Augenmusik

Missing Foundation history: En Esch remembers

2009-04-13T08:34:00.000-07:00

An early incarnation of Missing Foundation in Hamburg Germany included members that went on to achieve notoriety in the band KMFDM. Below we have another installment of MF recollections compiled by Vincent Dominion. This time En Esch remembers some of the early days...

[Pete Missing- far right- in Hamburg circa 1984 with members of Neubauten and KMFDM]

I was a member of Missing Foundation in late 1984 in Hamburg, Germany. We did one gig and recording in a studio there. I am not sure what happened to the tapes. It was my first musical encounter with my ex-band mate Sascha K. He was playing bass and I was the drummer back then. I saw Peter on a few occasions back then; he used to live there for a while. The show was kind of wild, we rehearsed before but it was to a good extent freestyle. I had no crash or ride cymbals, just a pair of high hats. Pete demanded that........ That means I did a lot of tom-tom work.....tribal-esque... Florian from Hamburg was playing the saxophone and Uwe the guitar. Sascha was doing the bass and Pete was singing.......”World in Chains!!!”....... The rest of the bunch I don’t even remember. We had a few pillow cases we opened up and tons of goose feathers were flying around in the club.....it was a mess....pretty cool. The recordings were done in a proper 24-track studio and we recorded a full length album worth of material. At one point I did a metal percussion overdub and hit my thumb and lost my nail a few days later. VERY PAINFULL......!!!

So why did you split and how did KMFDM start?
Back then, Pete went back to the states and took the tapes with him....that was the end. It was a unique trip and everybody was fine with that I guess.... Sascha and I were hanging out anyway so we continued to hang and start to do stuff ourselves. In the early stage we just used a drum machine and I and Sascha’s former girlfriend became our singer (Sabine Tamsadi, now living in Berlin, I am still in touch with her). You can hear her voice on the KMFDM 84-86 cassette I put together. I already had a background in electronics doing primitive programming with a Pro-One and a Roland TR-808 drum machine in Frankfurt working with the singer of “E=MC2” on a project before I moved to Hamburg. The drum machine was triggering the Pro-One and I had to push the keys while running to get the bass melody right. It was the pre-Midi times, hard to believe.......Later Sascha and I were hanging out with Raymond Watts, who had some electronic gear in Hamburg in a cool studio set up and we started to jam with him. Some of the material ended up on the first record “What Do You Know Deutschland”.

I opened up for Missing Foundation in later years with a side project I had with Guenter Schulz in the late 80’s and early 90’s called “Svetlana Ambrosius Quartet” which was a girls name we got out of a cheesy novel.

CROSSOVER interview

2009-03-29T08:02:00.000-07:00

If you've wandered onto here in the past, you'd know that I'm quite keen on Crossover. They're one of those bands I'm very happy to have gotten acquainted with. I remember we first got in touch through the wonders of the inter-web while I was on a trip to Berlin where I was planning to cross paths with the Weegs on their European tour. They had just actually split from Berlin themselves and wound up in the Southwest of the US. We've kept in touch since then and have had the good fortune to work on a few things together, with Senor Ratboy himself lending his design and laying-out skills to the Mt Sims projects on
Hungry Eye and now this Missing Foundation project we've been talking up on this very blog. Truly good people, and genuine music heads, we've rapped about everything from their recent tracks to obscure metal to old hardcore bands. Their record is coming out any day now on Punch Records in Italy, and should be a mandatory purchase. They seem to have interesting stuff to say, so I wanted to do an interview with them about their travels and music. I can say they really delivered. Read on...

Throughout Crossover's career, you seem to have been located in places as diverse as NY, LA, Berlin, Portland, and all sorts of other locales in between. Where have your travels taken you? What usually prompts a move like that?

We don’t stay in one place for very long. We met in NYC back in 1998. Lived together in a basement in the lower east side and moved around to every borough before our 5 years in the city were up. From a warehouse with no bathroom or shower in Dumbo (Brooklyn) to a 3 bedroom railroad house in Williamsburg where we squatted for a year. It was at that time we created our band. We both werked together at a shop on Lafayette St. in Soho 6 days a week and after 7 to 10 hour shifts we would make music all night - every night.
Neither ov us had ever been in a band before, we jvst knew that we had svmthin’ to say and we were determined to find a way to put it together. In 1999 we started with a Dr. Sampler and a microphone which were on lend. Everything we have ever done has been by hook or crook. We had to borrow, we stole a little, but we would never beg. We began makin’ songz for our first albvm Fantasmo in 2000 and by 2001 we had a CD out. We gave every copy ov that album away.
We don’t even have a copy for ourselves. We don’t have any ov our second albvm either.
We had no idea our first albvm would have brought us where it did. Just after all that craziness happened downtown in September ov that year we left for a tour that lasted for a year and a half. We played for the first time in Berlin having never even been on a stage before. We have been to many cities in Germany, been to London a handful ov times, also Paris. We have gone to Spain and Italy few times, Switzerland, Belgium, Holland, and Poland. We have lived in many ov the states in the US and played in most ov the major cities svch as NYC, LA, San Francisco. Also Canada - which we luv. There r so many places we have yet, to go, see, and perform. It’s early days for us. We have jvst begun. We have sacrificed everything for the CROSS. We go now where it tells us to.
We really want to go to the Scandinavian countries, Ireland, Scotland, Australia, New Zealand, Japan; the list goes on and on. Having moved a lot as a kid we suppose it just became second nature. It’s like an itch. Shit gets old so u gotta split.

When the first Crossover record dropped, it sounded different than a lot of the other electro going at the time, and the band got caught up in the whole electroclash thing which was happening. How did the band get involved in that?

Oh man, this is a very long and arduous story as a lot ov ourz have been. No one waz doing what we were doing at the time and suddenly thingz jvst went nutz. We got swept vp in it yet, remained the loners by design. The media ate it vp. It’s fvnny and kinda sad cvz that whole scene waz killed as soon as it hit the streets by lovers and haters. The lovers tried to keep it underground and the haters wanted them all to die!
The players in the game were ducking and covering and disassociating any and all ties. The posers and sell outs did whatever they could to catch a ride. It became really hard to make a move without getting caught vp in svmthing lame. We had our wigz skrewed on tight and somehow made it thru the thing by making very few mistakes. Cvz we stayed trve. Then there waz the inevitable press backlash that said no kids don’t listen to that stvff cvz it’s not valid – here’s the new trend to shove down yr throat again ~ it’s called Rock N’ Roll, ever heard ov it!? It’s got dudes with guitars and drumz and stvff. Our motto has always been “More chix – More Synths!!!” The journalist didn’t really know what to make ov it and the muzik posed svm sort ov threat to their master plan ov selling magz and merchandise. Many showed the industry that we didn’t need them nor did we want the tired Marshall Stack approach or the stand around and watch-song-applause-song applause ego stroking sheep herd mentality ov yr average concert.
That is fvckin’ boring. Don’t jvst sit there – Go nutz! We have always felt that the future ov music and art is in the handz ov non-musicians and the self taught.
A lot ov really kvl bandz got thrown into the pot with a bunch ov other trash and nobody wanted to be part ov any scene. They were all too far out and recluse for that. There was no unity at all. Somehow it became like a free for all fvk fest cvz the wrong people got their handz on it and tried to label it market it. This is no new story…
However mvch people want to forget about what happened then, the fact is that is waz really fvn and stoopid exciting. The real headz from nearing 10 years ago r still doing what they set out to do to this day and kicked the doors open for so many splintered genres that exist cvz ov it. The muzik we r talking about is and waz unable to be categorized and it jvst get’s heavier and weirder. Which we think is really kvl.

On the other hand, our story waz like this: Me and my girl knocked vp svm fvked-vp trax for shits and giggles and it went off. Then there waz this crap label that ripped us off on our first albvm which still press it illegally to this day. Hear that readers!? Don’t buy records from rip-offs!!!
We had all these sleazeballz that tired to put contracts in our face. We never signed shit. Then we ended vp hooking vp with this other dude that in the end became the biggest scvmbag ov them all. Again hanging us out to dry on our second albvm. Again – Don’t Svpport Rip-Offs! So there it is kids! The muzik biz svx big time!
We were lucky or unlucky depending on how u look at it to have experienced all sortz ov dirty biz along the way. We know it all soundz like sour grapes but, u asked…

The sound for the second record then got a lot darker. What prompted the shifts in tone?

Our answers to the last 2 questions could hint to why our muzik became a bit more grim. The time after and up until now has been a period ov disillusionment and demystification. We have little faith or trvst in humanz and now we jvst wanna fvk shit vp! We also had svm time when we were landlocked in the desert. Although this was a good research period, it waz actually quite scarring.
We had no choice but to submerge ourselves in a microcosm ov inspiration to stay alive.
How soon people forget what is really goin’ on in this country once they step out ov the few hip-city pockets and enter Middle America. There r so many real problems that one faces on a daily basis. From yr everyday plastic consumerist slaves to yr extremely dangerous gun toting religious political fanatics to yr meat-head drug induced cretins. They cvm in droves and r running the program wether u like it or not. And they don’t like anything different in those parts so u better hit the road before sun down. So we dumped all ov this into our music and art and got out at nightfall before the towns people came in an angry mob with pitch forks, fiery torches, and stix.

What's the hardest part about relocating the band so often? Starting afresh somewhere must have its benefits, but are there any setbacks and hindrances you regularly encounter?

For us we always destroy to create - Out with the old and in with the new. Every time we make an albvm we start again. Being forced to make due with whatever recourses r available to us insures that the process will be exciting and demands us to werk for it. We don’t know what it is like to have endless svpport, resources, and funds so, this is an obvious set back.

SPACE DEATH waz an unusual experiment where CRSSVR took on a life of it’s own.
Everyone that waz involved on this project approached us and offered their services in the name ov the CROSS. We have taken on a new member ov the crew, werked with new artists on the layout and opted to go with a unique and dark Italian underground label.

If I understand properly, you guys record a lot of your own material. Have you set up a studio somewhere in Portland? What kind of locations do you look for to set up shop in?

Man, really we do our thing by any means necessary and always have.
The lyrix were written during the grueling summer months in the Arizona desert.
The programming was done in autumn in the woods of New Hampshire.
The final production and vocal recording was done this winter in the attic ov our house in Oregon.

The Crossover records all seem to have some kind of running narrative propelling them. What's the narrative on this newest one?

This time we r calling bullshit on all wanna be mystics. We say fvk fantasy and let’s get down to the real deal. We had a lot to get off our chests. We speak ov Sheep herd mentality, Sad virtual reality, Nuclear winter, Mental baggage, Family secrets, Black holes, and Suicide.
U know, and Misanthropy and Technology. Warm and fuzzy stvff.

How do the zines and communiques figure in to the Crossover narrative? Do they take on a separate life of their own or are they an extension of the records and songs?

The C.P.C.’s r full ov secrets and clues and act as guides to the ongoing adventures ov VEE & DEZ, EEV & ZED, Ratboy & Ratgirl. They also elaborate on the subject matter in our song lyrix and ideology. Their purpose is to give the listener and CRSSVR Svpporter svmthing more in the way ov better understanding our aim.
We have made over 5,000 foto-copies on our dime and hand stitched each ov them before shows. It adds to the stage fright and jet lag having to needle and thread hundreds ov zines before sound check. We give them away for free personally to people that cvm to our gigz.
There has been a first volume ov 6 issues and 1 issue so far in the second volume. We haven’t made one in a while but, we will probably do more. It’s uncertain. They tell us when they wanna be made.
For a moment we had the extra copies ov each rvn available for purchase but, now they r gone and the first volume is out ov print. One day we would like to professionally print the first volume in a compiled book.

You do a lot of your own videos, right? How are you able to swing all of this stuff on the move? What kind of equipment do you use to produce this multi-media stuff? Is there anything more involved or intricate you'd like to work on in the future with this stuff?

Yeah, we make everything with a no-shoe string budget and d.i.y. ethic. Again, with borrowed equipment and our laptop. We r not really tech-geeks by any means and we r not manual readers. So we jvst plvg and play, point and shoot and see what happens. It’s not like, if svm fundz were to be thrown our way, we wouldn’t know what to do with it. We would definitely put it to good use. We have tonz ov ideas. Sadly, America doesn’t hook vp the arts like they do in say Canada or svm European countries where bandz have all the time in the world and top notch equipment to bang vp svm killer trax. Or maybe we do - we jvst have never bothered to look into it. We take it day by day and evolve naturally. It is part ov our process. We dig it this way – it’s our style. Rat & real.

It's been a while since your last record and you've started working with a new label in Italy Punch Records. How did you hook up with them and through what course of events did you decide to work with them?

They were jvst first to ask and we said yes. Svmtimes all u got do is ask. Jvst reach out have the guts to believe in svmthin’ and yrself and make stvff – Pvt it out into the world. This albvm made itself. It is really important that when we werk with people that they understand our stvff. Also to honor and respect the art form. Not to meddle with it. We have a very strong vision and we never compromise that.
Our new label is behind us. That is all that matters. Not all that swarmy money biz b.s..
Plvs we wanted to make a statement ov our intentions ov keeping our stvff UG & Cvlt.

What else can we expect from Crossover in the future? More music/ videos/ travels?

There r many trix vp our sleeves. Keep a watch on our actions. Mvch is on the horizon.
We r werkin on svm sik vidz! U bet yr ass we r gunna tour. We have already begun werkin’ on the next albvm with 13 new songz cvmin’ down fast!

We will have to say this has been one ov our most revealing interviews as we tend to keep stvff in the shadows but we svppose we took this opportunity to set the record straight.

CRSSVR
RATBOY
RATGIRL
SPACE DEATH
GLOOM

http://www.myspace.com/crossoveranticvlt

Missing Foundation history- Pete Missing interview

2009-03-29T07:29:00.000-07:00

Below is the first in a series of interviews done with members of Missing Foundation done by Vincent Dominion, who put together a sort of oral history of MF through the words of people associated with the band. He kindly gave us permission to reprint some of these here on the blog. Missing Foundation has a storied history involving many characters, but why not start with the main character himself, Pete Missing! This interview must have been done around 2001 or 2002, right around the time Pete was in Berlin, and exhibiting his work at the Tacheles. Following this time, Pete came out of his self-imposed exile to return to the United States and ran a gallery out of a storefront in Madison, Wisconsin, if I remember correctly. It is here that we started communicating and planning for the 1933 reissue. Pete then returned to New York City for a time before splitting his time between Berlin and NYC again.

The interview is a bit short on details about Missing Foundation's history, but it's a good insight into communication with Pete. At bottom, he's a visual artist, and is most in his element with his paintings and his art, which are often strewn around him when he works. His writing is a bit like his painting; very busy, very extravagant and colorful, full of slogans and superimposed images. You can really tell how he'd be the mouthpiece of a band like Missing Foundation.

[Pete at the Tacheles in Berlin]

Can you describe your time with MF?
Manic psychotic creative destructive constructive [prophecy of the coming events we have now]

Are you still in contact with w/ex members?
Adam I just saw on tour in New York he has a kid and is working on a new band. Chris Egan is a photojournalist in Boston.

What did you think of the Spitters?
Heavy load but unlistenable, not grounded and still boring rock music in the end but stage shows were more power. The cd’s are not a good representation of the Spitters sound. A well missed band. Mark dead in New York of cancer in 2000.

I heard about a show you did at the Knitting Factory w/John Zorn and Marc Ribot. Can you tell me about that performance? What do you think of those guys and was it recorded?
Well, John and I lived on the same block and he is a friend/collaborator of improvisational music. I was happy to throw my Berlin recordings of electronic sampling live with vocal overdub. John Zorn of course is a small genius and Marc Ribot is also great noiseician and guitar player. This may be recorded but I do not have a copy.

What music/writers/filmmakers are you into now?
Only electronics but I couldn’t really pinpoint. I think.....Tricky, Squarepusher, Aphex Twin, Chemical Brothers.......I give everything a listen and there is a lot of drum & bass live instruments with electronic etc.... still coming up.

After MF why did you take off to Berlin?
Basically after the F.B.I. was at my house on a false tip and not finding anything I decided to go back to live in Berlin but this time I went into the former east and found an incredible place far from the anals of America. I was able to record and build massive installations. Check out the photos on the web site www.petemissing.de or www.missingfoundation.com Berlin is my dream city but maybe someone else would get lost there. It has a big underground of active people, artistically and politically. Their energy changed my life my music and my interests.

Why did the F.B.I. raid your house?
The reason the F.B.I. were at my house is because they tried to say that I started the riot in 1988 (at Tompkins Square in NY) but in the end they realized they were dealing with an entire angry neighborhood, which fought gentrification, homelessness and homesteading rights on city owned abandoned property falling into deterioration. And at that time a government that was and is not working for the people. The F.B.I. investigation fell back on the 9th precinct police department which found no real criminal actions against MF.
Basically, they would have to arrest the entire lower eastside and so I moved to Berlin to squat and make new music and leave America behind in search of a better atmosphere.

Can you explain the differences between America and Europe? The lifestyle, the food, the politics and the general awareness of everyday life?
I would say Berlin and Europe as a whole is the complete opposite way of life. America is abrasive and abusive. People haven’t learned not to hit each other over the head. Europe has more history and more information. We are making the same mistakes they made 700 years ago. The only difference is our big party is burning up the resources. Germany banned nuclear, dropped out of the war on Iraq and the green party is in power for 4 more years. Gay marriages are legal, men and women can go nude in the park, drugs are decriminalized, prostitution is legal, free medical, free dental and free education for everyone. 20 million dollars to the culture in Berlin, it’s illegal to go hungry and 67 is 76. America is pop culture, beer culture and full of decadence and violence. For sure the nature will revolt and the world is in a globalization.....global warning.....pharmaceutical nightmare......genetically engineered chicken......end of the food chain......cannot replant the seed......waterwars........MF.........future shock........bombs...war.

[MF logos in Hamburg, Germany]

How would you describe your current musical/artistic direction?
The new “Nature Revolt” cd was released on Maspop records in New York 2002. This is my latest drum & bass message project with artist/musician DJ Hazard. You can order it through my website. Me a Cyril were on European and American tours and the concerts were high energy gigs. In Berlin we connected with one MF drummer, Florian Langmaack from Hamburg and combined our sound. Florian is a set designer for movies but is still recording. Me and Florian recorded “Rotation” and “Low Denominator” with Binar Tobi, electro beat computer wiz from Berlin. Another electronic cd recorded in Berlin is “Cracked Ocean”.

MF was so noisy and primal. It seems that most people who start out doing that kind of music end up on the drum and bass electronic side. What took you in that direction?
After living in former East Berlin for 7 years it becomes a part of you. Berlin is the electronic central for Europe and runs a wide range. Atari Teenage Riot is great digital hardcore but there are many more. Binar was a project I worked with on ambient electro noise with digital vocal scratching that sounds like machines. The door to the future is music technology. Music is medicine.

How would you describe your life today?
Still hectic and on the road, can’t stay in one place for more than 6 months........I have to keep changing the scenario.........always searching for new possibilities to change the present course of the planet.

Anything else you want to add?
Only that America’s big party is coming to an end and the world has just cause to hate our guts but every big industrial nation makes war games and oil games. When we switch to hydrogen power, solar power and wind energy then we may be able to slow down the destruction of the planet. We are in a global warning and a war with Iraq will open the gates of hell. It is all crashing but 50 years of light might be silently good and stop trusting your government. Open your eyes and understand what’s wrong with pop beer culture, pill popping slow death, and genetically fried brain food. America the land that shits on it’s own people with pesticides, chemicals in every waterway and no medical, no dental and no education for everyone. We end the food chain for our acceptance of it and we radiate radiation kill kill kill aggressive abusive America. Fuck all your SUV’s as the environment goes up in smoke!

Work on Missing Foundation 1933 reissue completed!!

2009-03-05T06:46:00.000-08:00

So it's March of 2009, and I'm pleased to announce that one of the reissues we've been working on for years is finally coming to a head and will be going to press soon. When the idea for Hungry Eye started in late 2002 and early 2003, one of the things that popped in mind as something we wanted to do was reissue the Missing Foundation 1933 album. It had long been a favorite for a long while and was definitely a treat and honor to be able to work on...

It's funny to think back to those days and remember how the internet figured into all of this; I did a little google search, found something that looked like the email address of Pete Missing, and we started corresponding while he was running his gallery in Wisconsin called Recycling the Future. Eventually we ironed out a deal to reissue this thing, and started compiling all the material. While back then it was such a surprise to find folks like this on the internet, nowadays you'd be hard pressed NOT to find someone through some sort of web sources. On the other hand, looking back at the time that's past, one can't but note that the release is very overdue; 6 years wait?!?!

If we recreated the whole sequence of events, I would definitely change a bunch here and there about how the whole thing was approached. Compiling everything was a job suited to a serious production manager, and the many hours of tracking down tapes and videos, digitizing and transferring, learning as one went along, and going through some serious false starts now and again definitely took its toll on everyone. But we had committed to putting together something larger than just a straight reissue of the old 1933 package, and wanted it to include bonus tracks, a DVD and a good amount of photos and liner notes. A few people really pulled through in terms of helping get this thing done finally along the way, who we can't thank enough, and who deserve some serious recognition. Among them are: Ray Parada of the Mad Parade who stepped up and did a masterful job on editing the Cult of Rage footage along with Pete Missing's response to the whole affair, Rob of Rec'd Productions who not only shot some of the footage for the DVD, but also authored the DVD with the sole aid of my disjointed notes and dodgy sketches, and finally Dez of CROSSOVER, who promised to deliver on putting together a killer layout at a time when it came down to starting on it for the third time.

Also, many thanks to the folks who lent a hand in contributing material and answered questions along the way: Maurice Narcis, Vincent Dominion, Chris Iconocide, Seth Tobocman, Eric Blitz, Jim Waters, and many more.... and of course Chris Egan, Pete Missing, and Adam Nodelman.

Sadly, Adam Nodelman passed away at the end of the summer 2008. His help, encouragement, and enthusiasm for the project at an important time was crucial to seeing it through, and it with a very heavy heart that we won't be able to present to him the finished product. May he rest in peace.

In the meantime, we will start updating the Missing Foundation page on the Hungry Eye website, so check back there from time to time. Pete Missing has started uploading some material from the Missing Foundation archive onto youtube and the internet so as we are made aware of stuff, we will share the news with you. Also, in honor of getting this thing done, I'd like to share a series of interviews from Missing Foundation members and collaborators over the years given to us by one Vincent Dominion in his effort to chronicle MF in a sort of oral history. These interviews with start to pop up on this very blog in the coming days and weeks.

Below you will find some of the final mock ups for the artwork along with a trailer for the DVD. The end of March will see the project go off to press, so we will announce a release date once we approve the proofs and the ball gets rolling on manufacturing, but you can expect to see this out by early summer 2009. Pre-orders will appear on the website in due time.

Two records I'm looking forward to.

2009-02-24T05:17:00.000-08:00

There's a very simple occasion for this here post: two records I'm quite keen on will be seeing the light of day shortly.

Crossover's last album, Cryptic and Dire Sallow Faced Hoods Blast Off Into Oblivion on International Deejay Gigolo Records floored me, and said album still gets regular play on my stereo system. That being said, it's been a good few years since that one came out and they're about due for a new full length. Lord knows, it's been long awaited in quite a few circles. Anyways, the nomadic duo in Crossover set up shop in Portland not too long ago and recorded their new album, Space Death, over there. I've had the pleasure to of working with Dez on a few projects, as he's done the layout for both Mt Sims records we released on Hungry Eye. He also pretty single-handed saved the Missing Foundation project we've been working on for years since he came in and did a bang up job on the layout after that had gotten tied up for way too long. I'm confident Space Death will just as regularly find its way onto my CD player as its predecessor. It's on pre-order now from Punch Records in Italy.

You don't have to look far to find my last post on Silk Flowers, written shortly after they came into town with No Age and Soft Circle. They brought along their brand new, self-released 7" on that trip, and in the meantime they've got another 7" in tow. This time it's on Dean of No Age's label Post Present Medium. Much like the other 7", this one's sporting a cover of a smashed mask, this time facing the wrath of a combat boot. (Like the Agnostic Front "skinhead" shirt? Can push that unlikely AF comparison any further??)

Seriously, though, it's apparent that Silk Flowers is a band to be on the lookout for. Look for a forthcoming LP on PPM sometime in 2009 that will seal the deal. And you can follow the band's blog to monitor their comings and goings.

SILK FLOWERS!

2008-12-21T07:32:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago my pals in Silk Flowers trekked up to Montreal one unseasonably cold November evening (the 22nd, I think). They were on a northeast tour with No Age and Soft Circle and played Club Lambi. If you're paying attention, Avi and Peter might already be familiar to you from their previous band Soiled Mattress and the Springs, though in additional claim to fame, the former was also my roommate on Orchard Street.

Silk Flowers formed shortly after the No Age/ Soiled Mattress tour in the UK when the latter decided to call it quits. Unsatisfied with not playing in a band, Avi and Peter started jamming with a fine fellow named Ethan (who sports a Neanderthal sticker on his synthesizer), and morphed SM's staccato "soft-jazz" concoctions into heavy, rhythmic synth-driven territory. They set up their three stations of keyboards, drums, boxes, and noisemakers facing each weave some noisy tapestries. Much too raw to veer into synth-pop territory, there's shade of Psychic TV in their sound. Keyboards are often used to percussive effect, and despite some of the harsh sounds cultivated, there's an imposing catchiness to the tunes. One song struck me as Human League's Being Boiled meets Agnostic Front's Fascist Attitudes. The band was psyched on the comparison. Good stuff!

One man band Soft Circle was great that night, as was No Age.

Silk Flowers had just picked up their self released 7" whilst on tour, which is a winner. A subsequent record is coming out on Dean Spunt's PPM Records. Be on the lookout.

Silk Flowers on myspace
Silk Flowers blog

Omegas demo for download!

2008-10-27T05:41:00.001-07:00

For those of you partial to your Void, Sheer Terror, or F.U.'s records, some free music for you:

Omegas demo
Omegas myspace page

A band that doesn't sound like any of the above, but if those are noteworthy names to you, you'd dig the sounds.

Your humble Hungry Eye servant plays drums. Depending on what you expect, it might not be what you expect.

Steady Nerdin' Volume 2

2008-09-22T08:31:00.000-07:00

Hey kids – I’m back for another installment of my column. Same rules apply this time – I set my i-pizzle to shuffle, listen to the first 15 tracks that come on and write about ‘em. Simple enough, right? Please send your comments to steadynerdin@gmail.com - that’s the e-mail address for my currently-on-hiatus radio show Steady Nerdin’ – the next incarnation of that is in the works but meanwhile, you can listen to my old shows from when I was briefly on neighborhoodpublicradio.org – just click on the blog and then search for the word “steady” – you’ll come up with all the broadcast days when my show was on the air including the one episode that guest MC Paul Barman insisted that we call Steady Coolin’ in respect of the fact that Paul steadfastly denies being a nerd. Also, while you’re there, make sure you check out Jason Shithead’s show The Shit Shack as our shows were on back-to-back and often bled into one another. More columns coming down the pipeline and (knock on wood,) other projects as well. Enjoy.

Kyuss - El Rodeo
From …And The Circus Leaves Town

Most Kyuss fans seem to have a preference for their two middle albums (those being Blues for the Red Sun and Welcome to Sky Valley.) I will agree that their debut Wretch leaves much to be desired but for me, their swan song, And The Circus Leaves Town really has a lot more songwriting chops and the beginnings of the masterful sugary pop sensibilities that make Queens of the Stone Age such a combo to be reckoned with. This track's no exception - it's the heavy desert rock that Kyuss and their various progeny helped to conceive, but it's definitely betraying the start of something a little more hooky.

KRS-1 - Brown Skin Woman
From Return of the Boom Bap

It always confused me that people consider KRS-1's "solo" career to be some tragic departure from the BDP years considering the fact that the last few BDP records were KRS-1 solo records in all but name. In defense of those people, albums like 1994's Return of the Boom Bap do have plenty of filler tracks. This is one of them. "Don't call a Black woman a ho" in patois stylee. KRS-101.

X-Clan - Heed the Word of the Brother
From To The East Blackwards

Wow, my iPod is showing its Afrocentricism today (well it is black.) There's a reason why X-Clan always played second fiddle to other late 80's Afrocentric rap groups (your PE's, your BDPs.) Their jams were funky enough and their lyrical skills fresh enough, but they didn't carry the sense of sonic urgency of those other groups. They still bring back memories and flip that style better than most groups of that era though. RIP Prof. X.

Agnostic Front - Your Mistake
From Victim in Pain

Not to be confused with the shitty metal version on Cause for Alarm. Ah, great fuckin' mosh part in the middle. If you don't already know this album, to quote Raybeez, "You're a new jack and a sucker."

Pink Fairies – Raceway
From Kingdom Come

The owner of this here blog introduced me to the music of the two great Motorhead predecessors, Hawkwind and Pink Fairies. The latter clearly brought a lot more of the boogie rock influence into Motorhead's punked out mix. This track is pure rock goodness reminiscent of all the early 70's greats - your Blue Cheers, your Purples and a little psych. More Motorhead (and Hawkwind,) fans need to know about songs like this.

Ill Bill - Darkness Deepens (Feat. Sabac Red and Slaine,)
From La Coka Nostra Presents Ill BIll

You'd think that a white rap supergroup including all of House of Pain (among others,) would be disastrous. However, with Ill Bill at the helm, La Coka Nostra have been known to bring that grimey Brooklyn shit that Non-Phixion pioneered so nicely on The Future is Now with a heavy Wu influence. There is nothing self-conscious or apologetic about these fuckin' dustheads and they're better for it. This isn't the best track I've heard from them or from Ill Bill, but if you like the aforementioned urban white boy MC's and are sick of nauseatingly sterile and innocuous suburbanite shit (you know who I'm talking about,) you should probably give these guys a listen. And Ill Bill is the fuckin’ man.

Red Alert - Screaming at the Nation
From We’ve got the Power

Not to be confused with Kool DJ Red Alert, this is the British Oi!/streetpunk band. I haven't listened to their album enough to give you a fair review, but great bass lines, strong pissed-off vocals, nice lead guitar make this one of those street punk records that are hard to resist. Jamie from Off Minor just put me onto these guys recently and I'm thankful.

Opeth - The Leper Affinity
From Blackwater Park

Well, considering how much black metal I've been listening to as of late, it was bound to happen - a 10+ minute track was bound to pop up. But I'm gonna be a trooper and sit through it...for you! For those not in the know, Opeth are the reigning Gods of prog metal. They come from a death/black/doom background but have always been "talented" trailblazers of one sort or another (I put the quotes in because "talented" is one of those words like "progressive" - it's got insidious undertones.) On the one hand, I can't see how you can spend ten minutes playing straight metal, proggy and experimental though it might be, without boring even yourself. Droning is one thing, but these guys are clearly different types of people from me (read: Scandinavian.) The "clean" vocals are uber-cheesy as are their accompanying acoustic guitar interludes. But there's some awesome, slow, duel guitar harmony laden heaviness right after them and I got more than halfway through this jam before I started getting impatient and if you knew how hard it is for me to sit still, you would be proud. I dunno, man. Opeth is not dark or evil sounding enough for me to put up with this long a song, but they're good enough songwriters that I can't complain. Does that help? Ugh, here comes a piano outro...

Butthole Surfers - Gary Floyd
From Psychic, Powerless, Another Man’s Sac

Ah, now that cleared the palette. The Buttholes at almost their most demented - this one's pretty tame by the album's standards as far as general acid-addled lunacy goes - it's sort of more of a send-off of feel good Freedom Rock era shit; a Butthole love-in if you will. Anyway, I shouldn't need to describe this shit for you - it's awesome and you should know about it and don't give me any of this shit like "The Butthole Surfers I've heard [i.e. their major label crap,]- sucked." NO FUCKING SHIT! When you check out an older band, you don't check out their newest album unless they're Tom Waits.

Al Green - Look what you done for me
From Greatest Hits

Speaking of shit I shouldn't have to educate you about, you can pick up pretty much anything touched by Al Green's beautiful hands and you will find that few voices are even in the same ballpark as far as range of emotion and subtlety. It took me a long enough time to get out of my Loud Fast Rules phase and embrace stuff like this, but take it from me, you can't go wrong with Al.

O' Brother Where Out There Soundtrack - Hard Time Killing Floor Blues
From O’ Brother Where Out There Original Soundtrack

Am I showing myself to be a total nincompoop with pedestrian old timey stuff like this soundtrack? I don't know but it's fucking beautiful and so was the movie. Maybe you'd be happier if I had some obscure Alan Lomax shit that no one but he and Bob Dylan himself ever heard of. Well, I'm not perfect. Why don't I go kill myself? Anyway, if you're one of the five people who aren't familiar with this soundtrack, it's gorgeous.

Organized Konfusion – Stress
From Stress

OK are one of the most criminally underrated groups of hip hop's golden age. Listen to their self-titled debut for some of the most insanely frenetically fast crackhead beats and rhymes that the early nineties had to offer. This is off their second album and they used to run it on The Box video network all the time and I loved it. Composed of Pharaoh Monche (of Simon Says fame,) and Prince Po, you need to hear this shit. It's dark and crazy and ill and contains the line "Why do you choose to mimic these wack MC's/Why do you choose to listen to R&B?" Why indeed? Buybuybuybuybuy.

Steve Earle - Ben McCulloch

For those not in the know, Steve Earle is the Dylan disciple who plays Bubbles' redneck narcotics anonymous sponsor on The Wire. Again, I'm no authority on country/folk/Americana but this is some really well-done melancholia and it seems to be made for people like me who like the darker side of said genres. Real pretty, sad song. I want to listen to this whole album and drink myself to sleep now.

Band of Horses - Lamb on the Lam (in the city)

This is one of those bands that I might've passed on due solely to their name and my prejudice against almost everything. But thanks to The Sound of Young America's interview with members of the Onion's AV Club wherein they highlighted and played clips from their top albums of last year, I came to realized that they're really quite pretty, solemn and have a great air of mystery surrounding them. What is it with bands/albums with horse in the name? They all end up having a similar vibe, me thinks - 16 Horsepower, The Dirty Three's "Horse Stories," Patti Smith's "Horses," Dan and my late project Horse Graveyard, Crazy Horse...I'm not so sure about Dead Horse, but you get the idea. This is a short interlude but it's nice and echoey and evocative and leaves me wanting to hear more, and that's never a bad thing.

The Litter - Journeys

Early 70's fuzz/stoner rock, the likes of which I am a sucker for. Very garagey too. Got this off of Decibel Magazine's stoner rock special from a few months back wherein they provided a list of the genre's lost gems from the early seventies. This is far from mind-blowing but it's the type of thing that I can listen to in the background all night long without complaining. It's a nice way to end an overall nice mix from DJ Little Man Who Lives Inside My Ipod. Bye.

Until next time, kids!

New stuff coming; KUDU

2008-09-14T06:32:00.000-07:00

Soon we'll have some new stuff up on here, starting with another installment of Mike IQ's Steady Nerdin' which I will be posting as soon as I can format it up here. He's working on some other stuff to post on Augenmusik as well, though I'm also hoping to get some more interviews and show reviews up here. Cause, why the hell not.

In the meantime, I'll just leave you with some videos of NY's KUDU. I started reading about them about the time I split from NY and also managed to get a CD sampler from Nublu, the club/ label on the LES that they were on, which had some hot-shit song on it by KUDU. They're heavy, the drummer is sick, and the lyrics are raunchy, and as far as I'm concerned this stuff is gold. They need to get their collective asses up to Montreal sometime. Anyway, some videos to share to convince you. And you can pick up their "Death of a Party" album here:

Heavy synths galore, this one is called Bar Star:

And this one's Boom Boom. The song's awesome and the fact that they're walking around my old hood makes me miss it.

Introducing Mike IQ!

2008-06-19T13:36:00.000-07:00

So we're served with another post on Augenmusik blog; this one a little bit different from previous ones. First off, it's by a new contributor, my dear friend Mike IQ. Mike is a lifelong New Yorker and old friend who's spent time with me in all sort of musical pursuits, from various bands to checking out shows in dirty squats and swanky clubs, to DJ-ing Manhattan bars, to all other sorts of hijinks. He recently came off a stint at Neighborhoodpublicradio.org with his show Steady Nerdin'. His musical taste is informed and all over the place, so I thought he'd be an ace fit. He liked good tunes, doesn't mince words, and doesn't have much patience for hype or drama. As a way to introduce the readers to him, he thought he might just put his iPod on shuffle and muse about whatever tracks came up. It seemed fun for him, and made for a good read, so in addition to more contributions by him, we're hoping he continues with this format every now and again as well....

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Prince Buster and Judge Dread – Taxation
From She was a rough rider
The reggae/ska/rocksteady stalwarts talk about “Taxation without representation.” I’m a sucker for both these guys and you probably should be too. Go read about them on allmusic.

Big L – Size Em Up
From The Big Picture
I don’t think that L’s deification in true school hip hop circles is at all undeserved. Aside from his sick flow, his superb wordplay this is one of those tracks that really conveys his personality. He’s cocky, hotheaded and arrogant and he’s liable to eat your ass up. Throw ya L’s up!

Charlie Feathers – Stutterin’ Cindy
From This Little Show
I originally got into this cat thanks to the Songs the Cramps Taught Us compilation series that, not surprisingly, showcases songs that the Cramps covered. This is the guy who wrote “Can’t Hardly Stand It,” which is such an ill, infectious song and I think the first song I learned to play on guitar (which probably isn’t saying much since I’m no Ivy Rorschach.) Anyway, this one is live or a demo or something – it’s off his “This Little Show” record – I think it’s some kind of bootleg. It’s vintage rockabilly of the highest order.

Nick Cave – Omalley’s Bar
From Murder Ballads
This is 14+ minutes so I can’t listen to it right now. That doesn’t detract from the fact that Nick Cave is the best guy in the world or the fact that I, and not you, am going to see him again this Fall.

Prefuse 73 f/ Ghostface and El-P – HYF
From Surrounded by Silence
Highly infectious beat by Prtefuse and surprisingly El-P and Tony’s skills and egos don’t cause the track to kill itself, but rather work together. Great hook and El gets dirty, vintage Co Flow style (not to detract from his solo material but this proves that when he wants to, he knows how nod heads.) There’s clearly mutual respect and it doesn’t feel like Tony phoned this one in from his secret Wu Tang (or Theodore Unit) compound. There’s interaction on the ad-libs and that’s rarely a bad thing with MC’s of this caliber. It’s dirty, it’s street and it’s fresh. I could listen to this track 10 times in a row. Peep Ghost’s second verse – it’s classic Tony and yet another example of how he could probably read from the phone book and make it sound dope.

Newcleus – Auto Man
From Jam on Revenge
If you don’t know who Newcleus is, you better axe somebody. You can axe me. If you were born in the mid-seventies and lived in New York, there’s a good chance that their classic “Jam On It (wicky wicky)” was one of the first rap songs you ever heard. It certainly was for me. But it wasn’t till a couple of years ago that my man Karun played me the whole LP. It’s got a super dope Funkadelic-looking comic strip cover and is full of electro hip hop goodness. I’m not crazy about the sung vocals on this joint but the instrumental sections and the beat as a whole are quite fresh.

Redman – Can’t Wait
From Ego Trip’s Best Hip Hop Singles of ‘94
Youngins who think that Redman is just a character actor or inextricably linked to Method Man would be wise to check out joints like this. It’s got that nice, warm early nineties vibe that makes you feel so young and good. Almost brings a tear to my eye. There’s a 21 Jump Street reference too. Also, for all you true rap nerds, he drops a line that Kriss Kross later used as a hook when they tried to come thugged out in the mid-nineties – "Please/My whole crew’s making cheese/tonight’s the night baby/so suck up on these.” If you never heard that track, consider yourself lucky – being So So Def OGs does not allow a little kid novelty act to make a G record work.

Dwarves – Blast
From The Dwarves must Die
What can be said about the Dwarves? They’re raw and nasty hardcore from the Pacific Northwest and they have an album called “Thank Heaven for Little Girls.” What’s not to like?

Witch Hunt – Life in a Box
From …As Priorities Decay
My homegirls out of Jersey/Philly, they’ve been at it for a while and on tracks like this one you can hear how they manage to make passionate and original-sounding anarcho-punk that synthesizes disparate influences. This is one of their older records. Theyv’e done a lot since. Go check ‘em out when they come to your town. They tour a lot and they bring it live.

Screamin’ Jay Hawkins – You Made Me Love You
From Voodoo Jive: The Best of Screamin’ Jay Hawkins
This song is performed by Screamin’ Jay Hawkins.

Black Anvil – 777
From Test Mixes
Another friend of mine – you may know Paul from Black Anvil from his other band, Deathcycle (one of the only New York area hardcore bands worth a piss these days,) or from his previous projects, Long Island hardcore stalwarts Kill Your Idols and New York hardcore pranksters Down Low (known for penning songs with titles like “Crack Bitch.”) Here Paul branches out into black metal of raw, dirty and ferocious kind. I swear, Paul is the only person I know with whom I can carry an infinite e-mail conversation about Von (http://www.myspace.com/von666). This one’s got a lot of dynamics and character and a big Celtic Frost influence and that’s never a bad thing.

John Fahey
From Volume 6: Days Have Gone By
Another gentlemen, who like Mr. Cave, could do no wrong. Pretty much anything you can find by the late Mr. Fahey is guaranteed to be great and he put out 364,023,405 records! No shit! His shit basically remained meandering, strange bluegrass/folk instrumental guitar pieces (with the notable exception of his later electric period which approached atonality yet with its feet firmly planted in blues and bluegrass and, for some reason, awesomely reverb-laden surfish guitar tones,) and this is no exception. This one’s a slow, short somewhat somber number

Material – Upriver
From Memory Serrves
I’ve been meaning to listen to these guys forever – they’re part of the post-punk canon apparently. This is a Bill Laswell project and Bill Laswell’s got the Midas fucking touch, baby (check out his record with Jah Wobble or his Trojan Dub Massive Volume 2 comp.) They play extremely strange , extremely funky instrumental new wave with violin and other idiosyncratic instrumentatuion. It’s also quite fucking awesome. I need to listen to more of this. I am a sucker for sleeping on Material. Don’t be like me. Don’t sleep.

Celtic Frost – Dethroned Emperor
From Morbid Tales
I love On to Mega-Therion and (especially) Into the Pandemonium as much as the next hessian, but for my money nothing lays down that slow, clunky brutality that the Frost is known best for like Morbid Tales. You’re not metal if you’re not at least acquainted with this record.

Acid King – Dry Run
From Zoroaster
I tried unsuccessfully to immerse myself in the burgeoning stoner rock scene a few years back. Like any other style of music, there’s a lot of chaff for every one piece of wheat (or vice versa – I’m assuming you want the wheat, unless you’ve got that allergy which I think I kind of have. Also I don’t really know what the fuck “chaff” is – don’t warplanes launch it to confuse enemy radars?) Any way, Acid King are an exception because they keep you hooked in with truly psychedelic jams and great female vocals.

Until next time, kids.

INTERVIEW: Helen of the Skabs

2008-05-04T08:07:00.001-07:00

Ah, the Skabs. I've admitted on numerous occasions how smitten I was with them, and I jumped at the opportunity to publish a little chat with former front-woman Helen. The Skabs definitely stuck out in the mid 90's NY punk scene alongside bands like H-Tomb, Dysfunctional Youth, or the Casualties (perhaps you've heard of that last band). Whereas the lion's share of bands opted for some degree of Partisans or Conflict worship, the Skabs influences clearly laid elsewhere. I would say they were ahead of their time, since the Skabs might have had a prescient feeling about the post-punk craze that would take hold of NY a few scant years later. However, the Skabs simply didn't care about time, and moreover, their noise was so very different in style, comportment, and attitude from what came after, and I dare say most of those folks weren't from New York anyway.

It's timely to be able to post this today, since we've just made the Skabs album CONTENT available as a digital release. Only a lucky handful can claim to have the handscreened LP, which was split with the unfortunately-named, but actually pretty good band "Anal Sausage". In addition to a re-mastered version of all the tracks on that split record, there are also a handful of bonus songs from those sessions that did not appear on that piece of wax. I do believe it is my favorite record of theirs. Hopefully the Skabs vaults will eventually yield yet more material from this band...

Some links:
the Skabs on myspace
MP3 of "Sexy Ass" from CONTENT
MP3 of "the Draft" from Aged to Perfection

Augenmusik: What is the history of the Skabs? How did you get together and where are all of you folks from? The Skabs are from different boroughs, right?

Helen: The Skabs members are from different boroughs, yes - Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens - myself, being a Queens girl. We all met in LaGuardia Community College. Sometime during my first collegiate year, I got together with Eddie, Remi, and Adam. Through those guys, I met Ania, who was attending highschool elsewhere, and voila! The Skabs were born!

Augenmusik: I remember the band playing countless times at ABC No Rio-- enough that I'd wager that the place played an important part in the band's formation. What drew you guys to the place in the first place?

Helen: The others were already frequenting ABC No Rio long before I showed up to the scene. Frankly, I didn't know my ass from my elbow, but I was ready and determined to make my presence known. I can remember my first Punk show like it was yesterday. There was a band from Florida. It was great watching the singer, some fat and drunk bastard with fucked up and dirty green hair, smash an empty beer bottle against one of the poles in the basement and cut himself in different places. He was bleeding like the fat and drunk bastard he was. He reeked of piss and sweat. I immediately thought this was the right kind of place for a wide-eyed youth like myself. Not long after that did I pull out the Manic Panic and give myself a stylish green troll hairdo before graduating to a sexy purple and green Soo Catwoman haircut.

Augenmusik: The falling out with ABC No Rio was well documented. It's a good bit in the past now. Do you have any words about what happened and what sparked the Skabs' ire-- with as much or as little diplomacy as you'd like?

Helen: Feigned diplomacy is a popular method of manipulation that works so well because it often goes by undetected.

Augenmusik: Skabs' releases were few and far between during most of the band's existence. Some of the bands of that era in the NY punk scene went on to release a lot of music, and others didn't. Given that the Skabs were big enough to pack a club, played out of town a good deal, and toured more than a few times, to what do you attribute this for the Skabs? It seems there was a lot more recorded material than there was recorded output.

Helen: Our recordings were few and far in between due to a crippling lack of financial resources. That we constantly played benefit shows meant that we weren't going to be paid for our services. I'm amazed we managed with what little we had. We weren't shrewd business people, after all. Moreover, there were small labels that offered to put out Skabs material but declined upon listening to what they perceived to be as either too harsh, too weird, or too confrontational for underground Punk marketability. How ironic.

Augenmusik: The progression of the Skabs' music was pretty gradual, but quite pronounced as it incorporated more electronic elements and got darker. How did you guys approach writing songs like that? To what do you owe the shift in sound over the years?

Helen: I think it's important to remember that The Skabs were a band that was all about experimentation. None of us were in previous bands to start with, so it can be said that our project was a long work in progress. I wouldn't call it a "shift" in song writing so much as I would call it a dire need to kill off approaching boredom. Without boredom, I don't think we would have grown musically or have bothered playing shows and booking two solid tours by ourselves. Besides, shouldn't something happen when people learn to play their instruments? How can a band possibly make the same record forever?

Augenmusik: For sure, there were plenty of bands the Skabs played with at the time the band was around. However, in retrospect, the Skabs really stand alone during that time in New York in my mind. Are there any bands that you felt were kindred spirits at the time?

Helen: I cannot think of any spirits that were truly kindred. Everybody's looking out for themselves in the big scheme of things.

Augenmusik: Touring must have been a trip for you folks since the Skabs could have toured the punk circuit, but didn't quite fit in, and routinely ignored anything akin to an indie scene, and hit the road with song crazy shows on the itinerary. What were the tours like? Any good stories?

Helen: There are too many stories to get into, so many in fact that I really shouldn't bother unless I was writing a book. Once, we arrived to St. Louis where people showed up to see a New York City circus. It seemed like our reputation had preceded us again. We got through playing three songs. Some guy looked me in the eye, grabbed his crotch, and shouted for me to take my shirt off. I called him over, and sure enough, he approached the stage willingly. It was then that I kicked him in the face and busted his nose. He was bleeding all over the fucking place. His friends tried jumping on stage when we started the fourth song. We fought them off with mic stands as the power got cut off. As we loaded our equipment into the van, the next thing I knew, I was surrounded by an angry mob of testosterone-driven males. The soundman, who looked like he could've been a member of ZZ Top, fired his shotgun into the air to disperse the crowd, and helped us out with our equipment. We skidded off as 40 oz. beer bottles rained on our van.

Augenmusik: What are the members of the band up to these days? From what I remember, it's some pretty interesting stuff? Do you guys keep up with the goings on in music at all? It's a very different music scene than 15 years ago...

Helen: I'm looking forward to hearing the new Portishead cd. I'm a big fan of Goldfrapp's Supernature - liquid gold music and a voice like mulled wine to match. The new Diamanda Galas cd intrigues me. As for keeping up with any kind of scene, I'm just glad we did what we did when we did it. Not only is it a very different music scene, but I find it's a very dull one as well. After The Skabs, we have since traded the music scene for the world of high gastronomy.

Augenmusik: While the Skabs had a good run, one can't help think they broke up at just the wrong time as a lot more bands came along with whom the Skabs could probably have pal-ed around with on both sides of the country, but started making noise just around the time of the band's demise. Any regrets? Any desire to do anything again with the Skabs or with music again?

Helen: As a former member of The Skabs, I honestly feel we couldn't have broken up at a better time. When the Towers fell in '01, strange feelings of displacement were resonating with the members and affecting different areas of our lives. I walked away eagerly and swiftly without looking back on my experience for a very long time. You know, no life is without its regrets, but I don't do my dirty laundry in public. As for our direct involvement with music, given the right circumstances, it would be good fun to do a last record.

Augenmusik: An extended version of "Content" has just been made available again. Is there anything you'd like to share about this record? Hopefully it will help satiate some longtime Skabs fans, but also introduce more people to your music. Are there any words you'd like to leave with the folks discovering the Skabs for the first time?

Helen: CONTENT is my personal favorite Skabs release because that LP is the hallmark of our creative peak. The songs are reflective of the magic and the darkness we felt collectively, and the personal struggle we were enduring at the time. Listening to those songs again for the first time in years has transported me to a New York which, I'm afraid, will never be seen again by future generations. For now, I will say only this, that idealism and romanticism are the follies of youth. We should've sold out when the majors came knocking.

A night out in Montreal: Trouble Vs Glue & folks at Sala Rossa.

2008-05-03T18:04:00.000-07:00

It's pained me a little bit that I moved to Montreal and have made a habit out of always posting about music that is happening elsewhere. Thankfully, this will change with this post. A few weeks ago, Duchess Says actually played their record release party to much fanfare in town. They're a band I've wanted to see ever since I moved here, but they've only played but a handful of times in the year and a half since then. Indeed I had planned on writing down a few lines about that show because I was excited to go. But, at the last minute I flaked out. While $18 in a nice theater isn't an entirely unreasonable price, that + a subway ticket + some drinks at the show was feeling a little hard on the wallet on that particular day. Alas, nothing to report.... except that I rather like all the songs of theirs I heard and have been itching to hear a lot more. Apparently people in town (and elsewhere) are rapidly beating me to it.

Last week I got an email from Toni of the italian spazz-y dance band Dada Swing that his new band with fellow-Swing member Manuela, Trouble vs Glue was on tour in North America and were playing in Montreal on April 30th and May 1st. I went down to the May 1st show at Sala Rossa with Big A Little A, Thundrah, and An Albatross. While this won't be news to anyone from Montreal, Sala Rossa is a decent sized venue hosting the shows of Blue Skies Turn Black (and reminding one a little bit of Union Pool in Brooklyn, albeit a bit bigger), housed in the ballroom of a former Spanish social club, which is now also home to a very nice Spanish tapas restaurant right below the venue. I must say, if this popped up a few years ago on Ludlow Street, I'd have been mortified (as I was when those types of things popped up), but on St Laurent, it's actually quite nice; the shows are nice, food is reasonable, sound is always good. It's like if Pianos were ripped out of NY and not over-run with bridge and tunnel. And the food is pretty fucking awesome, thank you very much.

Dada Swing played with the Weegs on a past tour in Europe and have been penpals since around then. Trouble vs Glue is the new band featuring two thirds of the aforementioned act, formed in the vacuum and creative frustration after DS's guitarist moved from Rome to Brussels. As a two piece, they have a slim drums and keyboards and a quirky, guitar-and-keyboards sound. Very fun, loose songs that would sound best at a drunken party. The big stage was a bit of an awkward set up for the two-piece, but within 3 songs, they quickly commandeered the situation and got the attention of the arriving audience who had likely never heard of them before. As the show went on, the band's energy level crescendoed, as did the appreciation of the crowd. It was fun to watch and I'm glad their stop in town pulled me out of the house that Thursday.

[Trouble vs Glue. Mediocre photo by: me]

After our openers came home-town act Thundrah. My first encounter with them, they made quite a good impression. Every town seems to have their tropes, and one of Montreal's is the lengthy, rhythmic, and noisy. Thundra had all of those, especially the first two, in abundance, and at times came across as a mixture of Neu! and Hawkwind intent on harnessing the raw tempos of ESG. I quite dug it, and they more than kept my attention. If I were to complain a little, which I feel justified in doing since I did actually play close attention, is that they had a number of very good, insistent parts that built up nicely but didn't quite resolve into anything else. A little more emphasis on the hooks in the transitions and they'd be quite nice. I know I'll definitely look twice the next time I see their name in the paper. I'd like to see them again.

Big A Little A are from Brooklyn, and the name sounds familiar to me from those Todd P mailing list emails I used to get. I can't admit to having seen them before. I also can't admit to digging their name very much, but the kinds of band names that play on language have gaining in prominence for a while. Nobody consulted me whether I like it, and I doubt anyone will, but I can deal. As for the music, very bluntly: having 3 drummers in a band is a great idea. Period. But also one that can get old very quick and where you need to be on your toes with your ideas. Aa's first few songs were slightly spacey jams that incorporated some interesting Carnaval-style drums. Percussive and interesting enough to yield a decent song, I did find myself losing steam by the end of the song. But then they changed it up with a darker, more electronic-inflected number that reminded me of a slower Nitzer Ebb tune and really took me by surprise. And the set continued to go through different moods, all the while retaining its emphasis on percussion. I'd be glad to snatch up a record of theirs for repeated lessons, and if there wasn't such slim pickings in the bank account now, I probably would have. Some of the drum beats were a bit quaint, like Samba-junior. But shit, if these guys went to Rio for a year to study drumming, they'd come back and write a legendary record. Seriously.

An Albatross. When I was in the Bad Form, we had a show booked at ABC No Rio around 2000 where we were supposed to play with them. They didn't show up... and neither did half the Bad Form (we still played). But I still haven't seen them! They seemed like nice enough dudes, and I've been curious to check them out a few times, but things didn't change today. I had work early the day, and not enough steam in me to go without decent sleep, so I skipped out. Next time, then!

Tomorrow: a Skabs interview!

John Maus & Soiled Mattress and the Springs from Upset the Rhythm

2008-04-13T15:41:00.000-07:00

It's an encouraging feeling when good friends get involved interesting artistsic endeavors. It's even cooler when those interesting endeavors wind up yielding something quite good. And, let's say, when said friends wind up releasing some really impressive records that wind up on a UK label compiling some great sounds, then you could say you have a good deal of pride in them. This post will be about what my friends Avi and John have been up to...

The name Soiled Mattress and the Springs is the brainchild of an old friend and former bandmate of mine, Avi Cohen, and to my recollection was initially reserved as a joke for a Killed-by-Death style punk band. Instead, when Avi, Peter Schuette, and Matthew Thurber realized that after jamming together for a number of months, their loose jam sessions spawned a number of songs, and they might very well have something akin to a band on their hands, "Soiled Mattress and the Springs" was the name they settled on. While nothing like the style originally envisioned for the name, Soiled Mattress and the Springs is a perfect name for the Springs' instrumental, keyboard and saxophone driven tunes. A clever moniker depicting a rather benign object, but one that belies something of an uncouth and seedy side. Accordingly, the light jazz records the band was grooving on are readily apparent, but he Springs have some significantly trippier moments, like the moog interlude on "Blanko's Moondance" or the synthesizer and found-sound collage on "Someone's Drinking Water."

A number of the songs, like "Ceasar's Palace" or "Tidal Wave" for example, have taut rhythms, upbeat melodies, and really toy with the aforementioned influences. At the same time, the songs have a neurotic energy, compulsively swinging from one part to the next with the compactness and determination of a rock song. This variation makes for one interesting listen. The CD version of "Honk Honk Bonk" on Upset the Rhythm flows like an album, but is actually the two 12"s the band released on LA's Teardrops label (although the second one is unreleased at the moment in vinyl format). The band sounds a lot like comic book artist and sax player Matthew's art-- colorful, light-hearted, but somehow uncanny. They'll be on tour in the UK with No Age this May, by the by.

"Love is Real" is John Maus's second album for Upset the Rhythm, and is another 14 songs of his meticulously crafted lo-fi pop. Written, performed, and recorded all on his own, his songs are multi-layered, melancholic ditties propelled by John's deep tenor croon and his hook-laden choruses that come across as compulsively chanted mantras (like on "Rights for Gays" or "Too Much Money"). John is successful at playing with well-traveled styles and song structures as synth-pop (coming off as if later Human League had retained a good amount of its earlier grit, or like a less self-involved Depeche Mode) like on "Do Your Best" and "the Silent Chorus" and can kick out a deceptively infectious Giorgio Moroder-influenced disco jam like "Times is Weird." The impressive thing is not the successful mix of varied tuneage, but the absolutely straight-faced resolve and flawless delivery with which the tracks are executed. I don't know how much of the home-recording sound is essential to John's songs, but I'd be totally thrilled to hear a studio-produced album. John's the type of musician who could definitely pull it off; with "Love is Real" he definitely already "pulled something off".

Tenebre by John Maus

Hong Kong Bong by Soiled Mattress and the Springs

Die Kreuzen circa 1983

2008-03-25T09:51:00.000-07:00

I found this on another blog (Introverted Loudmouth) but I thought I'd post it here since you can never get enough Die Kreuzen. Seriously.

This is from a TV appearance from around 1983.

RECORDS! Deadbeats, Deadfly Ensemble, Martial Canterel, the Hunt

2008-03-18T11:35:00.000-07:00

With this latest update, I have to make the following admission: I rather dislike writing reviews. For the most part, the releases I'm going to be writing about have been in my possession for a while. I've listened to them numerous times, enjoyed listening to them, and then proceeded to put off writing anything in the way of a review. While I'd like share them with whoever might wander on here and add a few of my musings, I hardly care to offer anything in the way of an assessment of them. To assuage this difficulty somewhat, I'll adopt a more conversational tone and "tell you" about these releases. Does it amount to a big difference?? Probably not, but nonetheless....

Recently the semi-nomadic duo known as Deadbeats (having moved from the Carolinas to Portland and then back again) put out a third CD entitled "99 Ways to Die" on their own Recluse Records label. Their two previous efforts left a good impression, but I'm finding this one their most impressive yet. Searing synthesizer lines meld together with beats that sound like they might very well be pre-programmed Casio beats. Lauren Stork-Browder handles the vocals and lays it on pretty thick with a shrill wail that might recall moments of later Subtonix. On this disc, there's significantly more low-end, and the added bass suits them and their pulsing beats well. Additionally, the song-writing has gotten more interesting. Definitely something to check out if you've got some Kas Product or Guerre Froide records in your collection. If they continue to improve at this rate, we should be seeing a rather awesome full length from these two at some point in the not-too-distant future. My cats start running around and scratching my couch as soon as I put on this CD, so they seem to enjoy it as well.

Wierd Records, a label I've been making the point of following quite keenly, put out another release. This one is by Martial Canterel, whose mastermind, Sean McBride, seems to be an associate of our Wierd friend Pieter. Obviously very cold-wave influenced and taking cues from a whole tradition of bands from France, Holland, or further eastwards, Martial Canterel masterfully distill those influences to a very catchy and tight concoction updated for the ears of 2008. Personally, I'm taken aback by the fact that this is indeed from New York and not from across the Atlantic. Though, not surprisingly, there is a European connection--most of MC's previous releases made their debut on European labels, and this release compiles some now out of print tracks from a few of those releases (including no small amount of previously unreleased material as well).

It was a sad day late last summer when Yi-Hsiuan and Lucas packed up their horse-drawn carriage and left Montreal for warmer climates. I don't know whether the Bronx and Vermont [Edit: New Hampshire was the correct designation. Apologies!] are that much warmer, but some good has come of it. Yi-Hsiuan now holds monthly parties in downtown Manhattan where attendees dress in antique attire and dance to the sounds of the roaring 30's (the current financial crisis might make it all the more appropriate), and Luc went and released another Deadfly Ensemble record called "A Seed for Extinct Annuals" with co-conspirators James and Marzia. The instrumentation is much more intricate than on their debut, with more cello and some live percussion adding more depth to the songs. And much as before, one feels inclined to daydream along with the stories the music tells. This one will do nicely.

I got this next disk a while ago, having scored some copies from the label's honcho Caleb. It's now called Sacred Bones Records, but the Hunt's debut 7" came out while it was still called "Monster Squad." My money is on watching this label closely, as they've already released a Blank Dogs 12" right before everyone started talking about them, and now they've got Factums, Daily Void, and Pink Noise records on the way, AND some 13th Chime reissues. As to this piece of wax, it's emblazoned with a picture of a guy who looks like he belongs in a Southern Death Cult video and sports a nice Discharge tattoo. As for the music-- the Southern Death Cult reference isn't too far off, and it's done quite nicely. Incredibly competent, you might even say. There's some nice Morricone-meets-Theatre of Hate guitar work, and the singer can really wail. I can't say much beyond that, since they seemed to debut in New York right when I left town, and these 2 tracks are all I've heard. But I will say, where a lot of current post-punk outfits tend towards some vaguely Joy Division-inflected pop songs, the Hunt don't shy away from grounding their tunes in some fist-pumping rocknroll.

Misc stuff regarding Agent Side Grinder

2008-01-25T13:36:00.000-08:00

Their 7" on Enfant Terrible left a nice impression, so i scribbled down a review I intended to post. Now I'm hearing about a video that's been done for a new song.... which of course I will post below. To multi-task, I should also let you know that the band will have a full length out on Enfant Terrible in the coming months, which, as with most ET releases, will be quite limited. That means you'll have to track down a copy quickly. I will be trying to do the same.

Agent Side Grinder- Me, Me, and Me b/w Ricochetting Memories 7"
Enfant Terrible and Hex mastermind Matijn Van Gessel sure knows how to pick them. Sweden's Agent Side Grinder play some driving and synth-heavy cold-wave/ post-punk that brings DAF to mind in the delivery complete with pounding rhythm tracks and all sorts of analog squeaks and noises. It's a bit of a throw-back as it's definitely got an 80's feel to it, but one of the best records in that style I've heard lately. ASG are a very good soundtrack to a night out on the town.... if your town is Berlin and your night starts at a 3am and brings you to a dingy club under the train tracks.

INTERVIEW: Jessie Evans

2008-01-13T08:30:00.000-08:00

I've been playing close attention to what Jessie's been up to for quite a while now, starting with that first Subtonix single. It was through her next band, the very influential Vanishing that I came to know her, and Hungry Eye was lucky enough to be able to release some Vanishing material. In fact, a few of the bands we've worked with on Hungry Eye came about through Jessie's introduction or intervention. And yet, according to this interview, it's only been recently that she's reached something like an artistic maturity, so one can conjecture that great as her previous work was, the best is still in store. She's finishing up a new album currently which is sure to be a treat and have some surprises in store.

Jessie Evans on myspace

Augenmusik:First off, you've been out of the public eye for the past few months as far as releasing new material and playing a lot of shows, but from the looks of things, that is about to change again. Can you elaborate for us a bit as to what you've got up your sleeve musically?

Jessie: I’m almost finished with a new album- it’s my first solo record! It’s really rhythm oriented with lots of bass, saxophone, brass. I just wanted to make music I can dance to. The feeling of it is so much more light than anything I’ve done. A lot of it is about desire - in the flesh and beyond. I guess in a way I’m explaining where I’m at in my life, in cold Berlin, lusting for the sun…ha ha.

I’ve also got a new drummer, Toby Dammit, who I started working with last year. He’s really great and has helped me out so much with this recording. I started out last spring locked in my room with the drum machine then in the summer we went into the studio to record the live drums with Toby Dammit & Budgie (The Creatures, the Banshees). Then in August Toby & I went to Mexico for two months and recorded vocals and sax all over the place- in a laundry room on a rooftop in Mexico City, a hotel room in Tijuana, and even John Wayne’s old bedroom in Acapulco. We played 6 shows while we were there and it was an incredible time. I wanted to go somewhere different to make it and see what influences would come out of that. We’d been listening to the Nortec Collective from Tijuana and really loved what they were doing. Their mixture of electronic with the Nortena style brass and accordians is so original and I got the idea that it would be great to have them mix my record ‘cos I really wanted somebody who had an understanding of electronic dance music but who also understood horns. We’re going back there next week to finish it with Pepe Mogt from Nortec.

Augenmusik: There seems to be a pattern to your work habits; a period of what appears to be creative gestation, followed by a flurry of live and recorded activity. Is this an accurate assessment of your creative
process? Where are you at now in your work now?

Jessie: Yea, that’s pretty normal I think. This last year I only played 22 shows, so I’m really looking forward to getting out there and touring again.

Augenmusik: You've been in Berlin for a few years now-- is Berlin now a permanent home? What drew you from San Francisco to Berlin in the first place, and is there any other place that's now beckoning you for a possible relocation?

Jessie: Berlin is an ideal place right now ‘cos the cost of living is so cheap. I have a beautiful apartment in Neukoln, and I’m living alone for the first time in my life. I moved here with Vanishing 3 1/2 years ago. We’d toured Europe and realized it was way easier for us to support ourselves doing music here. There’s still a respect in Europe for artists whereas in the States it was hard to survive. I was sick of working stupid jobs to make ends meet and wanted to dedicate my time to what I love. There’s so many places I would like to live- especially after visiting Mexico I know I’m gonna spend more time there.

Augenmusik: Berlin nowadays has a reputation as being more of a club town, and not very supportive of live music. Is this the case and how does one work with that as a musician? How does your work fit in with what is going in Berlin at the moment?

Jessie: It’s a huge city that’s really under populated and you have the feeling that it’s still at the very beginning of being rebuilt and becoming something. Some great music has come out of Berlin in the past but at the moment the scene feels a bit detached. It IS a challenge to work with the crowds here. I’ve only played 3 shows so far, but it’s gone over pretty good. I guess I fit in here because my job is to wake people up and throw cold water in their face. It’s not always the funnest job but I’m good at it & its what I studied to be, so it’s really all I know.

I’ve never understood dj culture. When the audience stands there with a blank expression for the live show but as soon as the dj comes on THEN they go crazy dancing- what is that? It doesn’t make any sense except that their sense of entertainment has become so consumeristic -its like they just want to be entertained without realizing that they have a key part in that ritual. That it IS still a ritual for the performers.

Have you seen the movie “The Divine Horseman”? It’s a documentary made out of footage of Vodou rituals shot by Maya Deren in Haiti between 1947-1952. It was the first time I’ve seen footage of people becoming possessed. The rituals take some care and preparation but once they begin it’s interesting to watch the different roles assumed by everybody involved in the community. About half are dancing wildly as invitation for the gods to enter, some lead the ceremony, and the rest are watching everything go down, not as voyeurs but as caretakers, to help and ‘hold back’ the possessed, and to make sure that everything runs smoothly and no one gets hurt. The role of music is in the drums- to provide a heart beat on which everything is built, a common thread that connects everyone involved. It is so simple to see that music provides this role, spiritually, to take the listener, the dancer, the singer, the spectator, OUT Of his/her body and to transcend into another space. Modern times & white culture have pretty much lost the point though it still must be why we exist and I think anybody who remembers feels the need to do whatever it takes to bring it back there.

Augenmusik:The Vanishing is often referred to as a "darkwave" band and certainly has its share of supporters from that scene, but the Vanishing material got progressively less "goth" as time went on, and your subsequent work has gone even farther from that direction. Are you satisfied with the Vanishing being thought of as a goth band-- do you feel a connection to that scene at all?

Jessie: Yea, sure it was darkwave. Pretty much everything I’ve done up till this point has always turned out much darker than I imagined it. I guess you cant help what comes out –I did grow up in the 80's afterall, just 'cos I was just a kid- whatever- I was still there. The first music I really got into when I was 12 was reggae, then came punk, jazz new wave etc. When I got into new wave I was like 14 or so and it was such a revelation. I felt like I finally belonged somewhere. I felt this feeling for the first time in a long time the other day from finding out the Sun Ra Arkestra is still together, now directed by Marshall Allen who’s been playing with them since 1958! Music is like religion and I think it’s important to people to stick together.

Augenmusik: As mentioned in the previous question, there's definitely been a pronounced progression in your work from the Subtonix and early Vanishing to your stuff now. How would you describe the continuity in your work in the past 10 years? Are there any themes you've been consistently experimenting with, or anything you've been actively looking for or exploring in your work?

Jessie: Themes have changed a lot but I feel like I’ve always had a similar vision of what I wanted to do, it's just taking me awhile to get there. I’ve outgrown my own skin so many times, it’s totally humiliating but I had to realize that my life reflects the process that I’m in. I didn’t come into the world fully formed. In the beginning it was like I was trying to write a novel in every song. Eventually I reached a point where I felt like I wasn’t really connected to what I was saying, even though I truly believed in the words, it was too longwinded and I was over intellectualizing everything. The first real revolution for me with song writing came from “Lovesick.” I was going through a breakup and this song came to express the sort of heartbreak mixed with repulsion that you feel toward somebody who you used to love. The feeling was also transparent, as I couldn’t quite tell who I was applying it to, the old or the new love, as the feeling was similar toward both somehow, and it was actually just a feeling I had that didn’t necessarily belong or need to be attached to anybody. With this song I truly felt like I had arrived at myself.

I just want my lyrics to be simple & direct. It also has to do with phonetics, with the words being like a toy in your mouth, if you’re in the right state of mind the right words will come and feel good there. So I try not to worry too much about what I’m saying or to preach too much about anything. My last album was also different because it was mostly love songs and this was a new thing for me. Maybe some may find it typical to focus on love, but I really relate to Anais Nin. Her life was totally dedicated to understanding the connection between people and the sympathy she possessed in observing how it all works was so clear.

Augenmusik: Since you moved to Berlin and the Vanishing slimmed down to a 2 piece, you've had rather minimal line-ups. Autonervous was a 2-piece and it seems your new project is a 2 piece as well. Is there any reason for putting together projects with 2 musicians? Do you find any limitations to these line-ups when it comes to performing live, and
how do you deal with them?

Jessie: I really like working with just one other person because its much quicker to get things done. The limitation is having to play along to a backing, that you’re stuck to this and can’t improvise so much. Eventually I want more musicians on stage but this year its gonna be just the two of us.

Augenmusik: Even though you've been gone for a few years now, you seem to maintain close ties to the San Francisco & greater California music scenes. Do you still feel connected to what is going on there, and are there any other localities that you feel a particular kinship with as far as the bands and music is concerned?

Jessie: This past year I’ve become friends with the Extra Action Marching Band. We’ve done some shows with them in Berlin this last summer (with more to come this spring) and they did a cover of one of my new songs which we recorded in San Francisco. I’ve known about them for a long time and actually got to see one of their first live shows about 9 years ago in a friends basement in East Oakland. At that time they were about 10 people, and it was a total mess! To see how they’ve progressed since then is so inspiring to me as I’ve always wanted to create something like that too.

Also, my little brother, Otto Nervous. He’s 12 and plays everything himself-drums, singing, keyboards, guitar. He’s so talented – we’re gonna play a show with him Feb 3 at Gilman St. He’s played drums with The Vanishing a couple times but this will be his first solo show.

Augenmusik: A lot of time has been spent musing on the changes in the music industry over the past 5 years or so. You are someone who has made a career in that time and had to deal pragmatically with the changes to online media and changes brought about by downloading. You also seem very pro-active in managing your own career. How do you deal with
navigating the current industry? What kind of technology has made it easier for you, and what's made things more difficult? Has it had any effect on your music; if my impression is correct, your past music takes at best an ambivalent attitude towards media.

Jessie: I’m really grateful for the internet- especially myspace because through that I can promote my own stuff and its out there & people can find it. It’s a real revolution for musicians that you can do most things for yourself now.

As far as downloading goes – great, go for it. It doesn’t make much sense to fight people's ability to get stuff for free now, so the money can come from playing live then. I’m not very hip with it – though it seems cool to me that there’s access to so much more – it must open peoples minds to be able to discover so much new music so easily. The sad thing about that seems to be the lack of interest in the actual albums, with the artwork and the vinyl and everything beautiful about that, but because the cost of buying new cd’s and records has become so expensive I haven’t been able to afford it for years and actually I don’t even have a stereo at the moment, I just listen to music through my shitty computer speakers. Somehow the computer has become like an artificial heart that connects a person to everything. It’s pretty sick, yet somehow inescapable. I wish I could find a way out, but so many great things have come from it already. This is the second record I’ve recorded with Pro Tools. It’s been amazing that it’s allowed me to work on my own but at the same time it’s created a real isolation. Because I can do all the stuff myself I just do it in my house and the past 4 years I really haven’t had a practice space. So the whole rehearsal thing, sweating it out with other people, this is really gone at the moment. I just think that you’ve got to be aware of the limitations of technology. Where there are improvements being made all the time to make things easier it actually takes away common sense and real psychic ability in the other ways.

Things getting “easier” can also lead to gluttony & excess which makes bad art. Something like this happened to me when I first got a digital camera. It was so easy to just take tons of shots of everything that I totally forgot the point of taking a picture. With film you have a respect for each shot because there’s a limit and it cost money and time to develop. There is a deliberation which comes with this knowledge, and you tend to pay more attention to what you’re doing and what you’re looking at. Do you really want to capture that image? Is it really necessary? But now it’s like there’s no limit and it really changes the game. Like what are you even hunting for? All these images, all these sounds, you can have as many as you like, but what do they even mean? It’s the same with recording. With digital recording people can just do as many takes as they like then if it still sucks they can edit it. There’s no need to even know how to play your instrument. And if you can't sing just use autotune. The quest for perfection has led to some pretty dumb inventions.

It’s also strange, because of the internet we’re all connected to this ‘world’ community, but is it real? It really begins to feel like we’re living in a sci fi horror film, a virtual reality where we’re all stuck in our voyeuristic little cubicles with our little pictures and wallpaper and little statements and music representing us. Its like at any moment they could pull the plug and everybody would be locked in here for good.

Augenmusik: Any thoughts or announcements you'd like to leave us with?

Jessie: Yea, I hope to see everybody soon. Goodnight.

Augenmusik podcast number 2!

2007-11-28T09:00:00.000-08:00

It was deemed that time again, and now there is another Augenmusik podcast for your downloading and listening pleasure. This would be number 2, and hopefully there won't be such a big lag until the next one, as I get the hang of doing this. Of course, I can promise such regularity, because real life has a way of imposing itself and preventing me from spending my days doing this sort of thing. Aside from that, my better judgment would likely intervene was well.

What was played in this podcast? I won't be making it that easy for you. You'll just have to listen to find out, my friends.

I will, however, give you something to look at still, as this text would be make for a rather bare post. Allow me to say that I sometimes find myself trolling around youtube for shits and giggles. I have to admit, the urge mostly strikes me when I'm in the mood for stuff like DYS live footage, but sometimes I do look for other stuff, and I find gems like Malaria performing "Thrash Me". But it was the video below-- an original video of As Mercenarias performing "Panico," that count amongst my best finds. So, I wil share below.

Some recent CDs.

2007-11-21T06:37:00.000-08:00

Yes, it's taken me a bit longer than I had hoped to sit down and write some words on some of these recent CDs, but that's life. Thankfully, there were all very deserving, so I'm pleased to be able to share them with you. And there are still some vinyl reviews on the way as well.....

the Funeral Crashers- La Fin Absolue du Monde
There's a good amount of records that have the disclaimer "play loud" somewhere on the packaging. It's usually some rock-related genre, which makes the disclaimer a little superfluous, even a bit cliche, because who would think the play a rock record quietly? There is no such disclaimer on our good friends', the Funeral Crashers, debut album "La Fin Absolue du Monde," but here it might actually be appropriate. They've given us one hell of a noisy record which hits the ear drums in the just the right way, and loud is probably the best way to appreciate it in all it's elegant cacophony. From the very first song, "Menlo Park," with it's Bauhaus-esque intro, guitarist Edward Raison's screeching guitar virtually battles with Frankie Teardrop's overdriven and rumbling bass. "Safe" or "Video Killer" are other great examples, particularly where Oliver Lyons' oft stocatto drumming virtually erupts in a din of cymbals. I can hear some noises on there that even seem like they're coming from somewhere else still. They fall into the "dark rock" camp for sure, whatever that camp may be (though certainly the Funeral Crashers have a tent next to the Opposite Sex), and the reverb and delay drenched feedback help create an atmospherics that fans of deathrock or older goth bands would certainly not feel alienated by. The tone does vary though throughout the album; songs like "Blackout Days" and "Disconnected" showcase the band's ability to hold your attention quite well while bringing down the pace dramatically, and "Uninvited Guest" is has some very legitimate hooks while vocalist Phil holds court with his Mark E Smith meets Richard Butler delivery. On "La Fin...", they do the Jesus and Mary Chain awful proud, but at bottom I see this as a punk record. No my friend, it doesn't sound like Black Flag. But if you open your scope a little wider than that; one that includes early Swans, early Killing Joke, Sonic Youth, or the Fall in its purview, with the Stooges and the Velvets presiding, as they very well should, then you'll understand what I mean by the following statement: the Funeral Crashers wrote themselves one hell of a punk record.

Dansetten- Mask RoulettaIt took me a while to track this one down, but I was happy when I did. Dansetten is the brainchild of Rasmus Sorenson, formerly of the Danish band Young Wasteners, who, with "We Got Ways" managed to put out one of the best hardcore punk records of the decade, in my humble opinion. As if that wasn't enough, he went off and wrote a really incredible post-punk record on top of that. Upon first impression, there's a lot of late Birthday Party and early Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds ("From Her to Eternity" era) here, with it's off-kilter rhythms, its piercing guitar, vocal explosions, and stumbling quasi-tribal rhythms that collapse into more romantic-sounding lounge parts often book-ended by piano and horns. However, there's much more than that going on here, and Captain Beefheart and the Doors (albeit in very warped form) are other points of reference. This comes from that loose circle of Danish punks that would include such great bands as Gorilla Angreb, Amdi Petersens Armee, Young Wasteners, and No Hope From the Kids. Sometime in 2002, just prior to my moving to New York, the aforementioned A.P.A. played at our house; a converted storefront in New Brunswick, NJ. It was a wild show, complete with fireworks blowing up right and left in the small space, and enough vodka and beer flowing to keep the whole ensemble drunk for quite a while. The guitarist at the time was just filling in for the tour; he was a nice chap and we hit it off well, probably due to the "Teenage Jesus and the Jerks" logo he painted on the back of his jeans jacket. I'm wondering if he wasn't the kind soul who gave us this record.... It would certainly make sense.

Monozid- Waiting for the Circus CD-ep
They keep busy in Leipzig... in addition to setting up shows, DJing regularly, and running the great German fanzine Transmission, these 4 guys have this up and coming band Monozid. Here is their second, self-released EP, although I understand there is a full length CD in the works. Their modus operandi is moody songs with taut rhythms and jangly guitars, and in that sense they might be the teutonic counterpart to another band that's been catching ears on these shores, the Opposite Sex (wow, second time they've come up in the course of these reviews). The recording has a bit of a distant and dry quality to it, but they're tight enough that they manage to pull off a convincing performance nonetheless. I'll be looking forward to the full length-- if they go all out on the recording, I'm sure they'll have a serious contender on their hands.

the Pussy Pirates- Eat My Brain, Call it Art CD
A few words about the packaging to start this off are in order. A 20 page booklet accompanied this CD, each page adorned with lyrics and some crazy design or cartoon of some sort that makes for a quite good first impression. It was through ex-Phantom Limbs crooner, current Loto Ball Show leader, and Reversible Eye gallery coordinator Loto Ball that turned me on to these ladies, as they've become regular performers at the aforementioned space. This six piece alternates between nervous punk songs, and rather skronky, horn driven post-punk tunes. The Slits are an obvious point of reference, but the band obviously takes some series cues from the Contortions, and there's a good deal of Essential Logic- style abrasion as well. In most cases, they pull of the transition from one to the other rather well. Production-wise I'd have liked a little more punch in the horn section, particularly because whoever does the majority of the singing has quite the set of pipes, and it makes the recording seem a little disproportionate and dry at times. Also, 16 songs is is quite a while to maintain my attention... but the songs are all creatively written, and tunes like "Stickboy Lullabye," "the Teeth," and "Luminescence" get enthusiastic thumbs up. It would be quite nice to get out to the windy city to see these folks play a show with Loto Ball Show at Reversible Eye!

SOME REVIEWS: Loto Ball Show, Opposite Sex, Teenage Talking Cars, Red Voice Choir

2007-09-09T13:37:00.000-07:00

Here's some notes on a few recent recordings that have caught my ear that I'd like to recommend. Still making the rounds in my stereo are CDs that were sent to me by Monozid from Leipzig and the Pussy Pirates from Chicago, who I hope to share some thoughts about soon.

Red Voice Choir- A Thousand Reflections CD EP
The Red Voice Choir might have an unfair advantage with me. I'm a fan of all three of the other members' bands; namely Black Ice, Death of a Party, and the Holy Kiss. Naturally, I'd be predisposed to listening to this with a prejudiced ear, but might I not have unfairly high expectations? Probably. I've certainly listened to the recorded output by these four musicians with enough scrutiny to have a very discerning ear for them. But if this is the work of a new band, it's surely recognizable only from the restlessness of the music than by faults in the performances. In fact, their ability to play together so seamlessly is quite impressive. While it does bear distinctive marks of some of their previous bands, Red Voice Choir doesn't come off sounding like a side-project at all. Kevin Brown's drumming is always impressive; using his beat-up drumset to his advantage, he continually pounds out rhythms unorthodox beats hounded by Kelly's church organs and crashing into Adam's guitar while Dawn's bass slinks along to provide the groundwork. The six songs on this EP leave a good hope these guys will pull together great full length in some time to come.
Atakra Records
Red Voice Choir on myspace

Loto Ball Show demo CDR
The second song on this 5 track demo CDR is called "Poseidon Waltz," and it's actually a good point of reference for ex-Phantom Limbs' vocalist Loto Ball's newest effort. Loto has some good experience in circus acts and marching bands, so perhaps it's no surprise to find his current outing putting him in the position of deranged Master of Ceremonies-- not uncharming, but quite comfortable to tell a little story about driving with your eyes closed. Loto alternates between vocals, trumpet and keys alongside a host of other instruments like guitar, bass, drums and saxophones (and the likes of Centimeters and Indian Jewelry members, I believe). But unlike circus and cabaret shows, the music doesn't play second fiddle to the spectacle, as the 4 songs on here (one track is an introduction by Chicago's MC Kenny), stand on their own quite well. The demo sounds as though it had been recorded live and but is still very effective. A studio recording might put a little more pop in the horns, but for a demo this works quite nicely. I guess I could have expected as much.
Loto Ball Show on myspace

Teenage Talking Cars CDep
I've said elsewhere that Teenage Talking Cars remind me a bit of early Mika Miko, but perhaps more experimental in the composition and delivery. They have a similar kinetic quality to their songs, sounding like they'd be more at home at a party than at a club, and the instruments are played with a frenetic "let's-see-who-can-get-there-first" kind of attitude. But if Mika Miko has that early Redd Kross vibe I see attributed to them often, then Teenage Talking Cars has a bit more of a Bags thing going on. They virtually play with their songs as much as through them, and the results can sound at driving and off-kilter. Singer Ammo wails, squeaks, and rages through the 5 songs. Seeing as this CD EP is self-released and limited to 500 copies, I can see them going on to some good things, letting this starting point become a sought-after commodity years later.
Teenage Talking Cars on myspace

the Opposite Sex- Violent Heartstrings CD
It figures that no sooner do I leave New York for Montreal that a bunch of high-quality bands on the eastern seaboard start discovering each other, start playing shows together, and something akin to a scene starts developing whose "darker" qualities lead them to start garnering the "goth" tag. And even better, whereas in years prior, this would be a pejorative term and a kiss of death in the larger independent music scene at large, it's not meant in a derogatory way. Could this be the east coast counterpart to what's been going on on the west coast for a few years between cities like San Francisco and Portland? I still maintain that most of these bands are not "goth" at all, but I'm also not eager to engage in quibbles about genre. DC's the Opposite Sex is a band I'd throw in the lot-- they've been around for a while, but are recently starting to make more of a name for themselves with their releases and through trekking up and down the coast. I liked the brooding and drawn-out quality of some of the songs on their previous EP a lot, but they tighten up the compositions a little bit to go for a bit more of a more straight forward dark-rock sound on "Violent Heartstrings" with dreamy keyboards and jarring saxophones accompanying them on some songs with convincing effect. Having said all of that, I realize more of this "review" was dedicated to the band's circumstances than their actual music, but my enthusiasm should testify a bit for the music, shouldn't it??
the Opposite Sex on myspace

Augenmusik podcast-- premier episode

2007-08-06T13:03:00.000-07:00

Why, of course!

First we decide to do a blog, so the next step is very obviously a PODCAST isn't it? Indeed it is, and, without further ado:

the premier episode of the Augenmusik podcast!

A little rough around the edges, for sure. Though, I'll admit, there's no intention of polishing it up any more than that.

I will indeed post the playlist-- but I'll wait until next week to do that. First you're just going to have to LISTEN and be surprised.

INTERVIEW: P.H. Lovecraft of the Funeral Crashers

2007-07-31T09:28:00.000-07:00

The Funeral Crashers have been kicking around New York in one form or another for a while now, and it's quite nice that they're starting to get some recognition for it. Whereas a few years ago, the kind of music they play might have been rather contextless amidst the New York music landscape, they're finding their audience quite nicely now and even have some kindred spirits in the likes of the Hunt, Blacklist, or out of towners like the Opposite Sex, who have rolled into town to play with the Funeral Crashers on a few occasions. In addition, they all fall into the "righteous dude" category, which is to say they're the kind of guys you'd be happy to go out for a night on the town with in addition to seeing on the stage.

This following interview was actually not meant to be an interview per se. It was conducted by email with FC singer Phil (aka P.H. Lovecraft!) to help give me the necessary background information to write an article which now appears in the pages of the debut issue of Deathrock Magazine. Phil, being the industrious chap he is, went all out for the interview, and provided me with much more than some notes from which to cull some quotable material. So this post will serve a dual purpose; 1. encourage you to check out the Funeral Crashers (more specifically; check out their CD, which has been recorded and will come out in one form or another in the coming months! Or, alternately, you New Yorkers can check them out with at Club Midway on August 2nd with Woman and the Holy Kiss-- a recommended show if there ever was one!); and 2. encourage you to check out Deathrock Magazine, which should hit the shelves right about now.

Augenmusik: How long have the Funeral Crashers been around in total?

P. H. Lovecraft: I'm not sure that's something I want to claim bragging rights on; I'd have to say about 7 years now. For at least 3 and a half years of that time, the band was "inactive" if not completely defunct. It was a very restless corpse, though. There's an involved, tragi-comic history too long to recite here. I think the point where it became a real band and a cohesive unit was when Frank joined in the summer of 2005. Before that it all we had was a clever name, a set of demo recordings and some conceptual aesthetics that had yet to be fully realized.

Augenmusik: Could you describe some of the major hurdles you've had to overcome in forming the band/ getting it to the point that you're at now?

P. H. Lovecraft: For me, the main thing was just finding people who would have enough dedication and shared sensibilities to make it work, which is harder than you might think in New York, especially if you have a particular idea of what you want. A revolving door lineup only works if you're the kind of Bowie/Reznor songwriting virtuoso who'll drive the band. I'm not a singer/ songwriter, I'm a vocalist and a music aesthetician, so I need collaborators.

After the original lineup fell through I was "over" the Funeral Crashers; I had always wanted to do a band but the early material was a lot more horror-punk than I'd hoped. After making the rounds looking for other bands and an ill-fated attempt in '03-'04 to reconnect with old members and record the original set of songs, it started making sense to revive the band and just develop it in the direction I had wanted. It was like rebuilding a scrapped car; that's a weird metaphor, but accurate, because there was kind of a shape to it. My bandmates evolved things a lot, especially Ed's guitar playing because he has such a wide range of influences, but Frank and Oliver both brought a lot in as well. None of us are into exactly the same things but we share common ground.

[Photo by JKart

Augenmusik: What was the original line up of the Funeral Crashers? How long did it last?

P. H. Lovecraft: That would have been me, Mark Splatter playing bass, Jeremy "Bastard" Alisauskas on guitar and Steven "Dead Beat" Napolitano as drummer. I think that lasted about three months before Mark moved to LA; we never even played out. Steven, Jeremy and I carried on for about a year with Rick "RickFits" Holler on bass, and then, briefly, Matt Smith from Saetia and Hot Cross. Matt wasn't permanent and Steve left, and although we tried to rotate in a different rhythm section, personality conflicts had set in. By spring 2001 things had run their course. Not a note was heard again until late 2003. Steven was also in the original lineup of the Memphis Morticians, and Jeremy went on to play in Unto Ashes and Autodrone.

Augenmusik: During the Funeral Crasher's first incarnation, the dark music scene in NY was vastly different. What were some of the bands you played with then, and where would you play? Could you remark on some of the differences between now and then?

P. H. Lovecraft: How much time do you have? In 2000, "dark music" mostly referred to "goth", which at that time meant either overly Sisters of Mercy/ Dead Can Dance influenced bands or synth-heavy industrial. The Funeral Crashers were supposed to be a reaction to that, bringing back a lot of punk and post-punk and Batcave/ deathrock and experimental/ psychedelic rock influences and the idea of energy and spectacle to this very formulaic and boring scene. That was pretty much it-- we were a very dark rock band.

There were a few oddball bands, most of whom also folded around 2001, combining punk and rock and electro elements with a gothic sort of aesthetic, notably The Brickbats and the Skabs who Funeral Crashers Version One played out with in 2000. The Stiffs Inc. (one of the best New York bands of the 90s before they broke up in 1998) were a huge influence on me personally. I think most of the first venues I played literally do not exist anymore or have been renovated beyond recognition: CBGB and CB's Gallery, the Collective Unconscious space, Bellvue Bar, Nightengale's. The first Funeral Crashers show ever was at Nightengale's, back when it was a total dive that did 18+ and all-ages punk shows. The Unseen were on the bill. It was terrible.

Augenmusik: How do the hardships of doing a band in NY affect the Funeral Crashers?

P. H. Lovecraft: New York is a "tough" town, not as much in the sense of high crime and being physically dangerous, like in the 70s and 80s, but in the sense of being absolutely pitiless. Economics and money drive everything here, you can see that from the massive gentrification of Manhattan and Brooklyn to CBGB getting closed down over a rent dispute; a friend of mine argued that there isn't a New York music scene, just a bunch of "very efficient parasites." It's this brutal survival struggle of art against commerce.

[Photo by JKart]

I mentioned that it's surprisingly hard to find people, besides that there's the astronomical cost of living in the NY metro area which makes it hard for people to exist low on the food chain and still afford rent and rehearsal space without getting swallowed up by a day job or getting all your gear stolen because you can only afford to live in the ghetto.

After all the New York bands hit over the last few years, the music scene here is also oversaturated with everybody lining up to be the "next big thing"; that's kind of exciting but it also makes it difficult to stand out or find a following in this huge mass of mostly mediocre and imitative bands. It can take a while to get something going, and people inevitably end up complaining about having to compete with trust-funders who can devote more time to their band because somebody else pays the rent.

Something I find really sad is the decline of all-ages venues. There's the nanny-state mentality fostered under Mayor Giuliani and still persisting that music venues are some kind of blight that we have to protect the children from. I think it's ridiculous that you have to be 21 to see a rock show, and it's separating the people who are old enough to have gotten good at music from the people who are young enough to get really excited about it. Though that might also explain the recent upsurge in "kid bands" in New York--the teenagers have no places left to go.

And, of course, any time you are trying to work as an artist or entertainer, it's completely dependent on contacts and making connections to get your first breaks. In New York, multiply that by 1,000-- it's all who you know and who you clique with here; bands who start with existing connections to the music and entertainment industry can have an unfair advantage.

On the flip side, there are at least contacts to be made here, if you can find your way. And there are still tons of places in New York a band can play; so long as you don't care about convenience, good sound, getting paid or whether anybody will show up, there are always gigs to be found.

Augenmusik: What are your immediate plans?

P. H. Lovecraft: We've done a lot of recording, so what we really want to do is release something. Whether that is with a label or on our own remains to be seen, but that's where we're at right now. Beyond that, to write songs, work on our live show and leave a pint of blood on the stage.

Augenmusik: What are your long term plans/ aspirations for the band?

P. H. Lovecraft: Total world domination. No, actually, we're trying to focus on the present. This group is either a cat's nine lives or the living dead. All probability pointed to it disappearing on the scrap heap of musical history after Version One fell apart in 2001, and sometimes I'm surprised it's had this longevity. That people have started noticing us is a good feeling (because they SHOULD be taking notice of us) but we have a long way to go before we've made a significant contribution to music.

in praise of THE HOLY KISS- SHOT LOVE ON A BACK LINE

2007-07-09T11:11:00.000-07:00

That these is a whole network of bands influenced by that triumverate of the Birthday Party/ the Cramps/ the Gun Club shouldn't surprise anyone right now. What is pretty interesting, though, is that there is something akin to an industry segment of musicians who've got some association with that aforementioned legendary Australian band through only minimal degrees of separation of shared band members. Same goes for the others mentioned. For example, the Bellmer Dolls undoubtedly fall into this category [Bellmer Dolls-the Vanity Set-Grinderman-Birthday Party; 4 degrees of separation].

What's pretty amazing is that there's quite a lot of good bands out there on that dark, bluesy tip; just a little thought in that direction can yield the likes of Piker Ryan, Dimi Dero, the Devastations, the Drones, Woman, Alice Texas, and that will run the whole spectrum of that sound. Though I don't know how much the "degrees of separation" scheme works once you include bands like LA's Lion Fever, or SF's the Holy Kiss, but you've got two damn good additions to that list right there. Obviously I like the Holy Kiss plenty enough to put out a record of theirs that compiles rare and out of print vinyl and compilation appearances. So it shouldn't come as a surprise that I'm about to sing their praises.

It was Sweden's Release the Bats label that scored this Holy Kiss full length, and with "Shot Love on a Back Line," the Holy Kiss wrote quite a great album. They're ostensibly more blues-influenced than most of their compatriots (that is to say, their SF post-punk and indie brethren, or even the colleagues-in-spirit mentioned above), and of course they're treading some dangerous territory there, as most electrified bands sound trite and ridiculous when compared to depth and dynamism of a Son House or a Robert Johnson.

To avoid the boogie-rock trap, or the nostalgia-act route, some bands will meld feedback and dissonance into their guitars to build on the intensity; the Holy Kiss hold back on the noise-front, but manage to approach their songs with a more collected elegance. Where the Bellmer Dolls might come out and stab you with their jagged guitar lines, there is an ethereal quality to the Holy Kiss's guitars. Matty Rue Morgue's slide guitar dances around the notes, as in the opening to "A Dancehall Goodbye," where it maintains a calm vibrato until the chorus kicks in and explodes without ever sounding reckless. In fact, the guitars almost bounce off Nick Ott's pummeling drum beats, which masterfully calm into a heavy back beat in just the right places. It's undeniably held together by the steady low-end of Dawn Hillis's bass, as on songs like "A Slave Song," where it provides the foundation for a tense crescendo. One of the highlights of the album for me is surely Matty's voice, which retains the grainy quality of previous recordings, but manages to sound clear and unaffected throughout the songs.

They take these songs on the road in August, alongside New Yorkers Woman, who you will hopefully be hearing more about shortly, as they're quite deserving of some praise themselves. Check them out at the following dates:

August 2 @ Midway in New York with the Funeral Crashers
August 3 @ Cakeshop in New York with the Star Spangles
August 4 @ PA's in Boston
August 29 @ the Double Down in Las Vegas, NV with Jail Weddings
August 30 @ the Echo in LA with Old Time Relijun and Jail Weddings (All ages!)
August 31 @ Alex's Bar in Long Beach CA with Grand Elegance, Old Time Relijun and Jail Weddings
September 1 @ TBA in San Francisco
September 2 @ 12 Galaxies in San Francisco with Jail Weddings and Sixteens

Related Links:
Release the Bats Records
The Holy Kiss on myspace
Woman on myspace

SWANN DANGER: new album and European tour.

2007-06-18T14:23:00.000-07:00

They are compatriots to the likes of Black Ice, Sixteens, and Phantom Limbs (and indeed, are even neighbors to some members of those aforementioned groups), and so it should come as no surprise that we enjoy ourselves a litte Swann Danger. Quite much, in fact.

Their newest offering, an album entitled "Deep North" and released on the band's own "Custody Night School" imprint, builds on their previous 10" released by Release the Bats about 2 years ago. The drum machine was replaced with live drums for the recording, but Andy and Cynthia's instrumentation remains sparse-- even skeletal-- in spite of the fuller sounding percussion. Their myspace page describes the band's genre as "post-punk/ dub/ gothic," which I quite like as a description. King Tubby or Big Youth, this is not, but while the drums and bass pound out a rhythmic din and the guitars reverberate with distant, shimmering chords, you can easily envision this as a dub track emptied of its warmth and ganja-induced histrionics. Cold-wave dub, perhaps? X-Mal Deutschland has come up as a point of reference before, which is not inaccurate in and of itself, but only if you can imagine that filtered through PJ Harvey by way of Siouxsie Sioux. Be that as it may, "Deep North" is definitely recommended to those who might be drawn the above description.

... and since they currently find themselves on tour, you should indeed go to see them if you find yourself in their path.

For more info, direct yourself here or here.

JUNE 22:@FIEBER-TANZPARTY@AMP HAFENSTR. 64 MUNSTER,DE
JUNE 23:@SCHLACHTHOF/LUNATIC GOTH ASYLUM FINDORFFSTR.51 BREMEN,DE with MONOZID
JUNE 24:@POP ART CAFE, 103 RUE DE NEUFCHATEL REIMS, FR
JUNE 26:@SOAP BOX CLUB 29 AV DE LA RESISITANCE NANCY,FR
JUNE 27 @ LA FELINE 6 RUE VICTOR LETALLE PARIS,FR EARLY SHOW : 21:00!
JUNE 29:@Sonic/Peniche Mascaret 4 Quai des Etroits LYON,FR with CARLA BOZULICH
JUNE 30:@NOISE CLUB Via San Massimo, 1 TORINO,IT with NORMA LOY (FR) and VIDI AQUAM
JULY 1: @Sinister Noise Club via dei magazzini generali 4b ROME,IT with AVANT-GARDE
JULY 4:@heinrichstrasse 137 ZURICH, CH
JULY 5: @Kunstverein, Franken str. 200 im Z-Bau, NUREMBERG, DE with MONOZID
JULY 7: @NACHTGEFLATTER/GIESZESTR. LEIPZIG,DE
JULY 8: @Z vereinstr. 25 AACHEN, DE
JULY 11:@AZ Conni DRESDEN,DE
JULY 13: tba
JULY 14: @ OCCII/HEX PARTY AMSTERDAM,NL HEX COMPILATION RECORD RELEASE PARTY

Booty from Sir Luke.

2007-06-12T11:27:00.000-07:00

Always the world traveler, Lucas Lanthier often finds himself coming home from various appearances/ Cinema Strange tours/ Deadfly Ensemble with quite the booty amassed. On his more recent journeys, he came home with some trappings he passed on to me, knowing I'd probably enjoy them. He was right.

Exhibit 1: the culprit; Lucas Lanthier

Varsovie- Neuf Millimetres CD ep
The francophone trio Varsovie's five song EP, "Nef Millimetres" is a good example of some of the very, very competent post-punk coming out of central Europe nowadays. It boasts stoccatto rhythms, whose hooks are incredibly catchy in spite of their sharp repetitiveness. At the risk of giving a totally wrong impression, I will say that it's got similar rhythmic sensibilities as the first Strokes record, which, think what you will about the band, had some infectiously catchy songs. Though not nearly as apocalyptic-sound as Siekera, for example, there's quite an elegant darkness about them. It might very well be the french pop tradition speaking through them, which was able to negotiate its melody and its melancholy quite well.

the Opposite Sex CD ep
Now we cross the Atlantic for the Opposite Sex, from our nation's capital. In the first song's bass flange and wailing tenor vocals, they wear their influences on their sleeve (Southern Death Cult comes to mind quickly), but the performances is tight enough and the recording is crisp enough to make this quite enjoyable and impressive. By the third song, it becomes apparent that Opposite Sex are capable of developing their own sound; tight drum beats propelled by the bass, with ephemeral sounding guitars, and strong, deep vocals. I'm not familiar with any DC band that sounds like this; from Black Market Baby to the Faith to Rites of Spring and beyond... so it's quite nice to hear them, and see that some of the studio work (well, mastering at least) was done at Inner Ear. Sir Lanthier mentioned that, of all the bands he's played with recently, this is one of the one's that's impressed him most. I can see why.

Dr. Doomsday and his Nuclear Wisemen demo recordings CDR
Here's a band I know next to nothing about, but from the looks of this CD, it's a new sythiepunk band ("synthpunk," wie man's hier normalerweise nennt-- aber auf deutsch, d'rum eben anders geschrieben!). Raw recordings; mostly drum machine beat, vocals, bass, some (rare) guitars, and minimal analog synth, often sputtering away. This longer than normal demo meanders along at times, but most of the songs show they've got their wits about them and their aesthetics are in the right place (which favor anxious beats with simple synth lines driving the melodies). To be honest, it is a little bit long to hold your attention all the way through, but they're on to something, particularly on those occasions where they sink drum machine, bass, and synth lead fall into a nice beat. Maybe this betrays my roots a little , but there's a nice punk attitude here that still makes this quite enjoyable. If they streamlined the songs, and tightened the songs up, I'd be fan.

The Pepper Plant- Original California Style hot pepper sauce
I must admit my ignorance when it comes to this brand of hot sauce, and upon sampling a bottle, I'm very sorry to have lived without it. I can't say I knew there was a distinctively "California style" of hot sauce, but these Pepper Plant folks do quite the job with this condiment. Significantly less tomato-y than Valentina's, and not nearly as vinegary as something like Tobascoe, it's mild compared to the west indian brands you could find, but damn if it ain't tasty. Made with jalepenos and chilis, I would have thought there were actual pepper corns in this sauce (a glance at the ingredients denied this). Whatever it is, a look at the ravaged, empty bottle show clearly that I didn't like it all that much.

Sleeping Children- In Viro Tests demo CDR
A Parisian band here (I think, because their bass player was involved in the short-lived Parisian label Deviant Ears). They offer us some simple, but well done "batcave" style deathrock with the ambiance of Alien Sex Fiend and the vocal histrionics of Peter Murphy. Able enough for this style, though it seems like this is ann older recording, and they've got a record out on Strobelight that followed this up. I imagine fans of this style then might already be familiar with these people...

nyc's SERVICES on tour!

2007-05-22T11:54:00.000-07:00

S E R V I C E S
++++++++++++

Word is New York City's Services are on tour. Go see them. They are easily amongst the top of the heap in terms of what New York City has to offer, and one of the city's most intense live bands. Let me put it this way, we at Hungry Eye Records made damn sure to sign the Bellmer Dolls because it would simply have been sad to have toiled in New York City for so long and not have worked with at least one of our two hometown favorites, and most of the West Coast contingent of H.E. count themselves as fans as well! (Both members were also in the late, great Flux Information Sciences...)

Services released Your Desire is My Business on A Touch of Class Recordings well over a year ago, so they're due for another one soon! Having moved up to the Great White North, we haven't seen them for a while, but it would be nice to see some familiar faces up here again in Montreal.

MAY - JUNE NORTH AMERICAN TOUR
* = w/ The Faint

May 21 PABST THEATER, MILWAUKEE, Wisconsin*
May 22 METRO , CHICAGO, Illinois*
May 23 OPERA HOUSE, TORONTO, Ontario*
May 23 THE SOCIAL W/ ATOC DJ'S , TORONTO, Ontario
May 24 TOWN BALLROOM , BUFFALO, New York*
May 25 I LOVE NEON W/ ATOC DJ'S, MONTREAL, Quebec
May 26 THE AVALON BOSTON, Massachusetts*
May 28 9:30 CLUB, WASHINGTON DC, Washington DC*
May 30 NORVA, NORFOLK, Virginia*
May 30 ORANGE PEEL, ASHEVILLE, North Carolina*
June 1 BLUE CAT'S, KNOXVILLE, Tennessee*
June 2 BLUE NOTE, COLUMBIA, Missouri*
June 3 CAIN'S BALLROOM , TULSA, Oklahoma*
June 4 FOX THEATER, BOULDER*
June 5 FOX THEATER, BOULDER*
June 6 IN THE VENUE , SALT LAKE CITY, Utah*
June 7 HOUSE OF BLUES, LAS VEGAS*
June 8 SOMA, SAN DIEGO*
June 9 THE MEZZANINE W/CSS, SAN FRANCISCO, California
June 11 BIG EASY, BOISE*
June 12 RECORD BAR, KANSAS CITY, Kansas
June 14 SOKOL AUDITORIUM, OMAHA, Nebraska*
June 15 SOKOL AUDITORIUM, OMAHA, Nebraska*
June 22 RUFF CLUB @ ANNEX, NYC, New York
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Transisters

2007-04-06T12:31:00.000-07:00

I got this 4 song demo from this nice Venitian fellas the Transisters after digging the tracks they had up on the internet. Giving a good listen to the demo made me rethink the trip these guys are on. They definitely have a jangly, nervous post-punk thing going on, and have obviously listened to plenty of the Fall, but that aesthetic is filtered through some late 80's DC influences with song structures that seem to owe a lot to the post-rock I'd associate with Constellation Records. While the 4 tracks on this demo, especially the standout "Walking on a Black Hole", have a taught, Wire-esque rhythm with sputtering synthesizers throughout, the two guitars volley for the lead while two singers anxiously trade vocal lines. I hear they're in the process of recording a new record, which might be a good idea to keep your eyes open for.

the Transisters on the web

CROSSOVER!

2007-04-06T12:20:00.000-07:00

Some of those electro bands treading on the darker side of the street have been doing well for themselves in the past few years, as attested to by the success of the likes of Adult., Colder, Mt. Sims, or that Miss Kittin and the Hacker collaboration; the nomadic duo Crossover deserves to be up there on that list. I have to admit catching on a little bit late as there's already two albums out through International DJ Gigolo Records that left quite the impression on me. Their approach varies on the 14 songs that compose their last album "Cryptic and Dire Sallow Faced Hoods Blast off into Oblivion", but the beats are always simple and their attack is rather subtle and laid back; no overly layered synthesizers or complicated programming. But it's eerily direct with whereas some of those above mentioned bands are known for evoking a neurotic atmosphere, Crossover sounds much more sensual; almost decadent. They just dropped some new material, which it seems like they released on their own; pick it up!

Crossover on myspace

Video for "Over Exposure"

Video for "Apples on a Stick"

INTERVIEW: Loto Ball, part 2

2007-03-26T13:23:00.000-07:00

Well, it was promised a few months ago, and here it is; part 2 of our interview with Loto Ball of the Loto Ball Show and Phantom Limbs. The interview seemed to lend itself well to this division, as the first part was more of a discussion of Loto's music and ideas about music in general, and the second part concerns itself with Loto's involvement with art and artistic collaboration.
The relevant links you should check out:
Reversible Eye gallery
official Phantom Limbs homepage
the Phantom Limbs on myspace
the Loto Ball Show on myspace

Augenmusik: Let's talk a bit about the gallery. You seemed to get that off the ground as soon you got to Chicago. Was there any motivation to do this besides the fact that you and Elena are both artists and wanted a space to work?

Loto: I remember talking to my aunt about starting a gallery 15 years ago. It's something i've wanted to do forever. My approach to distribution and expression has always been direct and D.I.Y. When I wanted to show my art and writing, I made zines... when I wanted to play a show I found places and set up the entire bill. I've been doing that stuff since the beginning. It seems like facilitating other peoples expression has helped me with my own.

Augenmusik: When I lived in NJ some years back, we had a space (a converted storefront attached to our apartment where our band practiced), and put on shows, parties, and the like. I remember part of it being motivated by trying to put things together we wanted to see, but wouldn't likely find elsewhere. Seems like that's going on at Reversible Eye as well. I was really interested in the Public Image/ Enemy show you recently had. Could you explain what that was about?

Loto: Public Image Enemy was a good concept that probably needs further exploration. This concept started with the idea that diversity in a scene brings about creatve breakthroughs and vital energy, and I felt a need in Chicago for some new energy. I'm a big fan of punk history and was alway very excited by the projects where punk would collaborate with hip-hop. Or that the two would come together without knowing it maybe. Some good examples of this are ESG and the thing John Lydon did with Afrika Bambaataa. I wanted to do a show and series that would bring the two art forms together and also encourage collaboration, with the hopes that something new would start. There was also the hope that people from different backgrounds would find commonality and inspire each other. Public Image Enemy was subitiled “the collision and collaboration of Punk Rock and Hip Hop cultures.”

Augenmusik: When the gallery opened up you mentioned folks from your neighborhood peeking in to check it out. Did the Public Image Enemy exhibit help spur any collaborations with folks in the neighborhood? Did it make anyone interested in what else you were doing with the gallery? Of course, the assumption here is that the neighborhood kids knew more about hip-hop than they do about punk... which is probably a safe one to make. Did you find that as well?

Loto: Yes, the kids in the neighborhood know about hip-hop, but they don't get us. We were trying to get more neighborhood energy in there, audience-wise and artist-wise. This is a puerto-rican neighborhood. We want the gallery to serve the local community, not just white folks. We succeeded in getting a couple local artists to be part of the mural on the walls and we did get some more local audience coming in to check out the art, so it was successful in a small way. It was gratifying when people would come in and appreciate the graffiti art and the hanging artists, such as the portraits of Tupac and Biggee that were done in sugar by Jennifer Salim. People would come in to see the graffiti and come in and be impressed with the different forces that were coming together to create this mural. We had very punk art mixed in with hip hop graffiti art and it came together to be quite a sight. It was great. I think in the future we can go further and it may be helpful to have a guest curator.

THE PHANTOM LIMBS at the Great American Music Hall in SF; taken by Sam Atakra

Augenmusik: So it seems like the exhibit was indeed a success. Congratulations! It's interesting that although it seems rather logical for the two cultures to collide in a number of ways, it doesn't happen very often. Perhaps the Clash paid attention to early hip-hop, and if you can call bands like Liquid Liquid and Konk "punk", then they paid attention as well. But, aside from perhaps something like Ice-T's Body Count, the only interaction between hardore/ punk and hip hop/ rap was a bunch of hardcore kids jocking hip-hop's dress and affect. Did you see any evidence that there could be a deeper interaction between the 2 cultures based on your experience with the exibit?

Loto: Mostly they've existed in parallel worlds with commonalities like the do-it-yourself attitude; self-production, house parties, homemade posters. They both used urban walls as a canvas for their messages. They existed in parallel worlds with some crossover here and there... and there are lots of examples.... just a couple offhand, like Flipper getting influenced by rap in the 90's and that affecting their sound. The guy from Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy was part of both worlds. He had Beatnigs which was a black industrial band, then he went hip hop, then later to reggae with spearhead. Public Image may or may not say they were influenced by punk but their sound definitely would lead one to believe that! Also, what's happening right now, it seems like there are more and more indie-dance-noise-synth bands that are taking from hip hop and more hip-hop groups incorporating sounds from synth and avante-garde.

Augenmusik: I guess it's a bit unrealistic to expect that this collision will occur in the mainstream, which is going to want 50 Cent on the one hand, and Green Day on the other. Although, you’re absolutely right; it does seem that some recent producers have been sampling some heavy, analog sounding synths in their beats. That should account for something....

Loto: Well, I’m making a lot of inferences here without good hard concrete examples but right now when you pay attention to what's happening with the indie culture, if you look at the blogs that document the scene - like 20 Jazz Funk Greats; they are talking about Glass Candy next to Saul Williams next to AIDS Wolf next to DJ Spooky, or stuff like that. If you look at the magazines coming out like Vice; there is a lot of coverage. And it may constitute a sort of separate scene that is interested in a certain kind of hip-hop expression and a certain type of punk expression only, but it is a new convergence that seems pretty prominent.

Augenmusik: It's exciting, for sure, but to me there is always that one-sidedness. Vice will certainly cover hip-hop, but it's really a watershed event when Vibe magazine starts grooving on the new Vanishing record, which is a long way from happening! The way the remix culture is going, though with folks posting podcasts and mixes all over the internet mixing anything that they can beatmatch, it could totally already be happening, and it might just be slipping under my radar.

Loto: There certainly is going to be the desire with the arts cultures of people of color to protect their cultural expression from being stolen, co-opted, watered down, diluted of its roots and message, distorted into something plastic and artificial and you can look at the arts cultures of urban hip whites as the bridge for all of that to start happening.

Augenmusik: It's related to what I was saying earlier in the interview about the co-opting of "folk" music from other cultures... but of course when cultural commodities are at stake it's always going to be like that. There are some interesting things happening, but it's unfortunately limited to those with privileged access to the urban hip(ster) scenes. Those DJs-- a lot of them excellent; let's say the DFA guys for example, since they've blown up already-- might be mixing up dancey-indie rock with hip-hop or dancehall tracks, but it's a long way from tried and true hip-hop DJ like Funkmaster Flex putting a Rapture song (for lack of a better example) on his mix CD that's being sold on Flatbush Ave in Brooklyn. Yet, I find your exhibit a pretty interesting opportunity because it does give people more access to collaboration than most of the “indie scene”.

Loto: Right. It was an attempt; an attempt to spur collaboration. We had the rapper Serengeti there who had a rock band temporarily. I don't think it was because of the series; he was just trying out and eventually scrapped the idea, but he did have a rock band there and was doing "punk" style stuff, though the image of punk from his perspective seemed like a surface impression. We had some other stuff like Mr. Fuckhead, a noise artist brought in Sharky, a rapper, to perform with. One cool thing that might be coming of this is that Hunter of Mahjongg - an indie dance-industrial group, is interested in working with our artist for our hip-hop Reversible Eye Demo Project. We've got this project to help neighborhood kids put out a demo and we've been working with one rapper, Gabriel, from the neighborhood. Hunter was interested in helping out with the Demo Project and working on the demos of Gabriel, and Marcel, another kid that was coming to the Public Image Enemy events. Both of them are rappers and trying to get something going. Hunter is pretty active in the indie scene and DJ scene and would be a good one to help one of them out... so that's something positive that may be happening because of the series. Just considering the collaboration between Hunter of Mahjongg and our neighborhood rappers, I feel like something positive came out of this attempt. Brandon of the Loto Ball Show and I have already been working with Gabriel and developing and recording material with him.

Augenmusik: You recently got started teaching. How did you get involved with that?

Loto: I had incredible art teachers at my school that I graduated from in 2004. The one in particular who made the strongest impression was Corban Lepell. He was very passionate about art and music and it seemed like it pained him internally to see something weak or half-hearted. Why waste your time? He had so many great things to say and gave art such a sacred, elevated status in his classroom . It appealled to my need to feel that I was doing something important, something that had a purpose. He had such a strong personality that these values really became embedded in me; the importance and seriousness of art. I looked at teaching as an option and interned for it by working for another fantastic painting teacher there for a couple quarters and tried it out. I liked it. I also tried helping out at downtown Oakland’s Creative Growth Art center for a few weeks. As for getting into teaching, while I was researching and applying for programs, I met a guy who had come to The Reversible Eye gallery who was working for a studio similar to Creative Growth, the defining characterisitic being that they serve people who have developmental disabilities. I got interested and started working there. I teach differently there than I would in a classroom. It is a workshop, a studio. I am a fellow artist, a consultant; I offer ideas, suggestions, demonstrations, inspiration. It's been incrediby beneficial for me to empower myself by empowering others. I've made tremendous strides in my personal health and well-being. I needed to feel like I was important and having an impact on people's lives in a positive way, and that's happening for me.

Augenmusik: What sort of obstacles or difficulties have you encountered so far in teaching? Do you have any particular goal in mind for the kids that you are working with?

Loto:Mostly I go around to my artists who are already working on their own and I act as consultant. If they run into a problem, I'll help them figure out a solution and I can demonstrate techniques or give ideas. We also have periodic art talks or critiques like any art school. What I would like to do more of is planned projects but I rarely get time to work on these. One goal is more collaboration and more narrative work. I am interested in story-telling and am working on guiding some of the artists work towards a large group project like a puppet show.

Augenmusik: Do you find your art related at all to the activities that you do with your kids? I ask because some of your art (music, performance, and painting) could be thought of dark and at times confrontational (especially the music/ performance), yet certainly you'd like to make it inviting for the students. Do you worry at all about presenting art to students in a way they might find inviting, and yet is honest when it comes to your own expression?

Loto: First of all, I notice the word "kids." It's a common misunderstanding, but I work with adults with developmental disabilities. Yes, it's true that I have a certain foreboding feeling in my own work. But that doesn't come through really in the work of my students. I don't present art in a "dark way". I talk about texture, and form, and composition, and color, and layering, and other concepts. I happen to like decoration and high contrast and have certain preferred color choices, but I don't have much to do with the content of the artist's work. My suggestions are naturally going to affect the art with a bit of my personal tastes. But, overall, the reaction I get is that every artist's work is very individual and reflective of their personality.

Augenmusik: Last but not least, over the past year, your nickname has turned from Hopeless to Loto Ball. What prompted this change? Can we read anything into the fact that you are no longer Hopeless? What should we read in Loto Ball, and what can we expect from Loto?

Loto:First of all, it's not over the past year. It's a name that's been in use a few years. It was used on [the Phantom Limbs' album] Displacement. I was pressured to use the old name for the last Limbs tour and the last Limbs release.
A word's meaning comes from associations that are attached to it. The name Hopeless evolved with different associations from the time I was a teen punk to my twenties in the circus to my late twenties in the Limbs. The meanings changed. After 15 years of using the name, however, certain associations became more prominent and strong and the wrong attachments became too stuck. I had to kill Hopeless. And Loto Ball was created July 11th, 2003. I have associations and meanings for it, but those will change and I want to leave it open to be able to evolve and change my mind about what it means whenever I need to. Expect the unexpected, as you might suspect.

REVIEW: Wierd Records compilation

2007-03-12T10:23:00.000-07:00

Misters Schoolwerth and Jeancarlo of Wierd Records did us a real service with this record, as compilations of this sort are an increasing rarity. Stretching the "cold-wave" theme to its absolute limit, they compiled a triple LP set (with what appears to be a bonus 7" on top of that tucked inside) packaged in a gatefold sleeve with an accompanying booklet of liner notes, lyrics, and over 500 pictures. The music on the discs covers about as much of the cold-wave spectrum as one could imagine exists, from sparse minimal electronic to trashy euro goth-disco to the Sisters-meets-the Cult assault of Blacklisted.

The standouts, along with Blacklist, include the likes of 2VM, the Swede Tobias Bernstrump, and Sleep Museum. However, one is almost struck by the idea that "standing out" isn't exactly the point. In listening to these 3 LPs all the way through, with the requisite flips of the disk(s), the bands do begin to take on an anonymity in spite of the number of micro-genres represented on this compilation. It's almost like listening to a bunch of dub singles or hardcore 7"s in a row; part of the beauty in listening to those styles of music is the attention paid to the genre itself with the almost puritanical concern for its form and style. For sure, some of the bands on here might never be heard of again, while I'm certain you'll be hearing more from others. What's all the more impressive is that most of these bands are from New York, constituting a bit of a "scene" surrounding the parties DJed by Schoolwerth and friends obsessively spinning every obscure bit cold-wave/ minimal/ post-punk slab of vinyl they can get their hands on.

In the days when the internet can immediately render transparent what any band from anywhere is doing (to which blogs like this one admittedly contribute, it is nice to see a product like this come along, notable not only in its meticulous praise of the obscure, but also in its veritable excess. (What was the last triple LP compilation you bought?) Some years ago, records like this one were catalysts for scenes; regardless of what happens with Wierd or any of these bands, this record might very well take on that importance as well. And in a cute bit of irony (not lost on the Wierd Records set, for sure), they've produced a record that will one day be as rare as some of the slabs they give lip service to at their parties.

REVIEW: Audionom- Retrospektiv CD

2007-03-07T11:04:00.000-08:00

I recently got my paws on a few of the recent releases on New York based label Kemado, who were originally known to me as the label started by the fellas that put on those Shout! parties on Sunday nights at Bar 13 just below Union Square. Quite fun, though you needed to have a predisposition for all things rock (written in all caps, ROCK!) to tolerate them. I must say, those DJs were quite good selectors, and they put enough T Rex and Bowie into the mix that by the time "Communication Breakdown" blasted over the speakers, even I was well-prepped and excited to hear it. Kemado made a nice name for themselves with the likes of Elefant, one of those NY bands that garnished a good amount of press when all eyes were set on NY in post-Strokes fervor. I was more partial to the Fever and their angular, new-wave-by-way-of-Robert Quine approach. In the past years, Kemado have grown into a nice enterprise. They seem to be doing well for themselves as record companies go; their bands are written about in all the right places, and most importantly, the lion's share of their releases are pretty damn good.

All that is ultimately a different story-- it was this release, a reissue of Audionom's "Retrospektiv" that inspired me to say some nice words about them today. A reissue of this erstwhile defunct band's late 90's to early 00's output originally on Sweden's Ideal Recordings, Audionom manages to unleash a monstrous sound. I imagine the audience that traffics this particular blog (so far) is mostly looking for some jagged post-punk sounds, and while there's hypnotic Neu!-ish beats aplenty, and enough psyched out oscillators to make Hawkwind proud, they dexterously mix that with taut rhythms a la Wire. In fact, the frantic guitar-work is something that wouldn't be out of place on an early Joy Division/ Warsaw track. The songs are meticulously structured around simple, terse themes rather than choruses or verses, and each exudes an addictive nervous energy that gives the impression the band is on the verge of falling out of synch, even though the musicianship is flawless.

The label offers this track as a teaser, one of the more subdued on the album, but it gives you a decent idea of what they are capable of: Audionom- Kein Bock

Word is they're now back together. So much the better for us.

Kemado Records
Audionom on myspace

FRUSTRATION!

2007-02-03T15:03:00.000-08:00

I've been hearing for a little bit that there's some great stuff coming out of France in the way of post-punk, and one of the names that's consistently come up is Frustration. I was happy to finally get my hands on both of their 12" eps recently, courtesy of Born Bad Records, the label and record store in Paris. The result: it's been quite a while since I've been blown away by a band like this. Both of Frustration's 12"s traded spots on my turntable consistently for the 2 weeks after I got them. With a good deal of the post-punkers wallowing in their misery, it's good to see someone come along, kick up some dust, and prove that after all, the "post" is just a prefix and the music is actually PUNK!
The first 12", initially self-released and subsequently re-pressed by the great Parisian label Manic Depression, opens up with a repetitive synth blare on "Artists Suck" that recalls the opening of the Phantom Limbs' first 7". From there, we're served 4 blasts of taut, jagged rock n roll with nervous guitars and jagged rhythms you might expect to hear on a Crisis or Warsaw record. Deep vocals alternately sung and strained make way for chanted choruses that recall Sham 69 or the Business. In fact, the last song on the record "Adrenaline" is like a more beefy Fall, or perhaps the Cockney Rejects with keyboards. And it WORKS!
Their second 12", on the aforementioned Born Bad Records, incorporates more synth noises, handclaps, and creative vocal lines, but keeps the music simple and raw. I'm trying to avoid using the term "retro" to describe Frustration because they've latched onto something that is obviously still very current. "Your Body," with its opening keyboard line and its pummeling marching beat gives early Killing Joke a serious run for their money. Destined to become a classic.
For now, snatch these up where ever you can. When Frustration gets an LP under their belt and tours outside of France, they'll quickly become a household name in the post-punk scene and these early artifacts will be catching some serious money on eBay soon without a doubt.
Frustration on myspace

INTERVIEW: Loto Ball of the Loto Ball Show/ Phantom Limbs

2007-01-26T13:57:00.000-08:00

I remember starting to hear about the Phantom Limbs on the east coast on account of their Hot Knives and Hornets 7" which was making the rounds, and based on the descriptions I was hearing, I knew I wanted to check this band out. Unfortunately, their first New York show rather incidentally happened on (or around) September 11, 2001, so needless to say I missed it. But after tracking down that record and seeing them in San Francisco, I quickly became a convert. Upon paying a little bit of attention to the Limbs millieu, I quickly found out about the other Bay Area bands on a similar trip that were popping (Sixteens, Subtonix, etc). Hungry Eye was lucky to do a few records with the Phantom Limbs, and needless to say I'm indebted to that initial encounter for what Hungry Eye wound up becoming today.

RK Shuq, aka Loto Ball (the artist previously known as Hopeless) was the very visible singer of that band, and I got to know him as a result of the music, but he is also the great sole who re-designed the Hungry Eye site and helped a great deal with the webmaster. The following interview was done over a series of conversations over the internet over the course of the holidays at the tail end of 2006. Upon reading this myself, I notice there's a lack questions addressing band histories and more pragmatic matters. I suppose it's important when reading the following to keep in mind that this was a bit of an excuse to engage someone I respect and whose work I follow in a formal discussion about some issues I thought he'd have some interesting input on. Below you'll find the first of a two part interview based on that.

Of course, in the meantime, you'll also learn some new things about Loto's new band the Loto Ball Show, as well as the gallery in Chicago he is currently running, Reversible Eye.

Exhibit 1: Moment of repose. Photo by Nicole Pretti

Augenmusik: To start with, you recently relocated from the Bay Area to Chicago. What prompted this move?

Loto: I fel like I was coming to the end of significant activities there. One was the art degrees; I graduated. The other was the band that was very important and hard to leave but needed to be closed. Chicago would not have been my first choice amongst places to go, but a very important person was there and she wanted to stay. Now that I've been in Chicago for a couple years, I've found it to be beneficial in the same ways she has. The number one reason would be good artist support and networking, sharing of contacts, ideas...help.

Augenmusik: When you mention the band coming to an end, I assume you mean the Phantom Limbs. How do you mean it needed to come to a close? Do you mean this creatively or personally-- if you can separate the two? I put it this way because you weren't known for having a great deal of regard for your physical well being during Limbs shows...

Loto: Do you mean like falling on broken glass or asking to get punched in the head? I don't feel like that was necessarily a requirement for singing for that band. The band’s voice got more restrictive as it became stronger and more completely formed. The physical expression, which was sometimes dangerous, was me trying to find freedom or expressing a need to break bonds or break out of my skin. The whole naked thing that was happening too was left at naked because i couldn't really go any further.

Exhibit 2: Loto on display. Video for Phantom Limbs' "Active Verbs" by the Chicago Kid

Augenmusik: So it never got to the point where the performance or expressive aspect of the Limbs (the falling on glass thing) got restrictive? I've heard from other folks with a very visceral stage presence that it would sometimes get to the point that the audience would come to expect or demand certain things, which can become stifling.

Loto: Well, it became stifling, very literally, when i would be closed in on all sides by a bunch of dudes mauling me the entire performance preventing me from dancing. I believe you were at the one show in SF where i put shirt over my head so i could beat back everyone without having to discriminate on who i was pushing / hitting. I ended up hitting my girlfriend. But really, I was not sure what to do except flail at everything. In performing I like to find the unexpected. I like to be surprised myself by what happens. I don't want everything to be what I've seen in rehearsal. It is controlled with openings for unexpected things… But I didn't want to be floated on the audience all the time. I didnt want to be stripped bare all the time, getting my shoes and belt stolen in the process. Shoes and belt stolen meant another $15 i would have to come up with to spend at Salvation Army. Shoes and belt stolen meant I was gonna be pantsless when it wasn't my decision. I suppose we could've played large stages with bouncers all the time. We were headed that way. We could've changed. I guess I needed to do my own thing. The band wasn't organized to engender open dialogue. The musicians had a hard time changing direction if I was going somewhere else with a song. We had meetings occasionally and I would mention some dissatisfactions. Maybe I didn't push hard enough, not enough room to develop with the work…. To be fair, suggestions were taken from all members when songwriting. It’s nobody’s fault necessarily, but a band can get stuck in certain ways of working and it can become restrictive and formulaic.

Augenmusik: Having said all that about the Limbs and performing, what are you up to now musically? Could you describe your current bands and musical endeavors for us?

Loto: The thing I'm doing now is called the Loto Ball Show. It is material I write and people I bring in to work with me. My current band would not be possible without Brandon Davis, the guitarist, who has spurred me on and has been very helpful in getting shit going. He also plays with the Electric Set and Indian Jewelry. I play trumpet and keys and vocals. Alejandro Morales is our drummer. Shaye Cohn is doing keys as well. I am taking a long time recording the newer material. Hopefully, I will have that up on myspace by February or March. I just added Dan Browning on bass and Don Fiasco on Sax.

Augenmusik: I've only heard a few tracks by Loto Ball Show, on myspace. There's some comparisons to the Phantom Limbs stuff; you can tell there's a connection there. One of the themes that seems to run through you work is a carnie-esque marching band sound (if I may put it in that awkward way)... which is even more pronounced in the Loto Ball Show. What's the appeal for you to that kind of music?

Loto: A couple of those old songs that we are doing were written specifically for circus performances, so that's one answer. Really , this is just traditional eastern and european sounds being incorporated into modern music. People associate the eastern and european traditional music with the circus or carnival because that's where they've heard this music before. I've listened to arabic music all my life so that's a big influence. As far as the Limbs, Stevenson just likes lots of european and eastern piano stuff and plays it well.

Augenmusik: There's been a good amount of eastern european music finding its way into US-based bands on the indie market. One thinks of Beirut or Gogol Bordello as examples. But I wouldn't put the Limbs or the Loto Ball Show in the same category as those bands. Beirut's got some good songs, but it seems there's a bit of a fetishism in the american music scene when it comes to incorporating aspects of other music as a selling point. I mean, both of those bands have some good songs for sure, but a band like the Warsaw Village Band has a much more difficult time in the states, even though they are, for all intents and purposes, a band that does what Beirut claims to do. I'm not accusing you of this; quite the contrary. It seems like your music seems to fuse the rhythm and instrumentation of arabic or eastern music in a way that's decidedly--- punk, if I may take recourse to that. Having said that, I'm curious what your take is on the influx of hyped indie bands injecting "world music" in their sound to critical acclaim (you see it in electronic music as well, with the likes of MIA or Diplo and brazilian dancehall), and how one might be able properly mix music without creating a mere pastiche or novelty act.

Exhibit 3: Smoking; Loto in Slovenia

Loto: I was socialized from early teens as punk and grew up with my dad playing eastern music. I've been playing keyboards the same way (basically) since I was a teenager. I'm not as familiar as you, I think, with the “novelty bands.” Perhaps i'm in one. I guess my band Mucca Pazza could be called a novelty band but not as contrived as some of the other groups. I guess I would say if it sounds contrived, it's because it is. Some people sat down and planned to fuse these styles. There is a difference in how trained musicians approach the hybrid and untrained, too. I think trained musicians have more generic approaches a lot of the time. The postpunk thing is pretty infused in my music because at 16 and 17, I would listen to Flipper, Factrix, Tuxedomoon, etc and think that's the shit. It was part of my upbringing.

Augenmusik: Perhaps my using the term "novelty" is a bit misleading... since I don't mean to imply that a band or musician shouldn't have some idea of what they're coming up with in advance. I tend to believe that even when some folks say they're approaching writing music without any plans or preconceptions, it's a bit bullshit. Between the Limbs and you're new stuff, I rather like all the stuff I've heard that you've been involved with. I guess it seems like a lot of prominent bands and musicians (I've named a couple) have been gaining quite a bit of notoriety in amalgamating different music styles and are almost looked to as representatives for their influences and a lot of that seems to be very fetishistic.... perhaps on the part of the industry more than the musicians themselves. It's difficult to express over this instant messenger, but when I say you seem to be doing something else, that's a positive thing...

Loto: Oh i didn't take it the wrong way at all. The only group you mention that I've heard or seen is Gogol Bordello, and if by fetishistic you mean it becomes symbolic, then I would agree. There are bands like Tuxedomoon for instance, who use eastern sounds but are not doing an obvious hybrid band.

Augnemusik: I realize, at this point, this puts you in the awkward position of having to describe your bands! But can you explain a bit about Mucca Pazza, the Loto Ball Show, and whatever else you're currently doing.... the fact that you're running an art gallery and that you’ve mentioned writing music for a circusleads me to believe you've got some multi-media intentions going on here.

Loto: I'll go chronologically. The circus songs I mentioned earlier were written for Circus performances. I was the organist in Circus Ridiculous some time ago. And after that I wrote stuff that would work in San Francisco for large scale multi-media environments, with a sort of 3-ring, lots-of-stuff-going-on-at-once atmosphere. I was playing with Valley Fever with this guy Scott Banning and some other people at that point. Anyways, those songs have carried over to Loto Ball Show because I want them to be heard. Also, I did not do any composition in Phantom Limbs, so I brought back the old stuff to re-work it and re-vitalize it. Now I am writing stuff with vocals that is more post-punk because was written to stand on its own and not for use in a film or environment like some of the other stuff. Other stuff besides Loto Ball Show is playing trumpet for Mucca Pazza and also collaborating with the music program of the non-profit organization Arts of Life.

Augenmusik: It seems like Loto Ball Show is pretty active. Is this the one you're now writing music to stand alone on? This is the band you played the Drop Dead Festival with, correct?

Loto: Yes. The Loto Ball Show played Drop Dead and we have new material. The recording process and also the composition process is going slow, but the demo should be done in a month, god willing! We are sort of active and play every now and then. I feel like I'm in the beginning stages of getting it to be something really special. The current band is sounding very good, very tough yet with lots of beautiful sections.

Augenmusik: What kind of sounds can we expect from this band in the future? It'll probably attract a good amount of Limbs fans. How would you explain how it's different from the Phantom Limbs?

Loto: It's gonna be similar. it has more dynamics, shifts in mood, loud and crazy to more pensive or thoughtful. So, I think there's a little more variety in feeling. but there's similarities. Still using keyboards, still same singer… the drummer's attack is still urgent and tom-oriented. The guitarist has a bit more freedom. But it’ll be more funky. I think the rhythm and timing is a little different. I'm very into the groove.

Kernkrach Records

2007-01-17T09:41:00.000-08:00

As most of it’s followers already know, the early electro scene gave rise to a wealth of records, some of which rival their American Hardcore counterparts in terms of obscurity and value. For sure, it was the British bands wound up hogging international praise, but as great as some of those early records were by Yazoo, Human League, Fad Gadget, or Caberet Voltaire might have been, most of those folks (Fad Gadget notwithstanding) soon went off into an entirely different direction or went totally pop. Some bands, not necessarily from the UK and definitely without the commercial success of a Depeche Mode, continue with cult-followings up until today, an example of which might be the french band Norma Loy.

But there’s still a mine of great (and, undoubtedly, not-so-great) stuff left to be unearthed and preserved for those who don’t feel like dropping $100+ on a piece of vinyl. Thankfully there’s a number of European labels taking up this task, and even a newly formed American label by the name of Minmal Wave, run by Veronica Vasicka, the DJ of the weekly East Village Radio show of the same name. Kernkrach Records is one of those Euros who’ve taken up the mandate of both re-issuing old material and releasing new stuff heavily influenced the days of yore, all with some quite distinctive packaging that runs the gammut from roof shingle- record covers, to X-ray 45 sleeves. They do quite a job; I was quite happy to acquire three of their releases so far:

Nachtraum’s LP is an impressive collection of distorted bleeps and crackles originally put to tape in 1983. Some great cold-wave they’ve managed to capture here, with obligatory icy vocals, and plodding beats that recall early Killing Joke. They hit all the right spots with their anxious, foreboading synths.
Dig on their track Tiere Schreit.

Sickdoll, a new band, goes for a more synth-pop approach on their 7”, but keep it dark, like a DIY Orchestral Manouevers in the Dark. Distant sounding keyboards contrast with very present vocals that are up front in the mix, but enough low end to put some bass in your bedroom dance-party. Here's their trackSohn Geht Auf.

2 Hemden 2 Hosen keep it trashy sounding, but don’t expect some electroclash avant la lettre. While these guys retain a distinctly early 80’s european sound, you definitely hear elements of Cali synthpunk as Factrix and Nervous Gender come to mind. In some moments, they come off sounding like certain early material by our dear friends, Sixteens.

One issue of note: all these little gems are super limited, and word is the Nachtraum LP, my favorite of the bunch, has already sold out. Though you might try to try Fusetron Sound if you're stateside and want to pick up some Kernkrach material.

REVIEW: the Deadfly Ensemble- An Entire Wardrobe of Doubt and Uncertainty

2006-12-21T16:47:00.000-08:00

Much as I like a good Current 93 record, I don't have the expendable income to keep up with all the consumables Current 93 produces. The last record I bought was the "Sleep Has its House" album on double LP. It embodied most of what I like about David Tibet's work with Current 93; most specifically, the melancholic minstrel-esque balladeering. I love to break out "Dog's Blood Order" every once in a while, too; but for noisier atmospherics, I generally reach for other records. I must admit ignorance about David Tibet's most recent work, and so the prediction I'm about to make might be quite off. I'm guessing that since he's been in San Francisco and started collaborating with the likes of Ben Chassny and Om, he's eschewed the former and opted for devoting more of his creative output of the last 5 years to the latter. Shame, really, because he's quite good at the former.

But that little aside leads me to my real object here: the Deadfly Ensemble's album. DE frontman Lucas Lanthier has already proven himself to be a renaissance man of sorts; every album of his other band Cinema Strange comes well equipped with writings, videos, and artwork courtesy of Mr Lanthier himself. And quality stuff to boot! That said, "An Entire Wardrobe of Doubt and Uncertainty" is no different. Musically, however, where the aptly named Cinema Strange (Lanthier's other outlet) covers a very theatrical deathrock terrain, like a well developed Christian Death concept album, the Deadfly Ensemble is much more understated. There's still more than a touch of the cabaret in the Deadfly Ensemble, but acoustic guitars, bass, and cello courtesy of the very capable duo of James Powell and Marzia Rangel replace Cinema's trembling guitars and edgy instrumentation. In the end, Lanthier and the Deadfly Ensemble might very well be the heirs to the goth-minstrel tradition inhabited by the likes of Tibet and down to his apocalyptic folk co-horts. Though it's important to note, where folks like Current 93 will often appeal to myth, legend, and a tacit paganism as a source of inspiration, which I have to admit, I often find a little gratuitous and tiring, Deadfly Ensemble count themselves amongst a lineage of Weimar-era nightlife, and even vaudevillian jazz performers. The Cab Calloway track they contributed to Strobelight Records' "New Dark Ages" volume 4 compilation is a good indication, and does a good job of summoning the unselfconscious spirit, if not the sound, of the infamous hi-de-ho man himself. "An Entire Wardrobe..." is Deadfly's debut album, with more recordings already in progress and promises of additional musicians and more experimentation, which is doubtlessly promising. In being able to tap the energy of those aforementioned jazz and theatrical greats, like any good musical heirs, the Deadfly Ensemble might very well prove to transcend that austere goth tradition entirely, by injecting it with a restless mirth and playfulness it sorely needs.

Deadfly Ensemble webpage
Deadfly Ensemble on myspace
Trisol Records

REVIEW: Autonervous LP

2006-11-25T16:36:00.000-08:00

Early incarnation of Autonervous with Jessie Evans and Billy Bates in SF. Captured by Sam Atakra

Starting out as a side project between Jessie Evans and Billy Bates whose 4 track demos yielded a rare 12" EP on New York's Duchess Archive label that includes an early version of the now-classic Vanishing track "Lovesick," Autonervous morphed into a musical sejour between Vanishing's Jessie Evans and Bettina Koster of the legendary Malaria! While it is the band that directly followed on the heels of the Vanishing in their Berlin days, and even grew out of that band's live collaboration with Bettina, it is a noticeable departure from the Vanishing. Gone are the blown out analog synthesizers and the frenzy of Brian Hock's live drumming. Even though the band is composed of two very powerful personalities, Autonervous is much more understated, and the Vanishing's uneasiness is replaced with a more relaxed atmosphere. The "dark music" set will undoubtedly find much to like in this, but the association with Koster and Evans' previous bands might prevent people from appreciating how much light and color Autonervous throw into the picture. Layered, lazy beats stutter in precisely the places where one might expect syncopation will competing with distant-sounding saxophones and the alternating of Bettina's unmistakable tenor with Jessie's resounding wail. Not to be misleading-- this is far from an easy listen; but where the Vanishing might evoke the feeling of being jerked awake by bad dreams, Autonervous is the neurosis of being lulled to sleep to be awaited by nightmares. What's truly great about this release is that it manages both to lure Bettina Koster back into the fray, and, to take Jessie Evans to the next level, after putting an end to a band whose tenure was downright impressive.

Cochon Records
Autonervous

First post.

2006-05-21T11:22:00.000-07:00

Hello world.