remote_ thoughts

Remote_ Thoughts Has Moved

2009-10-04T12:37:00.002+01:00

After a lengthy hiatus, Remote_ Thoughts is now up and running again but has moved.

You can find it here:

Remote_ Thoughts

It's in a simpler format and has easier categorisation and I think the improvement is tangible.

Look forward to much more regular updates in the future.

Hope to see you soon!

Fourm / Steinbruchel - Knot 3 - White_Line Editions - 3" CDr

2007-08-23T20:57:00.000+01:00

I'm an unabashed fan of BG Nichols' work whether it's under his Si_Comm or Level guises and now I'm extremely pleased to have experienced his new Fourm project.

Having discovered a recording of a Ralph Steinbruchel live set entitled 'Box' he set about getting permission from the artists to rework the pieces from the CD in his own inimitable style. He duly received a thumbs-up from Steinbruchel and this absolutely marvellous 3" CDr is the end result.

Packaged in a plastic wallet with a set of 4 postcards featuring some rather nice minimalist artwork, the audio content is a re-imagining of the source material using electronic processing to add layers of depth and sparse beauty to the original. Rather than completely deconstructing the work, Nichols approaches the reinterpretations with respect and cunning to provide a compelling series of pieces.

Strictly minimalist, the work is a series of beautifully cultivated layers and rhythmic elements that sits somewhere between his micro-fine high frequency work as Si_Comm and the more lush melancholy ambient sound of his Level project. The effect is strangely soothing, yet has enough edge and background layering to reward thorough listening. That said, however, there's a real ambient overtone, particularly to the first track, 'Knot 3' and this gentle way of easing the listener into the CD pays dividends.

By the time you reach 'Knot 2' you're greeted by an altogether more rhythmic and angular piece of work that, once again, manages to retain a calm and hypnotic feeling whilst dislocating you with off-kilter drops and stutters. The underlying drone is a thing of great beauty and accentuates the overtly a-tonal sound that plays across in tandem with the rhythms.

The final track, 'Knot 1', is yet another superb example of depth in drone. Pulsating and, no doubt bass rumbling bottom end collides with a menacing series of foreground tones that, at times, seem to be trying to communicate with you. I wouldn't be at all surprised if there's a hint of manipulated vocal in there somewhere. Sci-fi minimalism with attitude and the sort of oceanic depth that fans of Richard Chartier or NVO will be extremely pleased to hear.

In essence this is a project of some substance and I'll certainly be looking forward to the next instalment in the series.

Once again Nichols delivers a wonderfully thought provoking and engaging piece of work.

Available as a limited edition of 100 copies from Si_Comm's Myspace page as well as Smallfish Records

Mnortham - Automnal 2003 - and/OAR - CD

2006-10-15T09:49:00.000+01:00

And/OAR continues to impress me as a label with its varied, original and extremely high quality release and it’s clear that owner Dale Lloyd takes a great deal of care over every single release.

As such it’s always a pleasure to hear a new CD from such a quality imprint and this release from Mnortham is absolutely sublime.

The three tracks that make up the 55 minute CD are audio snapshots of three different locations in time and reflect the ideas and feelings the artist had whilst relocating around the globe thirteen times in the just two years, culminating in his arrival back home in Autumn 2003.

Prepare to be soothed and engaged by the work on offer here as there’s a tangible sense of difference between the pieces, even though the approach is roughly the same each time with processing of location recordings and found sounds forming the main structures.

‘Glacier Du Trient, Switzerland/France’ is a light, breezy, yet discordant piece that lifts you up with its high end drone sounds and insistent clicks in the background which force you to pay attention. It’s hard tune it out and you’ll find yourself listening to it in depth and discovering more and more resonant frequencies existing than you imagined at first.

‘Eagle Creek, Indianapolis’ has a heavier, more oppressive tone and bears a similarity at times to some of the work of Wolfgang Voigt under his Gas moniker. Combined with the sound of cicadas in the background the organic tone that drives the track forward gives you a palpable sense of a wide open space inhabited by creatures of the night.

The final piece ‘Ils Grosbois, Montreal’ is the most haunting of the works here. A mid/high-frequency drone that works with discordant layers resonates at just the right level to create a sense of dislocation, gradually adding in subtle static sounds and scratchy, gritty tones into the background. Again this give the track a real sense of movement, driving it ever forward.

And it’s this sense of moving and never settling in one place that permeates the whole CD… a feeling of transience captured for eternity on a piece of encoded plastic.

That’s the magic of music and it’s certainly where the magic of this CD comes from.

A delightful, beautiful and very personal piece of work.

Lucky & Easy - Hookahs - Ampoule - CD

2006-10-15T09:45:00.000+01:00

The big question for me has always been ‘Is Lucky & Easy actually Pub in disguise?’

A question that’s never been answered to my complete satisfaction unfortunately… not that it matters a damn, of course, when the music on offer is this fine.

Lucky & Easy have generally provided a more classic ‘Electronica’ sound than Pub’s deeper, more Berlin orientated work and ‘Hookahs’ is as varied and entertaining as you could possibly imagine an album being.

Their (his?) penchant for dreamy melody is very much on show from the very first moments of the CD and is never far away from the centre of things.

Lively, crunchy beats form a cracking backbone for the sounds to weave a magical spell over the top using all the tricks of the trade that higher profile artists such as Plaid have done for years. To be fair, for me anyway, Lucky & Easy are as good as Plaid when they deliver those chord sequences and touches of traditional melody. Plus the cleverly programmed beats give it a life of its own with what seems to be off-time rhythms that soon settle into a real groove.

It doesn’t stop there though as L & E are clearly devotees of the Detroit sound and they embellish quite a few of their tracks with a Motor City lushness that speaks of pure machine funk. ‘Kiss It Better’ is a prime example of this with some seriously hectic percussion and 4/4 beat that’s got more in common with Derrick May or B12 than Black Dog, whilst ‘Night Rainbows’ could have come straight out of 1993.

And these tracks are when they show up the Pub connection (if there is one…) with clattering, beautifully ever-changing arrangements that are far more complicated than they seem. In fact it’s not unusual for the tracks to go through two or three major changes throughout their duration staring out with an ambient flavour that soon turns into rhythmic and melodic and becomes powerfully driven even further forward by the beats.

There’s even an acid track, ‘Chippoke’, that rolls along with a 4/4 beat and an almost House-style feel.

It’s this sense of depth and variety that make this wonderful album shine through and if you’re a fan of good electronic music in any way at all I seriously suggest you hunt a copy of this down without any delay.

Monostation - Alchemy 6: Phosphor - Limit Switch - 3" CD

2006-10-15T09:40:00.000+01:00

I thought it was about time that I reviewed a Monostation station release as this is, in fact, their seventh release of 2006 and forms the sixth part of their ongoing ‘Alchemy’ series and the first release since their superb ‘Greyscale EP’ for London’s Smallfish imprint.

This London-based duo has been experimenting in the realms of processed sound for some time and the Alchemy series is a natural exploration of the resulting tracks.

Thus far the music has been predominantly based around the sounds of processed guitars, but with this release they’ve used a variety of tones to generate the incredible swathes of sound that make up this CD.

Phosphor itself is a slowly evolving and very beautiful track that ebbs and flows with an enchanting resonance that fills your mind quite beautifully.There’s an exquisite noisiness to the background drone that drags you in whilst the flowing overlaid chord has a movement and delicacy all its own.

If you heard this on Kranky, you’d be blown away… let’s just put it that way.

The second track, ‘Firebird’, is generated using piano sounds and has a less obviously drone-based style, instead choosing to use a hypnotic chord motif that repeats and evolves throughout.

Dripping in reverb it puts me in mind of Seefeel way back in the day and you can almost tangibly hear the dub bassline that could sit underneath (good idea for a remix?).

When the searing synth strings make their way into the mix it instantly becomes a majestic piece of music that gives a nod to the Cocteau Twins but keeps it more minimal than they did and allows the sheer simplicity of the music to drift over you like a wave.

As an added bonus you can download two remix tracks based on these originals from their website – www.monostation.net

Monostation seem to be ploughing their own furrow at the moment and I, for one, am glad that they’re still single-mindedly delivering such beautiful and evocative music.

Long may it continue.

Fourcolor - Letter Of Sounds - 12k - CD

2006-10-15T09:35:00.000+01:00

It’s fair to say, I think, that Keiichi Sugimoto is not only prolific, but something of a master of his genre of music as well. It doesn’t seem to matter which of his guises he’s working under, he always just seems to get it right. Whether he’s producing as Fonica, Filfla or as part of four-piece act Minamo, there’s a subtlety and very Japanese beauty to everything he does.

To find that the new 12k release is from his Fourcolor moniker is great news indeed as ‘Air Curtain’, his previous CD for Taylor Deupree’s label, was a delicious slice of low-key, melodic electronic lushness.

Similarly, ‘Letter Of Sounds’ is a work that seems infinitely delicate, yet more than robust enough to stand the test of time.

By opening with the sheer exuberance of ‘02’ it quickly becomes apparent that we’re dealing with a serious album. His use of organically-based sounds which are then constructed into shimmering layers of electronic music is enchanting and, once again, we find him using the sound of guitar harmonics to punctuate his tracks.

Simple, charming chord structures form the basis for a lot of the work here and they have a pleasingly old-school feel with just the right amount of Techno-style soul to keep the purists happy whilst injecting it more traditional instrument sounds.

He never saturates the tracks though, and always gives the tones enough room to weave around the crisp rhythmic elements that creep in from time to time.

In fact there’s enough room on the second track ‘Rowboat’ to allow female Japanese vocalist Piana to breathe some lyrical life into the track.

Her voice acts as a superbly fragile accompaniment and it’s great to see yet another artist who isn’t afraid to use the voice as yet another tool for creating sound, as opposed to relying on it for unnecessary and obvious emotional content.

When he picks up the tempo later into the album there’s an even greater hint of Techno that shines through. You get the sense that he’s a fan of the Motor City sound and some of the rigid structures and tight metronomic clicks definitely give a nod in that direction.

He always adds in his unique melodic chords though and that’s the true strength – there’s always beauty – even when, as in ‘Leaves’, he adds an experimental leaning to the track… in this case a resonant and insistent test tine which gradually builds throughout the track.

Sugimoto should be treasured for his consistently excellent and charming work and this release will certainly go down as one of my favourites.

Chris Herbert - Mezzotint - Kranky - CD

2006-10-15T09:26:00.000+01:00

When I first heard this album I was completely bowled over by its sheer beauty.

Chris Herbert has provided, for me, one of the albums of the year without any question simply because he’s managed to blend Electronica, drones, organic texture and honesty into one simply marvellous CD.

Kranky’s a good label anyway… we all know that (well, I assume we do, anyway)… but the quality of their releases over the last 2 years has become so damn fine that I’m slightly worried that won’t be able to keep up this level of sheer momentum in the future.

For now though I’m revelling in the fact that they keep releasing CDs of this calibre on a regular basis.

Herbert’s sound is immediate, yet subtle. The first time I heard its fuzzy textures I knew I was in love and yet it’s since become my most listened-to album of the year (thanks Last.fm for giving me a rough idea of what I’m actually tuning in to!).

It’s rough around the edges, but I think that’s all part of it. Hints of distortion, a sound out of place here, a crunch there… that’s the charm of it. He doesn’t hide the fact that it’s not perfect and I for one would like to congratulate him for that. Too many artists are utterly obsessed with everything being exactly right and whilst that has its place I suppose, it’s good to know that people still do it the old fashioned way.

The layers of texture that he’s created are dreamy and intense and provide a scintillating ambient backdrop for the more rhythmic or melodic elements that drift into the mix.

When it gets more rhythmic (and I use that term fairly loosely) it becomes ever-so-slightly reminiscent of Loscil getting stuck in the studio with Gas… yes, it’s that good.

Short interlude pieces link the main tracks together to form an engaging narrative throughout and the fact that they sound varied is testament to Herbert’s wonderful production technique.

Essentially you could compare this to several other artists – Gas, Tim Hecker, Loscil - but it’s because it comes across as a blend of them that it works so well.

It’s an album of the year situation for me and I have to recommend you get yourself a copy of this as it’s just quite simply brilliant.

Respect to both Chris and Kranky.

Alva Noto - For - Line - CD

2006-07-24T08:14:00.000+01:00

Line's pedigree as an experimental electronic label is long and extremely impressive. With releases from the likes of Richard Chartier, Bernhard Gunter, Steve Roden, Asmus Tietchens and many more influential artists it has grown in stature over the years.

We come to the 26th release and no introduction is necessary when dealing with an artist of the calibre of Carsten Nicolai - Raster Noton original, micro-composer extraordinaire and visual artist of some distinction.

'For' is a surprising release in many ways as Nicolai's work is often based on a particular theme or concept. Here, however, the only concept is the dedication of each track to a particular musician or artist. It's refreshing to hear an album of variety, beauty and challenge that simply exists because it can - there's no other reason to enjoy these tracks other than they're enjoyable!

'Counter' is a slightly disconcerting intro track which uses a whining, high-pitched squeal to wake the listener up before dropping into some textbook sinewave tones and bass. A perfect way to set you up for the rest of the CD.

From there the tracks become more melodic, strikingly beautiful and full of a delicacy that sits happily with the semi-ambient nature of quite a few of the pieces. The 12 minute long 'Transit', for example, has a classic, gentle progression with all of the hallmarks of Nicolai's sound... yet it's a mellow sound - almost chill out music. There are still elements of high-frequency in there, but they don't dominate and certainly aren't the main raison d'etre of the track.

'Gulf Night' is the only track that really comes across as an experimental piece but it sits quite happily amongst the other gems of shining beauty.

'Flashforward' is simply a divine piece of music that has more in common with the likes of Taylor Deupree or Minamo than the clinical sound of Raster Noton. It weaves an absolutely magical spell over the listener with a hypnotic, shimmering chord loop punctuated by subtle tones and textures.

The album finishes with 'Alva Noto.Z1', a track that sounds like it could form part of the Alva Noto / Sakamoto trilogy with it's piano phrases and bass heavy rhythm. Then you learn that elements of the track date 1999, and it becomes clear that you're listening to a liquidly beautiful prototype of that work.

Undulating, spacious, natural sounding... this CD captures a very real sense of Carsten Nicolai's personality and musical skill. For that reason it becomes ultimately clear that this is a work of great distinction.

Another wonderful and essential release from a deeply impressive label.

Marsen Jules - Les Fleurs - City Centre Offices - CD

2006-05-21T17:38:00.000+01:00

They say that absence makes the heart grow fonder and after a year of having to deal with no new music from Marsen Jules, I can see how that might be the case.

I'm simply in awe of this work and yet again Martin has produced an album of such consummate skill and beauty that to find any fault with it would be a massive challenge.

Simply put this is some of the finest ambient music around and you'll be hard-pushed to find anything that's this striking or this beautiful in the months to come.

Martin's blend of classical, organic and electronic music is marvellous and there's an easiness and flowing grace that makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. From track to track we are treated to a divine collection of instrumental works that owe as much to composers like Satie as they to do to modern musicians such as Eno. The smallest snippet of sound is enough for Juhls to create nothing less than a symphony and it's this spare use of musical elements that, once again, stands out from the crowd.

Arrangements on all of the tracks are airy, light and remarkably mature sounding and his use of space as well as sound is the real key to the atmosphere he creates - for every note on most tracks there is a corresponding space in time that works in harmony with it. That said, there are lush textural tracks as well and they still have the power to recall Gas at his absolute finest. Swathes of sound drenched in reverb serve to hypnotise and entrance the listener and when combined with classical string swells it becomes an incredibly emotional and melancholy piece of work.

As ever with this style of music it's incredibly hard to break it down into its constituent parts as that would shatter the overall balance of the album. Instead I'll just mention 'Ceillet Sauvage' as being a particular standout track with its minimal use of marimba and vibraphone proving that less is most definitely more.

Once more, Martin Juhls has delivered a superb album and his success this year is assured. I know that this will be an album of the year for me for 2006, just as 'Herbstlaub' was for 2005. All we can do is hope that he continues this amazing run of stunning music.

Quite simply an incredible piece of work.

Orla Wren - Butterfly Wings Make - Expanding - CD

2006-05-21T09:49:00.000+01:00

Expanding has delivered two superb albums so far this year, from Miller + Fiam and Modern Institute. Now we are treated to a third release from the little known Orla Wren with the evocative title ‘Butterfly Wings Make’.

It’s a gentle name for a thoroughly beautiful album and is clearly designed to conjure images of nature and fragility. This it does successfully and is accompanied by a series of tracks that are at once familiar sounding, yet invigorating at the same time.

The ill-named sub-genre of ‘Folktronica’ is a much maligned beast at the moment and the waters are brimming with me-too and sound-alike work by a vast number of artists. It’s heartening, then, to hear a genuinely heartfelt album that’s obviously been put together with a great deal of love and attention.

Orla’s sound is organic, yes, but the more electronic side of his sound shines through like a beacon and whilst there are sampled instruments you’re as likely to hear a synthetic tone or a static glitch as well.

‘Closure’ – a superb name for an opening track – kicks things off with a gentle, lilting piano and some delightful, light and very airy electronic percussion sounds. Add to that a hypnotic guitar and spacious strings and you have the kind of intro that gives you a good idea of what’s to follow. And right up to the final moments of ‘Sea Grass’ you’re treated to a work of manifold pleasures and hidden secrets.

It’s the sense of melody that really makes this album and Orla is clearly as at home with marimba sounds and exotic percussion as he is with more traditional sounding instruments. The blend of atmospheres is truly lovely and ranges from Folk influences right through to the work of Murcof or Digitonal. There’s clearly a classical leaning here but it’s nowhere near as overt as the aforementioned artists.

There’s also a lightly glitchy sound that recalls the work of labels such as 12k or Plop and this, combined with the more melodic elements provides a well-rounded experience with all bases covered. It never spreads itself too thinly though and manages to balance all of these influences with style and ease, even down to the inclusion of background field recordings which serve to highlight the natural feel of the album.

This is the type of music that will accompany your summer with ease. Refreshing, mellow, sunny-sounding and with just the right level of sweetness but enough bite to keep you coming back for more.

Expanding once again hit the right spot with another wonderful release.

Taylor Deupree - Northern - 12k - CD

2006-04-26T21:35:00.000+01:00

I think it's fair to say that Taylor Deupree is one of the most highly regarded electronic composers currently involved in the world of minimal, textural and contemporary soundscape music.

Rightly so as he has a wonderful back catalogue on labels such as Audio.nl, Raster Noton, Sub Rosa, Spekk, Noble and plenty of others.

His recent penchant for collaborative work has seen him engaging in musical companionship with artists such as Kenneth Kirschner, Eisi and Christopher Willits, and whilst these are all beautiful examples of how to work together as a unit, there's something exceedingly special about a solo Deupree release - particularly when you consider the last thing he released on his own 12k imprint was the classic 'Stil.' in 2002.

The anticipation for 'Northern' has been nothing short of rabid, to put it mildly.

To break this piece of work down into it's constituent tracks and sounds would be to do it a serious injustice as it seems to have been conceived as a complete work from the very outset. Whether that's the correct assumption or not, I'm not sure, but the tracks on this 51-minute work of sheer brilliance seem to hang together in such a coherent way that it seems impossible to imagine them any other way.

Deupree's work is concerned with the simple, beautiful way that machines can convey an atmosphere or emotion and his well-known love of minimalism is clearly a vehicle for this souful machine-style music - you will always find an element of beauty in his work regardless of whether it's a stripped-down, rhythmic piece or a more texture based, hypnotic work. That's part of the beauty, I always find... the deconstruction of sound and the reorganization that gives every tone its own unique nuance.

'Northern' takes the processed manipulations of his previous work and, in my opinion, steps it up a gear with a wonderful infusion of the synthetic with the quite overtly organic.

From the first notes of 'Everything's Gone Grey' to the final notes of the stupendous 'November' you are treated to a lush, cleverly constructed symphony of sound that feels at once familiar, yet completely refreshing in every way.

Deep, lilting, melodic elements sit happily with drifting textures and slowly evolving digital sounds, creating a sense of timeless beauty and emotional warmth. Lone guitar strums punctuate the sense of melancholy and even the wood flute sounds seem to have a certain mysticism about them. 'Northern' is without doubt Deupree's most musical work to date and, at times, has an almost traditional style to the sounds... something it shares in common with Sebastien Roux's 'Songs' or Sawako's 'Hum', albeit in a very different guise.

The snowy cover artwork perfectly reflects the feelings the album invokes with its heartwarming sound and evocative tones and he's clearly been inspired by his new surroundings as you can genuinely imagine slowly meandering streams and stark forests full of depth and a fragile iciness whilst experiencing the music. It's definitely a world away from the bustle of his old stomping ground in Brooklyn!

Ultimately you need to hear this CD for yourself to appreciate just why it's such an essential and important release. And it merely cements the reputation of one of our most important modern musicians even further.

One of the best releases of the year without a single doubt.

Loscil - Plume - Kranky - CD

2006-04-23T07:17:00.000+01:00

Scott Morgan's Loscil project has grown in both stature and popularity since his earliest releases for Kranky. Something that he fully deserves as every album (and single, on Involve) has been of such a high standard that it's hard to fault any of them.

From the more Basic Channel styled 'Triplepoint' through the varied and deeply beautiful 'Submers' right up to, arguably his finest work so far 'First Narrows' he has a small but expertly crafted catalogue of engaging, beautiful and considered work under his belt.

The fact that 'Plume' is superb from beginning to end is certainly no surprise then and merely reinforces the fact that Loscil is one of the treasures of the Organic / Electronica scene.

Morgan seems to keep a low profile for the most part and there's a real sense of that within his music... understated, unwilling to be tarred with any sort of musical brush - he just writes phenomenally gorgeous music that seems to come straight from the heart.

'Motoc' begins the album with a simple and delicate loop that filters and slowly evolves whilst he adds a one-note bass line and layers of sample and string noise. This is classic Loscil and has an infinitely hypnotic quality that drags you in and washes over you, drenching you in its atmosphere.

There's something reminiscent about 'Rorschach' and you get a pleasing feeling of familiarity as soon as the main meat of the music cuts in. Again, looped sounds and distant tones create a slight feeling of dislocation and the use of a single bass tone reinforces the simplicity of the music. A distorted guitar-style sound plays gently over the music and perfectly complements the lilting piano melodies.

From there the music just grows and grows into a textbook example of how to produce something unique without pandering to any particular style - Morgan clearly just loves writing music and it's this that gives it so much weight.

'Chinook' is a chiming, rolling track with layers of warmth and a lovely bassline whilst 'Charlie' is more downbeat and more ambient. When the background guitar melody cuts in there's a moment of clarity that soon gives way to a delightful sense of melancholy.

'Mistral' ends the album in a similar way to the beginnning with its subtle musical shimmers and an achingly deep chord loop that will leave you wanting, and probably needing, more.

'Plume' displays many of the qualities of classic ambient music and really reminds me of some of Air Liquide's material from their more relaxed works as well as artists such as The Bionaut. It's hard to quantify exactly why that should be, but he's clearly influenced by a world of different sounds and the way the tracks bubble gently under the surface and use a mid-paced tempo is definitely from that particular school of thought.

Every track has a musical feel and they definitely feel as though they have an overall theme - in the same way that the other Loscil albums feel like complete works.

Quite simply it's a wonderful piece of work and, judging by the success of 'First Narrows', promises to do huge things on the Electronica scene, and deservedly so.

Morgan and Kranky really have come up trumps yet again.

Sabi - Nebulous Sights - Cactus Island - 3" CD

2006-04-06T10:45:00.000+01:00

This will be the first time I've written about Cactus Island's series of limited edition 3" CDs even though they are currently on the 15th release. They've all been of a beautiful quality so far and yet, there's a real feeling of progression with the last two releases from Nautilis and Sabi.

I don't know whether they're getting deeper or darker as time goes on, but they seem to have so much substance that I felt it really was time to issue forth my thoughts.

Sabi is a Japanese artist who runs SAAG Records in Tokyo and, amongst other things, has released tracks on Merck, Hydrogen Dukebox and net.label Sutemos and here he delivers a 5-track EP of sonic beauty and warmth with an overriding feeling of melancholy and wistfulness.

In some respects this has a classic 'Electronica' sound - crisp rhythms, sinewave melodies and luscious chord structures. And yet there's a wonderfully contemporary feeling that belies its roots.

The production is, as always, immaculate and from the opening moments of 'Plastic Stains [Hard]' you know you're going to be getting something that will enchant and hypnotize you.

It's all about the musical elements with this CD and the layers of textural sound that provide the intro are simply gorgeous. They flow over a gentle click-style rhythm and there are lots of nice incidental sound recordings present in the background. A perfect way to begin.

'After Ants' takes things in a more structured direction with a recognisably electronic style that's reminiscent of, but not totally similar to, Plaid or Maps + Diagrams. A downbeat rhythm rolls along with its Electro influence in place whilst the musical elements sit atop, majestically weaving a superb spell on the listener. Shimmering sounds and, once again, layers of background sound deliver an engrossing experience.

'Uki Reflection' is conceivably the most organic sounding track on the EP. Starting with field recordings of children and general bustle it's a beatless track that relies completely on the lovely Rhodes piano progression of chords to get its point across... a dreamy, slightly unreal sense of reality. One of the strongest tracks on the CD.

Then we're back to the delightful rhythmic tracks with the delicious 'Matmilk'. This is simply a divine piece of music that anyone with a soft-spot for the likes of Expanding or Toytronic will adore. Simple, effective and well paced, the track is clearly influenced by mid '90's Electronica, yet there's a distinct nod to the sounds of Detroit in the high strings.

Finally 'Early Morning Dusts' brings things to a gentle close. A watery sound prevails and the deft use of analogue synth tones creates an atmosphere that's full of feeling and emotion. To be fair it's a surprisingly low-key way to finish but, cunningly, it really leaves you wanting more.

It's always nice to find genuinely excellent electronic music and Cactus Island once again proves that it's a very fertile source indeed for this type of sound and although it can be hard to find them (due to the limited runs they produce) it's absolutely worth tracking them all down.

Long may they continue to put out releases of this calibre.

Various - Idol Tryouts Two: SMM - Ghostly International - 2xCD

2006-03-26T10:36:00.000+01:00

I have to give a special mention to this absolutely wonderful CD from Ghostly international as it's been playing regularly at my place for several weeks.

'Idol Tryouts Two' actually comes as a double CD - the first being the more dancefloor side of their sound - but it's the second CD, which concentrates on the 'SMM' style of their catalogue.

There were two volumes of the 'SMM' series released on vinyl and they featured artists such as Christopher Willits, Kiln, Twine, Kosik and more. For me they were the absolute highpoint release-wise of an already great and varied label.

So, they already have a good pedigree, but the track-listing for this CD is simply awesome and you're liable to be hearing some of the best quality organic Electronica around.

Loscil, Deru, Sybarite, Cepia, Kiln, Greg Davis, Lusine + David Wingo, Aeroc, Christopher Willits, Terre's New Wuss Fusion, Twine, Tim Hecker, Richard Devine... if that's not enough to get you excited, I don't know what is!

The artists each provide a reason as to why they're so highly regarded within the Electronica scene and whether it's Loscil's low-key, rhythm, ambient sound or Sybarite's more guitar orientated, song-based style, it's all incredibly beautiful and sublimely deep.

Cepia is recruited for 2 tracks, the first being a dense, almost shoegazing, texture of sound, whilst the second is pure, classic, crunchy Electronica... Greg Davis gets it on with a lovely processed guitar track... Deru plays it dubby and downbeat with incredibly intricate programming and a flowing sound... Tim Hecker is on top form with a melancholy, very beautiful processed track with lots of background noise and heart-string pulling chords... Even Richard Devine gets all textural on us with guitar samples and long, resonant chord sounds...

As a compilation of new and previously released tracks it works like a dream and as an object lesson in how to incorporate guitars and organic sounds into Electronica it succeeds with incredible panache and style.

There's not even a hint of a bad track on this CD and my respect has to go to the label and the artists for a well rounded and thoroughly enjoyable compilation.

Marvellous.

Pola - Pola Meets Lyrica - Commune Disc - CD

2006-03-26T09:59:00.000+01:00

Having released an absolutely wonderful CD ['Même - PLIP-3013] on the ever-superb Plop label, Pola now turns his attentions to a new full length piece of work for Commune Disc, another Japanese label that has an interesting and engaging back catalogue.

Describing an artist's sound is never entirely easy and Pola certainly has a feel all of his own, albeit with nods towards experimental musicians such as Snd and Carsten Nicolai. That said, there's a much larger degree of warmth involved with Pola's sound and though they share certain similarities in tone, this is a more melodic piece of work.

Once again, like 'Même', the tracks are digitally edited together to give you an unbroken and very atmopsheric experience. Whilst there are certain obvious changes in the tracks, you're left with a pleasing sensation of completeness.

The CD opens with the ambient beauty of 'Alice Mise À Nu Par Ses Célibataires, Même' which gently guides the listener into the more rhythmic works. Deliciously calming sinewave twinkles and a subtle array of background sound work into the mix at a pleasingly gentle volume ending only when a suitable atmosphere has been constructed.

'Crépuscule' then starts you off on a beautiful journey with hypnotic, processed chord stabs and sweeps along with gentle, click-based rhythms which use a mutant style of offbeat funk to get you tapping your toes (or other body parts).

By the time you get to'Fatal' you've barely noticed that you're on the 5th track - you've been led along in a deeply hypnotic state. 'Fatal' itself brings in the notion of a delicate 4/4 beat, a dub-style bassline and incredible resonant chord textures. There's a beautiful sense of space, yet the track has a lot of sounds going on and it still manages to feel full and complete.

From there the album just continues to grow and creates interesting new forms of electronic ambient funk. 'Jalousie' continues the subtle 4/4 tone whilst 'Lièvre' makes a foray into more minimalistic territory, yet still aches with warm chords and sounds.

There are completely beatless tracks such as 'Nombre Imaginaire' and 'Radis' and they form lovely interludes between the more rhythmic elements... a natural introduction to the invariably funky tunes that follow or precede them. They stand on their own though as they have a density and drama that carries them easily... there's something incredibly beautiful and sad about these tracks and they certainly offer the most melancholy moments of the album.

'Vanité' end the CD on a slightly upbeat note and has a major-chord feel to the meat of the chords and a light, airy and rolling dub-inflected bassline. A positive way to wrap things up.

'Pola Meets Lyrica' isn't the longest album you'll ever hear, but it certainly keeps you listening throughout. There's a crispness to the production and mastering... a beauty to the melodies and chords... a certain funkiness to the rhythmic structures. It's glitch, it's click, it's ambient... it's all of these things and so much more. The fact that it comes with a superbly illustrated cover and liner notes speaks volumes about the production values of both artist and label.

Essentially it's an immaculate, highly engaging and evocative piece of work that's quite superb.

Achrid - Achrid - Benbecula - CD

2006-02-22T11:01:00.000Z

Scottish label Benbecula has had a great reputation throughout the last few years and having released albums by Christ, Frog Pocket, Reverbaphon and many more, they've now turned their attention to a sister project in the form of the Minerals series.

I haven't heard the first couple of releases but I'm pleased to have aquired a copy of this quite frankly brilliant CD by Achrid which marks a real departure from Benbecula's more tradiotional Electronica sound.

Achrid is the duo of Michael Wright and Tadanae Fujimura and, although I've not come across the name before, this could well be a name to look out for in the future on the strength of this release.

Their self titled, 9-track CD is a collection of live recordings and studio improvisations and it strikes a beautiful balance between the more abstract, glitchy end of Electronica with a sublimely melodic undercurrent that keeps the tracks focused and on course.

From the beginning to the end the tracks are crisp, clean and lovingly rendered with a strong attention to detail and a keen ear for hypnotic sound design and whether they use resonant high frequencies and speaker rumbling sub-bass or looping textures, you can tell a lot of love's gone into the production.

For the most part their tracks are gently rhythmic - that is there are no obvious structures. However they occasionally let rip with a spine tingling moment of pure beat trickery and there are actually several cuts that develop into a 4/4 style... not your average 4/4, of course. This is more akin to an artist like Jan Jelinek or Sutekh with layers of sound intertwined into the mix.

There are nods to Berlin and even Detroit at times, but more than anything you get the feeling that Raster Noton or 12k are labels that the artists admire and the way they have combined these influences is remarkable - they pay homage without ever blatantly copying.

The development of each of the tracks is very clever and changes enough to keep you interested at all times, without chopping and changing too much... you get ample time to enjoy each passage before it mutates into something new. Because of this it's the longer tracks that really stand out and form the main focus of most of the CD - the shorter tracks act as abstract interludes before the main performance, if you like.

This is a prime example of the more accessible end of the experimental Electronica sound and the melding of hissy, static samples and sounds, intense moments of white noise and more traditionally deep chords and textures is very pleasing indeed.

Well played to Benbecula for doing something a bit different and props to the artists themselves for producing an album of such quality. My guess is we're going to be hearing more from these guys.

RF - Views Of Distant Towns - Plop - CD

2006-02-11T10:28:00.000Z

There comes a time when every label wants to expand itself... exceed its original programming if you will. Tokyo's Plop imprint has been releasing wonderful Electronica for the past few years to critical acclaim and they've released everything from minimalistic, dubbed-out sounds to a much more organic, guitar based style via sweet toybox music. Now, it's time for a new sound and something of a departure as Plop unveil their latest release... RF's 'Views Of Distant Towns'.

I've always had a slightly skeptical view of electronic Pop music as I feel that generally it's a compromise too far. This album, however, has completely reinvigorated my idea of just how superb the blend of songs, accessible music and electronics can be.

RF is San Francisco's Ryan Francesconi, a multi-instrumentalist and media artist and with this album he's constructed one of the warmest and most likeable albums you're likely to hear this year. Using guitars, horns, strings, live drums and a subtle palette of electronics he delivers an intricate and beautifully arranged series of songs from the heart.

Melancholy seems to be the overriding influence - whether it's in the soaring strings or Sunday afternoon trumpet sounds - and he openly references Haruki Murakami's wonderful 'Wind-up Bird Chronicle' as a source of inspiration, particularly regarding the loneliness and stasis that lead character Toru feels in certain passages of the book (and as an aside, if you haven't read it, you really should as it's magnificent).

The feeling of watching the world passing by is incredibly strong and, for me at least, his use of electronic sounds embedded in the songs really emphasises that... on one hand you have recognisable song structures and tunes, yet lurking in the background is a deep layer of glitch and abstractness which takes a while to come to the surface. Once you lock into it though the whole album takes on a different feeling... still atmospheric but possibly even more melacholic.

Ryan's use of vocals is inspired. Not only does he use them to convey a tangible idea through the lyrics, he also uses them as an instrument in themsleves... breathy, sultry female vocals that sit just a little bit back in the mix and add another layer of intrigue. There are quite a few Japanese vocals as well and yet it doesn't feel impenetrable... you almost understand what's being said on a subconscious level.

To give reference points for this album would be tough. You could say Post-Rock in general, because of some of the structures, and yet I think a more pertinent comparison would be Sweden's Tape as the combination of organic and electronic is in a similar ballpark, albeit with it's own sound. Combine that with Fenton's guitar manipulations, Keiichi Sugimoto's work and the vocals of Piana, and you've got a fair idea of how this sits in the grand scheme of things.

The real beauty of this album is the sheer depth. You'll keep on coming back to it and discovering new and very pleasureable highlights time after time. I would suggest that you'll be listening to this all year.

Simply gorgeous.

Sébastien Roux - Songs - 12k - CD

2006-02-09T10:50:00.000Z

Without a shadow of doubt, 12k continues to lead the field in the world of minimalistic Electronica. With beautiful artwork, exemplary music and immaculate overall presentation, you know you're getting the finest every time you excitedly open one of their releases.

The 36th releases comes from the mind and equipment of Sébastien Roux and a band of players including Stéphane Garry, Laurent Vaissiere and Leonzio Cherubini, who provide the original instrumentation that Roux has then manipulated and processed.

'Songs' is comprised of 7 tracks that each have a unique feeling. They take the form of an instrument (or in some cases two or three) that provide the basis for the work and have then been rearranged, reconstructed and generally tinkered with until they take on an entirely new guise. So, for example, 'The Prepared Piano Song' does, indeed, feature a piano, but this is combined with various other sound sources, both organic and electronic, to form an engaging variation on the theme. Other instruments include cello, piano, harp, Metallophone, electric guitar and drums and that's what gives the CD such variety.

The real beauty of this album is the simplicity with which it actually works. The idea of 'songs' is turned upside down yet, strangely, some of the pieces do retain an almost traditional element to them and you can clearly hear Roux's Folk, Pop, Electronica, and Musique Concrete influences throughout.

Whether you're treated to skittering, high-frequency sounds, barely-there natural sounding recordings and chaotic rushes of white noise, or simply a lovingly played guitar or piano riff, there's a lovely coherence to the sounds that's at once lively, yet extremely soothing. You'll find yourself jumping a little when he hits you with one of those moments of extreme noise but they never last for long and, as ever with this form of music, it punctuates the work beautifully and adds a clearly defined sense of form and space.

The arrangements work on a very 'free' level and, although it borders on abstract a fair amount of the time, there's still a lovely flow to the work which keeps you engaged from the very beginning right to the end.

Ambient, dreamy, challenging, noisy and beguiling - these are all words that amply describe this album and as is always the case with both the label and the artist you should seek out and enjoy this wonderful piece of work.

A remarkable voyage.

Miller + Fiam - Modern Romance - Expanding - CD

2006-02-04T10:49:00.000Z

Expanding are certainly starting the year off in style here with two fabulous releases with the second coming from the excellent pairing of Dave Miller and Harry Hohnen.

This is not the first time the duo have worked together as they've released tracks on both Background and Meupe over the last couple of years, although this is their first full length work.

On the strength of 'Modern Romance' they could well find themsleves being called to work as a duo on a more regular basis as this is simply a gorgeous piece of work which comes across as a real team effort.

Miller's more minimalistic work for Background has always had a strong sense of groove and funk and he's managed to imbue this CD with a surprising amount of that feeling considering it's mostly a downbeat oraganic / electronic piece of work. There are very subtle 4/4 beats lurking in the mix which work beautifully with the live sounding guitars, pianos and even drums.

Light, airy arrangements give it springy step and although the tracks are low-key, there's a feeling of robustness to the sounds and an overall jazzy tinge that keeps things fresh and lively. There's an element of glitch going on (particularly in the percussion) but, once again, this takes a backseat compared to the general melodic nature of the productions and whilst it has a slightly 'free' feeling that borders on abstract at times, it's all amazingly cohesive and tight.

Influences are varied and you can really hear Post-Rock, Folk, minimal Electronica and more all shining through in the mix. This is a deep work with layers that only become apparent as you spend more time with it... I for one would suggest it's well worth spending that time with as it's an incredibly satisfying piece of work.

Once again, Expanding proves that it's a label that's not afraid to release something a little bit different.

Superb.

Richard Chartier - Tracing - Non Visual Objects - CD

2006-02-04T10:40:00.000Z

Non Visual Objects has something of an impressive pedigree as far as releases go. Kicking off with a CD by sound artist Steve Roden, the aim of this particular imprint became very clear early on - to provide experimental works of electronic musical art with distinctive packaging and a varied, often challenging repertoire of artists.

Following that, NVO released works by Richard Garet, Dale Lloyd, Jos Smolders, Ubeboet, Roel Meelkop and label co-owner Heribert Friedl. Now, for the 5th release we are treated to an exceptionally beautiful piece of work by Line and 3particles head Richard Chartier who, by my calculations, is on absolutely top form at the moment.

Well known for his wonderfully difficult sound-works using microtones, fractured electronics and a minimally minimal style which borders on being barely perceptible at times, Chartier is an experimentalist with an incredibly finely tuned sense of space and form.

'Tracing' continues his recent (and hopefully ongoing) trend for producing incredibly deep and melancholy drone-based works. For other examples see 'Set Or Performance' or 'Retrieval 1-5'. In my opinion, this style really suits him and brings a truly emotional side to his sound right to the fore whilst still challenging the listener and pushing towards the edges of the genre.

The piece starts off in a typical Chartier fashion with a long, tantalizingly slow build up which, initially at least, sits so far back in the mix that it's more of a subconscious sound - a slowly evolving, rumbling bass drone layered under a deeply resonant and very atmospheric texture which fades in and out like the ebb and flow of the sea.

The piece continues in that vein throughout using subtle filtering and resonance to amazing effect... the droning sounds almost implying the feeling of wind blowing across stark landscapes... the feeling of being stranded, alone, in space with monolithic, impossibly large spacecraft drifting past you... utter desolation, yet with a surprising amount of warmth in the actual tones he's used. Volumes change radically from time to time and whilst one moment you're hardly aware of anything, the next it's a mind-filling noise which is very moving indeed.

Then, 41 minutes later, you find yourself in another space and frame of mind having been treated to one of the most hypnotic soundscapes you're liable to hear, wondering to yourself where those 41 minutes went... how they could have passed so quickly.

That's the beauty of it - you always want to go back to hear it again and in a similar way to John Hudak's 'Room With Sky' on Spekk, you get the feeling that's exactly what the artist wanted.

Chartier has created a pristine work here and, for me, is conceivably one of his most exquisite works to date.

Bravo to both label and artist.

Modern Institute - Excellent Swimmer - Expanding - CD

2006-02-04T10:28:00.000Z

With this release from Modern Institute Expanding is living up to its name in a big way. The label has always provided a certain type of quality and you always know that you're getting high class Electronica, subtly beautiful artwork and a level of production that is enviable. This album, however, sees them moving away from the pure, crunchy, melodic sound that has been their staple and into uncharted territories of sonic discovery.

Modern Institute is mainly the work of Teho Teardo along with Martina Beroni on Cello and a guest appearance from Rothko's Mark Beazley on 'Post.ino' and essentially this is the most organic, live sounding album that Expanding have released. That's not to say there are no electronics because, as you might expect, there are. Everything has been put together with love, care and attention and there's a lovely amount of manipulation and processing going on throughout - in fact just enough to spice things up without suffocating the instrumentation.

Guitars, Rhodes piano, the aforementioned Cello and Beazley's bass all combine to make a warm, almost traditional sounding album that utilises ambient music, Folk, classical and Electronica to convey a serene type of melancholy.

Every track has a beautiful touch that will keep you coming back for more and the sheer strength of the production is enough to keep you satisfied for a long time to come. With a selection of dreamy, downbeat and mid-paced tracks there's not a wasted moment here with tracks such as 'Not A Word Manni' delivering a more acoustic hit whilst elsewhere there are more pure electronic tracks. Combine that with beatless pieces entirely composed of layers of texture and processed tones and you've got an amazingly varied piece of work.

Considering the popularity of labels such as Plop, Hapna and Kranky, this album is perfectly positioned to appeal to fans of all of them and I for one would applaud the label for pushing the boundaries of their sound.

The first release from Expanding for 2006 is a superb piece of work and judging by this it could well be a great year for them and their artists.

Merry Christmas from Remote_

2005-12-24T08:25:00.000Z

Well, it's that time again.

I'd like to wish you all a very merry Christmas and a prosperous new year and say a big thanks to all the people who've been reading remote_ thoughts over the last few months. Your support is much appreciated.

Here's to a happy and very musical 2006.

Peace to you all.

Mike.

Steinbrüchel - Opaque (+Re) - Room40 - CD

2005-12-17T11:52:00.000Z

Room40 is a label that has quietly ploughed away releasing high quality experimental Electronica in a variety of styles. Under the guidance of Lawrence English and considerable help from John Chantler they have formed an impressive catalogue of releases including artists such as Tujoko Noriko, Oren Ambarchi, Greg Davis, Dj Olive, David Toop and Scanner, to name but a few. This single-minded dedication to producing the finest releases in lvely packaging is beginning to pay off, and whilst it can be a struggle for small, independant labels to get a foot in the door, so to speak, they appear to be going about it in entirely the correct fashion.

Which brings us onto this latest release...

Steinbrüchel was comisioned to provide a piece of music for an exhibition in Berne, Switzerland during Spring 2003. The concept was for it to played in the surround listening room, so, as you can imagine it has a spacious and wide-open feel. It's very pleasing to discover that the work translates into the stereo domain with a great deal of ease and instantly has the feel of a classic digital minimalist track of the variety released by 12k or Spekk.

Intricately woven and initially full of static, clicks and pops, it soon begins its journey into a more melodic style using pure tones, textures and waveforms. It's subtle and beautiful and has a lot in common with the work of Taylor Deupree using, as it does, the more coherent kind of sounds to envelop the listener. You might say it has a drone feel to it, but with mid-range sounds that penetrate into ones consciousness.

On its own, this track would be superb, but Room40 commisioned five artists to reinterpret the original in a range of different and very intriguing styles.

Chris Abrahams, Ben Frost, Taylor Deupree, Oren Ambarchi and Toshiya Tsunoda were all given three soundfiles to work from and a remit that utilises the particular strengths of each artist. So, Abrahams combines the files with piano, Frost uses only feedback, Deupree works with the melody, Ambarchi works in combination with guitar and finally Tsunoda uses only the field recording aspects.

A fabulous idea and one that reaps massive dividends when listening to the final compositions.

Chris Abrahams' work is delicate yet extremely abstract and combines a freeflowing, unsyncopated style of piano tinkling that's much like a toybox but with an added depth. I won't say 'Jazzy' because I think that's missing the point somewhat, but there's a free feel to it which is very pleasing. Combined with the icy texture in the back ground that works almost as a chord progression, it's an engaging and surprisingly fun piece of music.

Ben Frost opts for a more sub-zero aspect to his version. Using a deep manpulation of the chord sound along with glitch sounds he's created a track that is, conceptually, closer to the work of Ambarchi than the other musicians involved, but has a much lighter feel. The way the texture builds and morphs is something that will keep you coming back to it and the fractured moments of broken clicks punctuates the whole piece very nicely. At ten minutes long it's just the right length to hypnotize you all the way through. A beautiful work.

Taylor Deupree is one of those artists that you can rely on time and again and here he puts together a trademark track that has all the hallmarks of quality from beginning to end. Melodically superb (and it's always worth bearing in mind that 'melody' has a very different meaning in this form of music than the traditional idea what's musical) and as ever just the right side of abstract it has that slightly drone-based feel that hooks you straight away coupled with incredibly subtle bacjkground percussion that's barely there yet entirely integral to the track. Quite superb.

Oren Ambarchi's guitar-based version occupies similar territory to his recent output and immediately delivers a strong hit of layered drone pleasure. It's a very dense sound which combines a deep bass tone with high end frequencies and very little in between. Highly resonant and mind-fillingly potent, it's just a shame it's so short as I could have listened to it for a whole lot longer.

Finally Toshiya Tsunoda works some serious magic with the soundfiles in conjunction with field recordings to give us an environmental sound based piece. A persuasive collection of sounds work together to give the piece a sense of isolation and loneliness that's at once comforting, yet slightly disturbing. At times it's easy to forget you've actually got anything playing as it melds with the general background hubbub of modern life. Every now and again though you'll notice the ultra-high frequency that sits at the very edge of the hearing range and be reminded that you are, in fact, listening to a beautifully put together piece of experimental Electronica.

This, for me, is the finest Room40 release so far and when you consider the label's output up to this point you'll realise that I don't say this lightly. Essentially it's an exemplary collection of forward thinking minimalist music and for fans of 12k, Spekk, Apestaartje, Touch and other such labels, it's simply a must.

Remote_'s favourite releases of 2005

2005-12-11T11:38:00.000Z

It's been an amazing year for the sort of minimal electronic sounds that I hold dear to my heart and picking 10 (why is it always a top 10?) would have menat that I had to squeeze out a few things that I genuinely love.

So, I've decided to do 15 in no particular order to give you an idea of exactly what's been floating my boat in 2005.

Various - Small Melodies - Spekk - CD

Fenton - Pup - Plop - CD

Level - Cycla - Spekk - CD

Studio Pankow - Linienbusse - City Centre Offices - LP/CD

Bretschneider + Steinbruchel - Status - 12k - CD

Filfla - Frame - Plop - CD

Loscil - First Narrows - Kranky - CD

Pub - Liltmor - Ampoule- CD

Deaf Center - Pale Ravine - Type - LP/CD

Minamo - Shining - 12k - CD

Alva Noto + Ryuichi Sakamoto - Insen - Raster Noton - LP/CD

Marsen Jules - Herbstlaub - City Centre Offices - LP/CD

Level - Shimmer - Polymorphic Music - MP3

Kyo Ichinose - Lontano - Cubic Music - CD

Rod Modell - Vibrasound (The Deepchord Years 1999-2004) - Silentes - CD

So there you have it. A list of wonderful electronic sounds that have been the soundtrack to the generally rather good year that was 2005.

Hopefully you'll agree with me on most of these, but if not, feel free to tell me why!

Peace and a merry Christmas to you all.

Mark Clifford / Simon Kealoha - Running Taper - Polyfusia - CD

2005-12-11T11:04:00.000Z

For those of us that appreciated the more experimental end of the shoegazing phenomenon there's no doubt a very soft spot indeed for the work of Mark Clifford.

As the leading member of Seefeel and sometime collaborator with the Cocteau Twins, his work had, and still has, an uncanny depth and stark beauty to it that makes him pretty much unique in the world of electronic music.

After a hiatus of several years he re-emerged with the wonderful, but difficult, self-titled Disjecta EP which also came out on his own Polyfusia label.

As a statement of a new intent to be producing again it was bold, brave, engaging and surprisingly abrasive which no doubt put off some of the people who expected an exact re-run of the earlier Disjecta or later Seefeel material.

'Running Taper' is a collaboration, however, and the combination of the artists has brought a new depth and clarity to the sound that works on several levels - all of them appealing.

The over-arching theme is of an abstract yet warm Electronica sound - somewhere between the output of labels such as Plop and Spekk - that's intricate and delicate but with plenty of power behind it to keep it flowing throughout.

You can hear Seefeel in there (and I'm sure that's not going to be taken the wrong way) and you can hear the more fractured tones of Disjecta but there's also a more digital, minimalist sound lurking as well that gives it the feel of something that might be released on 12k. I'm not sure how much music Clifford and Kealoha are listening to at the moment but I suspect that it's entirely incidental that it sounds so current. I just can't imagine them pandering to anyone with their sound.

A happy accident then? Quite possibly. But listening to the lovely textural sounds and fragmented , experimental tones gave me just the right feeling of being caught between the past and the present. And that's why it works so well, in my opinion.

Then, you get halfway through the 8 tracks and suddenly you are assaulted by a massive (and I mean big) guitar chord with a huge fuzz effect on it that belts out in a steady, hypnotic way, filling your head and bringing to mind once again the shoegazing days of old. It's a long track that stays remarkably focused all the way through with minor changes in tone, but essentially is a classic drone piece.

The latter half of the CD is a tad more experimental in tone although there are moments of classic Clifford melody and an almost Aphex-like tone to some of the sounds, but again it all sounds very contemporary and if you're used to listening to Monolake or Shuttle358, for example, there's plenty for you to get your teeth stuck into here.

A massive return to form, then, and an exciting release in general for fans of Clifford. Props must go to both artists, though, lest we forget that this is, in fact, a collaboration.

Available from a small number of outlets including Smallfish, Warp and Polyfusia themselves, this is one to seek out and enjoy.