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new (old) reviews.

so this pair was posted at the beginning of august or end of july. i can't remember. thankfully this month has been summer holiday time over at good old Connexion Bizarre, so not much action going on and zero turnover for new reviews. but that is soon set to change! anyway, check it.

Fujako_Landform

Fujako - Landform
Together, producers Jonathan Uliel Saldanha (a.k.a. HHY) and Nyko Esterle (a.k.a. Ripit), having purportedly sequestered themselves in a mountain studio in Portugal, engendered an unforgettable exegesis of post-hip hop norms (if such exist) and pushed the envelope for this genre with startling ferocity. "Landform" won't disappoint.

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Violet_vrgatps

Violet - Violet Ray Gas and the Playback Singers
Utilizing the requisite field recordings, found sounds, CD/tape/vinyl manipulations, etc., Violet presents listeners with an album both disquieting in its peacefulness and jarring in its white noise banality. It is not so much mentally invasive as vaguely irritating, lacking the essential cohesion necessary in an experimental/drone record and likely far more interesting in terms of creative process than actual listenability.

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new review.

yoww it's been awhile. i'm the one to blame for a spate of abnormally lethargic turnarounds, especially on this last review, and it's even already been posted over at Connexion Bizarre for more than a week. stuff happens. but hey, i know these guys so go ahead and check out the goods.

FlatlineSkyline_ASNV

Flatline Skyline - All Sound / No Vision
A multifaceted album that confronts listeners with pop tendencies, taking inspiration from the sharp beats, brimming bass and lyrical delivery of indie rock's more electronic leanings, and similarly finds substance with a blended new wave versus old industrial feel. Flatline Skyline overall benefits from its oddly familiar genre-bending forms and passionate articulation.

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new reviews.

read them at your leisure, for your pleasure. all this wonderful stuff and more available this week on Connexion Bizarre.

Tonikom_TheSnipersVeil

Tonikom - The Sniper's Veil
Tonikom's sophomore release on Hymen Records, "The Sniper's Veil", is a wholly satisfying exercise in breakbeats. Most everything appearing on Tonikom's latest shows fantastic cohesion, simplicity, musicianship and, it must be said, an intriguingly feminine essence.

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Amesha_Spenta

Amesha Spenta - Amesha Spenta
"Amesha Spenta" as an album is relentless, even in its ambient passages, and however sedate the bpm might be. It is dense, secretive, and part of a floating realm, suspended between the occidental and oriental with chime-like melodies and shivering tones, supported by spine tingling beat structures.

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new reviews.

a pair of fine releases have been reviewed for your reading pleasure and, one hopes, musical curiosity. at times heavy, playful and psychedelic, albums like these are what keep this business interesting. posted this week on Connexion Bizarre...

Lingouf_Area Keloza

Lingouf - Area Keloza
With "Area Keloza", French hardcore/gabber artist Lingouf joins the ranks of the Ant-Zen catalogue. Recognized for his unique sound within hardcore and breakcore categories, Lingouf's Vincent Ingouf is a competent visual artist as well, reflected both in the subversively cartoonish and imaginative album artwork, and in a fascinating website full of clever animations and hidden puzzles.

Read more... or try this.

Kibuka_Dystopia

Kibuka - Dystopia
Kibuka is a new project from sound mastermind Dean Dennis, formerly of Clock DVA and, more recently, Nohno. A logical successor to the latter's "Metropolis" (2006), Kibuka's "Dystopia" takes the sumptuous bass and retro-electronic, tech-ambient feel of that pithy release and articulates it further. Kibuka delivers nostalgia with a 21st-century twist, and fans of early IDM and electro-industrial are advised not to let this one slip by.

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old review.

whoops. forgot to post this one. plus i'm behind on my current reviews. stuff happens.

Art Of Sampling_mdos1

Art of Sampling - My Definition of Sound Vol.1

(an IDM beat record, aka random playlist interlude fodder)

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new review.

this week on Connexion Bizarre.

InversionEffect_ABriefHistory

Inversion Effect - A Brief History
"A Brief History" is a befitting title for Inversion Effect's debut album, which contains material recorded over three years of studio sessions, rehearsals and live performances. A digital-only release, it is best described as (dark) ambient, drone and experimental, with plenty of attention given to gazing into static noise and abyssal space alike.

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new review.

once again, it's time for another review. this one goes deep, and takes you right along with it. a very highly recommended drone project from Finland, with beautiful cover art to boot. all this and more can be found over at Connexion Bizarre. enjoy!

NoXivic_Yksityisyys

no Xivic - Yksityisyys
Three years in the making, "Yksityisyys" is a mercurial set of seven compositions upon which Kyllönen has instilled a careful architecture in both form and color. Using a mixture of drone work, found sounds, fields recordings and musique concrète, he has generated an auditory experience that surpasses standard visualizations of reality, instead nullifying worldly imagery and emphasizing emotional perception and vision, organic duality and density.

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new review.

stuff and some more stuff. new review posted this week on Connexion Bizarre.

MMMF_InTheLab

MMMF - In The Lab
MMMF characterizes itself as "never boring or foreseeable", and its musical methodology is something of an electronic melting pot, filled with sharp layering. If their music may be described as a bit conventional and whimsical, it's because "In the Lab" seems to be just that - superficially simple tracks with titles to match.

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new review.

some worthwhile reading was posted this week on Connexion Bizarre. this includes my first review for 2009. enjoy!

DeadLettersSpellOutDeadWords

Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words - Lost in Reflections
"Lost in Reflections" is not all void and darkness, shrouded apparitions and pervasive melancholy. Full of warmer tones, richer hues and softer timbres, we can accept that ensconced somewhere among the meticulous layering is a mind at odds with its environs, and by no choice of its own.

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new review (or, the last from 2008).

because of holiday travel priorities, i didn't have the chance to post this one when it first went up on Connexion Bizarre a few weeks back. recommended for those who enjoyed the first Pylône album, generally unsettling music, or any of the stuff offered by Laurent Perrier's uniquely cerebral label, Sound on Probation.

Pylone_Grounded Hands

Pylône - Grounded Hands

minimal / dark ambient

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