stations. Other tracks give nods to Michael Nyman (the harsh, serialist viola of “Berlin by Overnight”) and Terry Riley (the babbling, pulsing electronica of “Tokyo Riddle Song”) amongst others. Elsewhere there are pieces built around electronica, amplifier hum and a myriad of other processed sounds.

The first couple of listens did lead to an overall impression of dancing on hot coals – jumping from one idea to another with barely a breath taken - but gradually the tracks do become distinct. For most, their length isn’t really important – they begin, express their ideas and end in however long it takes without feeling especially truncated. Some do feel like hacked off remnants of longer pieces, though, and would be much better given more time to develop. Some, too, just seem to stop; like a joke without a punchline.

I had feared that 24 Postcards in Full Colour would be the aural equivalent of an artist’s sketchbook – half-realised ideas as opposed to fully formed miniatures. By and large it’s much more than that. Some of these pieces are among the most accomplished of Richter’s recorded career, despite their brevity. Like a well-chosen tapas selection, the result is a deeply satisfying meal rather than a collection of thrown together snack-bites.

Tracks
1 The Road Is A Grey Tape 1:01
2 H In New England 1:50
3 This Picture Of Us. P. 1:36
4 Lullaby From The Westcoast Sleepers 2:02
5 When The Northern Lights / Jasper And Louise 1:00
6 Circles From The Rue Simon – Crubellier 1:04
7 Cascade NW By W 1:12
8 A Sudden Manhattan Of The Mind 2:51
9 In Louisville At 7 1:03
10 Cathodes 1:01
11 I Was Just Thinking 0:59
12 A Song For H / Far Away 2:08
13 Return To Prague 1:02
14 Broken Symmetries For Y 1:00
15 Berlin By Overnight 1:27
16 Cradle Song For A (Interstate B3) 2:11
17 Kierling / Doubt 0:50
18 From 553 W Elm Street, Logan Illinois (Snow) 0:57
19 Tokyo Riddle Song 1:00
20 The Tartu Piano 2:05
21 Cold Fusion For G 0:35
22 32 Via San Nicolo 1:23
23 Found Song For P. 2:24
24 H Thinks A Journey 0:57

Website
http://www.maxrichter.com/

A Few Forthcoming Releases (October)

Coming soon to an emporium near you:

6th Oct
BLACK SCIENCE ORCHESTRA – Walter’s Room (JBO)
BOB DYLAN – Tell Tale Signs: Bootleg Series, Vol. 8 (Sony)
CHEER – Partick Car Lights (Benbecula)
CLASH – Live at Shea Stadium (Sony)
DEERHOOF – Offend Maggie (Kill Rock Stars)
GRAILS – Doomsdayer’s Holiday (Temporary Residence)
HAROLD BUDD / CLIVE WRIGHT – A Song for Lost Blossoms (Darla)
JUANA MOLINA – Un Dia (Domino)
LAMBCHOP – Ohio (City Slang)
PIERRE BASTIEN – Visions of Doing (Western Vinyl)
ROBIN GUTHRIE – 3:19 Bande Originale Du Film (Darla)

13th Oct
FUTURE SOUND OF LONDON – By Any Other Name (Jumpin’ & Pumpin’)
JARBOE – Mahakali (Soundworks)
MAX TUNDRA – Parallax Error Beheads You (Domino)
RTX – JJ Got Live Ratx (Drag City)
WINDY & CARL – Songs for the Broken Hearted (Kranky)
YAGE – Woodlands of Old (Jumpin’ & Pumpin’)

20th Oct
BONNIE PRINCE BILLY – Is it the Sea? (Domino)
DEAD C – Secret Earth (Ba Da Bing)
LOU REED – Berlin: Live at St Ann’s Warehouse (Matador)
RED SNAPPER – A Pale Blue Dot (Lo)
SEA AND CAKE – Car Alarm (Thrill Jockey)

27th Oct
ARTHUR RUSSELL – Love Is Overtaking Me (Audika)
CURE – 4.13 Dream (DGC)
DEERHUNTER – Microcastle (4AD)
JON HASSELL – Power Spot (ECM)
MANUAL – Confluence (Darla)
MATTHEW HERBERT BIG BAND – There’s Me and There’ You (K7)
MIRA CALIX – Elephant in the Room (Warp)
PARIS – Acid Reflex (Guerrilla Funk)
SAO PAULO UNDERGROUND – The Principles of Intrusive Relationships (Aesthetics)
SQUAREPUSHER – Just a Souvenir (Warp)
STEINSKI – What Does It All Mean (1983-2006) (Illegal Art)
SUBMERGED – Violence As First Nature (Ohm Rersistance)

3rd Nov
BBC RADIOPHONIC WORKSHOP – The Radiophonic Music (Mute)
FUNCKARMA – Vell Vagranz (N5MD)
JOHANN JOHANNSSON – Fordlandia (4AD)
SCHOOL OF SEVEN BELLS – Alpinisms (Ghostly International)
ZEROVA – I Think We’ve Lost (Herb)

10th Nov
23 SKIDOO – Seven Songs and Singles (LTM)
23 SKIDOO – Just Like Everybody (LTM)
23 SKIDOO – Urban Gamelan (LTM)
HELIOS – Caesura (Type)
PETER REHBERG – Work For GV 2004-2008 (Mego)

17th Nov
CHRIS ECKMAN – Last Side of the Mountain (Glitterhouse)
VARIOUS – The Factory Box Set (Rhino)

24th Nov
DAVID BYRNE / BRIAN ENO – Everything That Happens Will Happen Today (Todo Mundo)
IBITSU – foolproof betters fools bettering foolproof (Mego)

Album: HAUSCHKA – Ferndorf (130701 CD1308 2008)

Prepared piano isn’t a new concept. It was pioneered by John Cage who liked to bung all sorts of bolts, screws and rubber band into the piano mechanism to blunt the strings and introduce changes in pitch and tone. Volker Bertelmann takes those techniques and runs with them. Whilst Cage’s work was studied and intellectual, Bertelmann doesn’t let the method completely dominate the end product. The twelve pieces on Ferndorf range from Reich and Glass-like serialism, to neo-romantic piano more redolent of the Paris salons of the early twentieth century.

The cellos of Insa Schirmer and Donja Djember are almost ever-present on the album, giving even the most clinical pieces a warm melancholic glow. It leads to a far richer, and deeper sound than on any previous Hauschka record. “Eltern” is completely dominated by the cellos, with the piano offering little more than a rhythmic backdrop.

Mainly, though, the piano takes centre stage. The modifications work to a varied degree. In a few pieces, the clinking and rattling of loose objects are more of a distraction than anything else. The clattering bottle-caps on “Blue Bicycle” get in the way. The changes are more subtle in other tracks. The gentle “Morgenrot” merely has some blunted notes, and the gorgeous “Neuschnee” appears to be played completely straight. “Barfuss Durch Gras” is completely dominated by the clink and clatter of wires, brilliantly transforming the instrument until it sounds like a wonky clock mechanism.

Ultimately, no matter how fascinating the method, if the music itself was not interesting then Ferndorf would be a failure. That’s far from being the case – it’s stuffed full of ideas and melody. Wistful trombone adds colour to the nostalgic “Freibad”, whilst “Heimat” sounds like a silent movie score, and things end with the gentle nocturne of “Weeks of Rain”. If the rattling wires of the prepared piano can occasionally feel overdone, the album as a whole is an extremely satisfying listening experience with no pieces that seem like filler.

Tracks
1 Blue Bicycle
2 Morgenrot
3 Rode Null
4 Freibad
5 Barfuss durch Gras
6 Heimat
7 Nadelwald
8 Schönes Mädchen
9 Eltern
10 Alma
11 Neuschnee
12 Weeks of Rain

Website
www.fat-cat.co.uk

Three more greats bow out

September’s not been a great month for soul and R&B fans.

Fifties R&B singer Napoleon ‘Nappy’ Brown (1929-2008) died on the 20th after a long illness.

Legendary session drummer Earl Palmer (1924-2008), one of the most recorded musicians in history, died on the 19th. He was featured in the film Keepintime: Talking Drums Whispering Vinyl which was shown as the support on DJ Shadow’s 2002 tour.

Finally, Opal Courtney Jr. (1936-2008), singer with Doo Wop group the Spaniels (best remembered for their 1954 hit “Goodnight Sweetheart Goodnight”) succumbed to a fatal heart attack on the 18th.

I’d rather listen to foxes mating – a few words on annoying singers

I was once at a party where I got into a conversation with a girl about A-Ha’s seminal 1980s hit “Take On Me” (I’m sure it’s happened to most of you). While she could remember (and sing) all the words, the bit of the tune that stuck most in my mind was the opening keyboard phrase – note for note (which I also drunkenly reproduced). I have a much keener memory when it comes to music than I do for lyrics, to the point where I’ll walk down the street humming basslines to myself.

It’s strange, then, that I have an extreme reaction to many singers. If I dislike the voice, I simply cannot even listen to the music without feeling genuinely pained. While I might admire the technical abilities, the obvious passion, and even cleverly observed lyrics, the voice just grinds away at my brain, obliterating everything else I may be hearing.

This isn’t about whether the singer in question is good or bad. There are plenty of terrible singers I can listen to. Ian Brown’s inability to hit more than every third note makes me snigger, but I don’t run screaming from the room. John Lydon, Mark E Smith – hardly anyone’s idea of technical brilliance, but I love the Fall and early PIL. But Antony Hegarty’s tremulous castrato makes me want to slap him. Liam Gallagher’s flat, nasal sneer sounds like a cat drowning to me. Then there are cult artists like Laura Nyro – overblown, overwrought and my hands are over my ears.

Occasionally I get over it. My knee jerk reaction to Joanna Newsom’s woodland pixie meets old crone vocals was pretty extreme. But I quickly grew to love them. And sometimes there’s little logic to such polarized opinions. Alison Shaw of Cranes = good, Kristín Anna Valtýsdóttir of múm = extremely annoying. Despite both adopting that little girl lost voice.

The point about this seemingly pointless ramble is an album I’ve had for review for a week or so now. I’ve enjoyed Herb Recordings’ output up to now, so I had high hopes for Orpheum Circuit, the debut album by Shoosh (Herb HERB008CD). Right from the start, though, it was a struggle. Singer Neil Carlill (formerly of Delicatessen) was the problem. His narcoleptic, nasal mumbling was an insurmountable stumbling block. The slightly queasy, folky ambience of the music was interesting and atmospheric. But I couldn’t even get to the end of the record. I realised that trying to do an objective review was impossible. As I’ve pointed out, it’s a loathing that short-circuits any attempts to judge the merits of a piece of music. A hatchet job based on the fact that I can’t stand the vocals would be both unproductive and unfair. Best you should judge for yourself. If it seems like a cop-out, then so be it. But we all have our blind spots.

I should have added the details of the Shoosh LP.

Tracks
1. Elastic Soil
2. Snake Eyes
3. Come In From The Cold
4. Mock Table Rakes
5. Boo Ssh
6. Peddle Picnic Wires
7. Space & Thyme
8. Pestilence
9. Overthrow Turn

Websites
www.shooshmusic.com
www.myspace.com/shooshmusic