The Voice of the People: Good People, Take Warning

"This is the first of the new 'Voice of the People Series' CDs that I've reviewed, and if the rest of these new releases are up to this standard, we're in for another feast of glorious singing.  The four just-released offerings make it clear that while some aspects of the first Series remain the same, there's quite a lot that is different.  Only two of the new ones are singles - one's a double, and this present volume is a triple.  The thematic approach of the earlier Series is not entirely retained (one is just the work of one singer), and the others appear to be more 'grouped' than themed.  Gone are the 'super' jewel cases - replaced by 15mm thick card slip-cases - containing both a substantial booklet and the CD in a single or double normal jewel case or, with the present one, a triple digipak.  I think this may be an improvement... but time and usage will tell.

The booklet starts with Reg Hall's new, improved Introduction - to the Series as a whole, to the new releases, to the concept of 'traditional music and song', and to the compiler of each CD set (Steve Roud in this case).  It is quite as good and complete as we have come to expect from Dr. Hall.  This volume then has a long introductory piece from Steve, on the idea and history of the Ballad.  It all boils down to a couple of nice phrases: a ballad is a song which tells a story; and Child Ballads are 'costume drama', while broadside ballads are 'soap opera'.  Couldn't have put it better myself!

Another thing we find from the introductory piece is that, since this volume is dedicated to ballads, there will be rather more detailed notes on those ballads than upon the singers.  This approach flies in the face of the booklets to the earlier 20 CDs, where Reg Hall was at pains to emphasise the importance of the performer over what was performed.  You may recall that they had virtually no song notes at all - prompting Mike Yates to write some; now included in the VotP Suite of pages in MT.  What changed Reg's mind in this instance is not discussed in the booklet, but he seemed happy enough about it at the launch in C# House on the 15th March.

The approach varies between the four new VotP volumes: Shirley Collins provides some brief song notes in her Gypsy double CD, none at all in the Southern English Singers disc; I provided a hefty biography of Sarah Makem, but also individual song notes; Steve Roud has opted for very brief biographical pieces on the singers, and often hefty notes on the ballads.  So the unified approach of the earlier series is now modified by the preferences of the individual compilers - at least you know who to blame if you don't like what they've done!

There follows a series of these micro-biographies of the singers whose songs we shall hear on the CDs.  This seems to be something of a relapse on Topic's part - they used to put all the song notes together, rather than with the song texts later in the booklets.  Mercifully, this changed a few years ago - but, by the same token, it would seem more useful if the micro-biography of, say, Phoebe Smith, appeared with the first instance of one of her songs at track 18 on CD1, rather than having to turn back 40 pages in the booklet to find it!

Enough of the booklet - what of the 61 songs spread over these three CDs?  Perhaps the first thing to say is that there are far more female singers than is usual on a traditional singers' compilation.  Steve Roud tell us that this was intentional on his part - an attempt to re-balance the picture - which was aided by the fact that Peter Kennedy (whose recordings make up the great majority of tracks on these new VotP issues) actually recorded far more female singes than was usual at the time.  A good point to remember in our appraisal of the importance of this often controversial figure.  Roud also alerts us to the fact that we'll find relatively few recordings by the 'big names' of ballad singing here - since many of their performances already appear in other CD publications.

Rather obviously, I'm not about to comment on each song - I'll stick to citing those which particularly impress or interest me.  We start CD 1, gloriously, with Bob and Ron Copper singing 'The Bold Fisherman'; Steve's notes refute the notion of this being descended from an allegorical medieval original, pointing out that its earliest appearance is in the first decades of the 19th century.  The lovely Maggie Murphy (Chambers as she was then) gives us 'Doran's Ass', a splendid humorous song I'd never heard before, and Ben Butcher sings a woefully short version of 'Sheffield Park', to a gorgeous broken-time tune.  I'd have loved to hear more of him, but this is his only song here.  For those of you who crave one of the big ones: Jeannie Robertson sings a ten minute 'Johnnie Cock' ('Johnnie o' Breadislee') most effectively; Sarah Makem gives a lovely 'Carolina and the Sailor'; Lucy Stewart sings 'The Jolly Beggar'; and Thomas Moran, 'The Blind Beggar's Daughter'.

To return to somewhat smaller and lighter stories, Maureen Melly gives us a delightful 'Trip [we took] Over the Mountain', while Margaret Jeffrey (a Scottish Traveller recorded on the berryfields of Blair) sings 'When I Was a Young Maid' ('The Female Drummer') to a great and lively tune I've never heard before to this well-known song.  Sandwiched between them is Phoebe Smith with 'The Oxford Girl' - unsurpassable!

On CD 2 we find a few more lighter songs: Harry Cox gives one of the best versions of 'The Crabfish' - although it does miss the hilarious 'Yes Sir, yes Sir, I've got two - one is for you and the other is for me' line; Mary Toner has a lively 'Jogging up to Claudy' (in the sour milk cart); but we have to wait 'til track 21 before the dark clouds of heavy balladry part, revealing an absolutely brilliant Michael Gallagher, with 'The Devil and the Bailiff'.  This is not, of course, to dismiss the heavy (or long) stuff but, as you'll see from the tracklist above, it's all fairly well-known.  Though special mention should be made of Mary Doran's 'Oxford City' - real Irish Traveller singing at its best, and of 'Her Servant Man', sung by Gladys Stone - a Sussex singer so little known that she doesn't even got a micro-biography!  She's really good - I hope there's more of her somewhere in the Kennedy archive.

On CD 3 Maggie Chambers (Murphy) starts us off well with a very full version of 'The Banks of the Silvery Tide', sung to the tune of 'Skibbereen', followed by an equally good and lively 'Hungry Fox' from Bob and Ron Copper - great to find the Coppers here, since they were, unaccountably, missing from the earlier VotP series.  Peter Donnelly, from Co. Tyrone, sings a very full (12 verse) version of the rare ballad 'John McCann' ('Charming Mary Neill') - and he is a great story teller.  The next track, 'The Dowie Dens o' Yarrow', was a bit of a shock when I first heard it - I thought it was a very young Belle Stewart... but it is actually her daughter-in-law, Mary Anne Stewart; lovely singing of a great song.  Next, Harry Cox sings 'The Squire and the Gypsy'; a great favourite in this family.  Like Bob Dylan's early ballads, it seems incoherent and fragmented - but by the end you know exactly what's happened.  Steve Roud tells us that only two traditional versions are known, and that the few broadside versions are much longer and set in very flowery language.  Somewhere along the way, someone has taken all the best lines, re-ordered them, and produced a far superior piece of work.

A great delight is 'Willie Lennix', sung by Joe Moran, a young boy from Co. Antrim - and one is reminded of the 'unknown boy' who sang 'Four Green Fields' so effectively on 'Come West Along the Road', or indeed of seven-year-old Sheila Smith singing 'Dear Father Pray Build Me a Boat' on the Gypsy double CD in this series - although she was much younger.  We tend to think that age and experience is needed to sing these songs well, so it's good to be reminded that there are a few young people who can do it, too, out of pure natural ability.

Talking of age and experience, Sam Larner gives us an uncharacteristically subdued 'Pretty Polly' ('Cruel Ship's Carpenter'), which it would be hard to beat, and Fred Jordan sings 'Six Pretty Maids' ('The Outlandish Knight') which is equally unbeatable - unless you've been lucky enough to hear Corney McDaid's splendid version from 'Inís Eoghaín'.

OK - enough!  I haven't mentioned lots of splendid singing of some of the more well-known ballads, or many of the more well-known singers to be found in this splendid selection... they are all wonderful, but there's only a limited space and time, not to mention the limits of your patience!  I applaud Steve Roud's selection, ranging from 'Barbara Allen' to 'Butter and Cheese and All'; from Jeannie Robertson to Joe Moran; from the 10-minute 'Johnnie Cock' to the 1-minute 'Two Pretty Boys'.  The only real disappointment was Phil Tanner's 'The Bonny Bunch of Roses' - a splendid and favourite ballad from a superb singer, delivered with no apparent feeling or commitment whatsoever!

The booklet is extremely good in almost all respects - particularly Steve's song notes - although a few of the transcriptions have little errors in them, and there are several occasions where verses are joined together when they should be separate.  But let's not be too picky - this is an excellent piece of work, crammed full of great ballads, well told.  Congratulations to all concerned. (Review from the Musical Traditions website. See here.)

1.1. The Copper Family - The Bold Fisherman

1.2. Jean Elvin - The Boston Smuggler

1.3. Maggie Chambers - Doran's Ass

1.4. Elizabeth Cronin - Molly Bawn

1.5. Paddy Doran - Seven Yellow Gypsies

1.6. Ben Butcher - In Sheffield Park

1.7. Maggie Stewart - The Braes O'Strathbane

1.8. Phil Tanner - The Bonny Bunch Of Roses

1.9. Jeannie Robertson - Johnie Cock

1.10. Gabriel Figg - Holloman's Ivy

1.11. Sarah Makem - Carolina And The Sailor

1.12. Lucy Stewart - The Jolly Beggar

1.13. Thomas Moran - The Blind Beggar's Daughter

1.14. Jim O'Neill - Her Mantle So Green

1.15. Mick McAlinden - My Father's Serving Boy

1.16. Maureen Melly - The Trip Over The Mountain

1.17. Sam Larner - The London Steamer

1.18. Phoebe Smith - The Oxford Girl

1.19. Margaret Jeffrey - When I Was A Young Maid (The Female Drummer)

2.1. Jean Elvin - Bloomimg Caroline

2.2. Harry Cox - The Crabfish

2.3. Elizabeth Cronin - Barbara Allen

2.4. Mary Toner - Joggin' Up To Clawdy

2.5. Harry List - The Light Dragoon

2.6. Dodie Chalmers - The Golden Victory

2.7. Gladys Stone - Her Servant Man

2.8. Seamus Ennis - Captain Wedderburn

2.9. Sarah Makem - Our Ship She's Ready

2.10. Paddy McCluskey - Willie & Mary

2.11. Lucy Stewart - Two Pretty Boys

2.12. Jim Copper - You Seamen Bold

2.13. Jean Matthew - The American Stranger

2.14. Paddy Grant - McCaffery

2.15. Thomas Moran - The Blind Man He Could See

2.16. Ethel Findlater - The Maid Of The Cowdie And Knowes

2.17. Harry Upton - The Wreck Of The Northfleet

2.18. Mary Doran - Oxford City

2.19. Joe Thomas - The Banks Of The Sweet Dundee

2.20. Dot Foubister - The Brig Columbus

2.21. Michael Gallagher - The Devil And The Bailiff

2.22. Jim O'Neill - The Moorlough Shore

2.23. Charlotte Higgins - Lord Bateman

3.1. Maggie Chambers - The Banks Of The Silvery Tide

3.2. The Copper Family - The Hungry Fox

3.3. Lucy Stewart - The Twa Sisters

3.4. Thomas Moran - Handsome Polly

3.5. Peter Donnelly - John McCann (Charming Mary Neill)

3.6. Togo Crawford - The Gates O'The Drum

3.7. Mary Anne Stewart - The Dowie Dens O'Yarrow

3.8. Harry Cox - The Squire And The Gypsy

3.9. Emily Bishop - Blow The Windy Morning

3.10. Joseph Higgins - The Banks Of The Bann

3.11. Michael Gallagher - Hiring Time

3.12. Jean Matthew - The Bleacher Lassie

3.13. Joe Moran - Willie Lennix

3.14. Sam Larner - Pretty Polly (The Cruel Ship's Carpenter)

3.15. Elizabeth Cronin - Well Sold The Cow

3.16. Fred Jordan - Six Pretty Maids (The Outlandish Knight)

3.17. George Bloomfield - Young George Oxbury

3.18. Mary McGarvey - Young But Growing

3.19. Leslie Johnson - Butter And Cheese And All

mp3/192kbps

Acts of Vengeance - UFoI II

Second in a series releases attached to the 'United Forces of Industrial' live event held in London, released by the eponymous record label in 2015. Mostly politically charged power electronics, with tracks by the likes of Grunt, Alfarmania, Concrete Mascara, Zyklon SS and Puce Mary as well as many enjoyable others. Expect vocal samples, insurrectionist/anarchic political messages as well as other classic industrial/power electronics themes. 

A1. Black Insignia - Acts Of Vengeance I

A2. Grunt - Blood Thirst

A3. Kevlar - Eternal Unhappiness

A4. Brood - Alarmis Frustrer

A5. Alfarmania - En Otrampad Stig

A6. Taeter - Special

A7. Concrete Mascara - Violence

A8. Martin Bladh - How Some Children Played At Slaughtering

B1. Zyklon SS - EFP Warhead

B2. Am Not - Intervention 

B3. Stark - Untitled

B4. Pain Nail - Abysmal Teaching Of The Great Signs

B5. Psychopathia - Conscience Of Facts

B6. Clinic Of Torture - Cutting The Slave

B7. Jaakko Vanhala - Life's Marrow

B8. Puce Mary - McKenzie

B9. Black Insignia - Acts Of Vengeance II

flac/16-bit

地球

"Part one of a proposed series of three slickly presented CDs documenting the international 'Zen and the art of microtonal brick resonance' scene.

"'Chiky(u)u' presents the Japanese approach to recording naturally occurring sound. Ten new sound artists, including Akifumi Nakajima's Aube project and a whole host of previously unheard circuit burners, are set loose on a series of contorted field recordings 'gathered from the earth (stones, water, etc) or ctivity resulting from movement in the earth (earthquakes, etc)'. As far as CDs go its pretty 'interactive' with lots of secret tracks (97, to be precise!) and blank gaps. Rewinding from track one triggers 'Quake', a stereo shakedown high on the Richter scale, like a CD with teeth, gnawing away at your sense. Felow entrants in the howl stakes include Hatohan, whose 'Eldorado' is the sound of hurricane winds being sucked through tunnels, with phantom train carriages sparking on the rails dissolving into Buddhist bells and flowing water. Possibly the most unsettling of all is 'crackstratum' using only the 'the sound of the Ground Stones', holy stones that seem to speak (the 'everything is vibration' school of thought). The stones drone darkly, like drunken didgeridoos beneath a patiently dripping tap, until Nakajima starts skelping them with a large stick while his belly rumbles. They soon shut up. Another stand out (and every one's a boggler) is Tamaru's 'Water Margin', generated by 'attaching electrodes to the bank of the Arakawa River'. It's a hymnal of silent hum with occasional deep Morse Code blips bubbling to the surface while downstream a music box spins. 'Listen, the snow is falling,' Yoko Ono once sang. We should have done at the time, but collected here are many invigorating attempts to do just that. Listen, the planet is humming." (Review by David Keenan for The Wire magazine.)

1. Hatohan - Eldorado

2. Utah Kawasaki - Low Capacitance

3. MSBR - The Hollow Sea

4. Aube - Crackstratum

5. Koji Marutani - Scenes 4

6. MSBR - The Hollow Ground

7. Akira Yamamichi - Topography I To V

8. Toru Yamanaka - Weathering 2

9. Tamaru - Water Margin

10. Tak++ - Listening Point 20

mp3/256kbps

Scandinavian Choir Music

"The Norwegian Trond Kverno studied sacred music, musical theory and choral conducting. He is a professional organist, teaches at the Oslo Conservatoire and made a name in his country in the field of religious vocal music. He was from 1976 to 1978 member of the liturgical commision, with the task of improving the liturgical handbooks of the Church of Norway. The hymn 'Ave Maris Stella' is structured into different parts. The six-part writing is distributed, in particular at the beginning and at the end of the piece, into a three-part female choir and a three-part corresponding male choir.

"Since the end of the eighties, the Estonian composer Urmas Sisask has devoted himself particularly to sacred music. His 'Benedicto' (1991) is a piece that combines in an attractive way several different styles: medieval polyphony (monastic organa), jazz rhythms or repeated passages in the style of litanies. The piece, which offers many unexpected turns, is a joyful setting of the liturgical text.

"After his studies, Knut Nystedt was for a long time organist and teacher of choral conducting in his native tonw, Oslo. From 1950 to 1990, he toured in the whole world with his choir 'The Norwegian Soloists'. As a composer, he was awarded many prizes. The three settings of the Bible, 'Three Motets', belong to his great œuvre for choir. Choral music fascinates him more and more. He says about himself '[...] It is vocal music that interests [me] increasingly: the human voice has extraordinary possibilities, and a range of expression richer than what has been used until now in choral practice. I therefore immersed myself in a new world of choral sound, as it were a sort of kaleidoscope, in order to discover radically new tone colours.' After 'Thus saith the Lord', a piece of austere, seemingly archaic writing, comes a well-known piece, 'Peace, I leave with you'. The beginning of this piece, a unison in the low range of the women's voices, sung pianissimo, grabs the attention immediately. The tension is sustained all through the piece. 'I will praise thee, O Lord' concludes with élan this short cycle of motets.

"The Estonian Veljo Tormis made his debut in the musical world at the time of the annexing of Estonia by the Soviet Union. Estonians and other ethnic groups, and their languages, were then banned. Tormis bases his compositions on poetical texts of high value, as a manifesto against the Soviet domination of his mother tongue. He takes a keen interest in the Baltico-Finnish tradition. After the closing by the Soviets of the organ class of the Conservatoire, judge too near to the church, Tormis, then a student of the class, changed his orientation and studied choral conducting. During his studies, he was very interested in the national styles that base themselves on folk music. His compositional technique, modern and anti-romantic, leans on these studies and is at the saem times influenced by the music of Carl Orff and Zoltán Kodály. Tormis's choral works were created in collaboration with the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir, his close partner for many years. His Finnish choral cycle 'Sügismaastikud' is a setting of seven poems. Each poem is given a particular, extrovert colour. The voices are treated in a very instrumental way, using extended tessituras. Long sustained chords recall organ music. Towards the end of the cycle, a broad orchestral style of writing becomes apparent.

"The Swede Wilhelm Eugen Stenhammar was composer, pianist and conductor of the Göteborg Symphonic Orchestra. He wrote mostly instrumental music. After initial sutdies in Stockholm, he went to Berlin to deepen his knowledge. He was an ardent admirer of Richard Wagner and Anton Bruckner. Later in life, the Nordic style of Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius fascinated him. His 'Tre körvisor' (1890) evoke with romantic harmonies but without any trace of kitsch, the poetical images of J.P. Jacobsen. 'September' and 'I Seraillets Have' are charming pictures of nature and peace. 'Havde jeg, o havde jeg en Dattersøn, o ja!' shows itself mischievously ironical.

"'Kung Liljekonvalje' (G. Fröding) and 'Förvårskväll' (R. Jändel) by David Wikander are very popular pieces of the Swedish choral repertoire. The love of detail that the texts betray - a characteristic of Swedish literature and mentality - finds in Wikander's music an adequate rendering.

"Niels V. Gade is the found of the Danish national romantic style. Robert Schumann and Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, with whom Gade studied (Mendelssohn Bartholdy even created his First Symphony in Liepzig), were friends and fervent defenders of his music. In 'Morgensang', in C major, Gade develops from passages in unison and in thirds soft but heroic harmonies, characterized by boradly spaced male voices, generally in four parts.

"The Swede Hugo Alfvén still enjoys great popularity in his country and abroad through a handful of his works, in particular his 'Aftonen'. His pieces are typical representatives of a Swedish national romantic music. 'Aftonen', with its impressionistic writing, is an excellent example of his lyrical Nordic style.

"Edvard Grieg, the most famous of Norwegian composers, wrote only a few choral works on sacred texts. His 'Fire Salmer' (Four Psalms, 1906), more precisely the psalm entitled 'Hvad est du dog skjön', are his last work, he died in 1907.

"The text is a paraphrase by Hans Adolf Brorson (18th century) of the Song of Salomon, with reminiscences of the Song of Songs. The introduction is followed by three nearly identical verses with solo baritone (soloist of the choir: Thomas Walter). The fourth verse breaks this pattern. The theme is harmonically taken apart and the text is passed back and forth between the different voices, like the whisperings of lovers. The piece ends in this quiet atmosphere.

"The cosmopolitan Einojuhani Rautavaara studied in Finland, Vienna the U.S.A., Switzerland and Cologne. He has since returned to live in his home town, Helsinki. In 'Sommarmatten' (1975), soprano solos are added to the mixed four-part choir (soloists of the choir: Silke Brucker, Marianne Dreßler, Angela Fadle and Christiane Kuhlberg-Ross). The silvery high tones of the soloists evoke the vesperal reminiscence, filled with vibrating heat, of a summer day. To this quick movement, Rautavaara opposes slow harmonies, without thirds, like archaic sculptures. The wide tessituras, using the lowest basses and the highest sopranos, create a most attractive sound picture. One understands here why Rautavaara is often described as a mystic." (Dagmar Ungerer-Brams. From the liner notes.)

Performers: Amadeus-Chor, Nicol Matt

1. Trond Kverno - Ave Maris Stella

2. Urmas Sisask - Benedictio

3. Knut Nystedt - Three Motets: Thus Saith The Lord

4. Knut Nystedt - Three Motets: Peace, I Leave With You

5. Knut Nystedt - Three Motets: I Will Praise Thee, O Lord

6. Veljo Tormis - Sügismaastikud: On Hilissuvi

7. Veljo Tormis - Sügismaastikud: Üle Taeva Jooksevad Pilved

8. Veljo Tormis - Sügismaastikud: Valusalt Punased Lehed

9. Veljo Tormis - Sügismaastikud: Kahvatu Valgus

10. Veljo Tormis - Sügismaastikud: Tuul Könnumaa Kohal

11. Veljo Tormis - Sügismaastikud: Külm Sügisö

12. Veljo Tormis - Sügismaastikud: Kanarbik

13. Wilhelm Stenhammar - Tre Körvisor: September

14. Wilhelm Stenhammar - Tre Körvisor: I Seraillets Have

15. Wilhelm Stenhammar - Tre Körvisor: Havde Jeg, O Havde Jeg En Dattersøn, O Ja!

16. David Wikander - Förvårskväll

17. Niels Gade - Morgensang

18. David Wikander - Kung Liljekonvalje

19. Hugo Alfvén - Aftonen

20. Edvard Grieg - Hvad Est Du Dog Skjön

21. Einojuhani Rautavaara - Sommarnatten

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El Órgano Histórico Español Vol. 4: La Escuela de Zaragoza I

"'The historical Spanish organ': under this apparently simple title, how many events, how many realization and what music! To dedicate a series of ten compact discs to this is an exciting venture, but it is also a challenge...

"An undertaking like this has been made possible thanks to the inexhaustible energy of its instigators, the harmonious collaboration of the organists, the availability of the organ builders, the competence of the sound technicians and the interests of the persons responsible for the churches.

"As far as the music is concerned, it was above all a matter of taking a census of the most outstanding historical instruments still in use. This task was especially entrusted to José Luis González Uriol, from Zaragoza. As much as possible we have tried to represent every part of Spain, although the most interesting organs are evidently not distributed in a regular manner throughout the country. Next we had the pleasant task of choosing the performers, who were charged with getting the most out of the instruments. It was logical to turn to three of the Spanish organists who have contributed most to the realization of the instrument's artistic heritage: Montserrat Torrent, José Luis González Uriol and Josep Mas i Bonet.

"As one of the objectives of the 'Fifth Centenary' is precisely to tighten the cultural ties between Spain and America, we felt it was desirable to associate two or three organists from across the Atlantic with the project. Two young performers make the art of organ playing shine in the countries of Latin America: Elisa Freixo from Brazil and Cristina García Benegas from Uruguay. And in North America we selected Kimberly Marshall, a specialist in Gothic and Renaissance organ. In Europe, among the organists who have contributed to make the Spanish organ known and appreciated, the names Francis Chapelet and Guy Bovet stand out. Finally, bearing in my the relation between Spain and Flanders during the XVIth and XVIIth centuries, it seemed appropriate to us to include a Belgian organist, Bernard Foccroule, in this project.

"The selection has also been conditioned by the respective personalities of the ten performers, each of which had to be ascribed one or two instruments and a coherent part of the repertory. This proved to be the main difficulty of this programme. Ideally, we would entrust the recording of Cabezón's works, to a specialist of Cabezón playing Cabezón's organ, with the registers of the period, and the repeat the same operation in the ten discs. But history does not allow itself to be recreated so easily. Often the instruments which had been played by the great organists had disappeared, and those remaining were preserved because of their location in a small village, and had often suffered modifications. Thus is was practically impossible to interpret a composer's work in conditions of absolute historical fidelity... but does it matter?

"For these reasons we had to opt for a more subtle solution to the complex equation 'instruments-repertory-performers', and a certain flexibility has undoubtedly enabled us to present a more vivid panorama of this rich heritage. It must be said, however, that the spirit and oclour of the historical Spanish organ in its entirety has been preserved, and that the recent restorations are evidence of a respect which unfortunately has not always been demonstrated in other European countries. Each of the ten discs in the collection has been dedicated to a different composer (Cabezón, Correa de Arauxo, Cabanilles), to a regional school, or even to the splendour of an instrument particularly rich in possibilities.

"Because of its participation in the highest life of the spirit and its deep roots in daily life, is not the organ the privileged witness of the culture of an entire people? We hope that this recording may contribute to making known and loved this irreplaceable expression of the Spanish soul.

"This compact disc is dedicated to two great figures of the school of Zaragoza: Sebastián Aguilera de Heredia (1561-1627) and Pablo Bruna (1611-1679). It starts with the patronage of Antonio de Cabezón, the spiritual father of Spanish organ music, and it ends with a 'Batalha' by a Portuguese composer, Pedro de Araujo (?-1684), who in his way prolonged a tradition which lasted for more than a century.

"Sebastián Aguilera de Heredia, organist of Huesca cathedral from 1585, then organist of the Seo of Zaragoza from 1603, was a contemporary of Correa de Arauxo, of the English Virginal players, and of the Dutchman J.P. Sweelinck. This was an era of remarkable development in the writing of works for keyboard instruments; an intermediate period between the first transcriptions of vocal music, glossed to a greater or lesser extent, and the establishment of a more instrumental style. Aguilera had a strong personality, and his work possesses a surprising mixture of vitality and mystic depth.

"In the same region, fifty years later, Pablo Bruna, called 'the blind man of Daroca' carried this evolution further in work in a more popular vein, and of a more direct charm.

"It seemed logical to us to have Pablo Bruna's works played on a later organ in the town where he was the organist of the 'Iglesia Colegiata'. The organ in the church of Santo Domingo does in fact possess all the colours his music calls for. For Aguilera de Heredia's works, the polyphonic organ of Sádaba with its transparent luminous sound was chosen.

"Here is a brief commentary on each of the works in this programme:

"1. Cabezón, 'Diferencias sobre el canto del Caballero': Five couplet present the song twice to the soprano, then to the tenor, the alto and the bass successively. Cabezón's modal harmony and delicate counterpoint express all the nostalgia of this popular melody. The song relates the sad end of the 'Caballero', the flower of Olmedo, assassinated at night by some bandits.

"2. Cabezón, 'Gallarda Milanesa': Galliard in two parts followed by an ornamental variation. The score evokes the ambivalence between the organ, the harp and the lute, instruments which Cabezón played when he was a court musician. There is a suppleness in the ornamentation which perhaps even surpasses the relative rigidity of the pipe instrument.

"3. Pablo Bruna, 'Tiento de mano derecha y en medio a dos tiples': A particularity of the Spanish organ is its 'jeux coupés' between the C and the C# in the middle of the keyboard. This brilliant invention makes it possible to colour the top part of the bass in different ways which allows the flowering of 'Tientos de medio registro', characteristic of the Spanish tradition, and of which it seems that Francisco Peraza was the inventor. It is this register (often made with the muffled 'Corneta') which allows these impressive ornamental solos, abundant among the Iberian composers, to be played on an organ with a single keyboard, like the two instruments in this recording. Bruna's solo is unusual because it begins with a solo voice, and then goes on to two solo voices from the middle of the piece.

"4. Pablo Bruna, 'Tiento sobre la letanía de la Virgen': This is another work which allowed exploits on the register of an organ with a single keyboard, but with cut registers. It is an impressive ensemble of variations on a hymn to the Virgin. The final progression, in which the composer allows himself to be carried away by a kind of mystical delirium, evokes other famous litanies, like those Jehan Alain.

"Being blind, Bruna was probably not able to control the writing of his compositions, and this work has come to us in quite a confusing version, especially for the one who wants to follow the successive regular harmonies of the main theme. There are obvious errors, and, in the manner of Guy Bovet, who has very kindly given them his attention, I took the libert of reordering certain passages.

"5. Pablo Bruna, 'Tiento de falsas': The 'Tiento de falsas' (that is: of discords), equivalent to the Italian Toccata of the 'durezze' is also a typical genre of Spanish literature. It is the ideal occasion to listen to a solo of 'Flautado'. Its discords being enhanced by the mesotonic temperament of the instrument. It will be heard as a painful meditation, like the distortions found in El Greco's paintings.

"6. Pablo Bruna, 'Tiento de medio registro de bajo': Here, it is the bass register of the keyboard which is entrusted with the solo. In this case, owing to the lack of a trumpet of eight feet, I have used a 'Bajoncillo' of four feet, and eight feet in depth. The register is quite free, foreshadowing certain characteristics of the eighteenth century French composers, enhancing the clairon solos with the bourdon stops of 16'.

"7. Pablo Bruna, 'Gaytilla con dos tiples': In this piece, which is like a popular dance, it is a duo of the 'Clarín' that holds the melody. Like in many Spanish pieces, the rhythm is particularly lively, readily combining the groups of quavers in 3+3+2, or in other arrangements which are doubtlessly evidence of flamenco influence.

"8. Aguilera de Heredia, 'Ensalada': The first work of Aguilera de Heredia is a surprising 'pot-pourri', a real Russian salad, where the most varied ideas are side by side, and where the most unexpected rhythms clash. This is one of the aspects of the personality of this composer, in other respects capable of the most demanding concentration in his more liturgical works. When necessary, I have opted for the course of assimilating the secondary voices (written in regular time-values, doubtless for convenience) to an irregular rhythm (3+3+2) or the main melodic elements, which seems to me the only natural way of playing such a bouncy piece. Perhaps it would have been better to have an instrument with two keyboard, but the surprising resources of the single keyboard allow a variety of colours which are very convincing.

"9. Aguilera de Heredia, 'Salve de primer tono': A new, more serious and more interior tone stamps the works that follow, which may or may not have been inspired by plainsong. Now it is the decorative counterpoint that takes the lead. And it does so in a serious style that does not entirely abandon the rhythmical surprises, but integrates them in a more measured way.

"10. Aguilera de Heredia, 'Segunda obra de primer tono': One feels that in this work there is relation with the fantasias by English and Dutch composers. The breathing of the work is organised on the almost continuous presence of a very simple melodic theme, around which we find the adornments of a marvellously expressive counterpoint. Here, as in Bruna's works, the rhythmic cadence goes from binary to ternary at two third of the composition.

"11. Lionel Rogg, 'Improvisation': Since Aguilera de Heredia unfortunately did not write any solo for soprano, I have chosen to sound the 'Corneta' in a 'Tiento de mano derecha' on the song of Kyrie, a Gregorian theme whose contours could have inspired someone like Correa de Arauxo. After an improvisation at the beginning, the work has been somewhat polished in order not to make a blot on it in the middle of its illustrious neighbours.

"12. Aguilera de Heredia, 'Tiento grande de quarto tono': The 'Tiento' by Aguilera is the wisest one, and the most developed. Its theme proposes a diminished fourth with a very impressive effect on the unequal temperament. Here also we can hear the passage of a binary cadence to a ternary, and a spectacular peroration.

"13. Aguilera de Heredia, 'Discurso sobre Los Saeculorum': In this last piece, Aguilar mingles several Gregorian themes which are combined in a counterpoint of a sustained vocal character, which reminds us of certain motets of the school of Josquin des Prés.

"14. Pedro de Araujo, 'Batalha': The first compact disc of the collection, made by Kimberly Marshall, contains the work by Clément Jannequin which doubtlessly inspired the genre of 'batailles' for organ. In the version of Pedro de Arauja's, a Portuguese musician, one will again find the beginning of 'la Guerre' (sic), and later on, certain anecdotal elements. The question is to tell a story, and of course to allow all the sound resources of the instrument, including the Trompetería, to be heard." (Lionel Rogg, tr. Angela Buxton. From the liner notes.)

Performer: Lionel Rogg

1. Antonio de Cabezón - Diferencias Sobre El Canto Llano Del Caballero

2. Antonio de Cabezón - Diferencias Sobre La Gallarda Milanesa

3. Pablo Bruna - Tiento De Primer Tono De Mano Derecha Y En Medio A Dos Tiples

4. Pablo Bruna - Tiento De Segundo Tono Sobre La Letanía De La Virgen

5. Pablo Bruna - Tiento De Falsas De Segundo Tono

6. Pablo Bruna - Tiento De Medio Registro De Bajo

7. Pablo Bruna - Gaytilla De Sexto Tono Con Dos Triples

8. Sebastián Aguilera de Heredia - Obra De Octavo Tono Alto: Ensalada

9. Sebastián Aguilera de Heredia - Salve De Primer Tono (Por Delasolre)

10. Sebastián Aguilera de Heredia - Segunda Obra De Primer Tono

11. Lionel Rogg - Tiento De Mano Derecha Sobre El Canto Llano Del Kyrie (Improvisation)

12. Sebastián Aguilera de Heredia - Tiento Grande De Cuarto Tono

13. Sebastián Aguilera de Heredia - Discurso Sobre Los Saeculorum

14. Pedro de Araujo - Batalha De 6. Tom

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Mosaic Select 30: Boogie Woogie and Blues Piano

"While most Mosaic limited-edition boxed sets concentrate on recordings by an individual bandleader or a single record label, 'Boogie Woogie and Blues Piano' features sessions by a number of different artists from several labels active in the 1930s and early '40s, when boogie-woogie was very popular. Fifteen different pianists are featured (if one counts Lionel Hampton playing two fingered-duo piano in a band setting), though it is the giants of the genre, Meade "Lux" Lewis, Pete Johnson, Albert Ammons, and Jimmy Yancey who are given the most exposure. The first three are individually paired (Johnson and Ammons) and play together as a trio, occasionally accompanying blues vocalist Joe Turner or adding a superfluous rhythm section. Lewis is clearly the most inventive of them all, especially when performing his hit 'Honky Tonk Train Blues' (revived in a big-band setting by rocker Keith Emerson during the '70s) or his lesser-known 'Whistlin' Blues'. Ammons has the strongest rhythmic sense, as displayed in the two takes of 'Shout for Joy'. Johnson is heard in several small group sessions as well, featuring Turner along with alto saxophonist Buster Smith and trumpeter Hot Lips Page. Yancey, who was recorded more sporadically than Lewis, Johnson, and Ammons, is extensively featured, playing solo, accompanying singer Faber Smith and occasionally singing himself. Yancey's slower, blues-drenched style is unmistakable for anyone else, highlighted by his own 'Yancey Stomp' and the two takes of 'Yancey's Bugle Call'. There is a sampling of other pianists, including Joe Sullivan, Mary Lou Williams (who played nearly every style that appeared during her lifetime with authority), Teddy Wilson (who never considered himself a talented boogie-woogie player), Nat King Cole, and Sir Charles Thompson (each of whom duets with Hampton and the more commercial Freddie Slack. The blues piano sessions of Cripple Clarence Lofton wrap this enjoyable collection with a flourish. The sound restoration and Dan Morgenstern's excellent liner notes add to the value of this limited-edition compilation." (Review by Ken Dryden from AllMusic. See here.)

1.1. Meade "Lux" Lewis - Honky Tonk Train Blues

1.2. Meade "Lux" Lewis - Whistlin' Blues

1.3. Meade "Lux" Lewis - Bear Cat Crawl

1.4. Albert Ammons - Shout For Joy

1.5. Albert Ammons - Shout For Joy

1.6. Joe Turner & Pete Johnson - Goin' Away Blues

1.7. Joe Turner & Pete Johnson - Roll 'Em Pete

1.8. Meade "Lux" Lewis, Pete Johnson & Albert Ammons - Boogie Woogie Prayer (Pt. 1)

1.9. Meade "Lux" Lewis, Pete Johnson & Albert Ammons - Boogie Woogie Prayer (Pt. 2)

1.10. Pete Johnson - Boogie Woogie

1.11. Harry James - Boo-Woo

1.12. Harry James - Boo-Woo

1.13. Harry James - Woo-Woo

1.14. Harry James - Woo-Woo

1.15. Harry James - Home James

1.16. Harry James - Jesse

1.17. Pete Johnson & Albert Ammons - Boogie Woogie Man

1.18. Pete Johnson & Albert Ammons - Barrel House Boogie

1.19. Pete Johnson & Albert Ammons - Cuttin' The Boogie

1.20. Pete Johnson & Albert Ammons - Foot Pedal Boogie

1.21. Pete Johnson & Albert Ammons - Walkin' The Boogie

1.22. Pete Johnson & Albert Ammons - Sixth Avenue Express

1.23. Pete Johnson & Albert Ammons - Pine Creek

1.24. Pete Johnson & Albert Ammons - Movin' The Boogie

2.1. Pete Johnson - Cherry Red

2.2. Pete Johnson - Baby, Look At You

2.3. Pete Johnson - Jump For Joy

2.4. Pete Johnson - Lovin' Mama Blues

2.5. Meade "Lux" Lewis, Pete Johnson & Albert Ammons - Cafe Society Rag

2.6. Joe Sullivan - Low Down Dirty Shame

2.7. Joe Sullivan - I Can't Give You Anything But Love

2.8. Joe Sullivan - I Can't Give You Anything But Love

2.9. Benny Carter - Joe Turner Blues

2.10. Benny Carter - Joe Turner Blues

2.11. Benny Carter - Beale Street Blues

2.12. Benny Carter - Beale Street Blues

2.13. Will Bradley - Down The Road A Piece

2.14. Will Bradley - Down The Road A Piece

2.15. Will Bradley - Down The Road A Piece

2.16. Ray McKinley & Freddie Slack - Southpaw Serenade

2.17. Ray McKinley & Freddie Slack - Southpaw Serenade

2.18. Will Bradley - Basin Street Boogie

2.19. Will Bradley - Basin Street Boogie

2.20. Teddy Wilson - A Touch Of Boogie

2.21. Lionel Hampton - The Munson Street Breakdown

2.22. Lionel Hampton - Central Avenue Breakdown

2.23. Lionel Hampton - Bouncing At The Beacon

2.24. Henry "Red" Allen - K.K. Boogie

2.25. Henry "Red" Allen - K.K. Boogie

3.1. Mary Lou Williams - Little Joe From Chicago

3.2. Jimmy Yancey - Yancey Stomp

3.3. Jimmy Yancey - State Street Special

3.4. Jimmy Yancey - Tell 'Em About Me

3.5. Jimmy Yancey - Five O'Clock Blues

3.6. Jimmy Yancey - Slow And Easy Blues

3.7. Jimmy Yancey - The Mellow Blues

3.8. Jimmy Yancey - I Received A Letter

3.9. Jimmy Yancey - East St. Louis Blues

3.10. Jimmy Yancey - Bear Trap Blues

3.11. Jimmy Yancey - Old Quaker Blues

3.12. Jimmy Yancey - Cryin' In My Sleep

3.13. Jimmy Yancey - Death Letter Blues

3.14. Jimmy Yancey - Death Letter Blues

3.15. Jimmy Yancey - Yancey's Bugle Call

3.16. Jimmy Yancey - Yancey's Bugle Call

3.17. Jimmy Yancey - 35th And Dearborn

3.18. Jimmy Yancey - 35th And Dearborn

3.19. Cripple Clarence Lofton - Strut That Thing

3.20. Cripple Clarence Lofton - Monkey Man Blues

3.21. Cripple Clarence Lofton - Policy Blues

3.22. Cripple Clarence Lofton - Brown Skin Gal

3.23. Cripple Clarence Lofton - You Done Tore Your Playhouse Down

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Across History, the Lovers Aligned

Compilation released in 2015 on Danish 'nu-industrial' label Janushoved. Features a familiar roster and blend of grainy industrial, ambient and techno while still delivering fresh, engaging music that doesn't fall victim to being derivative or predictable. Edition of two hundred cassettes.

A1. Mikkel V. Dunkerley - Intro (Trails Of Transhistorical Love)

A2. Ballista - Dress Drawn Aside To Reveal A Childhood Scar

A3. Genoasejlet - Seksten Stjerner, En For Hvert Et Minde

A4. Lace & Collar - For Hussein Chalayan

A5. Varg & Vanity Productions - The Colour Of Precious Stones

A6. Mischa Pavlovski - Liberosis

A7. P.E. - Arethusa

B1. Lucia - Naar Skytten Fælder Solens Panther

B2. Olympisk Løft - Jael Og Sisera

B3. Internazionale - The Men Hid In The Grass Of The Apennines

B4. Rosen & Spyddet - Istanbul (Til Min Lilje)

B5. Liberty Uganda - Swart Sterre

B6. Mikkel V. Dunkerley - Outro (Lovers Of Tomorrow)

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Down in the Basement: Joe Bussards Treasure Trove of Vintage 78s, 1926-1937

Excellent collection of vintage 78rpm singles from the nineteen twenties and thirties. There are many recognisable names here such as Gary Davis, Blind Blake, Uncle Dave Macon and Big Bill Broonzy, however it is an excellently curated collection. The Stripling Brothers' 'The Lost Child' and Cajun duo Soileau & Robin's 'Easy Rider Blues' are, personally, new found favourites.

1. The Stripling Brothers - The Lost Child

2. Big Bill Broonzy - How You Want It Done?

3. Luis Russell & His Orchestra -The (New) Call Of The Freaks

4. The Dixon Brothers - The School House Fire

5. Weems String Band - Greenback Dollar

6. Rev. Gary Davis - You Got To Go Down

7. A.A. Gray & Seven-Foot Dilly - The Old Ark's A-Moving

8. James Coles Washboard Four - Runnin' Wild

9. Charley Jordan - Keep It Clean

10. Bill Johnson's Louisiana Jug Band - Get The "L" On Down The Road

11. Sweet Brothers & Ernest Stoneman - I Got A Bulldog

12. Coleman & Harper - Old Hen Cackle

13. Bessie Brown - Song From A Cotton Field

14. Gene Autry - Atlanta Bound

15. Soileau & Robin - Easy Rider Blues

16. Bill Brown & His Brownies - Hot Lips

17. Uncle Dave Macon - Uncle Dave's Beloved Solo

18. Blind Blake - Hastings Street

19. Field Ward & The Grayson County Railsplitters - Ain't That Trouble In Mind

20. Corley Family - Give The World A Smile

21. Long "Cleve" Reed - Original Stack O'Lee Blues

22. Fess Williams & His Royal Flush Orchestra - Hot Town

23. Gitfiddle Jim - Paddlin' Blues

24. Grinnell Giggers - Plow Boy Hop

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Before Man Was, War Waited for Him

Grim, twisted power electronics compiled for a Los Angeles live show in 2018 that featured the artists here. Jointly released on US labels Crimes of the Crown and Slave Chandelier in an edition of one hundred cassettes. Includes contribution's from duo Breathing Problem's true crime-focused outlet Interior One, Jim Haras's Deterge and duo Terror Cell Unit which includes Mackenzie Chami. 

 

A1. Interior One - Dripping Springs

A2. Deterge - Adelphoparasitism

A3. Sarin Snow - Saint Michael

A4. Blackwatch - Hail The Coming Firing Squads

B1. Terror Cell Unit - Burn In Life. Burn In Eternity.

B2. Wonderland Club - Onset

B3. Interracial Sex & HHL - Ideological Vitiligo

B4. White Rhino Taxidermy - Constrictor Ultra

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A Group of Sexual Perverts 2

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Forced Womanhood

Noise compilation from defunct American label 23 Productions, features contributions centering on themes of sadomasochism and gender dysphoria. If the repugnance of the subject matter (and often vile samples) can be penetrated, there are lot of very, very good tracks here from lesser known noise artists as well as the likes of Dominick Fernow (as Prurient) and Richard Ramirez (as Black Leather Jesus). Not for listening during meal times.

A1. Cleanse - Angel's Trumpet

A2. Clew Of Thesus - Cut Me

A3. Prurient - Tailor

A4. Prosexist - Girl Power

A5. Karlheinz - What You Want

A6. Ga-Ne-Tli-Yv-S-Di - Penal Exile

B1. Immaculate Grotesque

B2. Eugene's Council - Taint (Needledick Mix)

B3. Eugene's Council - Taint

B4. Black Leather Jesus - Issues

B5. V.D. - No Love For A Bottom

B6. Loop Retard - Untitled

B7. Survival Unit - Let Me Die A Woman

C1. Raquel de Grimstone & Prosexist - Paint You Up

C2. Moribund - Cut It Off

C3. Moribund - My Salvation

C4. The Viodre - Phalcam Mancunt

D1. Panicsville - Slut Torture

D2. Karmanjakan Intonarumori - Locked For Humiliation/Tied Down For The Transformation

D3. Human Is Filth - Penectomic Scisson Venesection

D4. Concrete Violin - Castration Anxiety Overcome

D5. Mansfield Deathtrap - Bitch Me In

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Harsh Noise Wall - Crackling Armageddon

"Sixteen crackling walls of fire and brimstone come colliding together in this titanic wall compilation - bringing together the very best. These Crackling Wall Demons are of an otherwordly nature when it comes to their wallcraft and their uncanny abilities at sculpting textural walls with such immersive weight and juddering, piercing immediacy. These walls blind and suffocate - leaving naught but ash and cinder in their wake." (From the Bandcamp page. Compilation is available as "Name Your Price". See here.)

This is a mammoth (five and a half hours) and substantial compilation from UK web label Harsh Noise Wall. Many of these textural projects are more ambient in cadence than one might expect from the description, however this hopefully allows the uninitiated to see the craft that goes into the creation of walls by the likes of Sergey Pakhomov (Train Cemetery) or Clive Henry. While there is plenty for the listener craving obliterating walls here (Ivan Sandakov's Cannibal Meat Holocoast or Condo Horro, for example), the overall feel of this compilation is a display of hi-fidelity technical sophistication in a style often written of as a mere novelty (which isn't to say, unfortunately, that it isn't awash with low effort trash which lends itself to this presumption).

1. Train Cemetery - Drouth

2. A Raja's Mesh Men - Smouldering Transmission

3. Cannibal Meat Holocaust - Devouring Rotting Head

4. Eurydyka - Untitled

5. Black Matter Phantasm - Untitled

6. See Through Buildings - Rise Of The Cracklin'

7. Clive Henry - Parliament, Palace, Church

8. Uitgeschakeld - There Is A Crackle In Everything. That's How The Darkness Gets In.

9. Dosis Letalis - Static Prophecy, Crackling Revelation!

10. Big Hole - High Dry Toast

11. Condo Horro - Construction Site Arson

12. Dirac Sea - Angst-rom

13. Visitation - Disintegrating From Within

14. The Baku - Cycles Of Sleep

15. Type 2 - Fumet De Crackles

16. Urban Decay - Simple

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Bass Clarinet

"Romantic expression emerged as an urgent desire and need in music at the beginning of the nineteenth century and introduced sweeping changes and innovations into all the areas constituting the general field of music. 

"The chromatic extension of harmony and melody gradually moved out toward the limits of tonality and necessarily sped up the technical development of the orchestral instrumentarium, especially of the family of wind instruments. The expansion of form, larger dynamic ambitus, and increasing importance of the rhythmic element also required the continuous expansion of the orchestra. This tendency finally culminated in the mingling of new tone colors with the extended tone masses. 

"Mozart's quest for such new tone colors had led him to discover the beauty of the low clarinet registers. He introduced the basset horn, a variant of the alto clarinet, into some of his works. Thus it is not surprising that the romantic period witnessed the addition of a bass instrument to the clarinet family, the youngest of the orchestral wind groups. The bass instruments constructed in French, German, Italian, and Belgian workshops during those years (often independently of each other!) today remind us not so much of bass clarinets proper as of the primitive musical implements of indigenous peoples. 

"The initial design of the bass clarinet, with its bent, doubled wooden tube reminiscent of the bassoon or tangled windings, was nothing short of a monstrosity. Its design notwithstanding, the early bass clarinet was distinguished by a tonal magic that earned it the name of glicibarifono, 'sweet-deep-toner.' The Belgian music scholar Francois Joseph Fétis certified its special tonal qualities at a bass clarinet presentation around 1832, 'At the sight of this huge, downright gigantic instrument most members of the audience believed that they would be hearing harsh and rough tones. Instead they heard full strong, and mellow tones.' 

"Giacomo Meyerbeer (1791-1864), a great name in the field of the grand opera, was so fond of the melodious sound of the bass clarinet that he assigned the instrument a major recitative in his opera Les Huguenots (1836), the first bass clarinet solo in the whole of music history! During the same period the famous Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax (1814-94) developed a model with an elongated tube form, the immediate precursor of today's bass clarinet, and thus paved the way for the instrument's rapid dissemination. In subsequent years there was hardly an opera composer who did not avail himself of the bass clarinet for the heightening of the mood at the major turning points in the action. Richard Wagner and Giuseppe Verdi employed the bass clarinet to create emphases of the greatest intensity. 

"Since the romantic symphonic literature was slower to move away from the traditional orchestral instrumentation, we do not meet with the bass clarinet here until later on. The 'modernists' Berlioz and Liszt, the late romantics, and composers of the twentieth century, however, have fully exploited the tonal diversity of the bass clarinet. Soon its tonal diversity was featured even outside of noble legato passages. The bass clarinet also became in-dispensable in film music. Borrowing on its employment and function in the opera orchestra, the bass clarinet succeeds in heightening even the most electric cinematic suspense. 

"The development of the bass clarinet from a successfully integrated orchestral instrument to an emancipated solo instrument was a gradual one. Most compositions for solo bass clarinet date from the decades after 1950. A few isolated works form the only exceptions: August Klughardt's 'Romanze' (ca. 1890), Francois Rasse's 'Song' (1911), and Othmar Schoeck's 'Sonata for Bass Clarinet and Piano op. 41' (1928)." (From the liner notes. Translated by Susan Marie Praeder.)

Performers: Renata Rusche, Berliner Symphoniker, Neil Varon, Stefan Pintev, Rodrigo Reichel, Thomas Oepen, Christoph Groth, Werner Hagen

1. Othmar Schoeck - Sonata, Op. 41: I. Gemessen

2. Othmar Schoeck - Sonata, Op. 41: II. Bewegt

3. Othmar Schoeck - Sonata, Op. 41: III. Bewegt

4. Olivier Messiaen - 'Abime Des Oiseaux'

5. Frits Celis - 'Da Uno A Cinque', Op. 27: I. Andante Sostenuto - Quasi Berceuse

6. Frits Celis - 'Da Uno A Cinque', Op. 27: II. Molto Agitato - Allegro Con Fuoco - Molto Tranquillo

7. Harald Genzmer - Bass Clarinet Sonata: I. Moderato

8. Harald Genzmer - Bass Clarinet Sonata: II. Presto

9. Harald Genzmer - Bass Clarinet Sonata: III. Intermezzo: Tranquillo

10. Harald Genzmer - Bass Clarinet Sonata: IV. Finale: Vivacissimo, Moderato

11. Dietrich Erdmann - Bass Clarinet Concerto: I. Adagio,Vivace

12. Dietrich Erdmann - Bass Clarinet Concerto: II. Adante, Quasi Sostenuto

13. Dietrich Erdmann - Bass Clarinet Concerto: III. Poco Adagio, Cantabile

14. Dietrich Erdmann - Bass Clarinet Concerto: IV. Allegro Grazioso

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Dust-to-Digital - Goodbye, Babylon

A massive and definitive collection of early 20th century American gospel music. Housed in a wooden box with a 200-page booklet featuring photographs of artists, Bible verses and complete lyric transcriptions, this compilation represents a serious effort to document the religious musical heritage of north America in the era that proceeded the long playing record (probably one of the best since Harry Smith's Anthology of American Folk Music, or Alan Lomax's Southern Journey series, although the focus of those collections was not exclusively on gospel music). Featuring many names you would expect to find, such as Blind Lemon Jefferson, Washington Phillips, The Carter Family, Bascom Lamar Lunsford and, of course, Blind Willie Johnson, as well as many rare and underappreciated gems, almost forgotten to time. The sixth and final disc is a collection of sermons.

1.1. Rev. T.T. Rose And Singers - Goodbye, Babylon (Part 1)
1.2. Da Costa Woltz's Southern Broadcasters - Are You Washed In The Blood Of The Lamb
1.3. Roosevelt Graves And Brother - Woke Up This Morning (With My Mind On Jesus)
1.4. Alabama Sacred Harp Singers - Present Joys
1.5. Blind Lemon Jefferson - All I Want Is That Pure Religion
1.6. J. E. Mainer's Mountaineers - Satisfied
1.7. Chuck Wagon Gang - As The Life Of A Flower
1.8. Holy Ghost Sanctified Singers - Thou Carest Lord, For Me
1.9. Washington Phillips - Lift Him Up That's All
1.10. Golden Gate Jubilee Quartet - Rock My Soul
1.11. Ernest V. Stoneman's Dixie Mountaineers - There's A Light Lit Up In Galilee
1.12. Arizona Dranes - Crucifixion
1.13. The Blue Chips - Crying Holy Unto The Lord
1.14. Louvin Brothers - I'll Never Go Back
1.15. Luther Magby - Blessed Are The Poor In Spirit
1.16. Mahalia Jackson - God's Gonna Separate The Wheat From The Tares
1.17. Rev. Gary Davis - I Belong To The Band - Hallelujah!
1.18. The Carter Family - River Of Jordan
1.19. Lil McClintock - Sow Good Seeds
1.20. Bryant's Jubilee Quartet - I'll Be Satisfied
1.21. Frank Palmes - Troubled 'Bout My Soul
1.22. Bascom Lamar Lunsford - Dry Bones
1.23. Carlisle Brothers - Jesus My All
1.24. Taskiana Four - Creep Along, Moses
1.25. Tennessee Music And Printing Company Quartet - Joy Bells
1.26. Elder David Ross - He Gave Me A Heart To Love
1.27. Bessie Jones And The Sea Island Singers - O Day

2.1. Brother Claude Ely - There Ain't No Grave Gonna Hold My Body Down
2.2. Elder Curry And Congregation - Memphis Flu
2.3. Sister O. M. Terrell - The Bible's Right
2.4. Stanley Brothers - Standing In The Need Of Prayer
2.5. Carl Smith - The Blood That Stained The Old Rugged Cross
2.6. Thomas A. Dorsey - How About You
2.7. Skip James - Jesus Is A Mighty Good Leader
2.8. Charles Butts Sacred Harp Singers - Murillo's Lesson
2.9. Kentucky Ramblers - Glory Glory Glory Glory To The Lamb
2.10. Elder Richard Bryant's Sanctified Singers - Come Over Here
2.11. Jaybird Coleman - I'm Gonna Cross The River Of Jordan - Some O' These Days
2.12. Trumpeteers - Milky White Way
2.13. Johnson Family Singers - Deliverance Will Come
2.14. North Carolina Cooper Boys - Daniel In The Den Of Lions
2.15. Sister Cally Fancy - Goin' To Heaven In The Sanctified Way
2.16. Jimpson - No More, My Lord
2.17. King's Sacred Quartette - This World Can't Stand Long
2.18. Virginia Dandies - God's Getting Worried
2.19. Empire Jubilee Quartet - Get Right Church
2.20. Rosie Hibler And Family - Move Members Move
2.21. Huggins & Phillips Sacred Harp Singers - Lover Of The Lord
2.22. A. A. Gray And Seven Foot Dilly - The Old Ark's A Moving
2.23. Blind Roger Hays - On My Way To Heaven
2.24. Uncle Dave Macon - The Bible's True
2.25. Price Family Sacred Singers - Ship Of Glory
2.26. Elders McIntorsh And Edwards - Since I Laid My Burden Down
2.27. Elder Effie Hall And Congregation - Precious Lord Hold My Hand
2.28. Blind Willie Davis - When The Saints Go Marching In
2.29. Roaring Lion & Cyril Monrose String Orchestra - Jonah, Come Out The Wilderness

3.1. Dinwiddie Colored Quartet - Down On The Old Camp Ground
3.2. Norfolk Jubilee Quartet - My Lord's Gonna Move This Wicked Race
3.3. Edward W. Clayborn - Your Enemy Cannot Harm You (But Watch Your Close Friend)
3.4. McVay & Johnson - Ain't Gonna Lay My Armor Down
3.5. James And Martha Carson - I'll Fly Away
3.6. Alabama Sacred Harp Singers - Heavenly Vision
3.7. Blind Willie Johnson - Lord I Just Can't Keep From Crying
3.8. The Jubilee Gospel Team - Lower My Dying Head
3.9. Two Gospel Keys - You've Got To Move
3.10. Flatt And Scruggs & Foggy Mountain Boys - That Home Above
3.11. Golden Gate Jubilee Quartet - Golden Gate Gospel Train
3.12. Roosevelt Graves And Brother - I'll Be Rested (When The Roll Is Called)
3.13. Eddie Head And His Family - Down On Me
3.14. Blind Joe Taggart - Goin' To Rest Where Jesus Is
3.15. Louis Washington - Got Heaven In My View
3.16. Rev. Sister Mary Nelson - Judgment
3.17. Cotton Top Mountain Sanctified Singers - I Want Two Wings To Veil My Face
3.18. Rev. D. C. Rice And Sanctified Congregation - We Got The Same Kinda Power Over Here
3.19. Washington Phillips - What Are They Doing In Heaven Today
3.20. T.C.I. Women's Four - That Great Day
3.21. North Canton Quartet - I'm Bound For Home
3.22. Washington White - I Am In The Heavenly Way
3.23. Sam Morgan's Jazz Band - Over In The Glory Land
3.24. Rev. Anderson Johnson - Death In The Morning
3.25. Maddox Brothers & Rose - In The Land Where We'll Never Grow Old
3.26. Dock Walsh - Bathe In That Beautiful Pool
3.27. Hank Williams - I'll Have A New Body

4.1. Wilma Lee And Stoney Cooper - Walking My Lord Up Calvary Hill
4.2. Sheffield Quartet - Christ Arose
4.3. Thomas A. Dorsey - If You See My Savior
4.4. The Jubilee Gospel Team - Let Jesus Lead You
4.5. Golden Gate Jubilee Quartet - Found A Wonderful Saviour
4.6. Arizona Dranes And Choir - He Is My Story
4.7. Ernest V. Stoneman And His Dixie Mountaineers - I Remember Calvary
4.8. Blind Willie Johnson - Take Your Burden To The Lord And Leave It There
4.9. Rev. W. M. Mosley - If You Follow Jesus
4.10. Blind Benny Paris And Wife - Hide Me In The Blood Of Jesus
4.11. Wade Mainer - I'll Be A Friend To Jesus
4.12. Tennessee Mountaineers - Standing On The Promises
4.13. Mother McCollum - Jesus Is My Air-o-plane
4.14. Stovepipe No. 1 - I've Got Salvation In My Heart
4.15. Blind Alfred Reed - I Mean To Live For Jesus
4.16. Heavenly Gospel Singers - When Was Jesus Born
4.17. Blue Sky Boys - Come To The Savior
4.18. Dorothy Melton - I Want Jesus To Walk With Me
4.19. Laura Henton - He's Coming Soon
4.20. Okeh Atlanta Sacred Harp Singers - Return Again
4.21. Rev. Gary Davis - I Am The True Vine
4.22. Bela Lam And His Greene County Singers - Sweet Story Of Old
4.23. Elder Golden P. Harris - I'll Lead A Christian Life
4.24. Famous Blue Jay Singers - I'm Leaning On The Lord
4.25. Blind Willie Harris - Where He Leads Me I Will Follow
4.26. Luther Magby - Jesus Is Getting Us Ready For The Great Day

5.1. Silver Leaf Quartette Of Norfolk - Daniel Saw The Stone
5.2. Alfred G. Karnes - Called To The Foreign Field
5.3. Ridgel's Fountain Citians - Hallelujah To The Lamb
5.4. Deacon A. Wilson - You Need Jesus On Your Side
5.5. Pace Jubilee Singers - You'd Better Mind
5.6. J. T. Allison's Sacred Harp Singers - Exhilaration
5.7. Ernest Phipps & His Congreagation - If The Light Has Gone Out Of Your Soul
5.8. Brown's Ferry Four - Keep On The Firing Line
5.9. Bailes Brothers - Romans Ten And Nine
5.10. Wade Mainer - Standing Outside
5.11. Monroe Brothers - Sinner You Better Get Ready
5.12. Blind Willie McTell - I Got To Cross The River Of Jordan
5.13. Dock Reed And Vera Hall Ward - Free At Last
5.14. Bessie Johnson's Sanctified Singers - The Whole World In His Hand
5.15. Mahalia Jackson - Amazing Grace
5.16. Blind Mamie Forehand - Honey In The Rock
5.17. Seventh Day Adventist Choir - On Jordan's Stormy Banks We Stand
5.18. Elder J. E. Burch - My Heart Keeps Singing
5.19. Joshua White - I Don't Intend To Die In Egyptland
5.20. Daniels-Deason Sacred Harp Singers -  Primrose Hill
5.21. The Carter Family - Keep On The Sunny Side
5.22. Mrs. L. Reed & Mrs. T. A. Duncans - Light In The Valley
5.23. The Georgia Peach - When The Saints Go Marching In
5.24. Jimmie Strothers - We Are Almost Down To The Shore
5.25. Sister Rosetta Tharpe - Strange Things Happening Every Day
5.26. Rev. T. T. Rose And Singers - Goodbye, Babylon (Part 2)

6.1. Rev. J. M. Gates - Gettin' Ready For Christmas Day
6.2. Rev. A. W. Nix - Black Diamond Express To Hell (Part 1)
6.3. Rev. A. W. Nix - Black Diamond Express To Hell (Part 2)
6.4. Rev. J. C. Burnett - The Downfall Of Nebuchadnezzar
6.5. Rev. Isaiah Shelton - The Liar
6.6. Rev. Emmet Dickenson - Hell And What It Is
6.7. Elder J. E. Burch - The Church And The Kingdom
6.8. Rev. T. E. Weems - If I Have A Ticket Lord Can I Ride
6.9. Rev. Benny Campbell - You Must Be Born Again
6.10. Rev. E. D. Campbell - Take Me To The Water
6.11. The Jubilee Gospel Team - Oh, Lord Remember Me
6.12. Rev. E. S. (Shy) Moore - Christ, The Teacher
6.13. Rev. Johnnie Blakey - King Of Kings
6.14. Elder Otis Jones - O Lord I'm Your Child
6.15. Rev. Webb - Moses Was Rescued By A Negro Woman
6.16. Rev. George Jones And Congregation - That White Mule Of Sin
6.17. Deacon Leon Davis - Deacon's Prayer Services
6.18. Rev. S. J. 'Steamboat Bill' Worell - The Prodigal Son
6.19. H. C. Gatewood (D.D.I.M.R.A.) - Well Of Salvation
6.20. Rev. F. W. McGee - Jonah In The Belly Of The Whale
6.21. Rev. J. C. Burnett - The Gambler's Doom
6.22. Hallelujah Joe - The Prodigal's Return (The Things I Usta Do I Don't Do No More)
6.23. Rev. T. E. Weems - God Is Mad With Man
6.24. Rev. J. M. Milton - The Black Camel Of Death
6.25. Rev. J. M. Gates With His Congregation - Death Might Be Your Santa Claus

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Hot Women: Women Singers From The Torrid Regions Of The World

Features artwork and notes from legendary cartoonist and obsessive shellac collector Robert Crumb (you can read more about this in his excellent interview with Mats Gustafsson here). This is one of several compilations Crumb has contributed art to, including 2006's "The Stuff That Dreams Are Made Of" on Yazoo, and his own selections on Abrams' "R. Crumb's Heroes Of Blues, Jazz & Country" from the same year. Crumb has always had a fascination with the inate power of the female form, and the striking, butch features of our cover singer here should come as no surprise to anyone familiar with the terrific and terrifying forms of his more erotic artwork. Musically speaking, whenever we dive into this era surprises are plentiful. Here is no exception: the theme allows for a broad range of styles, from cajun blues to latin music to Indian and Burmese folk music. There is plenty to relax, move and impress while we imagine ourselves as wayward travelers in a bygone era.

1. Cleoma Falcon - Blues Negres
2. Lydia Mendoza Y Familia - Mexico En Una Laguna
3. Toña La Negra - El Cacahuatero
4. Grupo De 'La Alegria' - El Tambor De La Alegria
5. Leona Gabriel - Liva
6. Araci Côrtes - Quero Sossego
7. Las Cuatro Huasas - La Papa Araucana
8. La Niña De Los Peines - Sevillanas Number 2 (The Girl Of The Combs)
9. Rosina Trubia Gioiosa - Lu Fistinu Di Palermo
10. Rita Abadzi - Mime Stelis Mana Anastin Ameriki
11. Maria Vasileiathou - Arostisa Manoula Mou
12. Cheikha Tetma - Guenene Tini
13. Aïcha Relizania - Khraïfi
14. Julie Marsellaise - Yama N'chauf Haja Tegennen
15. Ayda Sönmez - Neva Hicaz Gazel
16. Hamsa Khalafe & Ali Atia - Ballali Madja
17. Hadija Binti Abdulla - Bina Adamu, Part II
18. Maboudana & Badolo - Chant D'invitation A La Danse
19. Noforonin Dratsiambakaina, Hirain-Drazaivelo & Christine Zanany - Miverena Rahavana
20. Miss Nilam Bai - [Title In Hindustani]
21. Yadana Myit - [Title In Burmese]
22. Cô Ba-Thinh & Khâm-Thîen - Hát Du
23. Emma Bush & Johnny Noble - Lei E
24. Chants Populaires Tahitiens - Chant d'Amour

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Yazoo - Alabama Blues, 1927-1931

An excellent early compilation of Alabama bluesmen from the unrivaled Yazoo label. The bulk of the albums tracks are the work of Clifford Gibson and Edward Thompson, who both have unique styles and some staggeringly enjoyable songs. Gibson, in particular, was unique as a musician. The liner notes state: "the semi-improvisatory [sic] nature of his guitars licks makes his style, like Blind Lemon Jefferson's, somewhat inimitable" and that "all of Gibson's solos featured instrumental breaks which were, more often than not, absent from other country blues." Musically, Thompson is just as interesting: "all of [his] blues are in the key of E, he avoids monotony by changing his vocal delivery from piece to piece, as Blind Lemon Jefferson did." Certainly a case emerges for the depth of Jefferson's effortless talents, though each musician (as well as others featured) is very much his own man. Other notable highlights are Ed Bell's guitar work on "Mean Conductor Blues", which chimes with locomotive regularity under Bell's expressive vocal, and Marshall Owens' "Try Me One More Time"—a truly exception song that speaks for itself.

A1. Barefoot Bill - Snigglin' Blues
A2. Clifford Gibson - Don't Put That Thing On Me
A3. Jay Bird Coleman - Coffee Grinder Blues
A4. Edward Thompson - Seven Sister Blues
A5. Ed Bell - Mean Conductor Blues
A6. Clifford Gibson - Tired Of Being Mistreated, Pt. 2
A7. Edward Thompson - Florida Bound
B1. Clifford Gibson - Keep Your Windows Pinned
B2. Edward Thompson - West Virginia Blues
B3. Clifford Gibson - Whiskey Moan Blues
B4. Edward Thompson - Showers Of Rain Blues
B5. Marshall Owens - Try Me One More Time
B6. Marshall Owens - Texas Blues
B7. George "Bullet" Williams - The Escaped Convict

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Segerhuva - Sweetness Will Overcome

The definitive Segerhuva compilation and one of the best noise/industrial compilations of its decade. The cover evokes a murky, sinister underworld of urbane privacy and the sound running through the compilation is sophisticated, shadowy and intoxicating to match. Alongside this, there is a raw emotional current patterned into many of the compilation tracks and the title; a reflection of the bleeding heart-red of the cover. Much for the imagination. Scandinavian mainstays Sewer Election, MNEM, Ochu, Treriksröset and Blod take the fore, with a notable Japanoise appearance from Government Alpha. One of the few Sharon's Last Party tracks can also be heard here (an excellent and underrated project): a glitzy lounge jam underwritten by an intense, threatening synth drone. This track is an excellent proof-of-concept for the whole compilation. Drug trafficking discussed in hushed tones in a high end city bar.

1. Sewer Election - What Love Am I Supposed To Show You?
2. Koeff - Offer
3. Skin Area - Post-Raw
4. MNEM - Syphilitic Solar Surge
5. Jarl - Envägskommunikation
6. Moljebka Pvlse - Cora
7. Institut - Choose
8. Government Alpha - Dimple
9. Sharon's Last Party - Cocktail Pussycat
10. Treriksröset - Eating Tarmac
11. IRM - Like Hearts
12. Ochu - Uhmghnn-trådarna Som Tyglar Samvetets Svets
13. Martin Bladh - Safe As Me
14. Irgun Z'wai Leumi - Telefunkel
15. Barrikad - I Don't
16. Blod - Heartbreaker

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