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Tabs Out | Look At These Tapes #9

Look At These Tapes #9
3.17.17 by Tabs Out Crew

look at these tapes

Look At These Tapes is a monthly roundup of our favorites in recent cassette artwork and packaging, along with short, stream-of-thought blurbs. Whatever pops into our heads when we look at/hold them. Selections by Jesse DeRosa, Mike Haley, and Scott Scholz.

 


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Tabs Out | Sarin – Just Beat The Devil Out Of It

Sarin – Just Beat The Devil Out Of It
3.13.17 by Kat Harding

sarin

Peering out at you from the front of the cassette is a mysterious grey alien, barely decipherable on the green and black cover, guarding the bright green tape inside. Released on Des Moines’ experimental tape label 5CM Recordings, Sarin’s “Just Beat The Devil Out Of It” is almost 40 minutes of droney, psychedelic improvisation by Matt, Kyle, Kaylee, and Mathias. Recorded in early 2016 and released in August, the tape is nearly 40 minutes of tight listening.

Both sides named after vibrant pigments: Pthalo Green I and II, matching the vibrant green of the cover and the tape. Each side is almost twenty minutes of improvisation ranging from psychedelic to drone to sludge metal. The side starts off with rolling drums, creating a noisy, echoing, drone-filled space. Continuing with anxiety-inducing guitar wails, feedback weaves through the song as it meanders along. A mysterious feeling overtakes around the 8 minute mark, reminiscent of the part of the horror movie where the character doesn’t realize they’re being followed by a monster, but we know. Will they figure it out in time? Probably not. But the song and improvisation continues, even coming together for a brief foray into a jazzy section, with lots of cymbals and a low bass beat. The song picks up speed, screeching around, for one last bit before coming to a halt with one last cymbal crash.

The second begins with industrial reverberation over clanging, moving into a toe-tapping section, that while dark, is more upbeat. The drums are out of control on this song, with heavy-handed smashing and constant cymbals. Continuing into a section of alarm-style tones, the cymbals then throw the song into a section of heavy sludge metal. With seven minutes left, the psychedelic influences reappear, begging to be paired with a projected, swirling light show over a blank wall. The alien repetition evokes outer space and all it’s vast chaos: I’ve never felt like the dense universe would be a peaceful and calming place. The song unravelings into twinkling chimes over pulsating drums and fading to reverb, closing out the song in more of a whimper than a bang — just like the world will end.

Pick up the tape for yourself on 5CM’s bandcamp.

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Tabs Out | New Batch – Midnight Circles

New Batch – Midnight Circles
3.5.17 by Mike Haley

midnight

I’m gonna be up front and admit that I have never heard of Midnight Circles, the self described “Xerox-label” from Germany who have been dealing out slimy sounds for several years now, until this latest batch of three arrived at my door. I could ask myself if I’ve been living in a cave, but that wouldn’t account for the oversight, considering most of their offerings sound like they originated in a cave.

The soggy sounds in this trifecta come from C. Reider, Die Neuen IBM, and a collab between Danny Clay & Greg Gorlan.

C. Reider’s “Chew Cinders” C26 plays like a dusty reel-to-reel found at an estate sale. Ideas of the original content remain intact, but just barely. As bits of strained words warp into swine-like snorts you can only imagine what was initially recorded on the magnetic tape before time and the elements ate away at them. Those antique distortions, with their airy, chalky bias, are met with the occasional synthy snaps, but this tape feels most at home trapped in mold.

Die Neuen IBM is the cassette/synth duo of Chemiefaserwerk and Aaron Yabrov. The series of eight live improvisations on “Berliner Klassik” were recorded in Berlin last year and mingle the very familiar sound of tape hiss and scramble with a music box like delicacy from their Korg MS-20 and Yamaha SY77. The results are a C40 of no coffee / all tea plunges into deep chillness with moderately scratchy interference.

Last in line is “Birch”, a C30 effort from Danny Clay & Greg Gorlan that follows their “Brittle” tape released by Canti Magnetici in 2016 and several other get together’s prior. Gorlan, who has been known to mangle a tape or two (see: Vibrating Garbage, Black Thread, etc) and Clay churn piano melodies into a thick static paste. Notes swirl, rerun, and often go adrift in a sea of hiss. Depending on how you approach it, “Birch” can be a depressant cruise or a momentary escape. It really depends on what elements you focus on. Either way, it is a solid tape.

Each cassette from this batch is rather limited, packaged with fancy silver or gold paper with top notch art, and either nearly or completely sold out from Midnight Circles. Do yourself a favor and try to track em down.

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Tabs Out | New Batches – MJMJ Records

New Batches – MJMJ Records
3.2.17 by Scott Scholz

mjmj

One of the biggest advantages of cassette labels is curatorial flexibility. Tapes are relatively inexpensive to produce, so you can take chances on highlighting different scenes, and listeners can similarly afford to speculate on batches of unfamiliar artists. While a lot of labels follow their interests in national and international artists, there’s a unique opportunity to turn folks on to local scenes, too. Some of my favorites strike a balance between international and local sounds: Eiderdown Records is always good for a balance of fried psych and drone from the Pacific Northwest and far beyond, for example, and Iowa stalwarts like Centipede Farm and Personal Archives keep folks hipped to sonic adventures from both far-flung lands and the Hawkeye state underground.

Minneapolis-based MJMJ Records is another label you can count on for great music from both local and remote areas, and their last couple of batches have focused on some Twin Cities-based artists that definitely deserve some wider love. Here’s a little overview of some wild and wonderful sounds from the Mini Apple, all still available from MJMJ with rad risograph-print artwork lovingly designed by regular MJMJ art collaborator NIco Stephou.

Fall batch: live jams

The MJMJ fall batch focused on live recordings from a trio of fascinating MN artists. Experimental collective American Cream Band starts us off with a mesmerizing set of material culled from live recordings made in 2015 and 2016. Largely percussion-driven pieces, American Cream shifts between krautrock and dancey beats with a hint of free jazz, like Shit & Shine colliding with Sand. Based on these recordings, these live sets must drop some serious ritual vibes.

This is followed by two slices of reverb-drenched goodness from ZOZO Tek, excerpted from their portion of a 28-hour drone marathon last February at the Cedar Cultural Center. The harmonizer-fueled sax lines in these pieces are especially affecting, and the group manages to stay faithful to the drone concept while still creating lots of dynamic variety and interest. Recorded in the wee hours of the morning, you’re not likely to find jams that manage to be this psychedelic while incorporating the classic Seinfeld-slap-bass synth tone:

My favorite of this live triptych may be a potent C20 from relative newcomers IE. The first release by this quartet, IE brings old-school synth zoneouts that unfold with careful restraint. At first this feels like a relatively straightforward drone recording, but as a groove patiently emerges in the final quarter of the tape, the subtle beauty of this music proves to be quite addictive on repeated listening.

Winter batch: boreal beats

MJMJ’s latest winter batch transitions from local psych/drone to (mostly) local beat-oriented electronica, perfect for cold Northern winters. The only exception to the Twin Cities orientation of these tapes is a grimy set of beats from Gaffe of a Lifetime, the solo project of east-coast producer Alexandre Louis Petion. While much of his “Mansa, and the Far End of the Death Spectrum” would work comfortably on a dance floor, the music pushes into the kinds of introspective early-industrial soundscapes that provide lots of sedentary listening interest, too. Crossing into the forward-thinking electronics vibes that labels like Orange Milk have focused on recently, some tracks like “Justify the Inane” embody glitched-out dramas that could bring fans of EDM and German Army together:

Heading back to Minneapolis, Nathan Brende drops a tightly-constructed longform jam with his latest as God’s Drugs. Slowly unfolding through a series of house-centered workouts, “Loaded” could keep any party moving with a series of beats that are mostly convivial but subtly evocative of those dark, mysterious spaces your parents warned you about:

Last but not least, MJMJ brings us a heady tape from recent MN transplant Lonefront. According to the label, this solo project of Ross Lafayette Hutchens has been making major waves on the local rave scene, but “Cimilada Qaxootiga” offers a unique modular-based experience that retains some beat orientation within a more delicate tapestry of subdued pads and dismal atmospheres. The A-side especially focuses on beats, gradually ramping up its rhythmic propulsion until it comes to rest just shy of a techno workout, while the B-side remains more rhythmically static, concentrating instead on successions of short textural loops, rising and falling in density:

Traveling to the snowy climes of Minneapolis can be a real drag this time of year, but head over to the MJMJ Bandcamp, crack open a sixer of Grain Belt, and bring the MN underground to your own deck instead.

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Tabs Out | Crown of Eternity – Dream Architecture

Crown of Eternity – Dream Architecture
2.28.17 by Scott Scholz

dream arch

If you’re already familiar with Inner Islands, you’re probably well aware that the label is a sure bet for aural excursions into tranquility and redemption. With a serene discography including Ki Oni, Stag Hare, and Kyle Landstra, I get a tinge of joyous calm just hearing about any new arrivals on the Island. While it’s hard to pick favorites in this lush catalog, it may be fair to say that their latest, Crown of Eternity’s “Dream Architecture,” is an archetypally perfect album for the label. The perfect sonic respite for whatever might be ailing you, or an excellent sonic meditation session to focus your energy if you’re already feeling fly, this tape is a next-level deep listening experience.

Crown of Eternity is the long-running duo project of Gallina and Mike Tamburo, multi-instrumentalists whose work and training unites musical pursuits with the healing arts. Mike has been featured on Inner Islands before, dropping the heavy-meditation double cassette “Presence” back in 2013. You might also recognize his wild jams under the Brother Ong moniker –I’d highly recommend his “Deep Water Creation” on Deep Water Acres, full of ripping shahi baaja loops through guitar effects. The Tamburos have a gift for coaxing warm, inviting music out of any instrument, and while much of their work has focused on strings, “Dream Architecture” is an impassioned exploration of metal percussion. Gongs, chimes, bells and bowls come together here toward the creation of a listening experience that soothes both body and mind.

“Dream Architecture” aspires to a transcendence that’s better felt than described musically. Centered around 11 gongs and over 60 supplementary instruments, these pieces occasionally get really dense to powerful effect, such as the middle sections of the title track. However, most of the album works with open spaces and subdued volumes, allowing the listener an intimate window into the rich harmonic potential of these ancient instruments. The recording itself is beautifully produced, too: cassettes aren’t always about low-fi, friends. If you fire up your best deck through your biggest speakers, you can lay down and really feel like you’re in the middle of this recording in progress, and I think you’ll find that it’s an empowering place to be.

Crown of Eternity is the real deal–with training in yoga, body harmonics, and sound massage, this tape may prove to be just as useful in your medicine cabinet as your cassette shelving. These likely won’t last long, so be sure to grip one from Inner Islands while you can. And perhaps even better, folks all over America have a chance to experience some Dream Architecture in person: check out these tour dates, and show the Tamburo family some love as they bring their beautiful ceremonies-in-metal on the road.

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Tabs Out | Paralycyst / Sun Rad – split

Paralycyst / Sun Rad – split
2.23.17 by Bobby Power

sunrad

Property Materials is a Boston-based label that releases split tapes by Sun Rad, which is also manned by a co-founder of the label itself. Since debuting November 2015, the imprint has released four splits, each featuring Sun Rad to foil both local and long-distance counterparts (from Salem, MA to Oakland, CA). But Sun Rad’s take on enthusiastic and neon yet experimental dance music proves to be more dynamic than one might expect.

The label’s album description suggests that the tape is: “dance music for those who stayed up late and partied in the basement.” Luckily, both sides bring a genuine sense of makeshift but efficient DIY show at any house, gallery, or backroom.

Paralycyst doesn’t appear to have much of a public presence. Researching the project only shows that it’s run by “a musician from Oakland, CA.” Here, the four Paralycyst tracks would strike a deep chord with any fan of Container, Cube, or any other modern techno-industrialist. But rather than just another in the crowded techno(ise), the sounds maintain their own sense of frayed rigidity. “Altercation” starts off a rote and unassuming drum beat clicking its way through some blown out speaker. Soon enough, waves tighten and loosen in bizarre patterns. The mechanized beat slurs in and out of focus while utilitarian melodies play themselves out. “No Rave” is a blast of 8-bit precision and acid-like pulses. “Peripheral” and “Filth” to the opening track’s bleak, pummeling monotony, cycling through an endless loop of noise. It’s a shame to see Paralycyst hasn’t released anything since this tape last summer.

Where Paralycyst goes deep into the darkest corners of a basement noise show, Sun Rad brings the modest crowd in together to close the night out moving around a bit. “Endless Midnight” makes no bones about it, launching into a jarring and hypnotic run of stabbing 90s acid. It’s similar to LFO but modernized in the vein of Kanding Ray or Andy Stott. “Heaven Knows” plays a bit more with negative space, following a bare beat in oddly vacant space. As the track builds up, a fluorescent shape appears and takes over. “Content Mirage” is the happy medium between the two, mixing unabashed hallmarks of dance music (synthetic hand claps, percussion, and sighs) and perfectly closing things out.

Sadly, the tape edition of 50 copies is sold out at the source, but you can grab a digital copy via Bandcamp.

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Tab Out | New Batch – Spring Break Tapes!

New Batch – Spring Break Tapes!
2.22.17 by Scott Scholz

springbreak

Spring Break Tapes! proprietor Joe McKay had a busy 2016 that included the launch of the incredible Dinzu Artefacts label, an experimental/sound-art focused imprint with a thoughtful, unified art/layout design scheme. But fear not, Spring Break fans: SBT shows no signs of slowing down, either, with a recent pair of jams that may be the best yet on the label.

 

Hainbach – The Evening Hopefuls
Berlin-based composer Stefan Paul Goetsch’s electronics side project Hainbach takes a fascinating turn with “Evening Hopefuls.” Previous Hainbach jams have mostly incorporated beats, though 2015’s “Ashes” heads into more ambient pastures. While these pieces still ebb and flow between layers of loops, the source material is generated from rehearsal recordings of Goetsch’s debut orchestral composition, a long piece intended to be performed in sync with a showing of Wiene’s silent film classic, “The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari.” Many composers record ongoing orchestral rehearsals if possible, as they’re invaluable for helping to improve scores during the rehearsal process, but Goetsch took his rehearsal tapes to a whole new level, using his downtime between rehearsals to create Hainbach-styled arrangements of the material.

The result is an incomparable ambient album, with mesmerizing, gentle layers of sound. While very small fragments of sound are deployed to create these soundscapes, the timbral richness of its orchestral origins comes through with a variety of sounds one doesn’t hear in albums made of modular sounds and field recordings. Worlds collide, and charmingly so.

 

Bus Gas – Live On Leave Us
Nebraska ensemble Bus Gas returns for their second tape on Spring Break, and fourth overall. Past recordings have found these gentlemen processing their drone-oriented improvisations into complex tapestries that sound highly composed, but this outing finds them tackling a pair of composed pieces instead. Recorded live at O’Leavers Pub in Omaha, Nebraska, richly orchestrated layers of sound turn this trio lineup into a massive force of drone, and for guitar tone aficionados, you’ll find some of the most satisfying tube-fueled melodic lines of the Obama-era outlining the mysterious architecture of these pieces.

2014’s “Snake Hymns” highlighted shorter pieces that often took on a more Faust-ian sound-collage delirium, but the alternating delicacy and weight of these new jams takes a classical kind of solemnity, like Sclesi’s harmonic-based minimalism hefted into Ligeti-esque sound masses. There is a deep current of melancholy woven into this music, but to make sure you don’t turn into a ball of ennui sobbing in a corner, Bus Gas helpfully provides a little brevity in the form of the album title itself, a play on “Live at O’Leavers.” This performance marked a sort of geographical split-up of the project, but considering how each of their tapes has reached new heights of beauty and darkness, let’s hope they find a way to continue working together regardless of distance.

It should be mentioned that Spring Break has really stepped up their already killer j-card game on this new batch as well: both tapes feature intricate zillion-panel artwork, printed on both sides, that provide a lot of visual interest while listening. The metallic inks on the Hainbach tape really pop, and the enigmatic artwork for Bus Gas fits perfectly with the music. With only 100 copies of each in the wild, you’d best step up to Spring Break Tapes in a jiffy.

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Tabs Out | MichealCushion – Life Escaper Trial Edition

MichealCushion – Life Escaper Trial Edition
2.21.17 by Mike Haley

life escaper

Ever wonder what the hell is going on? I’m not talking about a deep, late into the night conversation about life and it’s meanings or lack of, but more along the lines of a situation where you discover cheese in the battery holder of your TV’s remote control. A shake-your-head/shrug-your-shoulders flash of befuddlement. “Life Escaper Trial Edition” is a series of those sort of circumstances. It would appear that MichealCushion removed your triple A’s and put that cheese in your remote. Maybe they read on a body building message board that gouda could power electronics better than Duracells? Perhaps it was just a bozo goof with some left over mascarpone? You’ll have to get in touch with MichealCushion on your own time and find out. I’m past the point of curiosity, content with swimming in the whiz of this killer tape.

Nothing here makes much sense. It’s awkward, nomadic, and ambiguous of it’s intent. In calm moments “Life Escaper Trial Edition” flirts with moody, inner-directed dexterity, but is quickly pummeled with charged up distractions and false starts that rupture into squelch. Recycled sounds and puddle-minded shake ups are gnarled into a dopey coitus of audio blllleeeaaaauurgh, with volume levels and motivations whirling rapidly out of control. Basically a Supermarket Sweep of noise, dashing from isle to isle throwing everything into the cart without any meals in mind. I bet plenty of time was spent in the cheese section though. Those remotes aren’t gonna fill themselves.

Only 20 copies of “Life Escaper Trial Edition” were made, all with white shells and equally fanatic artwork. Go buy one from Melty Tapes now, okay!?

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Tabs Out | New Batch – Constellation Tatsu

New Batch – Constellation Tatsu
2.15.17 by Bobby Power

ctatsu

Oakland imprint Constellation Tatsu has been a reliable source of drifting experimentation sourced from all over the globe. Often dropping in batches of three, each set of new sounds uncovers a dizzying array of epiphanies. The label’s latest batch doesn’t mess with the tried and true formula, bringing new sounds from Forest Walker, Ana & Ina, and SODA lite.

First up, Forest Christenson is perhaps best known as one half of Seabat, a duo with composer/synthesist John Also Bennet (Forma). But Christenson has also been involved with a number of sporadic experimental projects, such as Harsh Yoga and Arid Hunter, among others. Now, Christenson steps into his own solo light as Forest Walker with UV Sea, which also turns out to be one of the more confounding and promising debuts out there.

Throughout the tape’s four tracks–two short, two long– the LA-based producer effortlessly culls serene washes of sound that speak not only to Constellation Tatsu’s aesthetic but also Walker’s unique sense of ambient music. With photography and design by John Also Bennett, the final physical product is an elegant blur of imagery and sound.

Opener “Desert Lighthouse” opens with a vaguely Steve Reich-ian cycle of pulsing sounds, perfectly setting the stage for the ensuing aural bliss. Over time, the track shifts in and out of focus, dialing in a beautifully distant piano melody and sifting sheets of static and texture. It almost resembles Tim Hecker without the flurry of frayed noise and overpowering tones. “Amendment of Fundamental Axioms” retreats into negative space, examining modest suggestions of chordal color and intermittent feedback. “Saved Video of a Postcard” veers deeper into more symphonic realms, establishing the low-key dread and peripheral grace of Johann Johannson. Closer “Realtime Lapse” offers the most patient and truly immersive piece here. The 12+ minutes of slowed and slurred drones are pure emotional melancholy, meditating on a theme of sullen hopefulness.

On Dockweiler Beach marks the return of Ana & Ina, the obscured ambient project helmed by writer Ashley Hoffman and visual artist Ian James. Here again, as with the duo’s fantastic Analogue cassette on Complicated Dance Steps from 2011, Hoffman is credited with “thoughts” while James provided “emotions.” The unassuming mystique and loosely explained process leaves quite a bit up to interpretation, making repeat listens all the more addicting.

The A-side “Come In” is a half-hour drift of inviting electronics that slowly morph into various smooth shapes of sound. There’s no narrative whatsoever, leaving all reference points, timestamps, or cues obsolete and amping up the riveting display. B-side “Come Around” floats in a celestial murk of weightless tones and shimmering textures, similar to Pulse Emitter or Windy & Carl. The track’s second half evolves into a disembodied careen of meandering glee.

Finally, Alex Last returns after SODA lite’s exquisite Liquid Earth tape on Illuminated Paths with In Eco, an imagined travelogue to pseudo-sythetic lands. Field recordings seemingly captured from dreams or other fabricated sources intersect with naturalistic backdrops to create seven humid scenes of vaguely picturesque and wholly captivating allure. On tracks “Habitat,” “In Eco,” and “Galatea Point,” reality becomes subjective, perfectly cleansing the palette for the ambiguous ambiance of “Senses,” “Aurai,” and “Lagoon.” The brief but potent closer “Oceania” wraps things up in an air of stranded ambivalence. You might be marooned, but you wouldn’t rather be anywhere else in the world.

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Tabs Out | Look At These Tapes #8

Look At These Tapes #8
2.8.17 by Tabs Out Crew

look at these tapes

Look At These Tapes is a monthly roundup of our favorites in recent cassette artwork and packaging, along with short, stream-of-thought blurbs. Whatever pops into our heads when we look at/hold them. Selections by Jesse DeRosa, Mike Haley, and Scott Scholz.