I'll leave it to you if you read this post as an actual review or just an appreciation of anticipation. Because almost everytime Roadburn posts anything about one of the shows and artists of the upcoming edition of the festival, I'm like: Wow, this looks way too interesting! It will be a hell of cruel clashes...
And this new Audiotree live session / digital EP just falls right into that sentiment as a preview of one of the many amazing experiences to chose from come April.
THE BODY & DIS FIG - Audiotree live (Download) (2025)
Holy cow! No, actually "Holy Lance" is the first track of this live performance. The American duo The Body provides eery textures of Ambient and noises, which soon develop into a slow and super heavy clod of Sludge, which Berlin-based singer / Electronic artist Felicia Chen akaDis Figuses as a pedestal for an intensly powerful and emotional vocal performance. While her voice is distinct from both of them, the fearless mindset of her singing reminds me a lot of Big|Brave's Robin Wattie and fellow Experimental artist Otay:onii.
The longest track "Coils of Kaa" amps up all qualities of the opener, adds more effects and Noise both from The Body and Dis Fig, while her voice gets more daring and extreme and is aided by Chip King's infamous weird shrill shrieks (which arguably chip away at many listeners' attraction to The Body).
Even with a different, more synthetic sound palette the slow atmospheric and majestic Drone of "Back To The Water" finally feels very akin to - again - Big|Brave. And it's fucking incredible - what a beautiful brutal Doom Noise masterpiece! Yeah, I always dig a great Audiotree session. And these twenty-three minutes very certainly aren't the exception. Quite the opposite.
So I guess I should really check out that studio album from last year, which they made together, right? And of course hope hope hope with twenty fingers crossed, that their Roadburn show will be attendable for me without major crashes.
Ob ich's im Januar noch schaffe, alle 2024er Alben von meiner To-Do-Liste hier abzufrühstücken? Vielleicht. Dieser vierfache Rezensionsknoppers sollte zumindest helfen dieses Ziel zu erreichen:
ASTRAL KOMPAKT - Goldader(2024)
Die Kölner Astral Kompakt spielen - ganz unrheinisch - instrumentalen Wüstenrock, der zwar stets sehr eingängig und vertraut klingt, aber zwischen wuchtigem riffzentrischen Stoner Doom, Orientalismen und Krautspuren irgendwie das gewisse Etwas hat, welches spezieller zündet als bei vielen anderen Vertretern des Genres.
Dass das Trio, dessen Grundatmosphäre vieles mit Causa Sui gemein hat, seinen Sound immer mal wieder durch unerwartete Überraschungen zwischen sommerlicher Leichtigkeit und scheppernden Blastbeats auflockert, trägt dazu bei, ist hier aber nicht der entscheidende Kern. Jenen sehe ich eher in der vermeintlichen Lässigkeit des Ganzen; Astral Kompakt lassen alles was sie tun gleich simpel wirken. Man wird auch mal proggier, spielt ungerade Takte und durchaus komplexe Arrangements... aber als Hörer kann man dennoch immer schön mitnicken und grooven, ohne sich einen Kopf machen zu müssen, was zum Henker gerade passiert.
Diese Jungs haben auf "Goldader" ein perfektes Gleichgewicht aus Anspruch und Eingängigkeit gefunden und dabei ein kleines, aber feines saucooles Album rausgehauen.
TFNRSH - Book of Circles (2025)
Huch, das ist ja noch gar nicht verjährt, sondern noch ganz frisch, Release heute, am 17. Januar 2025!
Wir bleiben in Deutschland und im gesangslosen Trio-Format. Doch wie das Cover schon zeigt, steigern wir uns farblich von gold auf bunt, ist die stilistische Vielfalt in den Longtracks der Tübinger TFNRSH doch trotz vieler Gemeinsamkeiten mit Astral Kompakt ein wenig schillernder. Macht dies "Book of Circles" automatisch zu einem besseren Album? Nein, beide Alben sind auf ihre Weise auf Augenhöhe klasse.
In ihren ebenfalls vierzig Minuten wird uns von TFNRSH hier eine Menge geboten, ein stets in gelungenes Songwriting eingebundenes Potpourrie aus Psychedelic Rock, Prog, postrockigen und doomenden Elementen. Ein besonderer Höhepunkt ist der Ausflug ins Theater mit den deutschen Spoken Words im fürwahr hochdramatischen "Zorn". Und so aufwühlend dieser Track ist, so wunderschön endet das Album mit "Ammoglÿd".
*hach*
WIZRD - Elements(2024)
Yupp, wir werden anscheinend immer progressiver!
Das norwegische Quartett Wizrd, dessen Mitglieder u.a. in Soft Ffog, Spidergawd und Krokofant aktiv sind, haben den Nachfolger zu ihrem Debüt "Seasons" von 2022 abgeliefert.
Klar als Teil der vitalen Szene, welcher Künstler wie Seven Impale, Kanaan, Wobbler, Hedvig Mollestad Triound so viele weitere großartige Hüter des Geistes der Siebziger Jahre entstiegen sind, erkennbar, orgeln, fuzzen, harmonisieren und virtuosieren sich Wizrd durch eine dynamische, immer wieder den Jazzrock streifende Retro-Prog-Tour de Force, die keinen Stillstand kennt. Der kürzeste Track des Albums heißt einfach "!!!" und das ist schon irgendwie programmatisch angesichts des kreativen Dauerfeuers mit nimmermüder Gute-Laune-Frickelmusik auf "Elements". Und besonders zu den Gesängen darf man auch gerne mal episch die Arme ausbreiten.
Prog mag ja durchaus manchmal uncool sein, aber garantiert nicht wenn er aus Oslo kommt und von diesen Herren zelebriert wird.
THE BARREN ROOM - White Clouds(2024)
Zurück in Deutschland lauschen wir zu guter Letzt noch dem Debüt von The Barren Room, einem Worst Bassist Records-Haustrio, welches neben Sänger/Gitarrist Oli Hilse noch aus Lulu Neudeck (Electric Moon) am Viersaiter, sowie dem Drummer von Sarkh besteht.
Wie zu erwarten spielt hier Psych eine Rolle, mehr noch allerdings geradeaus gespielter Rock'n'Roll, der sich irgendwo zwischen Alternative, Grunge und Noise verorten lässt. Tendenziell eine Richtung, in der ich nicht vieles nicht allzu häufig höre, doch The Barren Room haben den Dreh raus, nur ein bisschen anders gespielt wahrscheinlich ziemlich uninteressante Parts gerade so feinzujustieren, dass sie genau das richtige Maß an Coolness haben.
"White Clouds" hat oftmals was von einer weniger wilden und heavyen, aber dafür doch irgendwie mit punkigerer Attitüde daherkommenden Variante von Bone Man. In Stücken wie z.B. "Button Man" hat man so ein bisschen das Gefühl der Antwort auf die Frage zu lauschen, wie die White Stripes wohl als "normale" Band geklungen hätten. Außerdem ist es sehr nett, Lulus den ganzen Sound hier sehr prägnant erdendes Bassspiel einmal in einem ungewohnten musikalischen Umfeld außerhalb langer Moon-Jams zu hören.
I will admit this: If you told me that there was an album you could hardly imagine being released on another label than WV Sorcerer Productions, I'd already be ninety percent sold.
But that's just a theory. In practise I'm of course the one telling you about an album right now, which couldn't be more WV Sorcery sauce - even though it's actually being co-released by the British-Chinese label Dusty Ballz.
Ghostmass is a Chinese quartet, consisting of Li Quing and Li Weisi from the duo Soviet Pop on drums and bass and both Yan Jun and Yang Kuku from Carsick Cars on electronics and vocals. If you're as unfamiliar with those names as I am, but you have some experience with releases from this labeland took a look at the tracklist of "Ghost Meditation", you might very well be able to guesstimate their sound.
Yes, the two twenty minute long tracks "嗚 Wu" and "呼 Hu" are a combination of super slow minimalist Drone Doom with exhausting Harsh Noise. The crunching creeping bass and often rather textural drumming on one side and the shrieking, scratching, glitching, buzzing and feedbacking Electronic bursts crash into each other like a temple being demolished by a wrecking ball.
I'm not quite sure which is which in this pretty picture of destruction, but at least I know that like the band on the Titanic the monks keep chanting until the end. If there is a glue holding this rubble mountain of noises together, then this role goes to the vocals, which are mostly variations of throat singing, and seem to ground the music in a vague Chinese / Mongolian spirituality. At least until they turn from the booming deep inward to the shrill outward with high Grindcore-ish screeches.
An easy formula to descrive all this would be Sunn O))) meets Merzbow meets Marc Urselli's Steppendoom, but with a more improvisational character like Acid Lumo, if that reference finally is obscure enough for you. And if you're a fan of Javanese experimentalists Senyawa, as I advise everyone to be, the eerie, but also strangely comforting nature of this raw yet impactfully layered record should also speak to you.
Excellent Avant-garde music, as usual rounded off by a nice (dis)harmonious packaging. I have no open wishes. Let there be Ghostmass!
Two new versions of a decades old album in one year - is that overkill?
After the remastered version of their 1987 classic "Opus Dei", which also included remastered remixes of the time plus sixteen live versions of songs from the album, in December Laibach also released another double album with actually newly recorded versions plus new remixes - "Opus Dei Revisited".
The obvious question: Is this even really necessary?
LAIBACH - Opus Dei Revisited (2LP) (2024)
Since the Slovenes appearantly are in the process of rehashing their whole discography phase by phase, let me extend this question accordingly!
As I have thouroughly discussed in my most-read review of this whole blog, the revisited versions of tracks from Laibach's self-titled debut and "Nova Akropola" are among the best and most laibach things, the band has ever done.
In my humble opinion everything the band has done afterwards however hardly needs to be reworked into completely new arrangements, at least as far as new studio recordings are concerned. Live Laibach have always been adapting their own material according to their recent sound anyway. And what we're hearing on the first half of this release is exactly that: the "Opus Dei" interpretations as the current line-up of the band with Milan Fras and Marina Mårtensson on shared lead vocal duty is performing it.
Laibach live 2024
Like I've reported from Copenhagen and Hanover I'm certainly happy with those new versions. But given that the original studio versions barely cried for improvements, Laibach may have changed the sound and instrumentation of the tracks, which sound less brute and more electronic now, but largely refrained from touching their structure or melodies. So this is far from the deconstruction and complete reshaping of their older material we heard on "Laibach Revisited". It's still interesting, especially on the B-side with its really exciting take on "Transnational", but ultimately this whole endeavour mostly falls under the category of welcome but unnecessary luxury.
So what does that mean going forward? While I'd love to see long-abandoned songs from any album return to Laibach's setlist, I doubt that any further release needs the revisited treatment. "Opus Dei" really feels as far as one should go and is already balancing on the edge of necessity.
Regarding remasters there's certainly more potential, but not that much too. As I have mentioned before "Let It Be" would be the one album, which I would really love to have remastered, since the original production just isn't that great. "Kapital" obviously asks for a huge box reissue, since the original LP, CD and cassette releases all had those different mixes, versions, even tracklists. So even though I have all three variants, I would wholeheartedly understand a special reissue in that case. Everything afterwards however should better be left untouched. From "N.A.T.O." on the productions all still hold up, while the need for any radical re-evaluation of the arrangements dwindles.
But back to the album at hand:
You might have noticed that I didn't say anything about the meaning and importance of "Opus Dei" yet. I didn't do so, because there had already been so many opportunities to write about "Leben heißt Leben", "Geburt einer Nation" and so on during the past year, that I just don't see the need to wring out more thoughts about the topic out of my head again. Laibach feel the same. They already had extensive liner notes accompanying the remastered release, so why do it once more? In consequence this is a slimmer package than the remasters of both "Opus Dei" and "Nova Akropola" (from 2023): no gatefold or booklet, just the once again updated cover artwork with the two records inside plus a little fridge magnet with the artwork. Which is nice, but hey Mute Records, I would have actually prefered a free download of the album instead! Why do more and more labels keep punishing buyers of vinyl versions this way?
Laibach live 2024
Apart from that at least the vinyl version doesn't miss any content compared to the CD this time. There are no bonus tracks, no full extra discs of music missing, which had been an issue with various Laibach albums before.
And speaking of bonus material: Sides C and D are actually just as important for "Opus Dei Revisited" as the first record - and if you're already content with having experienced the new band arrangements live they might even be the main reason to consider purchasing this album. Not the group, but original "Opus Dei" producer Rico Conning revisits the album's master tapes here to build new remixes, which explore the material in a variety of different ways, sometimes closer to Pop or Ambient, in other instances jumping wildly between moods and sounds between aggressive guitar noise and danceable beats. Again "Transnational" is a highlight, this time with obvious references to Kraftwerk's "Autobahn". But also "F.I.A.T.", the mighty finale of "How The West Was Won" or the fantastic Electronic transformation of "The Great Seal", which closes the album after a slightly altered running order, stand out.
So all in all, yes, it's hard to resist this release as a fan. Even though naught of this update was needed and it expectedly fails in clearing the high mark of similar predecessors, after all this still is a very worthwhile album based on an undeniable classic.
In hindsight it might have been more impressive to put all the material - remaster, remixes, revisited and live versions - into one big box. Yet given how it took to make "Laibach Revisited" and how expensive that box got, this 2-album-solution probably was for the best.
Gestern, am neunten Tag des jungen, jetzt schon furchtbaren Jahres, habe ich mir mal wieder musikalische Feinstkost gegönnt. Zunächst einmal habe ich, eine schlimme Jazzklavierwissenslücke schließend, erstmals das zeitlich exzellent zu meiner Fahrtstrecke passende "Köln Concert" von Keith Jarrett gehört.
Mein mind befand sich also bereits im Ausgangszustand blown, als in Hamburg ankam, wo die brilliant verrückten Franzosen Ni - kaum länger als ein Jahr nach ihrem Gastspiel auf der MS Stubnitz - diesmal ein wenig weiter elbabwärts im Roten Salon des Hafenklangs spielten.
Es gab keine Vorband, so dass der gut gefüllte Saal unmittelbar dem wie ein kreativer Tornado wütendem Mathematikkrach des Quartetts ausgesetzt wurde. Adequat beschreiben lässt sich das für offene und grinsende Münder sorgende bekloppt virtuose Treiben eigentlich nicht. Ni sind die rein instrumentale Heavyjazz-Version von The Dillinger Escape Plan, sie sind die unberechenbaren Polyrhythmiker Kukangendai in Metal, James Brown auf der anderen Seite des Wurmlochs und "Red"King Crimson auf Koks; ein musikalisches Müsli mit Mentos statt Ceralien und Cola statt Milch.
Ni kümmern sich kaum um Social Media und anderen Bullshit, konzentrieren sich voll und ganz auf den heißen Scheiß auf der Bühne - und das merkt man. Es gibt wohl kaum progressive Noiserockmusik mit abgedrehteren Grooves, größerem Irrwitz und reinerem ungefiltertem Spaß.
Das einzige was Ni kaum bis gar nicht können, ist englisch oder deutsch - für letzteres brauchen sie nach Eigenauskunft noch zwanzig Jahre. So lange planen sie demnach also mindestens noch, uns weiter mit ihrem außerirdischen Zirkus zu beglücken. Meinetwegen gerne. Geil!
And of course it's from the seemingly hyper-prolific band whose last 2024 album I haven't even covered yet... No signs of tiring in Slovenia!
LAIBACH - I Want To Know What Love Is (download) (2025)
Let's not even pretend that Laibach's latest single is among their most intellectually stimulating, conceptually deep works, when we all know that they only decided to play it, because they happened to love singing it in the tour bus.
I'm actually a little conflicted, because obviously Foreigner's "I Want To Know What Love Is" is a horribly catchy monument of terrible über-schmaltz. On the other hand experiencing it at my last Wacken Open Air in 2016 is actually among my favorite live music moments ever.
And maybe that's the thing: Even though the arrangements by Laibach and Silence, the vocal duet of Milan Fras and Marina Mårtensson, as well as the big mix by Marc Urselli are all great, this song works better as a surprise in the context of their show - as I could witness in Copenhagen and Hanover myself.
However... I can actually apply the same spirit here, just enjoying this release as one more fun proof for the band's incredibly unlimited range, both in sound as in seriousness. And again: There isn't actually anything musically to frown about
The download consists of three mixes, one being extended with the so very atypical live ending, and the Distorted Love Mix, which is the darkest, certainly most Laibach version. Damn, the more I listen to all of those, the more hooked I am. This song is just pure evil. All hail our Dark Lords Foreigner!
Of course I'll still be writing about 2024 releases here for a while. And if you're thinking I'm only covering the forgetable rest now, you couldn't be more wrong. With more spins and time of consideration some of the albums you're still going to see here might even have made it into my annual list of favorites.
Cursed Cemetery for example have delivered a successor to their 2022 Blackened Doom masterpiece "A Forgotten Epitaph", which is a 2024 highlight of the genre.
CURSED CEMETERY - Magma Transmigration (CD) (2024)
A question which not as easily answered as you might expect is which genre the Romanians are actually playing here. And while Blackened Doom is a pretty safe surface level answer, it doesn't really cover the totality of these four long tracks. Not that the answer would matter much, because Cursed Cemetery aren't the kind of band that flexes with the multitude of styles they are bringing in. The base of their songwriting rather is finding simple, yet strong chord progressions and riffs and milking the fuck out of them as intensly as possible without letting them become an annoyance. And that's where all the different timbres, tempos, sounds and dynamics come in.
As a result we get those great slow caveman riffs, mostly presented in a Funeral Doom manner, but also as a Post Metal wall of sound, decorated with Dark Ambient synths, Blackened atmosphere, all kinds of far away screeching, growling and vocalizing, including throat singing, but also surprising forays into grungy uptempo stuff akin to King Woman, Psychedelic bits as well as good old Oldschool Death Metal.
Yet ultimately it's all one magnificent thick, but still fluid stream of mysticism, darkness and despair. Again the overall vibe reminds me of Forlesen - and that's a great thing. "Magma Transmigration" is a beautifully eerie and oppressive monument of devastating Doom. I love to immerse myself into its horrifying magnitude.
And on top I even like the artwork of this digipak CD much more than I would have expected. An all-around convincing release by Dusktone Records.
2020. It's been a while since Napalm Death bassist Shane Embury released "De Omnibus Dubitandum Est", his first Electronic album under the moniker Dark Sky Burial.
However if you look at how prolific this project has been since then, with almost a dozen full albums - it looks more like at least ten years must have passed.
DARK SKY BURIAL - V.I.T.R.I.O.L. (yellow vinyl LP) (2024)
I must admit that while I occasionally listened to a couple of tracks, I didn't really follow all that after the 2021 single "Omisoka". And the reason for that simply is that didgital-only music just takes a less important role in my music collection. Even though a great part of my music consumption actually is digital - on the computer, in the car... -, the sheer existence of a physical copy gives an album more weight. It's not neccessarily fair or something I am proud of. It has the power to let quality material fall by the wayside.
And damn, Dark Sky Burial qualifies as quality material! Dark Ambient meets Italo Horror, weird beats pair with laibachian atmospheres. Old school ex-Napalm Death legends Mick Harris and Justin Broadrick show their musical faces, most notably in resemblances to Techno Animal or the occasional super heavy Godflesh groove. Embury tries everything which comes to his mind, and that appearantly is a lot. So prepare for club sounds, Industrial and Post Rock influences, synthwavy Electro Pop elements or even The Lovecraft Sextet in Eighties mode with guest saxophone. Within this Electronic framework so much is possible - and most of it is great.
But am I actually still talking about the Dark Sky Burial discography as a whole or this album in particular? The answer is: both. While some fans might have anticipated a huge (and expensive) box with everything, this release is the rather more feasible solution, a compilation of ten tracks, picked from the complete ouevre so far. It feels very coherent, like a "real" album. Like a really fucking good album.
The LP looks and sounds great, even though I'm wondering why the vinyl colour couldn't be a more consequent gold. Yellow is fine too though. My only real issue is the usual complaint: Why no download code? At least the pressing quality allowed a stress-free copy. Yet still I think this is a very avoidable, unnecessary inconvenience. Please do better, everyone!
Yet I also got two more of Ivan The Tolerable's many recent releases, sister albums, both out on Riot Season:
IVAN THE TOLERABLE QUINTET - Vertigo (lightly merbled cyan vinyl LP) (2024)
Just like with "Infinite Peace" it was the rather close vicinity to Spiritual Jazz, which made having this a priority over several of Oli Hefernan's other 2024 albums.
Performed by a quintet of players with experience in Post Rock, Experimental Jazz, Space Rock and other fields (in bands like Ecstatic Vision, Ponyland and The Unit Arma), in comparison to "Infinite Peace" these six tracks are a much more loose and free affair. Think the depth and smooth flow of late John and later Alice Coltrane, also her atmospheric drone, yet additionally drenched in Psychedelic Rock textures and Ambient sounds! Field recordings of birds, sampled spoken words, the constant theme of drops and other water sounds...
"Vertigo" juxtaposes simplicity and overflow, modernism and timelessness in a very well-balanced instinctive way. Even though especially the double bass work gives Ivan's Quintet a closer connection to the original Jazz roots the intention of this music doesn't seem too far from what the Neptunian Maximalism spawn Zaäar is doing.
This feels carefree and profound at the same time. Bold, exciting, yet also soothing - but always with a hint of doubt, since behind the ease of the current there always lurks a shapeless shadow. And while nature keeps bubbling and the flute is still chirping to its tune, this shadow keeps growing towards the end of the album during and eclipses both "Swimming" and "A Hitch, A Scratch" as an undeniable presence, that can no longer be ignored.
All this creates a quiet unique, both earthy and cosmic ambience. All the flawless performances on "Vertigo" ultimately are in service of this long lingering subtly suspenseful mood. Wonderful!
The layout of the record is simple and beautiful, with an artwork, which feels like it belongs inside a museum. I guess someone, who laid eyes on my first copy, felt the same, so I only received the naked turqoise record without its cover at first.
(Still have that one as a spare copy to give away for a fair price. Please hit me up if you're interested!)
IVAN THE TOLERABLE QUINTET - Water Music (deep yellow vinyl LP) (2024)
Like I said in the beginning these two are sister albums. Riot Records could have easily put them into a box together, since this a if you like one you should probably also get the other situation anyway.
The line-up and sound spectrum on "Water Music" is similar to "Vertigo". The selection of these five tracks just leads to a slighty different overall impression. There are more water sounds here - d'uh! -, but there's also more light, a brighter, dreamier, more colourful spirituality about everything. And especially on headphones you will also notice the asmr-ish quality of the whispered samples on "Whiteout 1998" adding to the transcending effect.
Do I like this album a little bit more? Maybe, maybe not. It's as hard to decide as useless, because just look at these records; they belong together anyway! For pure unfettered relaxation while letting go of all darker contemplation "Water Music" undoubtly is the preferable choice. A magical meditation.
Yay! Here comes the only worthwhile New Year's Eve tradition: Dead Neanderthals dropping a new release in the first minutes of December 31st.
DEAD NEANDERTHALS - Other Worlds (LP) (2024)
This time we get a half hour long album with seven tracks, which certainly isn't the most usual format of the Dutch duo's output. And musically we get pretty much what we can expect from the great cover artwork, which will surely look awesome in vinyl size (of course I don't have the record yet to show you pictures): Yet another flight through space with a touch of arcade game aesthetic.
Well, in musical terms this is synth-driven, mostly very robotik Krautrock. Otto Kokke plays keyboards and saxophone, all with a very warm tone which reminds me of their slow-motion trio Gilded Form. And especially on the beautiful longest track "The Outer Rim" Dead Neanderthals slow things down to a comparable pace, even though this one isn't as rhythically minimalist. It also features a beautiful sax solo, which is probably my favorite part of the whole thing. The other key reference within their own work is the Roadburn Redux live album "IXXO". "Other Worlds" however has much more obvious variation, as each track introduces a new tempo and mood. So while we still get lots of hypnotic repetition René Aquarius has to adjust his drumming with each of the seven chapters / movements.
The easiest formula to describe "Other Worlds" is Dead Neanderthals go Zombi, since this really feels like a release from the American Synthwave duo, just with the Dutch band's mannerisms.
So there you have it: Sliding into 2025Other Worlds on a cosmic Krautwave. Cool.
Es sind ja gerade diese stillen Tage, an denen man entweder ständig auf den Kalender kuckt, weil die innere Uhr keinen Plan mehr hat, welcher Wochentag gerade ist - oder man schaut gar nicht erst nach, weil die Speisekammer eh voll genug ist und es einen einfach nicht interessiert.
Wer da nicht gerade wie blöde Musikreviews schreibt, kann und sollte sich auch mal entspannt zurücklehnen und z.B. etwas anspruchsvoll inspirierende Entspannungsmusik aus dem Hause Denovali Records genießen.
MATTI BYE - Capri Clouds (clear vinyl LP) (2024)
In meiner Musiksammlung bisher nur mit Anna von Hausswolf und ihrem gemeinschaftlichen Projekt Hydras Dream vertreten, hat Matti Bye mit "Capri Clouds" ein in wunderbaren Wellen und Wogen schwimmendes und schwebendes Werk geschaffen, welches zumeist auf neoklassischem Klavierspiel über Texturen aus Orgeln, Synthesizer, Cello und Feldaufnahmen basiert.
Dabei segelt diese Musik allerdings nicht immer in einer bequemen leichten Ambient-Brise, sondern scheint durchaus den zufällig an- und abschwellenden Elementen ausgesetzt zu sein. Insbesondere das Schlagzeug des sehr jazzig agierenden Trios, welches Byes Kompositionen mit ihm selbst an den Tasteninstrumenten umsetzt, scheint oft frei wie Treibgut oder Laub im Tempo von Wind und Wetter zu gleiten, was den Eindruck von natürlicher Harmonie und Unberührtheit, welche diese dreizehn Stücke ausstrahlen, entscheidend verstärkt. Auch dass große Teile des Album gemeinsam im Dreivierteltakt schwingen, ist in diesem Zusammenhang eine sehr bewusste Entscheidung.
Kein Zweifel, gebildetere Musiktheoretiker als ich könnten auf "Capri Clouds" sicherlich noch viele clevere Ideen entschlüsseln. Ich erfreue mich hingegen einfach an der praktischen Wirksamkeit ihrer Umsetzung auf diesem verboten wunderschönen, aber niemals zu kitschigen Album.
Wer besonderen Wert auf ganzheitliche Stimmigkeit legt, dem kann ich als Format auf jeden Fall das kristallklar transparente Vinyl empfehlen. Einfach schön und gut.
Oops, das Konzert, nach dem ich mir das Teil vom Merch-Gabentisch mitgenommen habe, ist ja auch schon vier Monate her! Das macht das Review zum neuen Album von Zeal & Ardor wohl zum aktuell längstprokrastinierten Punkt auf meiner To-do-Liste. Na dann machen wir doch mal schnell, bevor der Böllerkrieg ausbricht, oder was?
ZEAL & ARDOR - Greif (clear vinyl LP) (2024)
Nachdem Manuel Gagneux es bereits auf mehreren Veröffentlichungen hinbekommen hatte, Zeal & Ardor nicht mehr nach seinem Soloprojekt, sondern nach der richtigen Band klingen zu lassen, die man auch live sieht, geht "Greif" nun auch konsequent den Schritt alle Musiker und ihre Vorlieben in Songwriting und Aufnahmen zu berücksichtigen. Es ist also tatsächlich das erste "richtige" Bandalbum - was nach der Klasse von "Stranger Fruit" und dem selbsbetitelten 2022er Album natürlich zunächst einmal als rein formale Nebensächlichkeit erscheint.
Wie also zeigt sich der Ansatz konkret?
Ausgehend von der ursprünglichen Internettroll-Inspiration eines direkten Crossovers zwischen Black Metal und afroamerikanischer Sklavenmusik haben sich Klangpalette und konzeptionelle Breite des Projekts ja schon immer im Fluss befunden. Wandel ist also Normalzustand. Die Frage ist demnach, welcher Wandel auf "Greif" am meisten überrascht - und manchen Fans dabei auch nicht bekommt. Und da fällt einem nach der Brutalität des Vorgängeralbums natürlich sofort auf, dass der durchschnittliche Härtegrad diesmal im Vergleich signifikant zurückgenommen wurde. Da kann man durchaus gatekeeperisch Das ist kein Metal! motzen und hat bei einer Vielzahl der vierzehn wie immer kurz und knackig gehaltenen Stücke sogar Recht. Die Frage ist also: Ist das schlimm? Meine persönliche Antwort lautet nö. Die Bandbreite mit faithnomorescher Selbstverständlichkeit spielerisch aufgegriffener Musikstile hat sich dafür in umso mehr Richtungen erweitert.
Was die Kritiker möglicherweise in Wahrheit am meisten vermissen ist auch gar nicht der extreme Wumms, sondern die Klarheit des Konzepts. Denn gerade den Einsatz der beiden festen Backgroundsänger im Ensemble variabler zu gestalten, bedeutet hier eben auch, sich von der bisher zumeist sehr stabilen Formel der aus Gospel und Blues übernommenen Frage-Antwort-Spiele zwischen Lead- und Chorstimmen zu entfernen. Womit natürlich ein wesentliches Markenzeichen nur noch am Rande gepflegt wird.
Oder einfacher gesagt: Zeal & Ardor sind nicht mehr die fiktionalen Freiheitskämpfer, die sich den Teufel statt Jesus als Galionsfigur erwählt haben. Stattdessen sind Zeal & Ardor einfach eine auf Konventionen scheißende Band, die darauf aus ist, ein buntes Spektrum relevanter Themen in kompakte Ohrwürmer zu verpacken, in denen musikalisch alle gradlinigen wie experimentellen Spielarten von Rock, Pop, Soul, Metal, Electro usw. erlaubt sind, auf denen die Schweizer gerade Bock haben.
Paradoxerweise beweist sich die Gruppe dabei nicht nur als äußerst vielseitiges Kollektiv, sondern kehrt mit der totalen Unberechenbarkeit und den kurzen Zwischenspielen gewissenermaßen auch zu den Wurzeln, sprich zur "Devil Is Fine"-EP von 2016 zurück. Diese bestand ja neben der Handvoll Songs, die den Erfolg von Zeal & Ardor begründet haben, neinahe zur Hälfte aus elektronischen Experimenten, Clubsounds und sogar-Spieluhr-Interludes. Bei dieser beinahe zufällig chaotischen Vielfalt ist man mit nun definitiv wieder angekommen - allerdings auf hörbar gereifterem Niveau, welches solche Ideen besser ins Songwriting integriert.
"Greif" ist ein erfrischend furchtloses, künstlerisch freies und doch nicht mit Hits geizendes Albem, welches einfach Freude macht, selbst wenn es als einzige kleine Einschränkung anfangs ein paar Refrains gab, an die ich mich erst gewöhnen musste. Letztendlich hätte hätte Fahrradkette es sich aber zweifellos auch gut in meinen 24 Lieblingsalben 2024 gemacht. Aber dass ich den Drops nun schon gelutscht habe, ändert natürlich nichts an meiner vollen Empfehlung!
Die Covergestaltung is gewohnt schlicht, grafisch, schick. Kommt gut mit dem transparenten Tonträger.
Oh dear, this was hard! Even without live albums and reissues and only counting what I own as a physical copy there were something over eighty albums to chose my favorites from. At least seventy of those I would respect in any AOTY list. And in my personal TOP 24? I guess I must have considered more than twice than that as worthy of ending up here at some point.
The end of the story is that I just can't do it. I won't compile a full ranking of two dozen albums. That would immediately after publishing it feel incorrect and incomplete.
Instead I'm only giving you the podium of my TOP 3 albums of the year - and leading up to those twenty-one other favorites, chopped into three questionably categorized, each alphabetically ordered selections. Sounds too complicated? Just read on and it will explain itself!
But before we start let me honourably mention just a few of the many artists who undeservedly didn't make it onto this list! Especially the first and largest category still misses many great names like Aluk Todolo, Chat Pile, Julie Christmas, Knoll, Lucifer, Mono, Monovoth, Schneider Thisquietarmy, Sykor - to my own biggest surprise - even Blood Incantation, which was a very close call, where I basically decided on the base that the album already gets enough love everywhere. And I just didn't know what to drop off the list in its favour.
Papangu and Agusa would grace the Jazz / Fusion / Psych / Prog selection as well as Causa Sui,Cazayoux, Dope Purple & Berserk, Goat, Human Teorema, Kanaan & Ævestaden , PainKiller or Work Money Death. And even after that are still Midwife, Lethe, The Necks, Yīn Yīnand of course bazillions of fantastic albums I just don't own or I am not even aware of... So as always: Please don't start with "But THAT ONE is missing!" and just take this as the selection of warmest recommendations it ultimately is!
Godflesh slowed down to the pace of Earth, sprinkled with lap steel guitar, synths and piano. On top Dana Schechter now sings, putting what could already be felt on previous albums into words. This adds a new strong dimension to the bleak beauty of Insect Ark's signature kind of hopeless Doom.
Over eighty mind-melting minutes of virtuous apocalyptic dissonance and hyper-brutality brought the Canadians' comeback "Vitriseptime" very close to my personal top three. Without a doubt however this incomprehensible hellscape is my favorite Death Metal album of the year.
It's hard to fathom what musical psychosis has led to the existence of Oranssi Pazuzu's unsettling blend of Black Metal aggression and Psychedelic atmosphere, as the Finns now add more Electronic glitches, cold Industrial and sheer Noise to the spiraling angularity of their misanthropic madness.
Blackened Death / Doom / Post Metal, but with trombone and trumpet instead of bass and guitars, that's the shtick. Its execution by Ottone Pesante however has always been so much more than you would expect. And the Italians' new concept album elevates it to new heights. A Metal must-buy of 2024.
Two hours of destruction against war - with four more harrowing, but satisfying Noise attacks from the exile Russians Anton Ponomarev (sax, pocket trumpet, electronics) and Anton Obrazeena (guitar, effects, samples, synths) - each with a scope and story worth its own EP or even full album.
The Experimental duo of Wukir Suryadi and Rully Shabara strikes again with a heavy and transcendent masterpiece of unique Southeast Asian Folkloristic Drone on self-made instruments. Narrated by a vocal performance not from this world we're taken on a cosmic spiritual trip through Javanese mythology.
Who would have expected such a strong comeback? Portugal's finest finally returned, introducing their new singer Priscilla Da Costa (from Judasz & Nahimana) and bringing us an irresistable collection of beautifully crushing, mightily melancholic hymns of Doom and Post Metal with that special Mediterranean touch.
Yes, I also could have filed this under Psychedelic Rock further below, but then the French trio's double album is so huge and heavy that it dwarfs our little planet and all that lives on it. Slift's "Ilion" is Kraut on steroids, a titanic cosmic steamroller grinding us to a tiny pebble lost in the void of space.
For an album called "The Healer" this unpredictably twisted sludgy mammoth chunk from Aaron Turner, Brian Cook and Nick Yacyshyn is made of some remarkably sick shit. Sumac pummel us with a creative hammer that is both a radically abstract deconstruction and a flooring hyperbole of the whole idea of Metal.
Complex, colourful and catchy. Knowing their genre's past, but not shying away from incorporating modern influences. The Southern Germans Carpet are doing it all with seemingly effortless natural ease on this wonderfully light-filled Psychedelic Prog Rock kaleidoscope.
Multi-instrumentalist Oli Heffernan aka Ivan The Tolerable has been almost intolerably prolific this year. Even worse his twelve releases are all worthwhile stuff between Ambient, experimental Krautrock and Jazz. However this dreamy double album, which mostly displays his Spiritual Jazz side is my undisputed personal favorite.
Speaking of Spiritual Jazz: Building bridges between Pakistan and London Jaubi unite this Jazz tradition with both Middle Eastern Classical and Folk influences as well as funky Fusion. While instruments like sarangi, flutes and tablas stand out immediately, every single performance of this whole ensemble is nothing but spectacular.
Mohama Saz are collectors of worldwide Folk influences, yet the three Spaniards, who utilize a bağlama (traditional long-necked lute) instead of a guitar, mostly enhance their vivid Psychedelic Rock with ideas and sounds from their home country, Turkey and Northern Africa.
An earwormy instrumental mixture of his proggiest Space Rock tendencies and all kinds of smooth Zorn and electric Miles worship. "Asterisms" certainly is a surprising release from the son of John and Yoko. This marvellous album almost made it onto my podium.
At times similar to Lennon's work, yet mostly coming from the wilder and heavier side of Jazz Fusion with the special trademark of Ingvald Vassbø's (Kanaan) drum madness the energetic self-titled debut of The Verge from Norway is another banger constantly living rent-free in my head.
6 x GOTHELECTROSINGERSONGWRITER* highlights 2024:
* You could also say everything which didn't fit into the other two categories - and this just happened to be the direction of this selection.
At this point I feel like I should begin to tire from praising Contemporary Gothic Queen Chelsea Wolfe, who also impressed live and with two great EPs this year. On the other hand despite being released back in February, her latest album, which draws from all her past albums' sounds, still keeps growing on me.
Self-described as Electro-Gothic-Doom this new trio with Jessica Ball (MWWB) on ethereal vocals and guitar could theoretically sound just like Chelsea. Eye's blend of Shoegaze, Dream Pop and Post Rock however is its very own angelic beast - but just as utterly mesmerizing and compelling. Wonderful!
With an enchanting, sultry and soulful performance Swedish singer Louise Lémon brought us ten new hymns of love, hurt, heartbreak and healing. The concept remains simple, the musical realization couldn't be more addictive. Certainly one of my most played albums of the year.
In over seventy excellent minutes the Englishman residing in Georgia, armed with a sharp poetic quill and matching skills as singer, songwriter and instrumentalist, masterfully delivered a multi-faceted spectrum of sixteen songs from Chamber Pop ballads to most unpredictable Post Punk Avantgarde.
On her latest album, which combines new songs with alternative versions of older material, Chinese-American Avantgarde artist Lane Shi Otay:onii limits her tools of expression to piano and voice. The result couldn't be more impressive and certainly is among the most breathtaking and profoundly touching music released this year.
London singer / Electronic artist Emily Underhill aka Tusks has released a versatile album between dreamy synths and strings Art Pop and Post Rock grandeur, with majestic hits, which sound as if they could have come from artists as different as A.A. Williams, Angel Olsen, Björk or Janelle Monáe. Earworm gold!
And now finally some fodder for you hungry ranking maniacs out there! Here are *drrrrrrumroll*...
It didn't even click with me immediately, but boy, I cannot tell you how often I must have listened to Dool's new mighty Goth Rock masterpiece since then! More personal and emotional than ever, the Dutch group led by the charismatic presence of Raven van Dorst moves from strength to strength on "The Shape Of Fluidity", delivering yet another highly addictive selection of mighty, sweaty and catchy hymns. The phenomenal live band stays true to its established sound, while resisting the reasonable temptation to just rehash the greatest hits from previous releases.
Californian Spiritual Jazz maximalist Kamasi Washington and his band scaled down from the ridiculously large format of his previous albums and released "only" an almost ninety minutes long double record. He also forgoes the familiar overflow of choirs and strings, but compensates that with effective guest appearances and action-packed arrangements including sounds from Funk, Afro-Beat, Hip Hop, but also Tango and Ambient (of course with André 3000 on flute). Washington's own emotional, rattling and roaring saxophone solos are highlights, yet also only a small fragment of what makes this very varied, splendidly produced "Fearless Movement" as awesome as it is. The Jazz Fusion competition of 2024 was strong, yet Kamasi stands out.
"This album is a giant, who stomps his foot on the ground right in front of you, while butterflies are fluttering around his light-flooded hair. The kinetic power of his movements crashes the king tide into the fjord, breaks the cliff off the coast and blows every ballast which is not Rock’n’Roll bliss out of your head."
Full Earth, who also played my favorite festival show of the year, are a Norwegian quintet featuring all three members of Kanaan. On "Cloud Sculptors" they perform monumental compositions by drummer Ingvald (therefore the only musician appearing in this TOP 24 twice), combining heaviest Stoner, Psychedelic and Progressive Rock with Modern Classical inspirations. In a very powerful, warm and natural production enormous riffs clash with hypnotically swirling and pulsating organs, mellotron and synth.
From the first time I heard them I knew that these eighty-five minutes of elemental monumentalism were very likely to become my favorite Album of the Year 2024. And that impression never wavered. Congratulations on this deeply satisfying masterwork!
