Art Farmer - Farmer's Market

Enjoyable outing from a pre-Jazztet Art Farmer. Hank Mobley appears on tenor on all but two tracks (the ballad 'Reminiscing' and muted vamp 'By Myself') and Farmer's trumpet is backed by the always terrific Kenny Drew on piano, be-bop mainstay Addison Farmer on bass, and an early appearance from Elvin Jones on drums; the latter should need no introduction. The mood here is light, airy and has all of the carefree hustle and bustle the title suggests. Even the more sombre numbers have the comfort in them of a breezy weekend afternoon. 

Performers: Art Farmer (tp), Hank Mobley (t-sx), Kenny Drew (pi), Addison Farmer (bs), Elvin Jones (dr)

 

A1. With Prestige

A2. Ad-Dis-Un

A3. Farmer's Market

B1. Reminiscin'

B2. By Myself

B3. Wailin' With Hank

mp3/320kbps

Herbert Howells - Requiem

As a student in London he lost friends and contemporaries to the carnage of the First World War. His Elegy for viola, string quartet and string orchestra, perhaps the first of his works composed explicitly as a memorial, was written in memory of Frances Purcell Warren, a viol player killed at Mons in 1917. One of his closest boyhood friends, Ivor Gurney, whose inherent mental instability was almost certainly exacerbated by his experiences in the trenches, was a later, longer drawn-out loss. Howells himself was exempt from military service on medical grounds due to the onset of Graves Disease, a condition that forced him to give up his first salaried position as sub-organist of Salisbury Cathedral (with a loss of income and independence) and for a time threatened his life—the ultimate loss.
 
The loss of income, security, employment, and of friends in the trenches, was not unique to Howells. Many suffered such setbacks and came to terms with them. But the loss of a child is always uniquely poignant and tragic. The death from polio in 1935 of his nine year-old son Michael was, needless to say, the most traumatic and devastating of Howells’ personal experiences. It is natural enough to expect a deeply personal loss of this nature to be reflected in any artist’s work. On Howells, with his already deeply embedded sense of the elegiac and transient, Michael’s death had a profound effect. It is arguable that everything he subsequently wrote was coloured in some way by it. Three of the works recorded here, including the substantial Requiem for unaccompanied voices, are connected in some way to Michael. None of the remaining pieces was specifically composed as a memorial, but everything on this disc comes from a mind that constantly reflected on the passing pageant of life, and is coloured by that process of reflection.

Performers: Choir Of Trinity College, Cambridge, Stephen Layton

1. A Hymn For St. Cecilia
2. Salve Regina
3. Gloucester Service: Magnificat
4. Gloucester Service: Nunc Dimittis
5. Take Him, Earth, For Cherishing
6. St. Paul’s Service: Magnificat
7. St. Paul’s Service: Nunc Dimittis
8. Requiem: Salvator Mundi
9. Requiem: Psalm 23
10. Requiem: Requiem Aeternam I
11. Requiem: Psalm 121
12. Requiem: Requiem Aeternam II
13. Requiem: I Heard A Voice From Heaven
14. Michael: All My Hope On God Is Founded

mp3/320kbps

Johann Pachelbel - Un Orage d'Avril

"The pieces presented on this disc share a certain 'chamber' character, in the sense that they were surely composed for domestic use. Such is undoubtedly the case with the suites from the Musikalische Ergötzung published in 1695, where, aside from the difficulties entailed in the ‘scordatura’ writing,everything seems to indicate that they were intended for a public of sophisticated amateurs, likely toexperience great ‘musical delight’ (just as we did!) when performing this music, as the very name of thecollection suggests. The origins of the vocal pieces are less clear, and some of these arias were probablywritten for a specific purpose and for dedicatees known to a small circle of friends, such as the simplesong in praise of someone known as ‘Guter Walther’, who seems to have had a strong temperament, orthe impressive funeral laments (Mein Leben and Wie nichtig?) which are interspersed with moralisingcomments. Others seem to have a more generic meaning, in the tradition of songs to celebrate thearrival of a new season – for example Das Gewitter im Aprilen, which compares the volatility of thecapricious April climate and the constancy of friendship.

"But what links all the works on this recording, whether or not they possess a text, is their ability to conjure up painterly images. We find ourselves surrounded by sound pictures that might well have come from the golden age of Dutch and Flemish art, notably those representing episodes from everyday life. When you listen to the Aria from Partie VI or the Ballet from Partie I, don’t you have the impression that you’re in the midst of the hubbub of the folk festival depicted by Brueghel in The Peasant Wedding (and also seen in the great banquet of La Kermesse héroïque)? Don’t you get the urge to take up your lute like Jan Steen in his self-portrait and accompany yourself singing the last phrase of the Saraband from Partie VI (yes, it’s true, you have to add a text to it, but nothing could be simpler!). Listening to the Saraband of Partie III, don’t you feel the same shivers down your spine and the same doubts that seem to affect the women Vermeer painted reading their letters? And don’t the Aria of Partie V or the Gavotte of the Partie a 4 have the same half-pompous, half-comical character we find in Frans Hals’s portraits of groups of officers?
 
"All these musical miniatures float by, caressing our ears, like the light, fleeting April clouds that troop past before our eyes: all of a sudden the sky grows overcast and the stormy rain falls before finally giving way to the dazzling blue of a sunlit horizon. An ideal setting for portraits or scenes drawn from life in which those concerned must certainly have recognised themselves, and which nowadays bear precious witness to a bygone age that is still rich in emotions and lovely to behold... and listen to." (Amandine Beyer & Baldomero Barciela. tr. Charles Johnston. From the liner notes.)

Performers: Gli Incogniti, Amandine Beyer, Hans-Jörg Mammel

1. Partie V In C Major, P374: I. Sonata
2. Partie V In C Major, P374: II. Aria
3. Partie V In C Major, P374: III. Treza
4. Partie V In C Major, P374: IV. Ciacona
5. Wie Nichtig? Ach! Wie Flüchtig, P500
6. Partie II In C Minor, P371: I. Sonata
7. Partie II In C Minor, P371: II. Gavotte
8. Partie II In C Minor, P371: III. Treza
9. Partie II In C Minor, P371: IV. Aria
10. Partie II In C Minor, P371: V. Saraband
11. Partie II In C Minor, P371: VI. Gigue
12. Das Gewitter Im Aprilen, P75
13. Partie VI In B-Flat Major, P375: I. Sonata (Adagio)
14. Partie VI In B-Flat Major, P375: II. Aria
15. Partie VI In B-Flat Major, P375: III. Courant
16. Partie VI In B-Flat Major, P375: IV. Gavotte
17. Partie VI In B-Flat Major, P375: V. Saraband
18. Partie VI In B-Flat Major, P375: VI. Gigue
19. Partie A 4 In G Major, P450: I. Sonatina
20. Partie A 4 In G Major, P450: II. Allemand
21. Partie A 4 In G Major, P450: III. Gavott
22. Partie A 4 In G Major, P450: IV. Courant
23. Partie A 4 In G Major, P450: V. Aria
24. Partie A 4 In G Major, P450: VI. Saraband
25. Partie A 4 In G Major, P450: VII. Gigue
26. Partie A 4 In G Major, P450: VIII. Finale. Adagio
27. Mein Leben, Dessen Creutz Für Mich, P360
28. Partie III In E-Flat Major, P372: I. Sonata (Allegro)
29. Partie III In E-Flat Major, P372: II. Allemand
30. Partie III In E-Flat Major, P372: III. Courant
31. Partie III In E-Flat Major, P372: IV. Gavotte
32. Partie III In E-Flat Major, P372: V. Saraband
33. Partie III In E-Flat Major, P372: VI. Gigue
34. Partie IV In E Minor, P373: I. Sonata
35. Partie IV In E Minor, P373: II. Aria
36. Partie IV In E Minor, P373: III. Courant
37. Partie IV In E Minor, P373: IV. Aria
38. Partie IV In E Minor, P373: V. Ciacona
39. Guter Walther Unser Raths, P180
40. Partie I In F Major, P370a: I. Sonata (Allegro)
41. Partie I In F Major, P370a: II. Allemand
42. Partie I In F Major, P370a: III. Courant
43. Partie I In F Major, P370a: IV. Ballet
44. Partie I In F Major, P370a: V. Saraband
45. Partie I In F Major, P370a: VI. Gigue
46. O Großes Musenliecht, P391
47. Canon & Gigue, P37: I. Canon
48. Canon & Gigue, P37: II. Gigue

mp3/320kbps

Deterge - Anoint

"God is not afraid of new things! That is why he is continually surprising us, opening our hearts and guiding us in unexpected ways." Includes a foldout on the Joyful, Luminous, Sorrowful and Glorious Mysteries of Christ, prayers of the Rosary with a how to, and a Rosary pendant. Power electronics from Jim Haras, owner of the Fusty Cunt label. Reminiscent thematically of some elements of the work of Mackenzie Chami (Koufar, Bachir Gemayel), who has released on Haras' label. This is a harsh noise assault, layered with looping tones and lyrics (though sadly inaudible) ranging from doleful incantations to pained modulated outbursts. One can always question the seriousness with which these themes are treated in this medium (the undeniably lewd Fusty Cunt logo is still included, for example); I would hazard this is closer to the thematic seriousness of Chami's projects than the sardonic super-extremism of acts like Con-Dom. 

A1. Joyful
A2. Luminous
B1. Sowerful
B2. Glorious

mp3/320kbps

Sick Llama - Being Viewed

A subtle drone based noise release from Heath Moerland's Sick Llama project. Moerland owns Fag Tapes, a prolific US noise label, and this is on Chondritic Sound (which is in similar standing). The A side gives us a mid-pitch fuzzy drone in the left channel, with subtle tones appearing in the right. This builds into a very deep, rumbling noise drone.

A. Untitled
B. Untitled

mp3/v0

Sharon's Last Party - Bayonets To Lhasa

Sadly the only full length release from this excellent Swedish project. Bayonets to Lhasa takes us through spacious, blistering drones evocative of Tibetan ritual chant into a sick cathartic madness of drums, swirling rhythms and piercing, babbling flutes. While the title might evoke the PLO advance on Lhasa in the Battle of Chamdo in 1949, the cover evokes a different form of movement into Tibet's holy city: some fever dream enchantment into an uncomfortable state of climactic nirvana.

A1. Nommo
A2. Nomnia
A3. No No

mp3/320kbps

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

mp3, 320kbps

Treriksröset - Venal

Harsh noise release from Swede Tommy Carlsson, who ran the excellent Segerhuva label until its demise in 2010. This C32 was released on Utmarken, another prestigious Swedish harsh noise label. Dense, frenetic harsh noise spanning 28 minutes over both sides.

A. Untitled
B. Untitled

mp3, 320kbps

New Brutalism II

Second in a series of compilations on the Canadian (now Berlin-based) Total Black label. A chic combination of trendy industrial techno, noise, field recordings and spaced out, heavy ambience: a mood well maintained over the full four cassettes and two hour runtime.

A1. Exoteric Continent - Campanya
A2. Exoteric Continent - Proposta
A3. Varg - Alt-Teen Foreplay
B1. Varg & Vanity Productions - Eugénie De Montijo
B2. Stärker - Endless

C1. V. Sinclair - Oblique
C2. Ligature - Window To The World
D. Order Of Nine Angels - We Are The Nameless

E1. Internazionale - Medora And Gulnare
E2. Krube. - Untitled
E3. Desroi - Synlab II
F1. Fingering Eve - Extinctopia Camouflage
F2. Jesuve - Excess II

G1. Flysch - Odevšad
G2. Cremation Lily - Heart Of The World
H1. Jesuve - Excess I
H2. Heinz Hopf - Glass På West Pride

mp3, 320kbps

Goat - Oceanic Thrones

Release from 2007 on now defunct Michigan label Nurse Etiquette. Goat is an excellent if hard to find American noise project, focusing on esoteric, often satanic, themes (with varying levels of tongue-in-cheek). Both tracks here are excellent, but 'Ask for the Ancient Path' is really a stunning 40 minute onslaught, on par with the hour-long 'Goat's Holy Mountain' on the Harshnoise label.

1. Ask For The Ancient Path
2. Blood Atonement

flac, 16-bit

Putrefier - Cog Dominance

Early outing by Bristol-based Mark Durgan's Putrefier project is very much at home on the seminal UK industrial label Broken Flag. Swirling, mesmerising and low end-heavy (perhaps the recording), the heavy use of reverb closing out the A side is particularly interesting.

A1. Untitled
A2. Untitled
A3. Untitled
B1. Untitled
B2. Untitled

mp3, 320kbps

Johann Sebastian Bach - St. John Passion

"The arias of the St John Passion draw on operatic convention in order to convey the emotions being felt by individuals  at various points in the story. Often the instrumental accompaniment and thematic material have symbolic or pictorial significance. Sometimes the motifs are overtly pictorial, as in "Eilt, ihr angefochtnen Seelen" (CD 2, track 28), where the rushing upward scales illustrate the text's exhortation that we "hasten ... to Golgotha" ("elk nach Golgatha"). In other arias, by contrast, it is hard to describe the effect of Bach's music in words. In "Erwage, wie sein blutgefarbter Rucken" (CD 2, track 12), some listeners might interpret the dactylic (long—short—short) motifs as suggesting the rhythms of scourging, or as merely illustrating the text's exhortation that we contemplate Jesus's bloodstained back.

"[...] At the moment of Jesus's crucifixion comes one of the most poignant arias in the Passion. "Es ist vollbracht!" (CD 2, track 38) sets one of Jesus's Seven Last Words on the Cross:It is finished!" Bach's aria isolates the two contrasting meanings inherent in this utterance. The aria starts molt'adagio with a lamenting obbligato played by a viola da gamba in the key of B minor; this suggests the despair and resignation in the words "It is finished!" By contrast, the middle section of the aria interprets these words triumphantly, as indicating that Christ's work on earth is gloriously completed. Here the key turns to D major, and the voice and strings imitate the fanfares of trumpets on the words"Der Held aus Juda siegt mit Macht" ("The hero of Judah is victorious in power"). With this aria, Bach reflects a central feature of John's Gospel, which portrays Christ as glorious and victorious, even in death." (Stephen Rose. From the liner notes.)

Performers: Academy Of Ancient Music, Choir Of The AAM, Richard Egarr

1.1. Teil I: 'Herr, Unser Herrscher'
1.2. Teil I: 'Jesus Ging Mit Seinen Jüngern'
1.3. Teil I: 'Jesum Von Nazareth!'
1.4. Teil I: 'Jesus Spricht Zu Ihnen'
1.5. Teil I: 'Jesum Von Nazareth!'
1.6. Teil I: 'Jesus Antwortete'
1.7. Teil I: 'O Große Lieb'
1.8. Teil I: 'Auf Daß, Das Wort Erfüllet Würde'
1.9. Teil I: 'Dein Will Gescheh, Herr Gott, Zugleich'
1.10. Teil I: 'Die Schar Aber Und Der Oberhauptmann'
1.11. Teil I: 'Von Den Stricken Meiner Sünden'
1.12. Teil I: 'Simon Petrus Aber Folgete Jesu Nach'
1.13. Teil I: 'Ich Folge Dir Gleichfalls'
1.14. Teil I: 'Derselbige Jünger'
1.15. Teil I: 'Wer Hat Dich So Geschlagen'
1.16. Teil I: 'Und Hannas Sandte Ihn Gebunden'
1.17. Teil I: 'Bist Du Nicht Seiner Jünger Einer?'
1.18. Teil I: 'Er Leugnete Aber Und Sprach'
1.19. Teil I: 'Ach, Mein Sinn'
1.20. Teil I: 'Petrus, Der Nicht Denkt Zurück'

2.1. Teil II: 'Christus, Der Uns Selig Macht'
2.2. Teil II: 'Da Führeten Sie Jesum'
2.3. Teil II: 'Wäre Dieser Nicht Ein Übeltäter'
2.4. Teil II: 'Da Sprach Pilatus Zu Ihnen'
2.5. Teil II: 'Wir Dürfen Niemand Töten'
2.6. Teil II: 'Auf Daß Erfüllet Würde Das Wort'
2.7. Teil II: 'Ach Großer König'
2.8. Teil II: 'Da Sprach Pilatus Zu Ihm'
2.9. Teil II: 'Nicht Diesen, Sondern Barrabam!'
2.10. Teil II: 'Barrabas Aber War Ein Mörder'
2.11. Teil II: 'Betrachte, Meine Seel'
2.12. Teil II: 'Erwäge, Wie Sein Blutgefärbter Rücken'
2.13. Teil II: 'Und Die Kriegsknechte Flochten Eine Krone'
2.14. Teil II: 'Sei Gegrüßet, Lieber Jüdenkönig!'
2.15. Teil II: 'Und Gaben Ihm Backenstreiche'
2.16. Teil II: 'Kreuzige, Kreuzige!'
2.17. Teil II: 'Pilatus Sprach Zu Ihnen'
2.18. Teil II: 'Wir Haben Ein Gesetz'
2.19. Teil II: 'Da Pilatus Das Wort Hörete'
2.20. Teil II: 'Durch Dein Gefängnis, Gottes Sohn'
2.21. Teil II: 'Die Jüden Aber Schrieen Und Sprachen'
2.22. Teil II: 'Lässest Du Diesen Los'
2.23. Teil II: 'Da Pilatus Das Wort Hörete'
2.24. Teil II: 'Weg, Weg Mit Dem, Kreuzige Ihn!'
2.25. Teil II: 'Spricht Pilatus Zu Ihnen'
2.26. Teil II: 'Wir Haben Keinen König'
2.27. Teil II: 'Da Überantwortete Er Ihn'
2.28. Teil II: 'Eilt, Ihr Angefochtnen Seelen'
2.29. Teil II: 'Allda Kreuzigten Sie Ihn'
2.30. Teil II: 'Schreibe Nicht “Der Jüden König”'
2.31.  Teil II: 'Pilatus Antwortet'
2.32. Teil II: 'In Meines Herzens Grunde'
2.33. Teil II: 'Die Kriegsknechte Aber'
2.34. Teil II: 'Lasset Uns Den Nicht Zerteilen'
2.35. Teil II: 'Auf Daß Erfüllet Würde Die Schrift'
2.36. Teil II: 'Er Nahm Alles Wohl In Acht'
2.37. Teil II: 'Und Von Stund An Nahm Sie Der Jünger'
2.38. Teil II: 'Es Ist Vollbracht!'
2.39. Teil II: 'Und Neiget Das Haupt'
2.40. Teil II: 'Mein Teurer Heiland, Laß Dich Fragen'
2.41. Teil II: 'Und Der Vorhang Im Tempel Zerriß'
2.42. Teil II: 'Mein Herz, Indem Die Ganze Welt'
2.43. Teil II: 'Zerfließe, Mein Herze'
2.44. Teil II: 'Die Jüden Aber, Dieweil Es Der Rüsttag War'
2.45. Teil II: 'O Hilf, Christe, Gottes Sohn'
2.46. Teil II: 'Darnach Bat Pilatum'
2.47. Teil II: 'Ruht Wohl, Ihr Heiligen Gebeine'
2.48. Teil II: 'Ach Herr, Laß Dein Lieb Engelein'

mp3, 320kbps

Pain Jerk - Spitfire

Released in Japan on Kōhei Gomi's own AMP label in 1996 and on Harbinger Sound in the UK (as an LP with different artwork) a year later, this is a fine example of dense, diverse Japanoise. The use of repetition, clean sounds as well as distortion, delay and high pitch makes this an intense, focused listen.

A1. Low-Flying Noisecraft
A2. See-Saw Bones
B1. Untouchable Stratus
B2. Expulsion

mp3, 256kbps

Լուսինե Զաքարյան - Armenian Medieval Spiritual Music

"'Amenain Hayots Sokhag' or 'All Armenian Nightingale' Lusine Zakaryan, was born Svetlana Zakaryan, on June 1, 1937 in Akhaltsikhe, Georgian SSR." Sparsely accompanied here by organ and strings, Zakaryan soars through these traditional hymns. The effect is at once deeply familiar yet quite unlike any immediate musical parallel. 

1. Sourb-Sourb
2. Haroutian Meghedi
3. Aravot Louso
4. Ur Es Mair Im
5. Bats Mes Ter
6. Havoun Havoun
7. Khorhourd Khorin
8. Tiramayr
9. Horzham

flac, 16-bit

Alfred Schnittke - Choir Concerto; Minnesang

"The two pieces on this disc reflect the new, gentler spirit in Schnittke's music. His 'Minnesang', written in 1981, is based on twenty songs from the repertoire of the 'Minnesinger', a guild of itinerant singer-poets that flourished in thirteenth-century Germany. The texts paint a vivid picture of medieval life, and Schnittke's music pays homage to them by returning to medieval practices, particularly in its use of 'canon'. This is a musical device which creates the effect of one voice chasing another (as in 'Frere Jacques'). Despite its busy surface activity, the music achieves an effect of massive simplicity and grandeur by restricting itself to a handful of very basic chords. The piece rises in a series of waves from a single, unadorned note at the beginning to a stupendous climax, after which it returns to stillness. 

"The Choir Concerto, written in 1984-85, is in startling contrast. Whereas the 'Minnesang' decorated a few simple harmonies with a fantastic filigree of vocal lines, like the decoration on a Gothic cathedral, the Concerto summons up the Russian orthodox music of the late nineteenth century. It is based on a devotional text called the 'Book of Lamentations' by the tenth-century Armenian poet Gregory of Narek. The piece recalls Mussorgsky and Stravinsky both in its melodies, which circle obsessively round a few pitches, and in the way those melodies are often heard against a stubbornly static background. These hypnotic passages alternate with great choral outbursts, whose sudden harmonic shifts and intense subjectivism recall another type of Russian church music; that of Tchaikovsky and Rachmaninov." (Ivan Hewett. From the liner notes.)

Performers: DR KoncertKoret, Stefan Parkman

1. Minnesang
2. Choir Concerto: I. 'O Pavelitel’ Sushcheva Fsevo'
3. Choir Concerto: II. 'Sabran’ Je Pesen Sikh, Gde Kazhdyi Stikh'
4. Choir Concerto: III. 'Fsem Tem, Kto Vniknet Fsushchnast'
5. Choir Concerto: IV. 'Sej Trud, Shto Nachinal Ja Supavan’ Jem'

mp3, 320kbps

Charles Koechlin - Le Cortege d'Amphitrite

"Koechlin was a late developer as a composer and needed the inspiration of poets early on in his career. Until he felt ready to enter the 'perilous domain of chamber music' around 1911, his first period was dominated by songs and choral music, and his harmonic evolution can be traced through this medium from relatively ordinary beginnings around 1890 to the polytonality of the 1905-9 songs (Opp 28, 31 and 35) that impressed and influenced Milhaud.

"[...] In 'Le Printemps', with its light evocative trills, Koechlin maintained that it was 'a Parisian girl who was singing and it was her feelings that I sought to express', whereas Miss Ellen in Le Thé (with her elaborately decorated Chinese teacup) was a young French girl Koechlin saw on holiday in Switzerland." (Robert Orledge. From the liner notes.)

Performers: Claudette Leblanc, Boaz Sharon

1. Si Tu Le Veux, Op. 5 No. 5
2. 7 Chansons Pour Gladys, Op. 151: I. M'a Dit Amour
3. 7 Chansons Pour Gladys, Op. 151: II. Tu Croyais Le Tenir
4. 7 Chansons Pour Gladys, Op. 151: III. Prise Au Piège
5. 7 Chansons Pour Gladys, Op. 151: IV. La Naïade
6. 7 Chansons Pour Gladys, Op. 151: V. Le Cyclone
7. 7 Chansons Pour Gladys, Op. 151: VI. La Colombe
8. 7 Chansons Pour Gladys, Op. 151: VII. Fatum
9. Le Cortège d'Amphitrite, Op. 31 No. 2
10. Amphise & Melitta, Op. 31 No. 6
11. Déclin D'amour, Op. 13 No. 1
12. Aux Temps Des Fées, Op. 7 No. 4
13. Le Repas Préparé, Op. 31 No. 5
14. La Chanson Des Ingénues, Op. 22 No. 1
15. Améthyste, Op. 35 No. 2
16. Hymne À Vénus, Op. 68 No. 1
17. L'Hiver, Op. 8 No. 2
18. La Nuit, Op. 1 No. 2
19. L'Été, Op. 1 No. 5
20. L'Air, Op. 8 No. 5
21. La Lune, Op. 8 No. 4
22. Le Printemps, Op. 1 No. 4
23. Le Thé, Op. 1 No. 3

mp3, 320kbps

Bacillus - Pandeplasmodium

Pandemic themed harsh noise from the USA. In lieu of a more topical release from this still active project (two releases last year), this will be more than sufficient to churn the guts of those willing to wade in to the mire of global paranoia directly, and take pleasure in it.

A1. Global Eruption
A2. Conjunctive Genetic Exchange Of Resistance Factors
A3. Clostridial Myonecrosis
A4. Rapid Course Of Infection
A5. Increase Population, Increase Transmission Rate
B1. Rising Cause Of Death
B2. Breach Of Containment Facility
B3. Spontaneous Liquefaction
B4. Severe System Toxicity
B5. Uncontained Spread Of Fatal Microbes
B6. Outbreak Recurrence

mp3, 224kbps

Georg Philipp Telemann - 12 Fantasias

"Georg Philipp Telemann's Twelve Fantasias for Solo Flute TWV 40:2-13 are a rich source of information on the different stylistic forms, emotions and rhetoric conventions employed in Baroque music. They offer the performer the opportunity to play the operatic, orchestral and chamber-music repertoire of the time on a solo melody instrument. These theatrical miniatures form part of the canon of the Late Baroque repertoire for a melody instrument without continuo, similar to Bach's Solo pour la flute traversiere, BWV 1013, which was written at about the same time, or the same composer's partitas and sonatas for solo violin and his solo cello suites. Playing solo demands that the performer take on several different functions at the same time: that of the treble, of a continuo player, or two melody parts simultaneously, as in a trio sonata. There is no other instrument here to cover up sound and articulation, rhythm or emotion. Thus these pieces challenge the virtuoso to engage as finely and clearly as possible in a dialogue with himself, in the rhetorical sense of the word.

"[...] And indeed, Telemann does depict emotions like love, tenderness, flattery and sadness, as well as rashness, fury and despair, in the first of his 12 fantasias. It is as if he wanted to compose a kind of musical heading with the message: Look here, this is how life is! And when a kind of birdsong closes the collection, it does so on an Arcardian note. It's as if we can heard the nightingale singing at Orpheus's tomb." (Dorothee Oberlinger. From the liner notes.)

Performer: Dorothee Oberlinger

1. Fantasia No. 1 In A Major: I. Vivace
2. Fantasia No. 1 In A Major: II. Allegro
3. Fantasia No. 2 In A Minor: I. Grave
4. Fantasia No. 2 In A Minor: II. Vivace
5. Fantasia No. 2 In A Minor: III. Adagio
6. Fantasia No. 2 In A Minor: IV. Allegro
7. Fantasia No. 3 In D Minor: I. Largo. Vivace. Largo. Vivace
8. Fantasia No. 3 In D Minor: II. Allegro
9. Fantasia No. 4 In E-Flat Major: I. Andante
10. Fantasia No. 4 In E-Flat Major: II. Allegro
11. Fantasia No. 4 In E-Flat Major: III. Presto
12. Fantasia No. 5 In C Major: I. Presto. Largo. Presto. Dolce
13. Fantasia No. 5 In C Major: II. Allegro
14. Fantasia No. 5 In C Major: III. Allegro
15. Fantasia No. 6 In D Minor: I. Dolce
16. Fantasia No. 6 In D Minor: II. Allegro
17. Fantasia No. 6 In D Minor: III. Spirituoso
18. Fantasia No. 7 In F Major: I. Alla Francese
19. Fantasia No. 7 In F Major: II. Presto
20. Fantasia No. 8 In E Minor: I. Largo
21. Fantasia No. 8 In E Minor: II. Spirituoso
22. Fantasia No. 8 In E Minor: III. Allegro
23. Fantasia No. 9 In E Major: I. Affetuoso
24. Fantasia No. 9 In E Major: II. Allegro
25. Fantasia No. 9 In E Major: III. Grave
26. Fantasia No. 9 In E Major: IV. Vivace
27. Fantasia No. 10 In F-Sharp Minor: I. A Tempo Giusto
28. Fantasia No. 10 In F-Sharp Minor: II. Presto
29. Fantasia No. 10 In F-Sharp Minor: III. Moderato
30. Fantasia No. 11 In C Major: I. Allegro
31. Fantasia No. 11 In C Major: II. Adagio
32. Fantasia No. 11 In C Major: III. Vivace
33. Fantasia No. 11 In C Major: IV. Allegro

mp3, 320kbps

MNEM - For Delta Relics

Finnish death industrial project lets us sink into a moribund world of rumbling urban dread. Low drones give way to echoing drips and sinister electrical hum; growing in intensity but never leaving the mechanical, ordered process of the city.

1. Grey Lictor
2. Insula
3. The Late Nuance
4. Trilemn
5. Ancylus
6. Oryfus
7. For Delta Relics

mp3, v0

Henry Purcell - Ayres For The Theatre

"Much of the instrumental music for the Restoration theatre was incidental in that it was not part of the play itself; the groups of dances called 'first music' and 'second music' served to warn the audience that the performance was about to begin, and four more were used as interval music or 'act tunes'. Together with an overture or 'curtain tune' they made a suite of, most commonly, eight numbers. Since virtually every new play had a suite of incidental music specially composed, it is not surprising that they form a large part of the Restoration repertory of consort music. Outside the theatre most of them were played in concert versions with the overture (originally placed after the first and second music) at the beginning and the dances shuffled to provide a satisfactory sequence of mood and key. In many cases they only survive in this form, and a certain amount of guesswork is needed to match them to their plays; we have recorded The Virtuous Wife Suite in its probable order as heard in the theatre, starting with the prelude and placing the Overture fifth. 

"The publication of Henry Purcell's posthumous collected edition of theatre suites, 'A Collection of Ayres Comps'd for the Theatre', in 1697 was something of a turning-point for the genre. Prior to this, theatre suites had nearly always circulated in manuscript; as a result, many of them are lost. 'Ayres...for the Theatre' set a fashion for publishing theatre suites that lasted above a decade; it only ended when the English musical theatre itself was supplanted in public favour by Italian opera." (Peter Holman. From the liner notes.)

Performers: The Parley of Instruments, Peter Holman

1. Suite From The Play Abdelazer, Z. 570: Overture
2. Suite From The Play Abdelazer, Z. 570: Rondeau
3. Suite From The Play Abdelazer, Z. 570: Aire
4. Suite From The Play Abdelazer, Z. 570: Aire
5. Suite From The Play Abdelazer, Z. 570: Minuett
6. Suite From The Play Abdelazer, Z. 570: Aire
7. Suite From The Play Abdelazer, Z. 570: Jigg
8. Suite From The Play Abdelazer, Z. 570: Hornpipe
9. Suite From The Play Abdelazer, Z. 570: Aire
10. Overture From Timon Of Athens Z. 632/1: Overture (Grave - Canzona - Adagio - Canzona)
11. Overture From Timon Of Athens Z. 632/1: Curtain Tune
12. Suite From The Play The Gordion Knot Unty'd, Z. 597: Overture
13. Suite From The Play The Gordion Knot Unty'd, Z. 597: Aire
14. Suite From The Play The Gordion Knot Unty'd, Z. 597: Rondeau Minuett
15. Suite From The Play The Gordion Knot Unty'd, Z. 597: Aire
16. Suite From The Play The Gordion Knot Unty'd, Z. 597: Jigg
17. Suite From The Play The Gordion Knot Unty'd, Z. 597: Chacone
18. Suite From The Play The Gordion Knot Unty'd, Z. 597: Aire
19. Suite From The Play The Gordion Knot Unty'd, Z. 597: Minuett
20. Suite From The Play The Gordion Knot Unty'd, Z. 597: Overture
21. Suite From The Play Bonduca, Z. 574: Song Tune
22. Suite From The Play Bonduca, Z. 574: Song Tune
23. Suite From The Play Bonduca, Z. 574: Aire
24. Suite From The Play Bonduca, Z. 574: Hornpipe
25. Suite From The Play Bonduca, Z. 574: Aire
26. Suite From The Play Bonduca, Z. 574: Hornpipe
27. Suite From The Play Bonduca, Z. 574: Aire
28. Suite From The Play Bonduca, Z. 574: Minuett
29. Chacony In G Minor, Z. 730
30. Suite From The Play The Virtuous Wife, Z. 611: Preludio
31. Suite From The Play The Virtuous Wife, Z. 611: Hornpipe
32. Suite From The Play The Virtuous Wife, Z. 611: Minuett
33. Suite From The Play The Virtuous Wife, Z. 611: Minuett
34. Suite From The Play The Virtuous Wife, Z. 611: Overture
35. Suite From The Play The Virtuous Wife, Z. 611: Song Tune
36. Suite From The Play The Virtuous Wife, Z. 611: Slow Aire
37. Suite From The Play The Virtuous Wife, Z. 611: Aire

flac/16-bit

John Bull - Complete Works For Keyboard, Volume I

"Dr. John Bull: An English enigma. There is no doubt that Dr. John Bull (1562/3-1628), who was born in Hereford and died in Antwerp, was an extraordinary figure. A glance at the 1589 so-called Oxford portrait of the 27-or-so year old Bull confirms both the passion and the mysticism of this extraordinary English composer, whose works are being presented here in their entirety for the first time. Mystery and controversy appear to have swirled around Bull throughout his life, reflecting the turbulent political and religious times in which he lived and the passions that he inevitably aroused among supporters and detractors alike. The portrait looks quite unlike any other painting of the period: Bull stares at us with an entirely up-to-date intensity, which is quite remarkably different from depictions of other contemporary composers like William Byrd, Orlando Gibbons or Thomas Tallis. In contrast to their formalized, almost bureaucratic restraint, Bull's direct and uncompromising gaze is almost disturbing. Completing the air of mystery, the composer's image is overlaid with the symbols of the alchemist, augmenting his aura of the otherworldly, while the frame of the portrait is adorned with the following enigmatic epigram: 'The Bull by force in Field doth Raigne But Bull by Skill good will doth Gayne.'" (Peter Watchorn. From the liner notes.)

Performers: Peter Watchorn, Mahan Esfahani

1.1. Prelude, MB 117
1.2. Lord Lumley’s Pavan, MB 129a
1.3. Lord Lumley’s Galliard, MB 129b
1.4. The King’s Hunt, MB 125
1.5. My Grief, MB 139
1.6. My Selfe, MB 138
1.7. Prelude, MB 84
1.8. Walsingham, MB 85
1.9. Fantastic Pavan, MB 86a
1.10. Fantastic Galliard, MB 86b

2.1. Bonny Sweet Robin, MB 65
2.2. Why Ask You? (I), MB 62
2.3. Pavan, MB 66a
2.4. Galliard, MB 66b
2.5. Why Ask You? (II), MB 63
2.6. Melancholy Pavan, MB 67a
2.7. Melancholy Galliard, MB 67b
2.8. Why Ask You? (III), MB 64
2.9. Chromatic Pavan, MB 87a
2.10. Chromatic Galliard, MB 87b
2.11. Fantasia, MB 12
2.12. Bull’s Goodnight, MB 143

mp3, 320kbps

Genesis - Selling England By The Pound

Peter Gabriel presents an ever-relevant dystopic England for these ever troubling times. Imbued with Eliot's time removed Tiresias and as fargone from Spenser's 'Faerie Queene' as Eliot's own departed nymphs, this album proves endlessly to be more than dusty record shop prog.

A1. Dancing With The Moonlit Knight
A2. I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe)
A3. Firth Of Fifth
A4. More Fool Me
B1. The Battle Of Epping Forest
B2. After The Ordeal
B3. The Cinema Show
B4. Aisle Of Plenty

mp3, 320kbps

Kevin Drumm & Jason Lescalleet - Busman's Holiday

A dynamic journey through electroacoustic noise. Both Drumm and Lescalleet are leaders in their field and this shows in the delicacy, expression and mastery of distortion-as-instrument on show here.

1. The Hunt
2. Powerless
3. The Wait
4. The Push
5. Belligerence
6. Honest Toil

mp3, 320kbps

VMS Elit - Fumes

The latest from this Scandinavian motorcycle death troupe is a blistering assault of driving, surging noise. It is a rare thing to find noise that can inspire such unavoidable adrenaline even in the seasoned listener. The feeling is that of being torn, scraped and battered, rolling over asphalt and gravel at 180km/h in a diesel-fueled inferno of glorious carnage.

1. Sudden Combustion
2. Nighttime Scorcheries
3. Guzzling Refuse
4. Clot
5. Neat Cuts

mp3, 320kbps

Degenerating Finland Live DVD

"Digitally captured by various people with different quality equipment." This is extracted DVD audio of various Finnish noise musicians performing around Finland (with one show from London). Tracks are short, high intensity and to the point with few exceeding 5 minutes in length. The viscerality and sonic intensity one comes to expect from the Finnish noise/power electronics scene are on display here. The testosterone-fuelled enthusiasm of many of the audiences is great to hear. Multiple acts are label owner Mikko Aspa's projects (Pain Nail, Nihilist Commando, Grunt) as well as Finn-noise mainstays (Bizarre Uproar, Cloama, Keränen).

1. Intro
2. Bizarre Uproar - Live Helsinki 2006
3. Eleczema - Live Helsikni 2007
4. Keränen - Live Lahti 2008
5. Pain Nail - Live Helsinki 2006
6. Gelsomina - Live Helsinki 2007
7. Haare - Live Lahti 2008
8. Nihilist Commando - Live Helsinki 2006
9. Cloama - Live London 2004
10. Above Suspicion - Live Helsinki 2007
11. Squamata - Live Turku 2007
12. Grunt - Live Turku 2005

mp3, 320kbps