Lorn's new album 'Nothing Else' is available now

Lorn is instrumental hip-hop for outsiders. While clearly influenced by Flying Lotus (Lorn is on Lotus’ Brainfeeder imprint) Lorn walks the shady side of the wonky hip-hop street. Gothic might be a touch excessive but there is something grand in the scale of Lorn’s songwriting. Straight up beats and minimal FX compliment the strong melodic aspects of this album, and it doesn’t take me long to realize that this doesn’t sound quite like anything else. Part electronica, part backpack hip-hop and part dubstep this is an experimental album in the best sense of the word. “Automaton” and “Void 1 and 2” are particularly fine and will be among a number of tracks getting hammered by DJ’s when the album is released in June.

http://www.myspace.com/lornnn

http://ninjatune.net

Alba Lua - The Ballad of Joseph Merrick

The Ballad of Joseph Merrick should involve the following; a group of musicians dressed in Victorian garb with sacks over their heads, topped by bowler hats. They would play atonal circus jazz and speed metal, but with trombones and egg maracas and old fashioned bike horns. At the climax of the show, the group would remove the sacks from their heads and the audience would laugh and throw rotting vegetables at their hideous features until the band leave the stage.

Sadly, Alba Lua do not seem to be aware if this and have instead chosen to jump on the increasingly irritating alt-folk bandwagon to produce an EP that is maudlin, humorless and uninspired.

Kim Monaghan

http://www.myspace.com/permanentvacation08

http://satelliteoflove.net/

Another mini release from the consistently professional duo sees two new tracks (“Conquering Echo” and “Dreamer”) backed up by two remixes from Alrealon stable mates Fluid and Restless.

Black Saturn is a talented vocalist and always comes up with something intriguing to lay over subduxtion’s industrial space hip hop, but his performance is a little anaemic on “Conquering Echo” which makes “Dreamer”(with its glitchy neurosis and slightly hostile paranoia ) the best original track on here.

That said FluiD (“Conquering Echo dancehall mix”) and Restless (“Legacy of the Ledger remix”) have both done great work on the remixes, with Restless just edging out FluiD to take the winners podium. Another strong release from Alrealon…and another free one that can be got from http://www.alrealon.co.uk/

Kim Monaghan

Grasscut – 1 Inch / ½ Mile (Ninja Tune)

Opening tune “High Down” should be enough to win anyone over to Grasscut’s way of thinking. An intelligently combined chimera of jazz, glitchy electronica and indie-rock with a healthy regard for both those who like to stroke their beard sand those who like a tune. This is a rare combination indeed and I already love this band / man / act after one song. “Old Machines” is next up, and it’s a little like the bastard offspring of some sprightly chip tune exploits and Thom Yorke’s Eraser but with some UK garage style pizzicato and just a hint of a marching band wafting in on the breeze. As you may already have guessed, it’s probably easier for you to just listen to this than read any of my bizarre and confusing proselytizing. But that’s what I’m here for, so…

Strange archaic samples appear throughout the first two songs and “Melwater” uses the same to tantalizing effect, and the lyrics (even though affected in what seems to be becoming the standard singing voice of UK bands/artists ; a kind of drawling pseudo cockney accent ) are obtuse and poetic enough to keep you fascinated. Imagine Clark but less mental and with a singer and you’re sort of starting to get what Grasscut sound like. A near perfect fusion of electronica, jazz and indie that is melancholy, uplifting, inventive and intelligent. How fucking awesome is that ?

Kim Monaghan

They are Dios

Opening with a forbidding drone, I was expecting something sinister, but muted acoustic guitar and blissed out vocals fade in to create a sound that is unique. Well, it would be unique if it hadn’t already been done by Fleet Foxes, which is pretty much what the first song sounds like. However, “Ojay” sounds like a cross between John Lennon and Oasis in an echo chamber. This may or may not be a good thing for you, but it left me unmoved.

“Noone Is Wrong” (which sort of reminds me of the Dears) with its almost ad-hoc riffing and charmingly out of tune vocals has me warming to this band. They have a psychedelic edge and a love of weird noises and slightly broken songs (see “Toss My Cookies”) that doesn’t resemble any of the influences I have spotted so far, but most closely resembles the aesthetic of the Flaming Lips, with a dash of Animal Collective thrown in.

That said they are canny enough to write songs that are catchy and simple ( such as “Stare At Wheel” or “Tell Me Thing” ) and absolutely suitable for large radio audiences. This may be both a strength and a weakness though, as the switch between the band’s weird and normal modes could end up alienating everyone. I don’t know.

I do know that while my brain enjoyed most of this album, I was left with no real desire to rush out and buy it.

Kim Monaghan

At last an official Dissolved primer ! For those of you who don’t know, Dissolved is a prolific producer of electronica on the serene and thought-provoking end of the spectrum. Frazzled synths, warped tape samples and an off-kilter ear for melodies all coalesce in this, the first official Dissolved compilation album.

Comprised mostly of old tracks but with a few new tracks thrown in for fans, this is an intriguing selection, focus-ing on the more reflective side of Dissolved. As a hopeless fan-boy I put together a Dissolved “best of” a couple of years ago, and I don’t think there is a single track in common with this album, but I still think it’s a very successful compilation.

For more information you can check one of the other album reviews or podcasts on the site, but the easiest thing to do is get over to Binkcrsh records and buy a copy. There is yet another new Dissolved release on the horizon so consider this a chance to do your homework.

Kim Monaghan

Dissolved – Myspace - Label

There will always be more to learn about the long history of human civilisation than what we may find in the collected records bequeathed to us by the victors of battles past. In fact one only has to scrape away the loose topsoil of any period of accepted history to expose rich seams of lesser-known information that often serve to shed fresh light on the age-old questions surrounding who we are and how our cultures have evolved.

‘Western’ culture, just as we find with its counterpart in the east, is inextricably bound to a set of religious and spiritual doctrines that have exerted a profound and far-reaching influence over society. Sometimes this influence is overt and all too easy to spot; for instance, no one could deny the overweening influence of the Roman church on the last two thousand years of western civilisation. Yet at other times, certain other religio-spiritual influences may have been just as strong, even though their origins have appeared far less obvious – perhaps even from being deliberately hidden from plain view.

From the shamanic, animistic proto-religions of the early European hunter-gatherers to the highly developed spiritual systems of the druids and the ancient Egyptians, not to mention the two thousand years of social domination by the church of Rome, it cannot be denied that religion has exerted a profound influence over the way literally millions of people have thought and acted over millennia. It’s an influence that continues to this day, even if the front-and-centre position of the main western spiritual hegemony appears to be largely on the wane.

Despite the obvious links between western culture and its native branch of spirituality, the notion that there may be an ancient and living western esoteric tradition every bit as deep and essential as that found in the east has, until relatively recently, been largely the preserve of the crank or the religious maverick. In the last few years however the so-called ‘western mysteries’ have begun to gain more ground within academic circles as a legitimate area of study. Various universities in Europe such as Exeter and Amsterdam now run respected courses in Western Esoterics and slowly but surely the hidden spiritual traditions of the west are gaining the respect so long afforded to their eastern cousins.

Hidden Wisdom is a noble attempt to set out the story of what is usually referred to as the ‘Western Mystery Tradition’; an umbrella term encompassing all manner of spiritual, religious and mystical systems that fall outside the purview of the accepted dogma sanctioned by the church, from ancient Greek philosophy and early Gnosticism through to alchemy, occultism, freemasonry, alchemy and magic. Here we find the tale of the other spiritual tradition of the west; a tempestuous tale of direct contact with the divine, of beauty, suppression, torture and courage. For it is undoubtedly true that many spiritual traditions of the west have remained obscure – at least in part – due to their often violent and bloody suppression on the part of the competition.

In the battle for the hearts and minds of the faithful, the book argues, there has been remarkably little to be found in the way of compassion exhibited by those professing to embody that divine gift through the practising of the Christian faith. In point of fact (we are reminded constantly) more death and destruction has been meted out in the name of the ‘gentle Jesus’ than by any other religion. A jealous God, it would appear, begets a jealous faith and in its quest to remain the sole religious authority in the western world, the church has historically stopped at nothing to ensure the silencing of any voices which may offer an alternative to their own particular brand of salvation.

In this book the author Tim Wallace-Murphy presents an alternative viewpoint on the long and fascinating history of the western world by focusing on its mystery traditions and leading the reader on a tour through hidden history – one that wasn’t written by the victors. In a way, this is both the book’s greatest strength and its greatest weakness. The reader is left in no doubt whatsoever of Wallace-Murphy’s standpoint, whose near shrillness in his frequent condemnation of the church eventually serves to weaken his case – even to those readers who may agree wholeheartedly with his viewpoint.

While on the whole the book is pretty well-written and researched, the grinding of Wallace-Murphy’s personal axe is a just a little too overbearing a little too often. The reader is left at times with little or no room to draw their own conclusions since one is already being presented so strongly; ie: that the hidden traditions of the west are more beautiful, profound and ultimately legitimate than anything that can be offered by the villainous and morally corrupt church. While this may or may not be true, Wallace-Murphy frequently spends more time engaged in invective against the persecutor than actually explaining why he holds the opinion that he does about those who have endured so much persecution for their beliefs.

There is also the issue of misappropriated terminology. For instance, in an early chapter the reader is introduced to the concept of ‘gnosis’ in a discussion of ancient druidism – a tradition which used no such term as far as is known, yet when the author begins to discuss the early Christian Gnostics, no explanation of what the term ‘Gnostic’ actually means is offered. We are left then, wondering exactly who this book is aimed at since specialised terms are used but never satisfactorily elaborated on, while little or no new information is being offered that could not be found elsewhere in books that frankly render this volume largely redundant. Had The Elixir and the Stone by Richard Leigh and Michael Baigent, or Jonathan Black’s Secret History of the World not already been written, there might be a real place for Hidden Wisdom, but in the opinion of the present reviewer, these two other books treat the same subject in a much more balanced and dare I say it, scholarly fashion.

That is not to say that Hidden Wisdom is not without its merits. It offers an easy to read and in places fascinating look at one of the most neglected subjects in western culture and any additions to the body of work exploring western esoterica are to be applauded. If however you want a primer on the subject, it has to be said that better books already exist. If on the other hand, matters hermetic are your thing, Hidden Wisdom may well prove worth a look. But if you’re searching for – as the book’s strapline boldly announces – the Secrets of the Western Esoteric Tradition, you may find yourself rather disappointed at what you find within its pages.

Adrian Dobbie

http://hidden-wisdom.com

Buy ‘Hidden Wisdom’ at Amazon

Fresh from reviewing the Binkcrsh compilation on which Simple Vehicle featured, I was curious to give this album a listen. The austere packaging is a strong visual clue to the kind of music contained within, and whilst I love this kind of abstract electronica, it may not be for the casual listener.

Abstract samples and heat-haze drones create the mirage of music but when the ear tries to latch on to anything solid, it drifts away to be replaced by something else.

Autechre are clearly an influence on Simple Vehicle’s sound (with song titles such as “Tiltuu” and “Lterde 2.3”) and anyone who likes them will appreciate the level of thought that has gone into this release.

Kim Monaghan

http://c67.org/binkcrsh/

An odd one to review. In some respects this is a great record, being high energy, moody dancehall that is ludicrously exciting. Indeed, most of these tunes would be guaranteed to fill a dancefloor in seconds.

However it’s stripped down strength is also it’s Achilles Heel as you hear everything on the first listen. Depth is non-existent on this record and I’m pretty sure that most of the sounds are lifted straight from a Casio keyboard and a Roland 909, which gave me the odd sensation that I was listening to a rave in a computer game.

That said I will certainly be bashing the fuck out of crazed tunes like “Get Crazy” and “Enemies” while studiously avoiding midi rubbish like “90’s Backyard” and “Coco Drunk”.

Kim Monaghan

http://www.myspace.com/poiriersound

http://www.ninjatune.net/home/

Berry Weight keep it minimal

Berry Weight is a collaborative effort between Canadian and Swiss musicians Apewok and Stab. It is mainly instrumental hip-hop but depth and personality are added in capacious amounts by singer Astrid Engberg (whose voice is sultry and wistful) and clarinetist Kledsy Jy (bringing back the clarinet in a big way) whose contributions make an indelible impression.

The general tone is laid back and slightly melancholy while production is flawless. This is exactly the sort of album you want to play when you are either recovering from a hangover or trying to impress someone so they’ll sleep with you. In fact the only fault I can find is the mid-song rap from ASM (on “The Lotus”); which is frankly comical and disturbs an otherwise great song.

It may not feature on any of the hipster lists of albums this year (indeed at times it’s like this album has been teleported in from the early nineties) but unlike an awful lot of music that is “forward thinking” you might actually want to listen to this more than once.

Kim Monaghan

http://www.berryweight.com

http://www.myspace.com/berryweight