Mechanoise Labs

Mechanoise Labs CD sale

2011-11-01T10:45:31Z

Due to an upcoming move, the following CD releases are on sale for a short period of time until I need to pack them up.

All prices include shipping for the US, a supplemental charge will be added for elsewhere.

1 CD for $10
2 CDs for $18
3 CDs for $24

Email me your order (or payment) to info@mechanoise-labs.com along with your address.

Feel free to check out the full distro catalog while you're at it.

Audio samples and full tracks can be heard at the links below:
http://www.mechanoise-labs.com/media.php
http://soundcloud.com/necromondo
http://stelladrine.bandcamp.com/

Necromondo - Self-titled [CD, clear jewel case]
53 minutes of maggot-infested sounds strongly inspired by Italian horror movies of the late 70's / early 80's.
Oscillating synthesizer buzzes, intestinal bass rumbles, grunting, moaning and fields recordings from contaminated areas.

Stelladrine - You'll Never See Your World Again [CD, clear jewel case]
Journey to a world where monsters, martians and death rays lurk in every corner. Hear the wailing theremins,
the bleeps of space-age technology and the roars of soaring rockets! Experience the terror of a thousand alien
invasions, the shock of cosmic travel and the spectacular sights of the unknown! Features stunning artwork by STPo.

Cisfinitum - Tactio [CD, digipak]
Remastered recording from the live performance held on November 24, 2005 at Saint Peter's Cathedral in Bremen.
A meditative composition of radiant drones in the best tradition of Cisfinitum's works.

Bardoseneticcube & Igor V. Petrov - The Perpetuum Mobile Space Vehicle [CD, digipak] Collaborative material from Bardoseneticcube's recording sessions with St. Petersburg-based
saxophonist Igor V. Petrov. Definitely one of Bardoseneticcube's most singular and musical works,
with a mixture of irradiated electronics, hazy lunar jazz, sedated drones and urban soundscapes.
Think of a cross between Bohren & Der Club of Gore and Contagious Orgasm but set in Pripyat.
Artwork by STPo.

Sedaye Marg - Frashogard [CD, clear jewel case]
First proper CD release for this new incarnation of Sedaye Marg, courtesy of Coup d'Etat Communications.
While a departure from the all-out assault of past releases (which is to a certain degree responsible for
the new spelling in its name), it retains the processed / distorted percussion and strident electronics while
incorporating more elements from its key subject of modern Iranian history. A soundtrack to military coups,
rapid modernization, misguided faith, betrayals and ultimately rebirth.

Flatline Skyline - Horizon Grid [CD, digisleeve with 3-panel booklet]
The debut album from two young prolific musicians that meshes elements of IDM, noise, trip-hop and lush
melodic electronics into a personal and inspiring piece of work. The best of genre-hopping experimentation
with inspired lyrics and strong vocal performance.

Flatline Skyline - All Sound / No Vision [CD, digisleeve with 12-page booklet]
The second album from Jacen Kemp and Robert Andrew Scott stands as a stylistic counter-statement
to 2005's "Horizon Grid." Fierce, emotionally driven and abrasively textured, "All Sound / No Vision" confirms
Flatline Skyline's masterful sense of tension and release and melodic sensibility while further evolving their
sound beyond any previous expectation.

Mail order update: Haus Arafna, Maska Genetik, Cisfinitum, Bad Sector, Funerary Call

2011-07-04T19:09:38Z

For this update, we've got the newest Galakthorroe albums along with a restock of the classic "Children of God", along with 3 CDs courtesy of Australian dark ambient / death industrial label Fall of Nature. Synth aficionados would do well to investigate the Bad Sector re-release and the ANSwerk collaboration CD between Cisfinitum and the LAW-RAH Collective.

For mp3 samples and ordering, please go to the catalog page.

- Latest catalog additions -

Cisfinitum & The [Law-Rah] Collective - werk CD (Fario)
Maska Genetik - Strada CD (Galakthorroe)
Haus Arafna - New York Rhapsody CD (Galakthorroe)
Haus Arafna - Children of God CD (Galakthorroe)

Funerary Call - The Black Root CD (Fall of Nature)
Funerary Call - Dark Waters Stirred CD (Fall of Nature)
Subklinik - Musik For Dekomposition CD (Fall of Nature)
Bad Sector - Transponder CD (Infinite Fog Productions)

- Detailed list of additions -

Cisfinitum & The [Law-Rah] Collective - werk (Fario)
Label info: "Russian one-man outfit Cisfinitum and Dutch duo The [Law-Rah] Collective are both dark ambient masters. They dedicated this split and common work to one of the very first synthesizers in the world, the ANS.
The ANS, created by Russian engineer E. Murzin from 1937 to 1957, is an incredible response to the synesthesia theories (the letters ANS stand for Alexander Nikolayevich Scriabin who linked tones to colours). The ANS synthesizer (only one copy exists and is kept in Moscow) generates special frequencies from drawings ("it plays what you have drawn") and in the opposite it can also create a visible image of a sound frequency. Artists such as Coil, Edward Artemiev (for Tarkovsky's Solaris soundtrack) and Alfred Schnittke used the ANS in their compositions.
For this album, The [Law-Rah] Collective and Cisfinitum based their music on original sounds from the ANS as well as additional recordings of various analog synths, fractal and granular synthesis, voice, violin, field recordings."
Note: the 23-min track by Cisfinitum is an amazing composition of shimmering drones and ghostly melodies that is not be missed.
(CD, oversized color sleeve, $16.00)

Maska Genetik - Strada (Galakthorroe)
Long-delayed and previously cancelled album from this mysterious Moscow project who grabbed everyone's attention with stunning tracks on the "Kosmoloko" compilation and the Quarantine 7". A personal synthesis of the various Galakthorroe strains with a unique touch. Spring is coming.
(CD, jewel case, $22.00)

Haus Arafna - New York Rhapsody (Galakthorroe)
Haus Arafna being commissioned to write a soundtrack album for a New York fashion show seems about as comically mismatched an idea as the Grey Wolves headlining a Christian rock festival, but "New York Rhapsody" dismisses any initial apprehensions rather quickly. While the aggressiveness has definitely been dialed down to some extent to emphasize the more textural and constructed aspects, the ingredients - electricity-charged static, dour tones and metallic noises - are consistent with what you'd expect from the current sound of Haus Arafna. Secondly, the album's theme hardly constrains it musically or lyrically, and this isn't some dull scholastic effort with some tacked-on references to the catwalk or what have you. Ultimately little aside from the photos by Nikolay Saveliev (Levoi Pravoi) and the blurbs tie this album to fashion, and if an ything it could be argued that it's more about New York at large ("45 Minutes in New York", "Ground Zero"). Overall, a very nice little surprise.
(CD, jewel case, $22.00)

Haus Arafna - Children of God (Galakthorroe)
Where the pathology began for most of us, over a decade ago. Bleak, fierce and essential Haus Arafna material, just as powerful and impressive today as it was then.
(CD, jewel case, $20.00)

Funerary Call - The Black Root (Fall of Nature)
Label info: "Sepulchral, brooding Black Ambient from one of the most enigmatic and spectral entities the genre has produced. "The Black Root" saw it's first edition as a very limited vinyl release in 2004, now completely remastered on CD with new artwork, exclusively for Fall Of Nature."
(CD, jewel case, $11.00)

Funerary Call - Dark Waters Stirred (Fall of Nature)
Label info: "Heralded as one of the progenitors of black ambient music, Funerary Call returns from dormancy with his darkest release to date. "Dark Waters Stirred" is a ceremonial maelstrom of ominous electronics and dark ambient textures, an audial descent into ritualistic obscurity and misanthropy. Features guest appearances from the likes of Deathlord (Blasphemy, ex-Conqueror), and Troy Southgate (H.E.R.R., Seelenlicht) amongst others."
(CD, jewel case, $11.00)

Subklinik - Musik For Dekomposition (Fall of Nature)
Label info: "Since 1996, Subklinik has continued to create some of the darkest Death Industrial / necro-soundscapes in existence. Enter "Musik For Dekomposition", the latest full length from Subklinik, featuring six torturous expressions that convey a foreboding atmosphere abundant with feelings of death, and isolation, manifested through a sonic vortex of analogue filth and decay."
(CD, jewel case, $11.00)

Bad Sector - Transponder (Infinite Fog Productions)
Re-release of a long out-of-print 1999 album on Blade Records with 2 new exclusive tracks from that period. This is vintage "Dolmen Factory"-era Bad Sector, the sound of communion with the machines.
(CD, digipak, $15.00)

Mail order update: Vetrophonia, Haus Arafna, First Human Ferro, Government Alpha, K2

2011-04-16T17:16:27Z

For mp3 samples and ordering, please go to the catalog page.

- Latest catalog additions -

Government Alpha - Impregnable Storm CD-R (New Nihilism)
Inorganic Blossoming - Autumndrones CD (Infinite Fog Productions)
Archon Orchestra - Pong CD (Muzyka Voln)
Cyclotimia - Sci-Fi Music CD (Zhelezobeton)
Vetrophonia - Live April 97 Tape (Ultra)
Nyodene D - I Have No Mouth, Yet I Must Scream Tape (Obscurex)
Peenemunde - Peenemunde CD (Obscurex)
Body Cargo - Secret Domain Tape (Obscurex)
Videotrage - Signaltures Tape (Obscurex)
First Human Ferro - Homo Shargey CD (Triangle Records / New Nihilism)
K2 - HA GA NE CD (Triangle Records)
Maaaa - Sampo Distortion CD (24919 Records)
K2 - Abdominal Electricity CD (Phage Tapes)
Vetrophonia - 1987/1989 CD-R (ALF Produkt)
Haus Arafna - You CD (Galakthorro)
Hermann Kopp - Cerveau D'Enfant Vinyl (Galakthorro)

- On the way -

Bad Sector - Transponder CD (Infinite Fog)
Funerary Call - Dark Waters Stirred CD (Fall of Nature)
Funerary Call - The Black Root CD (Fall of Nature)
Subklinik - Musik For Dekomposition CD (Fall of Nature)

-----------------------------------------------

- Detailed list of additions -

Government Alpha - Impregnable Storm (New Nihilism)
Vicious harsh noise from Yasutoshi Yoshida, AKA Government Alpha and also head of the Xerxes label which has hosted many unusual noise and bizarro-pop experiments (Billboard Head Soup, Unacknowledged Pop-Song Collection Vol. 666). Suitably disorientating.
(pro-printed CD-R in folded poster sleeve, $9.00)

Inorganic Blossoming - Autumndrones (Infinite Fog Productions)
Label info: "28 minutes of mild ambient, careful noise and accidental melodies, the mix of rustling leaves, blowing wind and the song of analogue synthesizers. Limited to 292 copies."
(CD, A5 digipak with corrugated paper sleeve, $14.00)

Archon Orchestra - Pong (Muzyka Voln)
Minimalist keyboard music from the same people who brought you Sphere Rex. There's something unusually appealing about the ascetic and repetitive patterns that form the basis of "Pong", be they electronic organ sounds or piano lines. Perfect music for writing code.
(CD, jewel case, $12.00)

Cyclotimia - Sci-Fi Music (Zhelezobeton)
Label info: "As the title suggests, the new work by Russian masters of electronic soundscapes represents a score to an imaginary sci-fi movie. The musicians call themselves admirers of old-school Sci-Fi / Cyberpunk genres, and for a long time they have felt a desire to make some music inspired by soundtracks of sci-fi blockbusters from 70-80s... Spaceship battles, alien colonies, teleportation and mysterious droid ceremonies are only part of the images created by this music. The album contains both dynamic rhythmic "hits" and disturbing space ambient as well as avant-garde neoclassic pieces."
(CD, jewel case, $12.00)

Vetrophonia - Live April 97 (Ultra)
Live performance recorded back in 1997. Subdued factory grind punctuated by scrap metal outbursts. Limited to 100 copies.
(Tape, $8.00)

Nyodene D - I Have No Mouth, Yet I Must Scream (Obscurex)
Ohio-based power electronics / death industrial unit that delivers aggressive vocals and junk metal abuse.
(Tape, $7.50)

Peenemunde - Peenemunde (Obscurex)
Named after the army research facility where the V-2 rocket was born under the supervision of Wernher Von Braun, PeenemÃÂ¼nde is a grimy industrial noise collaboration between Pentti Dassum & Pekka PT (Sick Seed and Gelsomina). Crumbling steel, metallic howls and incinerator blasts that will soothe Linija Mass and Vetrophonia devotees.
(CD, 7"-sized sleeve with 3 postcards, $15.00)

Body Cargo - Secret Domain (Obscurex)
Label info: "Heavily layered power electronics digging deep into the cargo cults of Papua New Guinea."
(Tape, $7.50)

Videotrage - Signaltures (Obscurex)
Label info: "Cosmic and minimalist electronic music meets noisy new age sounds on this second release of Finnish duo; Videotrage. Pro dubbed tapes with bodyprints & professionally printed 2 sided color j-card."
(Tape, $7.50)

First Human Ferro - Homo Shargey (Triangle Records / New Nihilism)
In the continuation of the "Energia" compilation which he curated, Olegh Kolyada (First Human Ferro, Oda Relicta) continues his thematic tributes to these forgotten pioneers of astronautics with this new album inspired by Alexander Shargey (more commonly known by his pseudonym Yuri Kondratyuk), an early proponent and researcher of lunar travel who circumstance tried to deny to what history had fated for him. This homage is a suitably contemplative and melancholic affair composed with electronic organs, lush synthetic pads and reverberated drones, with the final touch provided by a mastering courtesy of Vestigial.
(CD, oversized digipak, $15.00)

K2 - HA GA NE (Triangle Records)
Another album's worth of blistering cut-up noise from K2, this time with more emphasis on modular sounds than junk noise. Limited to 250 copies.
(CD, cardboard sleeve with insert, $12.00)

Maaaa - Sampo Distortion (24919 Records)
Crushing junk noise with analog synth throbs from this exiled Karelian unit currently based in Poland. Expect random outbursts of lo-fi thrash metal, howling dogs, laser cannon salvos and other irregularities in the chaos.
(CD, digipak, $12.00)

K2 - Abdominal Electricity (Phage Tapes)
Newly released 2011 album from Kusafuka Kimihide, who has been permanently damaging ears for the past 20 years as K2. Almost 60 min of crackling electronic storms and cut-up junk noise. Features amazing art design by Alonso Urbanos.
(CD, clear jewel case, $10.00)

Vetrophonia - 1987/1989 (ALF Produkt)
Re-release of the earliest Vetrophonia material from 1987-1989, before Alexander Lebedev-Frontov had yet to meet Nick Soundnick. Initially destined to be released as Linija Mass, the tracks switch gears from plodding machine clatter to collapsing collages of strained tape noise. Fabricado por los esclavos de los campos de concentracion de la U.R.S.S.
(2xCD-R, black case with inserts, $20.00)

Haus Arafna - You (Galakthorro)
Seven long years after "Butterfly" Haus Arafna return with another finely crafted piece of angst-pop. Possibly their most elaborate album so far, "You" takes a syncretic approach to the post-industrial styles that have manifested themselves in their work, adding steel-sourced metallic noises and klangs to the sound and integrating influences from the duo's twin project November Novelet. A monument of intimately miserable and misanthropic Arafna Cultura.
(CD, jewel case, $20.00)

Hermann Kopp - Cerveau D'Enfant (Galakthorro)
New 7" from the person responsible for the cult Nekromantik and Der Todesking soundtracks. On "Cerveau D'Enfant", Hermann Kopp indulges his penchant for deviant electronic pop, the kind where glassy synthetic melodies and idiosyncratic vocals (en FranÃÂ§ais s'il vous plait) define an unhealthy mood perfectly at home with the likes of November Novelet and Karl Runau.
One copy per buyer and only available if bought with a Galakthorro CD.
(7", $15.00)

Mail order update: Velehentor, Ad Lux Tenebrae, Vresnit, Vetrophonia, Lunar Abyss Deus Organum

2010-12-04T09:30:24Z

For mp3 samples and ordering, please go to the catalog page.

- Latest catalog additions -

Velehentor / Vishudha Kali / Closing The Eternity - Ishopanishad CD (Vegvisir)
Ad Lux Tenebrae - Call of the Wild CD (Vegvisir)
Vresnit - Tunvet CD (Vegvisir)
Vetrophonia - Simultannostb CD (Ultra)
Lunar Abyss Deus Organum - Geologorazvedka CD-R (Biosonar Labirint)
Organomehanizm - Bez Masky Tape (Ultra)
Ritualnaya Bioingeneria - Atom-Ananda-Svami CD-R (Biosonar Elektro)
Veprisuicida - Veprisuicida CD-R (Dubinogolovaya Korobochka)
Vetrophonia - Kuomintang Tape (Ultra)
Organomehanizm - Organomehanizm Tape (Ultra)

- On the way -

Vetrophonia - 87/89 2CDR (Ultra)
Haus Arafna - You CD (Galakthorroe)
Hermann Kopp - Cerveau D'Enfant 7" EP (Galakthorroe)

Haus Arafna - Blut + Nachblutung CD (Galakthorroe, restock)
November Novelet - Magic CD (Galakthorroe, restock)
Subliminal - Gracebudd CD (Galakthorroe, restock)

-----------------------------------------------

- Detailed list of additions -

Velehentor / Vishudha Kali / Closing The Eternity - Ishopanishad (Vegvisir)
'Ishopanishad' brings together three ritual ambient projects from Russia for what is potentially one of their strongest releases altogether. Inspired by the vedic texts of the Isha Upanishad, the 3 tracks each convey a different stage of the rite. No need for additional wordiness here, this is simply one of the most compelling efforts in this type of music so far.
(CD, folded digisleeve, $14.00)

Ad Lux Tenebrae - Call of the Wild (Vegvisir)
First revealed with an impressive CDR on Abgurd back in 2006 which was followed by a collaboration CD with fellow Russians Closing The Eternity, Ad Lux Tenebrae returns with this album that captures two long ritual sessions performed in 2004 and 2008. The flowing drones and hand-drumming are layered with the distant howls of flutes, horns and ghostly voices, conjuring the sort of atavistic incantations you'd find on Aural Hypnox and Vetvei releases. To paraphrase a part of the label's press release in Russian, this is music that is not "disfigured by the influence of civilization".
(CD, digisleeve, $14.00, last copy)

Vresnit - Tunvet (Vegvisir)
New album by the head of the Vetvei label, known for its solid roster of shamanistic ambient releases. The 36-min track presented here delves into the same nocturnal and wooded atmospheres explored in his collaborations with Kshatriy and Hladna, where every creak, rustle and echo in the mist conveys the primal forces of nature.
(CD, 6-sided digisleeve, $14.00, last copy)

Vetrophonia - Simultannostb (Ultra)
CD re-release of the early 1999 "Risveglio Di Una Citta / Futurogrammatika" tape with two extra tracks recorded in 2003. Urban din and mechanical cacophony forged into futurist compositions that bring to mind then easily supplant Vivenza's "Aerobruitisme Dynamique".
(CD, oversized poster sleeve, $14.00)

Lunar Abyss Deus Organum - Geologorazvedka (Biosonar Labirint)
"Geologorazvedka" finds LADO moving away from their ritual grounds and delving exclusively into analogue synthesizers. That said, this is not a sterile exercise in purity as the four tracks here intricately intertwine the layers, pulsations and clatter into a kaleidoscopic mass that grows like photoluminescent vegetation. Perfect for late-night sessions.
(CD-R, handmade color packaging, out of stock)

Organomehanizm - Bez Masky (Ultra)
Description to be added soon. Limited to 30 copies, few in stock.
(Tape, $8.00)

Ritualnaya Bioingeneria - Atom-Ananda-Svami (Biosonar Elektro)
Ritual industrial side-project of Lunar Abyss Deus Organum. Hypnotic mechanical sounds, electrical tension and trace remnants of forgotten folklore. Limited to 52 copies.
(CD-R, handmade cardboard sleeve, out of stock)

Veprisuicida - Veprisuicida (Dubinogolovaya Korobochka)
Re-release of Veprisuicida's debut cassette album, recorded back in 1996 by Alexander Lebedev-Frontov. Schizophrenic cut-up noise and coarse collages that erupt into uncontrolled chaos. Limited to 66 copies.
(CD-R, thick oversized handmade cardboard sleeve, $12.00)

Vetrophonia - Kuomintang (Ultra)
Recorded May 17, 1998 at ZGA Studio, St. Petersburg, Russia. Limited to 50 copies.
(Tape, $8.00)

Organomehanizm - Organomehanizm (Ultra)
Description to be added soon.
(Tape, $8.00)

Mail order update: Zhelezobeton, Ultra + ALF Produkt, Vetvei, Koufar, Klinikal Skum

2010-07-18T15:39:50Z

This is one of the larger updates in a while with some great new titles from Russia courtesy of Zhelezobeton, Ultra/ALF Produkt and Vetvei (which Halo Manash and Aural Hypnox listeners should definitely look into).

For mp3 samples and ordering, please go to the catalog page.

- Latest catalog additions -

Koufar - The Purity Of The Cedars CD (Topheth Prophet)
Cyclotimia - Styx CD (Zhelezobeton)
Nick Soudnick - Pas de Trois CD (Ultra)
S36NZ-OKh - Dar CD-R (Ultra)
S36NZ-Okh - S36NZ-Okh CD-R (Ultra)

Alexander Lebedev-Frontov - Cosmos CD-R (ALF Produkt)
Alexander Lebedev-Frontov - Chaos CD-R (ALF Produkt)
Dvar - Piirrah / Taai Liira CD (Shadowplay Release)
Cyclotimia - TimeBank CD (Zhelezobeton)
Sister Loolomie - Signals CD-R (Zhelezobeton)

Kshatriy - Slepok Soznaniya CD (Muzyka Voln)
Sphere Rex - For Electronics and Piano CD (Muzyka Voln)
Vresnit & Kshatriy - TaeT CD (Vetvei)
Ogni Videniy - Skvozb Temnotu CD-R (Vetvei)
Klinikal Skum - Chosen Powerless CD (Expectorant Recordings)

-----------------------------------------------

- Detailed list of additions -

Koufar - The Purity Of The Cedars (Topheth Prophet)
First CD release after a series of limited edition cassettes and CD-Rs. Ferocious power electronics with particularly enraged declamations from a Maronite exile. Inspired by the current political state of Lebanon.
(CD, glossy printed sleeve, $11.00)

Cyclotimia - Styx (Zhelezobeton)
Label info: "Zhelezobeton in cooperation with the Voronezh label Shadowplay and the Moscow label Monopoly Records presents the new 7th full-length album from the masters of "stock market industrial". "Styx" is the most mainstream-oriented work in the Cyclotimia discography. The music here is free of experimental and academic explorations traditional for the band; here the emphasis is made on the rhythmical component. Inexorable like an economic recession and steadfast like a financial indicator chart, eleven compositions depict the sickly technological reality of the planet wrapped by networks of global capital, media glamour and ideological obsessions.
[...]
Recommended to fans of Skinny Puppy, Clock DVA, Laibach (of the "Das Kapital" period), Front Line Assembly.".
(CD, jewel case, $12.00)

Nick Soudnick - Pas de Trois (Ultra)
2008 release from Nick Soudnick, also known for his activities as ZGA and as one half of Vetrophonia. "Pas de Trois" was recorded during multiple live performances involving two dancers, and its tracks vary from structured dirge-like compositions with percussive metal that ZGA is known for to more atmospheric pieces that graft subterranean horns, creaking steel and heavily processed loops. A much noisier and less orchestrated experience than the "Akhe" releases.
(CD, cardboard sleeve, $15.00, last copy)

S36NZ-OKh - Dar (Ultra)
First album from S36NZ-OKh (aka Kirill Rozhkov, also known as T.A.U. and one half of Stalnoy Pakt). Narcoleptic drones with subtle shifting high frequencies. Like meditating in an electrical power station.
(CD-R, cardboard sleeve, $12.00, last copy)

S36NZ-Okh - S36NZ-Okh (Ultra)
Cryptic industrial compositions by Kirill Rozhkov (T.A.U., Stalnoy Pakt) from a place of clanging factory noise, steam hammer rhythms and electrical hums. Special mention for the final track that lets some bleary light into the abandoned forge.
(CD-R, cardboard sleeve, $12.00, last copy)

Alexander Lebedev-Frontov - Cosmos (ALF Produkt)
More archive recordings from Alexander Lebedev-Frontov (also known for Linija Mass, Stalnoy Pakt, Veprisuicida) recorded in 1986, right after "Chaos". Less abrasive in some regards than the previous release and with more decaying gramophone sounds and radio broadcasts amid the cut-up noise. Digitized from tape.
(CD-R, handmade cardboard sleeve, $12.00, last copy)

Alexander Lebedev-Frontov - Chaos (ALF Produkt)
Re-release of the earliest recordings from Alexander Lebedev-Frontov, made back in 1985-1986 before Linija Mass came to be and when St Petersburg was still known as Leningrad. The material is a combination of cut-up noise and tape collage with crudely constructed loop structures that hint at the many projects to come. Digitized from cassettes.
(CD-R, handmade cardboard sleeve with color insert, $12.00)

Dvar - Piirrah / Taai Liira (Shadowplay Release)
Re-release compilation with a selection of most of the tracks from two early albums that showcase Dvar in a much darker and noisier mood.
(CD, clear jewel case, $12.00)

Cyclotimia - TimeBank (Zhelezobeton)
"Timebank" gathers assorted unreleased material recorded between 2003-2007 that went unused on the albums recorded during that period. Far from being leftovers, these 16 tracks cover a wide spectrum of styles that expand beyond the duo's signature blend of technological ambient, from the dystopian elevator jazz of "Bank Lounge 1" to the cinematic electro of "Nocturne". New age music for the stock market imperium, and dedicated to the unseen victims of economic crisis.
(CD, clear jewel case, $12.00)

Sister Loolomie - Signals (Zhelezobeton)
Spiraling electric drones from one half of Moscow duo Exit in Grey. Overall the sounds here are actually quite soothing and semi-melodic, with lots of fluttering details underlined with a gentle hint of digital glazing. Not your typical ambient record.
(pro-printed CD-R and cardboard sleeve, $12.00)

Kshatriy - Slepok Soznaniya (Muzyka Voln)
First CD from this Russian project that started out in 2004 and whose collaboration album with Vresnit and compilation appearance on "Muzyka Voln" are definitely solid material. "Slepok Sonzaniya" (meaning "a mould of consciousness" in Russian) forges a bio-mechanical sonic construction from synthesized drones, slow chugging rhythmic loops and treated field recordings, in a manner that brings to mind a more organic version of "The Crackling of the Anonymous"-era Inade. Dense, telluric drones for the age of Kali Yuga.
(CD, digipak, $14.00)

Sphere Rex - For Electronics and Piano (Muzyka Voln)
Label info: "Muzyka Voln in cooperation with the Moscow label Monopoly Records and the Voronezh label Shadowplay Records presents the solo album of one of Cyclotimia members - Sphere Rex. [...]
Sphere Rex plays ambient in this uncommon for today traditional vein, combining minimalism and "background"-style of electronic music a la Brian Eno and piano improvisations based on proto-ambient ideas of Erik Satie. This music is able to calm down and lull to sleep like alpha-wave rhythms or paint weird images guided by the surreal titles of compositions in one's imagination. For the goals of complete authenticity only analogue devices were used in recordings, as well as tube preamps and compressors from 60s-70s."
(CD, clear jewel case, $12.00)

Vresnit & Kshatriy - TaeT (Vetvei)
One single 48 min piece of primordial ambient that merges field recordings, woodwinds, strings, bird songs, voices, tape noises and electronics into a shamanistic haze of ritual drone. Absolutely mandatory for listeners of Lunar Abyss Deus Organum and Halo Manash.
(CD, 7"-sized oversized 6-panel cardboard sleeve, $13.00)

Ogni Videniy - Skvozb Temnotu (Vetvei)
From the Northern Russian city of Arkhangelsk comes this fine addition to the growing roster of modern day shamans of the Vetvei label. Crystal chimes, eerie synth drones, crackling fires, crickets, bells, the crashing waves of the White Sea are some of the things to experience here in these elemental atmospheres. Another solid release from Vetvei.
(CD-R, 6-panel cardboard sleeve, $11.00)

Klinikal Skum - Chosen Powerless (Expectorant Recordings)
Active for many years now under a variety of monikers including NeuntÃÂ¶ter Der Plage, Xombie, Redrot, Post-Mortem Junkie and Fabrico Incubo, Ryan Oppermann has established himself as a dependable purveyor of pathological sounds of all sorts. "Chosen Powerless" is his first CD album and it marks the milestone with 5 venomous doses of analogue synthesizer textures that would have been at home on Slaughter Productions (which did release some early Redrot and NDP albums after all). The disease is spreading.
(CD, clear jewel case, $10.00)

Mail order update: Phragments, Linija Mass, Belialist, Maeror Tri

2010-05-29T19:04:30Z

For mp3 samples and ordering, please go to the catalog page.

- Latest catalog additions -

Phragments & Korinth - Mysteries Of The Greylands CD (Greytone)
SantAAgostino - Operazione Paura CD (Greytone)
Linija Mass - Trud / Mechano-Faktura / Proletkult / Kinematika Mechanizmov 3CD + 1CD-R box set (Der Angriff)
Belialist - Self-titled 3"CD-R (Silken Tofu)
Sigillum Dei - I'll Keep You In An Oaken Box, With Velvet For Your Bed 3"CD-R (Silken Tofu)
Maeror Tri - Multiple Personality Disorder CD (Purple Soil)

- In stock and to be added ASAP to the catalog -

Vresnit & Kshatriy - TaeT CD (Vetvei)
Ogni Videniy - Skvozь Temnotu CD-R (Vetvei)

Anthesteria - Phobos 1953 CD (Zhelezobeton)
Cyclotimia - TimeBank CD (Zhelezobeton)
Kshatriy - Slepok Soznaniya CD (Zhelezobeton)
Sphere Rex - For Electronics and Piano CD (Zhelezobeton)
i.m.m.u.r.e. - The New Circle CD-R (Zhelezobeton)
Sister Loolomie - Signals CD-R (Zhelezobeton)

Alexander Lebedev-Frontov - Chaos CD-R (ALF Produkt)
Alexander Lebedev-Frontov - Cosmos CD-R (ALF Produkt)
S36NZ-Okh - Dar CD-R (Ultra)
S36NZ-Okh - Self-titled CD-R (Ultra)
Nick Soudnick - Pas de Trois CD (Ultra)

-----------------------------------------------

- Detailed list of additions -

Phragments & Korinth - Mysteries Of The Greylands (Greytone)
Label info: "On this album, Phragments and Korinth have united into one monolithic entity, to produce a common opus. Orchestral choirs, dark ambient and ritual passages create a perfect cinematic journey over the mysterious Greylands, an archetypal and symbolic travel through the hidden side of the world."
(CD, digipak, $12.00)

SantAAgostino - Operazione Paura (Greytone)
Based on the track titles and the involvement of former members of Onirot, I expected cavernous Italian death industrial which you can rarely go wrong with. What I got turned out to be much less predictable. Operazione Paura could be best summarized as an updated take on Fabio Frizzi's horror film scores, with the plodding electronic rhythms considerably hardened up, the tone oscillations turned into roaring buzzsaws and the voodoo percussion loops getting mixed with glitchy crepitations. The glossy digital production may drive off those still perpetually stuck in lo-fi fetishism, but the rest of you should definitely give this one an ear.
(CD, digipak, $12.00)

Linija Mass - Trud / Mechano-Faktura / Proletkult / Kinematika Mechanizmov (Der Angriff)
Box set that brings together re-releases of the Trud tape, the Proletkult LP on Membrum Debile Propaganda and the Mechano-Faktura CD-R along with a fourth disk of previously unreleased material. A monument of essential Russian industrial.
(3 CD + 1 CD-R box set, $58.00, last copy)

Belialist - Self-titled (Silken Tofu)
Label info: "Belialist combines the lo-fi death worship of Sewer Goddess and the throbbing sterile abuse of Brutophilia. This release was not born from aggression, but from pure pessimism and squalor. An ugly manifestation of bleak death-industrial and dark, textural ambient."
(3"CD-R, mini-DVD case, $8.25, last copy)

Sigillum Dei - I'll Keep You In An Oaken Box, With Velvet For Your Bed (Silken Tofu)
21 min long track of deep drones and cavernous reverberation courtesy of one half of UK ritual noisemongers Wraiths.
(3"CD-R, mini-DVD case, $8.25)

Maeror Tri - Multiple Personality Disorder (Purple Soil)
Re-press of the first Maeror Tri CD album, released on Korm Plastics back in 1993. Drowsy drones and archaic atmospheres inspired by the four key basic characters common to the mental illness.
(CD, multi-paneled digisleeve with postcard, $16.00)

Mail order update: Survival Unit, Land:Fire, Giallos Flame, Gnaw Their Tongues

2009-12-24T18:42:33Z

For mp3 samples and ordering, please go to the catalog page.

- Latest catalog additions -

Survival Unit - Fentanyl Martyrs CD (Autarkeia)
Survival Unit - Tied Down For Survival CD (Autarkeia)
Survival Unit - Murder For The Mission CD (Autarkeia)
Land:Fire - Shortwave Transmission CD (Power & Steel)
Contrastate - Todesmelodi e CD (Noise Museum)
The Giallos Flame - The Giallos Flame CD (Baphomet Records)
Gnaw Their Tongues - All The Dread Magnificence Of Perversity CD (Crucial Blast)
Gnaw Their Tongues - An Epiphanic Vomiting Of Blood CD (Crucial Blast)
Telepherique - Zivilisatose CD (Diophantine Discs)
Sil Muir - Sil Muir CD (Diophantine Discs)

- On the way -

Maeror Tri - Multiple Personality Disorder CD (Purple Soil)

-----------------------------------------------

- Detailed list of additions -

Survival Unit - Fentanyl Martyrs (Autarkeia)
Final studio release from post-mortem / power electronics purveyor Survival Unit, based in Sundsvall, Sweden. Focalizing its attention on the blood-soaked events of the Chechnyan war, "Fentanyl Martyrs" takes you to one of the world's most annihilated conflict zones for the grand tour. Guerrilla warfare, mass graves and merciless tactics are some of the offerings on this soot-covered battlefield and its related theaters, as conveyed by pilfered radio communications, crude and relentless noise and barked sermons of dehumanization. A gruesome assessment that now serves as a fitting epitaph to the conflict's "official" end as of April 2009.
(2CD, double digipak in embossed boxed set with booklet, $37.00)

Survival Unit - Tied Down For Survival (Autarkeia)
Second volume of retrospective material from Sweden's Survival Unit. Even dead, its corpse lunges again at this world with this collection of violent declamations, rambling conspiracies and ideological firebombs. The selections gathered here sustain an exhausting atmosphere of struggle and confusion, one that perfectly matches the current global context. The noisy assaults are tempered by a sense of doom and futility on tracks such as "Barbed Wire and Barbiturates" and "No Gold, Only Stones", showing hints of the pharmacological power electronics of the yet unborn Alfarmania.
(CD, digipak, $18.50)

Survival Unit - Murder For The Mission (Autarkeia)
First part of the Survival Unit retrospective releases on Autarkeia. This one includes material from the tape of the same name on Vemod, along with edited recordings from the live action in Paris at Therapie Auditive and finally the "Utan Fana" tracks. Toxic, lo-fi power electronics brimming with hatred for the modern world, right up there with "Fentanyl Martyrs" in terms of crude ferocity. The rats are coming! The werewolves are here!
(CD, multi-paneled digipak, $18.50)

Land:Fire - Shortwave Transmission (Power & Steel)
Follow-up album to 2004's "Physical : Mental : Psychological" released on Tesco Organisation, this new album from Herbst9's more technologically oriented twin project provides the perfect soundtrack to the military industrial complex with its array of menacing rhythms, electromagnetic waves, radio communications and glowing harmonic drones. Think of Bad Sector's "The Harrow" but as engineered and constructed by defense contractors. Reliably stunning work.
(CD, 6 panel digipak, $19.00)

Contrastate - Todesmelodie (Noise Museum)
Sixth and final studio album by this sadly defunct UK duo. Inspired by the book "The Mysteries of Algiers" written by Robert Irwin and the 1965 film "The Battle of Algiers", "Todesmelodie" presents itself as a rumination on revolution and political strife in the shape of 4 long montages of electronic and acoustic instrumentation, found sounds and harmonic drones that culminate with "The Suitcase or the Coffin", named so after one of the slogans of the Algerian nationalists during the drive for independence. Haunting, desolate and demanding, this album initially provoked an unexpected sense of anxiety when I first heard it many years ago, enough in fact that it wasn't until I had later become accustomed to Contrastate's other works that I came to appreciate it for its uneasy nature.
(CD, jewel case, $15.00)

The Giallos Flame - The Giallos Flame (Baphomet Records)
Ignore the awfully drawn cover artwork, the Giallos Flame is the essential modern-day heir to the jazzy prog rock of Goblin and the synth-heavy Fabio Frizzi soundtracks that made their mark on so many Italian horror soundtracks of the late 70's. Sleazy, funky and and just so remarkably efficient at capturing that certain vibe.
(CD, jewel case, $11.00)

Gnaw Their Tongues - All The Dread Magnificence Of Perversity (Crucial Blast)
2009 album from this Dutch project, staying faithful to its black/doom metal meets horror movie symphonic score in hell sound. Compared to "An Epiphanic Vomiting of Blood", the 9 tracks here can be both more chaotic and dense with heavy drums, strained shrieks and agitated strings rising from the sludge (the poetically titled opening track "My Orifices Await Ravaging" being a perfect example), and yet more controlled at others when they are wielded with orchestral precision, such as on the demonic dirge "L'Ange Qui Annonce La Fin Du Temps". Dreadful, infernal fanfare for wretched times.
(CD, digisleeve with booklet, $11.00)

Gnaw Their Tongues - An Epiphanic Vomiting Of Blood (Crucial Blast)
CD re-issue of the 2007 LP with one extra track. For those of you not yet familiar with Gnaw Their Tongues, take the OTT aesthetic / vocal stylings of black metal, give them a lurching doom metal pacing and poison them with a thick layer of noise and symphonic horror movie score. Cataclysmic and utterly noxious, like a "Burning The Temple Of God"-era MZ.412 on benzodiazepines crossed over with Neutï¿½ter Der Plage while "The Omen" plays on a flickering television in the background.
(CD, digisleeve, $11.00)

Telepherique - Zivilisatose (Diophantine Discs)
Final release from this long-active and highly prolific German trio, marking 20 years of activity with material released on such labels as Ant-Zen, Noise Museum and SSSM among others.
"Zivilisatose" covers a number of the genres explored by Telepherique over the years, swerving from noisy constructed rhythms to more minimal crystalline electro tones with bizarre samples that bring to mind some of their more recent collaborations releases with Contagious Orgasm.
(CD, silk-screened wallet packaging, $11.00)

Sil Muir - Sil Muir (Diophantine Discs)
Sil Muir is the collaboration between Italian ambient artists Andrea Marutti (who runs Afe Records and is also active as Amon and Never Known) and Andrea Ferraris (Ur). Their first album together provides us with four long tracks of deep and mellow drones ideal for drowsy late-night listening.
(CD, silk-screened wallet packaging, $11.00)

Mail order update: Loki Foundation, Galakthorro, Zhelezobeton, Stalnoy Pakt

2009-08-30T20:36:15Z

For mp3 samples and ordering, please go to the catalog page.

- Latest catalog additions -

Hypnoz - Breath of Earth CD (Zhelezobeton)
Aidan Baker & The Infant Cycle - Rural Sprawl CD-R (Zhelezobeton)
Cyclotimia - Music For Stockmarkets CD (Zhelezobeton)
Inade - The Incarnation Of The Solar Architects CD (Loki Foundation)
Bad Sector - CMASA CD (Power & Steel)
S.E.T.I. - Corona CD (Power & Steel)
Internal Fusion - Tribute To Hastia CD (Lucioleditions)
Subliminal - Look At The Creation Vinyl (Galakthorro)
Herz Juhning - Miasma CD (Galakthorro)
Cloama & Die Blutleuchte - Cloama & Die Blutleuchte CD (Anima Arctica)
Hated Bruit Kollektiv - Aktion One CD-R (New Nihilism)
Per Aspera - Nil Desperandum CD (New Nihilism)
Stalnoy Pakt - ROA CD-R (ALF Produkt)
Stalnoy Pakt - O Roma O Morte! CD-R (ALF Produkt)
Vetrophonia - Generalissimus Chiang Kaishek CD-R (ALF Produkt)

-----------------------------------------------

- Detailed list of additions -

Hypnoz - Breath of Earth (Zhelezobeton)
2nd full-length CD from this project that dwells in the same Moscow suburb of Fryazino which brought you Hum and Staruha Mha. With help from Evgeny Voronovsky of Cisfinitum and an arsenal of vintage Russian analogue synthesizers, Dmitry Zubov creates the sort of hazy, ethereal atmospheres propelled by cyclical rhythms that wouldn't be out of place next to some Tangerine Dream tracks or the earlier and more sedated Deutsch Nepal pieces. Mellow yet compelling ambient that soothes the mind.
(CD, digisleeve, $14.00)

Aidan Baker & The Infant Cycle - Rural Sprawl (Zhelezobeton)
Label info: "Canadian musicians Aidan Baker and Jim DeJong (aka The Infant Cycle) have used the "gentleman's kit" of modern experimenters for creating the compositions of this disk: guitar, bass, tapes, samples, feedback generator and thumb piano. The four album tracks correspond with the four seasons, the four states of the soul... [...]
The first two tracks were recorded in 2001 (and released on CD-R by the Italian label Blade Records in 2002 in a very limited edition), two others were recorded in 2005 and thus completed the natural cycle of this album."
(pro-printed CD-R and cardboard sleeve, $11.00)

Cyclotimia - Music For Stockmarkets (Zhelezobeton)
I'll stick to the press release for this one because it perfectly captures everything that needs to be said about the CD. More relevant now than ever.
Label info: Cyclotimia is most probably the only project in the world which has chosen the creation of a soundtrack to "globalization" and life in the "consumer society" as their concept. The project members more than anyone else are immersed into the magic of finance and their creative intuition allowed them to compose the main part of "Music for Stockmarkets" with its unforgivingly precise name "Wall Street Requiem". Today the whole civilized world is listening to this requiem, the first cords of which were played in Wall Street itself.
The "Music for Stockmarkets" album with its radically experimental nature stands out in the extensive discography of this Moscow project. The 64-minute album includes 32 tracks divided into three conceptual parts: "Wallstreet Requiem" (25 minutes, recorded in 2004-2007), "Trivial Pleasures" (26 minutes, recorded in 2002, this part was the only one released as a separate CD in 2003) and "Financial Glossary" (13 minutes, recorded in 2003).
The material itself is nothing like the one heard in the previous records of Cyclotimia. There are no apocalyptic soundscapes of "Wasteland" times, no cybernetic hi-tech and media madness of "E$chaton", no cosmic downtempo of "Celestis: Space Ceremonial Music"... Minimalism, academic sterility, surgical accuracy and meditative ataraxia prevail on "Music for Stockmarkets". Then again it is not the familiar "IDM", "glitch", "noise", "clicks and cuts" and not "minimal techno"... The sound of the album is crystal-clear and warm at the same time. "Vintage" lovers have a wonderful chance to listen to the masterpieces of Soviet music production (such as Rhythm 1, Rhythm 2, Aelita, Formanta UDS, Formanta EMS-01, Polyvox) in pure sound, unprocessed by effects.
(CD, digipak, $14.00)

Inade - The Incarnation Of The Solar Architects (Loki Foundation)
With their 5th full-length album, Inade have reached a new threshold in their synthesis of the esoteric and the cosmic. Easily one of their most accomplished releases of recent memory, "The Incarnation of the Solar Architects" is a compass to the transcendental nature of the universe, the world that towers above ours. The sheer vastness of the soundscapes captures the primordial dread that comes with this awareness, no matter how jaded one may think himself to be. Forget "dark", this is aeonian ambient of the highest stature.
(CD, 6-panel digipak, $18.00)

Bad Sector - CMASA (Power & Steel)
New 2009 album that reworks material originally composed in 2005 for the M3M art exhibition in Pisa, Italy. The exhibition in question being based around images of the seaside and rivers of the Pisana area and the CMASA airplane factory located there, those themes carry over into the compositions through subtle sounds of the seashore, rushing water and sparse metal clanging.
With that context in mind, this is some of Massimo Magrini's most emotional work as his unique digital textures take a particularly melodic character here, which is further reinforced by the beautifully lush synth pads. Vital in every sense of the word.
(CD, digipak, $18.00)

S.E.T.I. - Corona (Power & Steel)
Fifth album from Andrew Lagowski's deep space exploration project, S.E.T.I. Active since 1982, Lagowski has notably collaborated with Lustmord on one-off projects such as Terror Against Terror and Isolrubin BK, and his own solo work includes material released as Legion and under his own name.
Of all his albums as S.E.T.I., 1994's "Knowledge" has always been a personal top pick, and remains even today among the best sonic attempts at evoking the vastness of the cosmos (and for $4 at Soleilmoon, there is really no reason why you shouldn't pick up a copy right now). "Corona" is the rightful follow-up to it, as it reuses and improves on a lot of the same elements: deep cosmic drones, sputtering digital oscillations, NASA recordings, cut-up radio broadcasts and harmonic waves are all forged together into a richly-detailed 52-min journey to the beyond. Ad Astra!
(CD, clear jewel case, $18.00)

Internal Fusion - Tribute To Hastia (Lucioleditions)
With a sparse discography on Desaccord Majeur, Staalplaat and various Taalem-related labels, Internal Fusion has become mostly known for its sound somewhere between Rapoon and Muslimgauze, with various sorts of percussions providing a rhythmical backdrop to most of its work. This new release however definitely moves away from that area and towards minimalist dark ambient, with deep low-end pulses and restrained drones becoming the main driving force for the 6 long tracks gathered here. That said, they're composed with enough imagination and grace so as to remain worthy of attention and not an exercise in reverb-drenched nothingness. Quality stuff.
(CD, transparent slim DVD case, $16.00)

Subliminal - Look At The Creation (Galakthorro)
It's been already 3 years since Subliminal last released "Coping", but at least we now have the 4 tracks on this 7" to follow up on that. Raw, poisonous power electronics with Albert Fisch's signature mangled vocals. One copy per buyer and only available if bought with a Galakthorro CD.
(7", $20.00)

Herz Juhning - Miasma (Galakthorro)
First full-length album from this newcomer to the Galakthorro family, whose Faces 7" the luckier ones of you may have had a chance to hear. True to the label's tradition, Herz Juhning delivers a compact dose of stylized dread that navigates somewhere between November Novelet's pulsating angst-pop ("Reopened Eyes") and Subliminal's dreary analog power electronics ("The Rape", "Infibulation"). No surprises, no gimmicks, just 13 solid tracks of torpor and contempt.
(CD, digipak with 16-page booklet, $20.00)

Cloama & Die Blutleuchte - Cloama & Die Blutleuchte (Anima Arctica)
CD reprint of the 2005 collaboration CD-R originally released by New Old Sentinel. If the psychedelic industrial / baroque experimental nature of their other release together ("From Wasteland Mausoleums") caught your attention, you will not want to miss this. Incantations for the twilight hours. Yog-Sothoth is the key.
(CD, clear jewel case, 12-page booklet, $13.50)

Hated Bruit Kollektiv - Aktion One (New Nihilism)
Hated Bruit Kollektiv is the name for the ephemeral collaborative project between Rafal Sadej (Moan) and Tomasz Twardawa (Genetic Transmission), two of Poland's better artists operating in the post-industrial domain. This release captures their live performance at the 2007 Bez Kontroli Festival, and it's presented here in the shape of 37-min stream-of-consciousness maelstrom of whirring, clanging and heavily textured noise. Not the "harsh noise" pedal mashing variety that is, this is much more atmospheric and shifting in nature, with certain moments bringing to mind the more subdued material they release under their own main projects.
(Pro-printed CD-R in folded A2 poster sleeve, $12.50)

Per Aspera - Nil Desperandum (New Nihilism)
Surprisingly glossy if uneven dark ambient from this newcomer to the Polish post-industrial scene. The better tracks tracks are built around deep drones and choir-like processed voices that succeed at giving the whole affair a stark cinematic tone that falls somewhere between Parca Pace and Band of Pain. Some specific pieces ("Crematorium" and "Shkiyat Hoolam") gradually incorporate samples of 9/11 witness accounts, Israeli news snippets and Arabic chanting and instrumentation in a fairly clumsy manner (the unintentionally hilarious homemade "jihadist death threat" is straight out of some cheesy Golan-Globus production, complete with a misnamed "Radaman" reference). Aside from that distracting break in continuity (which can still be enjoyed for its sheer tackiness), "Nil Desperandum" achieves what it set out to do in terms of quality ambient.
(CD, A5-sized digipak, $14.00)

Stalnoy Pakt - ROA (ALF Produkt)
Write-up and samples to be added shortly. In stock now.
(3"CD-R, oversized sleeve, $12.00)

Stalnoy Pakt - O Roma O Morte! (ALF Produkt)
Sights and sounds of Fascist Italy condensed into one 16-min long military-industrial collage of anthems, marches, cheering crowds and gramophone fuzz. Includes a 3-min video clip set to the tune of a reconstructed version of "Giovinezza". Best enjoyed with a fine glass of castor oil.
(CD-R in oversized sleeve, $12.00)

Vetrophonia - Generalissimus Chiang Kaishek (ALF Produkt)
Short EP dedicated to Chiang Kai-Shek, the Chinese political and military leader who fought both the Japanese during WW2 and against the Communists in the following civil war, ultimately resulting in the creation of the Republic of China (known today as Taiwan). 4 tracks of subdued musique concrete merged with sampled Chinese musical elements. Limited to 30 copies.
(3"CD-R, oversized hand-made sleeve, $12.00, last copy)

Mail order update: Stalnoy Pakt, Linija Mass, Lunar Abyss Deus Organum, Bad Sector

2009-05-24T21:26:31Z

For mp3 samples and ordering, please go to the catalog page.

- Latest catalog additions -

Stalnoy Pakt - O Roma O Morte! CD-R (ALF Produkt)
Vetrophonia - Generalissimus Chiang Kaishek 3"CD-R (ALF Produkt)
Ritualnaya Bioingeneria - Poluraspad CD-R (Ultra)
T.A.U. - Absolutely Black Body CD-R (Ultra)
T.A.U. - T.A.U. CD-R (Ultra)
Lunar Abyss Deus Organum - Snovidenie CD (BioSonar Labirint)
Lunar Abyss Deus Organum - Tuntury CD (Aquarellist)
Linija Mass - Industrealism CD (ALF Produkt)
Dvar - Jraah Mraah CD (Gravitator Records)
Dvar - Rakhilim CD (Monopoly)
Bad Sector - The Harrow CD (Ewers Tonkunst)
Various Artists - Sacral Symphony CD (EE Tapes)
Rapoon - Escaping From Color (Rapoon Recomposed & Remixed) CD (Quasi Pop Records)
KK Null - Galactic Tornado CD (Quasi Pop Records)
Job Karma - Tschernobyl CD (Ars Benevola Mater)

-----------------------------------------------

- In stock, TBA shortly -

T.A.U. - La Splendeur, Geometrique / Urbanomania CD-R (Ultra)
Stalnoy Pakt - ROA 3"CD-R (ALF Produkt)
Hated Bruit Kollektiv - Aktion One CD-R (New Nihilism)
Per Aspera - Nil Desperandum CD (New Nihilism)

-----------------------------------------------

- Detailed list of additions -

Ritualnaya Bioingeneria - Poluraspad (Ultra)
Ritualnaya Bioingeneria is Lunar Abyss Deus Organum dragged from the forest and forced into industrial labor. With its combination of busy factory sounds, bursts of radio noise and snippets of Soviet-era gramophone recordings, "Poluraspad" is definitely at home on Alexander Lebedev-Frontov's label. Few copies in stock.
(CD-R, silver-inked paper sleeve, $12.00)

T.A.U. - Absolutely Black Body (Ultra)
Back in stock. Collaboration effort from Kirill Rozhkov and Alexander Lebedev-Frontov. Machine noise and processed radio signals that have a trance-like quality to them. Limited to 120 hand-numbered copies.
(CD-R, cardboard sleeve, $12.00)

T.A.U. - T.A.U. (Ultra)
First self-titled release from this collaboration between Kirill Rozhkov (S36NZ-OKH) and Alexander Lebedev-Frontov (whom you should already know of by the time you're reading this). Where Linija Mass is the sound of industrial labor running at full capacity, T.A.U.'s debut album is its nighttime counterpart, with the pacing of the activity subdued and restrained. The shouts of the foreman are ghostly echoes here, and the faint rumble of automated machinery is only interrupted by sparse malfunctions in its cycles. The poetry of machines in motion.
(CD-R, cardboard sleeve, $12.00)

Lunar Abyss Deus Organum - Snovidenie (BioSonar Labirint)
First full-length CD album from the new incarnation of the long-active St Petersburg project known as Lunar Abyss Quartet. The material presented here is in the vein of the Brusnika 7" released on Drone Records and the Sleeping in the Sleep mini-album, with a similarly haunting and ethereal atmosphere. Ritual percussion, traditional Russian folk instruments and field recordings come together to form these incantations for forest spirits over a background of hazy drones and discreet electronics. A personal favorite that comes highly recommended.
Each copy comes in a different hand-made cardboard package.
(CD, hand-made cardboard sleeve, $14.00)

Lunar Abyss Deus Organum - Tuntury (Aquarellist)
New 2009 release from St Petersburg's finest purveyor of shamanistic ambient. Psychedelic drones, rustling bells and clear melodic tones are overlaid over natural field recordings of rain, crackling fire and bird calls, but the more animated pace of these 6 tracks makes for an active hallucinatory listening experience rather than a strictly laid-back "ambient" affair.
For this release, Evgeny Savenko was joined by M.M. of Zhelezobeton / Kryptogen Rundfunk on processed guitars, synths and tapes.
(CD, digisleeve, $14.00)

Linija Mass - Industrealism (ALF Produkt)
Mini-album composed of two tracks from 2001 and one from 2007. This is some of the most rhythmical and loop-based material released by Linija Mass, mechanical grinding and the restrained hum of machinery replacing the maelstrom of factory noise present on earlier releases. A different direction approached with the project's consistent stakhanovist efficiency.
(3"CD in oversized sleeve, $12.00)

Dvar - Jraah Mraah (Gravitator Records)
The mysterious creatures of Dvar are back with a whole new repertoire of otherworldly songs and playful little ditties. Thankfully not much has changed since the last time, and "Jraah Mraah" has the same hobgoblin-like vocals and impish melodies that make every one of their albums a fairy tale for the ears, keeping with the oral tradition that is essential to the genre. There's one key difference though: the tale is no longer being told from the point of view of an omniscient narrator in your language, but directly by the gnomes, trolls and pixies themselves in theirs. Wonderfully enchanting as always.
(CD, clear jewel case, $14.00, last copy)

Dvar - Rakhilim (Monopoly)
A personal favorite and definitely an acquired taste, Dvar is a mysterious Russian band that makes music ideally suited for drunken gnomes and overworked elves, complete with otherworldly vocals and cartoon-ish melodies. Hysterically joyful at times, desperately melancholic at others, Dvar is always completely off the charts in the best way possible and this is definitely one of their highest points so far.
(CD, clear jewel case, $13.00)

Bad Sector - The Harrow (Ewers Tonkunst)
Re-release of this classic Bad Sector album from 2001 in a slick digisleeve. Based on sounds emanating from a digital Geiger counter and naval, air and military radio bands fed through custom signal processing, "The Harrow" is just as impressive today as when it was initially released, with its streams of radiant signals and impulsive electronic patterns. Absolutely essential.
(CD, digisleeve, $14.50)

Various Artists - Sacral Symphony (EE Tapes)
5 exclusive and long-playing tracks curated by Evgeny Voronovski of Cisfinitum for this great yet discreet Belgian label. The contributors are 1000schï¿½en, Troum, Rapoon, First Human Ferro and Cisfinitum himself. Also features great artwork by Eugeny Kuprienko, who also took care of the design for Cisfinitum's "Tactio".
(CD, oversized screen-printed sleeve, $16.00)

Rapoon - Escaping From Color (Rapoon Recomposed & Remixed) (Quasi Pop Records)
15-track compilation of music exclusively composed with Rapoon's "Tribal Sci Fi" sound library. Participants include Francisco Lopez, Machinefabriek, Troum, Jorge Castro, Aidan Baker, Anla Courtis, Mike Shiflet, Cisfinitum and more.
(CD, digisleeve, $13.50)

KK Null - Galactic Tornado (Quasi Pop Records)
2008 release from long-active experimental musician Kazuyuki Kishino. While the combination of a prolific discography and the "guitar noise improv" tag kept me away from his works so far as efficiently as the colors on a poison dart frog, my preconceptions were thankfully proved wrong by this album. Far from being interchangeable and self-indulgent, the five 10+ minute tracks here do not show a single moment of dullness. Attention has been obviously paid to keeping the flow dynamic and renewing the pool of sounds, as thick slabs of cosmic noise crash into twitchy electronic pulses and deflagrations. If this is representative of his current work, I'll be definitely investigating more of his similar material.
(CD, multi-paneled digipak, $13.50)

Job Karma - Tschernobyl (Ars Benevola Mater)
This 2007 release from Poland's Job Karma is a concept album based around the Chernobyl nuclear disaster and its aftermath. Melancholic synth melodies, minimal rhythmic patterns and layered voice samples are used in the same carefully constructed manner as on 2005's "Strike", and this is definitely a commendable and consistent follow-up to it (barring the somehow off-topic "Man in my Room" with its ridiculous sample from "Saw").
(CD, multi-paneled digipak with booklet, $16.00)

Flatline Skyline - All Sound / No Vision CD out now

2009-04-20T21:19:58Z

Available now:

Flatline Skyline - All Sound / No Vision
1. Sleep Tight
2. No Dial-Tone
3. Other Dreams
4. Aperture
5. Fox Fight
6. Fearful Symmetry
7. Ex-Marx
8. Be Good to Them Always
9. Death By Eyes
10. ...And The Moon Swam Back
11. One Secret

Total time: 44:28 min
Format: CD, digisleeve with 12-page booklet, 500 copies
Release date: April 16, 2009
Price: $13

The second album from Jacen Kemp and Robert Andrew Scott stands as a stylistic counter-statement to 2005's "Horizon Grid." Fierce, emotionally driven and abrasively textured, "All Sound / No Vision" confirms Flatline Skyline's masterful sense of tension and release and melodic sensibility while further evolving their sound beyond any previous expectation.

Where "Horizon Grid" forged atmospheres of lethargic bliss and nocturnal stillness, these eleven new tracks are united by their restlessness and unstable nature. From the energetic vocals and metallic shard-like pulse of "Fox Fight" to the improvised noisy electronic shudders of "One Secret," there is a new-found sense of visceral life that breathes, screams and seeps into every moment of this album. Jacen Kemp's voice plays a prominent role in this aspect; its multi-faceted intonations are perfectly suited to the shifting electronic foundation.

"All Sound / No Vision" was mastered by JJ at Golden Mastering (Xiu Xiu, Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, Calexico, etc.) and was made possible by the generous help of Bertrand Hamonou.

Mp3 tracks can be found on the release's page.

New Flatline Skyline + distro update (Cisfinitum, Luasa Raelon, Job Karma, Wrotycz)

2009-03-17T21:28:08Z

For mp3 samples and ordering, please go to the catalog page.

Flatline Skyline - All Sound / No Vision

The second Flatline Skyline album will be available in the coming weeks. "All Sound / No Vision" is a fierce and inverted counterpoint to everything that defined 2005's "Horizon Grid". 3 full tracks from it can already be heard on the release's page. More information will be available shortly.

- Latest catalog additions -

Job Karma - Tschernobyl CD (Ars Benevola Mater)
Aere Aeternus - Humanity Needs No Funeral CD (Kaosthetik Konspiration)
Cisfinitum - Nevmenosis CD-R (Afe Records)
Luasa Raelon - The House of Flesh CD (Snip-Snip)
Various Artists - Energia CD (OMS Records)
Frozen Faces - Broken Sounds of a Dying Culture CD (Wrotycz Records)
Contemplatron - Delog CD (Wrotycz Records)

- On the way -

Flatline Skyline - All Sound, No Vision CD (Mechanoise Labs, mn034)
Various Artists - Sacral Symphony CD (EE Tapes, compilation curated by Cisfinitum)

-----------------------------------------------

- Detailed list of additions -

Aere Aeternus - Humanity Needs No Funeral (Kaosthetik Konspiration)
Label info: "'Humanity Needs No Funeral', the first full-length album from AERE AETERNUS, was released on the French label Kaosthetik. With a multi-national and eclectic lineup, the band comprises Alex (MACABRE OMEN, THE ONE, RAZOR OF OCCAM), Claudio Alcara (FROSTMOON ECLIPSE, STROSZEK), Cyr (DARK SANCTUARY, ELKTRONIK SCIETY) and Radu. [...]
The dominant atmosphere combines a sense of impending insanity with sexual deviancy and a large dollop of occultism, creating a dark and troubling misanthropic sojourn that is relatively unique. [...] The accompanying video of 'Invocation' shows a Satanic ritual in all its kitschy glory."
(CD, digisleeve, $15.00)

Cisfinitum - Nevmenosis (Afe Records)
A collection of tracks from recent compilation appearances ("Roulette Russe Pour Un Peu De Caviar", "Table For Six: All Quiet?", "Iznutri"), the split CD with Rapoon and two previously unreleased pieces ("Nevmenosis" and "Dissolutio"). Mastered for consistency by Andrea Marutti.
(pro-printed CD-R in oversized gatefold sleeve, $16.00)

Luasa Raelon - The House of Flesh (Snip-Snip)
New 2008 from David Reed's main project. Doom-ridden synth wailings and gloomy atmospheres welcome you inside the House of Flesh. Absolute audio dread.
(CD, jewel case, $9.00)

Various Artists - Energia (OMS Records)
Tribute compilation dedicated to Sergey Pavlovich Korolyov (1907-1966), the head Soviet rocket engineer and designer during the Space Race of the 50s and 60s between the United States and the Soviet Union. The Soviet counterpart to Wernher Von Braun, if you will. Released on the centenary of his birthday, this is a fitting cosmic ambient homage with exclusive tracks from Cisfinitum, Autopsia, Vestigial, Deutsch Nepal and Satori, First Human Ferro, Kryptogen Rundfunk and Nocturnal Emissions, Visions and more. Comes with an extensive 12-page booklet.
(Multi-paneled digipak with booklet, $14.00)

Frozen Faces - Broken Sounds of a Dying Culture (Wrotycz Records)
Re-release of the 1997 LP by this Deutsch Nepal side-project, along with the two tracks from the "Religion of Hate" 7". While the hypnotic loops of its immediate parent are carried over, this is a much cruder affair, with no room for ornamental effects or intricate structuring. This is stripped-down blunt-as-bones rhythms repeating themselves with mantra-like insistence. Rewarding in the right state of mind, utterly alienating in other circumstances.
(CD, oversized sleeve, $15.00, last copy)

Contemplatron - Delog (Wrotycz Records)
Sophomore release from this Polish dark ambient project strongly influenced by Tibetan Buddhism. The Tibetan word Delog refers to one who has crossed the threshold of death and returned to tell about it. 45 minutes of serene compositions and ritualistic instrumentations, with an overall tone that would fit somewhere between Exotoendo and Herbst9.
(multi-paneled digipak, $15.00, last copy)