Category: Reviews (Page 172 of 200)

KLEERUP As If We Never Won

15 October 2014 /

Having delivered one of the best synth based debut albums in recent years, musician and producer Andreas Kleerup is back with two new mini albums, the first of which is entitled ‘As If We Never Won’; the second set to be released sometime in 2015 while a full length album is to follow afterwards.

Seven years between albums is a long time even by today’s standards but Kleerup has been busy with his own, more conventionally focussed band ME & MY ARMY who released their debut album ‘Thank God For Sending Me Demons’ in 2011, the soundtrack for the Stockholm Stadsteatern’s production of the Swedish opera ‘Aniara’ and incidental music for Eurovision 2013.

Any new KLEERUP recording now lives with a high degree of expectation following the stupendous 2008 self-titled debut that included noteworthy singers like Robyn, Lykke Li, Marit Bergman, Neneh Cherry and her half sister Titiyo in its full expanded edition.

The EP’s launch single ‘Let Me In’, featuring Susanne Sundfør who sang on M83′s ‘Oblivion’ and RÖYKSOPP’s cover of DEPECHE MODE’s ‘Ice Machine’, moves away from the dreamy synth melancholy of the ‘Kleerup’ debut and delivers a more organic template, sounding like Karin Park if she had joined ROXY MUSIC to record ‘The Space Between’ from ‘Avalon’. It is a superb calling card, showing progression but retaining the original appeal of Kleerup’s debut. ‘Let Me In’ is brilliantly classic and yet still very contemporary.

Opening proceedings though is ‘Sad Boys’, a beefier version of the more tranquil ‘Northern Lights’ issued last year as interval music for Eurovision 2013. A vibrant but emotive instrumental in the vein of ‘Hero’ from the ‘Kleerup’ debut, live drums give some syncopated punch which appears to be the main change in the Kleerupsound after the distorted machine beats of its predecessor. ‘Nothing Left To Die For’ sees Jenny Wilson, formally of FIRST FLOOR POWER, in a deliciously melancholic disco romp with her haunting vocals accompanied by some pretty synth tones. Despite the sadness, like with ‘Sad Boys’, there is a wonderful groove that reveals Andreas Kleerup’s roots as a drummer.

Meanwhile, the pace mellows for ‘Rock U’ featuring Malin Dahlstrom of NIKI & THE DOVE. The witchy growl that featured on ‘DJ, Ease My Mind’ and ‘Mother Protect’ is omnipresent in this more guitar focussed rock ballad that sounds like a Nordic Cyndi Laiper, not entirely surprising as Kleerup produced her song ‘Lay Me Down’ for her great comeback album ‘Bring Ya To The Brink’ and which eventually morphed into ‘Thank You For Nothing’ on the ‘Kleerup’ album.

The pace slows even further with the ‘As If We Never Won’ title track, a stark but epic ballad with Kleerup himself moodily duetting with Maja Ivarsson from THE SOUNDS. It takes a while to get going but evolves into something more satisfying with each listen. And in a nod to his ME & MY ARMY project, the EP finishes with ‘Thank God For Sending Demons’ in a raw, stripped down version of the original. Coming over a bit like Johnny Cash if he had been born near the Arctic Circle and with just an acoustic guitar for company, it is however the least essential number of this short set and can only be really be considered as a charming, if slightly incongruous filler.

Overall as a taster for the next KLEERUP album proper, ‘As If We Never Won’ contains a number of fine songs and is a welcome pop return for one of the best electronic music producers in Europe.

‘As If We Never Won’ is released as a download EP from the usual digital outlets via Warner Music

http://kleerup.net/

https://www.facebook.com/kleerupmusic

Text by Chi Ming Lai
Kleerup Portrait by Mats Bäcker
15th October 2014

CLAUDIA BRÜCKEN Where Else…

8 October 2014 /

CLAUDIA BRUCKEN Where Else

In a career of thirty years, Claudia Brücken has released just seven full length albums including what turned out to be one-offs with PROPAGANDA, ACT and ONETWO.

Her third solo album ‘Where Else…’ sees a development of the more conventional musical template showcased on 2012’s ‘The Lost Are Found’. Unlike that album though, apart from a single cover, ‘Where Else…’ comprises of original compositions, her first since ONETWO’s ‘Instead’ which was recorded with OMD’s Paul Humphreys.

Her partnership with Humphreys is now over so naturally, there are different approaches and the biggest surprise musically is Ms Brücken’s adoption of the guitar. But despite this album’s occasional forays into folk, country and blues, her usual evocative sensibilities and electronic references remain, albeit more abstract. As well as this, ‘Where Else…’ follows the lyrical thread of her 1991 debut solo album ‘Love: And A Million Other Things’, dealing with the subjects of emotion, beginnings, endings, past life and future hopes.

New collaborators always bring fresh results and in the case of ‘Where Else…’, the co-writer and producer is John Owen Williams whose past credits have included BLANCMANGE, THE PROCLAIMERS, THE HOUSEMARTINS and more recently Petula Clark. And it would appear ‘Where Else…’ is a reaction to the synthetic nature of ONETWO.

None more so than with the superb lead single ‘Nevermind’. It could be considered a response to ‘Stay With Me’ from OMD’s ‘English Electric’. But whereas ‘Stay With Me’ was a cry for reconciliation, ‘Nevermind’ accepts the end of the road and optimistically moves on. Musically, while there is a six string dominating, a wonderfully whirring synth solo makes an unexpected appearance.

Of course, Ms Brücken has done the acoustic thing before on ‘Another Language’ with Andrew Poppy but those cover versions worked on a minimalist principle. While the songs on ‘Where Else…’ were written to be sung accompanied only by piano or guitar, they are recorded in a much more expansive manner. Proceedings begin with ‘I Want You’ and its cinematic chanson melody.

A lonely melancholic piano leads proceedings alongside some beautiful strings while looming over it lyrically is the spectre of the late Lou Reed. But after this solemn start comes the precise mechanical beat on ‘Nothing Good Is Ever Easy’. But a twist is provided with the kind of countrified outlook that was explored by ERASURE on ‘Union Street’.

‘I Lay All Night’ is another departure with its Hammond organ textures and continues the inherent moodiness of the album. The short Nick Drake cover ‘Day Is Done’ recalls ‘The Road To Happiness’ from ‘The Lost Are Found’; the latter’s writer Stephen Duffy is a big Drake fan so this in a way completes the spiritual connection. ‘Walk Right In’ brings in a Chamber orchestra and is very English, laced with harpsichord runs and psychedelic overtones plus affectionate mentions of “tea, toast and jam”.

Claudia Brucken by Anton Corbijn

Continuing the quintessentially English theme, the excellent ‘How Do I Know’ rather bizarrely has sonic parallels with Morrissey although Ms Brucken did cover THE SMITHS ‘Heaven Knows I’m Miserable Now’ with ACT so this isn’t entirely a surprise. Meanwhile, ‘Moon Song’ comes over like CHINA CRISIS with a pretty hybrid of strumming and atmospheric synths. Slightly more uptempo, ‘Letting Go’ is the closest it gets to Claudia Brücken’s electro material despite some bluesy guitar while the title says it all.

The final two songs are possibly the sparsest songs on ‘Where Else…’ – ‘Time to Make Changes’ makes a statement of intent both musically and emotionally while ‘Sweet Sound Vision’ drifts along to finish in a manner not dissimilar to most of GOLDFRAPP’s recent organic material on ‘Tales of Us’.

With ‘Where Else…’, Claudia Brücken adds another string to her bow and the variation will please her loyal fans. However, for those into her more electronic material, this album may not be so straightforward to appreciate.

But ‘Where Else…’ is sophisticated and emotive, capturing an important crossroads in Claudia Brücken’s life both musically and personally. “I want to explore different styles” she said recently, “a big reason why the title ‘Where Else…’ suits me – where else will I go? What will I do next?”. Indeed, wherever she goes next, it will have integrity and honesty as it always has done.

‘Where Else…’ is released by Cherry Red Records in CD, vinyl and download formats

http://www.claudiabrucken.co.uk

https://www.facebook.com/ClaudiaBruckenMusic

https://twitter.com/ClaudiaBrucken1

Text by Chi Ming Lai
Photos by Anton Corbijn
8th October 2014

APHEX TWIN Syro

6 October 2014 /

APHEX TWIN Syro01

For casual APHEX TWIN fans, it can be hard to separate the visuals from the music in Richard James’ two most significant / infamous tracks – ‘Come to Daddy’ and ‘Windowlicker’.

They have accompanying Chris Cunningham promo videos that are indelibly linked and arguably bigger than the tracks that they promoted – featuring James’ head superimposed respectively onto a) a set of school kids terrorizing a granny in a tower block and b) a booty-shaking group of buxom / bikinied models, both creating disturbing images that once seen, can’t be unseen.

So with no visuals and no real vocals to speak of, approaching the new 12 track release by APHEX TWIN is potentially a daunting one, especially with initially inscrutable titles such as ‘s950tx16wasr10 [163.97]’ [earth portal mix] and ‘4 bit 9d api+e+6 [126.26]’… however, scratch the surface and for synth geeks / musos, the titles do give up little tit-bits of information relating to both the tempo of the pieces and some of the equipment featured (for example, the former references Akai’s S950 sampler). Gear fetishists can also check out the enviable set of hardware used in the radial graphic on the album packaging…

aphex-twin-syro-spiral

Coming thirteen years after the last APHEX TWIN collection ‘Drukqs’, the weight of expectation for ‘Syro’ would be akin for many to the appearance of a new KRAFTWERK album, and as such, the possibility of it living up to the weight of the hype surrounding it was always going to be tough. What is evident from the off is that the overall APHEX TWIN sound has mellowed, those expecting a rush of synthetic abrasive textures will be surprised by some of the almost 70s jazz-funk like textures featured and also the amount of melodic elements used throughout.

There are vocals here, but a la ‘Windowlicker’ they are heavily manipulated and were sourced from James, his wife and his sons (one of whom coined the album title from a made-up word ‘Syrobonkus’ that he used to describe the sound of the project during its making).

The opening track (and first single) ‘minipops 67 [120.2]’ gives a pretty good feel for the overall sound of the album, an ever so slightly dissonant, yet melodic track which breaks down to a beautiful arpeggio synth at 1min 48secs – at a time when so many people use synthesizers, trying to sound unique or different is pretty damn hard, but James is still able to apply a signature sound here, even if it is at times that of several different tracks from a variety of sources being forcibly jammed together! Percussively, ‘minipops’ is akin to having JEAN MICHEL JARRE, KRAFTWERK and mid-period MASSIVE ATTACK all thrown together in the mix with the musical elements of some old-school acid house thrown over the top – on paper it shouldn’t work, but somehow James pulls it off.

‘minipops 67 [120.2]’acts as a suitable aperitif for ‘XMAS_EVET10 [120][Thanaton3 Mix]’, an epic ten minute track which crams in 303 squelches, real piano and disembodied vocoder vocals. The stop-start / timestretched rhythm throughout helps the track from not getting monotonous until around the four-minute mark a YMO-style monosynth melody enters the mix to join a suitably oriental bell motif. Throughout the album, there are little elements of rave culture that subtly creep in, ‘produk 29 [101]’ features a melodic nod to fellow Warp Records artists LFO’s seminal self-titled track.

Whilst the DNA of Acid House is present throughout with ‘4 bit 9d api+e+6 [126.26]’recalling Mute / Rhythm King artist BABY FORD’s ‘Crashing’ and the unmistakable sound of the Roland TB303 is never far from the mix too. Album closer is the Erik Satie inspired ‘aisatsana [102]’ which recalls the KANYE WEST sampling ‘Avril 14th’ from ‘Drukqs’ – the audio of birds and ambient noise can be heard in the background and it brings ‘Syro’ to a tranquil conclusion.

The sound of this album is probably not for everyone, it does take a few listens to appreciate the subtleties of its production and the occasional clashing musical harmonics take a bit of getting used to. But give it a few listens and the album slowly reveals its charms…

Despite giving several recent interviews, the whole APHEX TWIN mystique still remains intact to a degree, with speculation as to when many of these tracks were actually recorded. James himself has admitted that some of the music on ‘Syro’ is at least six years old and certainly gives weight to the speculation that there is still a huge library of unreleased APHEX TWIN music which (if he wished) could be delved into for his next release.

Ultimately this pinpoints how on the periphery of most contemporary electronic music trends Richard James is, there are no particular nods to any current fads or genres here (you’ll find no Trap beats or Dubstep), yet ‘Syro’ broke the UK Top 10 album chart with ease, at one point battling ALT-J midweek at the number two position before settling at number eight. Richard James may no longer be the enfant terrible of electronic music (he infamously DJ’d with a sandpaper disc once), but ‘Syro’ still shows there is a huge interest in his work and that it is still possible to make synth-based music which is at the same time a) chart-worthy and b) innovative.

‘Syro’ is released by Warp Records in a range of formats including CD and vinyl

http://syro2eznzea2xbpi.com/

https://www.facebook.com/aphextwinafx

http://warp.net/records/aphex-twin

Text by Paul Boddy
6th October 2014

BERNHOLZ How Things Are Made

29 September 2014 /

BERNHOLZ How things are made

Anti-Ghost Moon Ray is the Brighton based artist collective and record label that spawned the acclaimed haunting songstress GAZELLE TWIN and which “explores common ground in a strong aesthetic approach towards art, film, music, technology, science, and nature”.

But as with all collectives, there are other, lesser known but no less innovative members. One such is BERNHOLZ aka Jez Bernholz, a musician, sculptor and filmmaker with his own niche in experimental music utilising a Tascam cassette portastudio with Casio synths as well as modern digital equipment. The end result is appropriately titled ‘How Things Are Made’ and collects together some obscure art pop accompanied by bleepy synth and occasional guitar. And this approach is ably showcased on the opening track and his 2012 debut single ‘Austerity Boy’.

Despite some deep foreboding tones accompanied by percussive six string and synthesizer interplay, in an antonymic play on Madonna’s ‘Material Girl’, the famous “living in material world” phrase is pitch shifted into a quirkily ironic refrain over a crescendo of thunderous syncopated drums. It’s sombre but fun!

Continuing this frantic pace, ‘Horses’ fuses Krautrock overtones with an Eno-esque strategy while the comparatively conventional but highly enjoyable ‘My History’ sees BERNHOLZ come over like DALEK I LOVE YOU’s Alan Gill accompanied by sequenced pulses and building layers of assorted instrumentation.

Indeed, there are several quirky sonic parallels with DALEK I LOVE YOU’s 1980 debut LP ‘Compass / Kumpas’ in its unorthodox use of keyboards, bass guitar and voice. The template is repeated on the more steadfast ‘The Modernist’ and the stark LinnDrum driven ‘What You Want To Do’, the repetitive rhythmical mantra of which additionally recalls electro hipster faves FACTORY FLOOR.

Preceding those though is the male voice choir dominated title track which could be a successor to DEPECHE MODE’s ‘Pipeline’ but sans the metal samples. Closing ‘How Things Are Made’, the bare ‘Mesopotamia’ uses a cacophony of BERNHOLZ’s own voice samples as a hypnotic accompaniment before being swamped by synths.

Quoting Gustav Metzger’s Auto-Destructive Art Manifesto, BERNHOLZ says “The amplified sound of the auto-destructive process can be an element of the total conception”. Certainly as an artistic concept, ‘How Things Are Made’ will be an intriguing listen for some, if not necessarily for all.


‘How Things Are Made’ is released in CD and download formats by Anti-Ghost Moon Ray

A limited edition auto-destructive plaster block package is available from http://bernholz.bandcamp.com/

BERNHOLZ plays support to GAZELLE TWIN at London’s Corsica Studios on 1st October 2014

https://www.facebook.com/bernholzmusic

http://bernholz.tumblr.com/

http://www.antighostmoonray.com

Text by Chi Ming Lai
29th September 2014

ERASURE The Violet Flame

22 September 2014 /

And here it is! Another digital marvel from Andy Bell and Vince Clarke, celebrating nearly 30 years of songwriting and having sold 25 million albums, the eagerly awaited 16th studio album, ‘The Violet Flame’.

A rather different approach was adopted for preparing this one, which follows the success of 2013 Christmas album ‘Snow Globe’. The collaborative writing process took place in Miami, with Vince’s pre-recorded dance grooves, which Andy Bell found “very inspiring”.

The album was recorded in London and New York and produced by Richard X. Andy Bell himself admits that ERASURE “definitely found (their) mojo again with this record”. The songs were written on synthesisers, rather than, traditionally on the guitar, which made them more immediate and free flowing. ‘The Violet Flame is a bold celebration of vintage ERASURE-sque sounds, filled with tuneful, orotund songs, made up of robust melodies and empowering lyrics.

Photo by Joe Bilworth

The first single ‘Elevation’, which sees no less then nine versions of the track on the CD single format, is a joyous celebration of life and love that only ERASURE can portray in such a hedonistic manner and with such euphoria. From the start, the track hits the listener with amazing amount of energy. Starting with a vocal intro by Andy, it beautifully transcends into a sheer “elevation” of emotions.

As one would expect from the duo, the song does not disappoint as a cheerful dance track, perfect for letting your hair down and doing the campest of dances to some interesting synth combos.

Musically it is a mixture of mainly modern digital sounds, interspersed with analogue gems. All in all, it is a great, representative choice for a single. The video accompanying it, has neither Andy nor Vince in it, but, instead, a happy bunch of free-spirited young people, perfectly painting the mood of this anthem.

The opening track of the album however is ‘Dead Of Night’, which hits the listener with a heavy synth sound and exquisite vocals from Andy that are more ‘Wonderland’ than ‘Tomorrow’s World’; it’s a very different style to the same titled DEPECHE MODE song from 2001’s ‘Exciter’, mixing both digital and analogue sounds.

‘Elevation’ proudly follows, before the vibrant ‘Reason’ with its piano intro over a complicated synth section and Andy’s vocal, creating an exhilarating, full-bodied dance track. The song offers elements of vintage ERASURE sounds intertwined with newer, digitally enhanced melodies. ‘Promises’ is yet another up tempo, rhythmic, and sonorous gem, filled with layered synth sounds, followed by ‘Be The One’, seemingly a ballad at first, yet evolving into a beautiful tune, reminiscent of the tracks from ‘I Say I Say I Say’.

‘Sacred’ is yet another vintage ERASURE tune, true synthpop at its best and this song, too, shares its title with DEPECHE MODE’s ‘Music For The Masses’ track. The soothing melody of ‘Under The Wave’ makes you imagine an intimate, yet epic ocean journey of life, with skilfully written lyrics embedded in electronic sounds.

‘Smoke and Mirrors’ offers a hypnotising opening, creating an atmosphere of suspense continuing throughout a track which is slower than the other songs on the album. Andy Bell’s beloved Eurotrance sound shines through on ‘Paradise’ which has been compared by Brian Mansfield of USA Today to Giorgio Moroder. The album closes with ‘Stayed A Little Late Tonight’, a classic tune depicting a complicated love story over a synth background and simple piano elements.

In spite of lacking powerful gay anthems like ‘Love To Hate You’, ‘The Violet Flame’ is a solid record, providing pleasure to the ear for synthpop and electronica fanatics, as well as any easy listening or dance music fan. The Violet Flame is a must have for any self-respecting synth pop fan, it truly is amazing!

‘The Violet Flame’ is released by Mute Artists on a variety of formats. Please visit http://www.pledgemusic.com/projects/erasure for more information

ERASURE’s 2014 European tour includes:

Belfast Ulster Hall (8 Nov), Dublin Olympia (9 Nov), Dublin Olympia (10 Nov), Reading Hexagon (12 Nov), Southampton Guildhall (13 Nov), Reading Hexagon (14 Nov), Nottingham Royal Concert Hall (15 Nov), Guildford G Live (16 Nov), Bristol Colston Hall (17 Nov), Aberdeen Music Hall (19 Nov), Edinburgh Corn Exchange (20 Nov), Glasgow O2 Academy (21 Nov), Brighton Dome (23 Nov), Cardiff St. David’s Hall (24 Nov), Preston Guildhall (25 Nov), Newcastle O2 Academy (28 Nov), Wolverhampton Civic (29 Nov), Manchester Apollo (30 Nov), Cologne Palladium (4 Dec), Dresden Schlachthof (5 Dec), Hamburg CCH1 (7 Dec), Berlin Columbiahalle (9 Dec); Aarhus Musikhus (10 Dec), Copenhagen TAP (11 Dec), London Forum (14 Dec), London Forum (15 Dec)

http://www.erasureinfo.com/

https://www.facebook.com/erasureinfo

Text by Monika Izabela Goss
22nd September 2014

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