Io non credo troppo a tutti i generi e le etichette che si inventa la critica musicale. Odio termini come IDM, post-rock, neo new-wave, mathcore, math-rock. Eppure di quest'ultimo genere i Battles si sono imposti nel 2007, dopo tre ottimi EP, come gli esponenti più creativi, interessanti e divertenti, soprattutto per quanto riguarda le loro esibizioni live (Brian Eno afferma che sul palco sono tra le formazioni più trascinanti degli ultimi anni). Per eliminare il grigiore nerd che un termine come "rock-matematico" può suggerire a coloro che manco sanno in cosa consiste, i Battles, al secolo Ian Williams (ex chitarrista dei Don Caballero), John Stanier (ex batterista di Helmet e Tomahawk), Dave Konopka (ex bassista dei Lynx) e Tyondai Braxton (figlio del jazzista Anthony Braxton), si sono proiettati decisamente nel futuro, portandosi dietro un po' di rock progressivo, cenni di elettronica, ritmiche scomposte e incalzanti, deliri e imprevedibilità zappiani. Il risultato è "Mirrored", la parola che, etichettata Warp, nel 2007 ha zittito coloro che ritengono che la musica non abbia più niente da dire e coloro che pensavano che il futuro del rock fosse tornare a riprendere modi di vestire e di suonare dei sixties. "Mirrored" è un concentrato di 52 minuti di colore, esercizi ritmici animaleschi, esperimenti di chitarra spontaneamente matematici, vocalizzi non-sense (novità assoluta per i Battles), che vi potrà far riflettere e studiare sulla sua complessa stratificazione e precisione in episodi come "Tonto" o "Rainbow", o semplicemente farvi muovere furiosamente blaterando filastrocche senza senso come nella mai troppo citata "Atlas" (semplicemente uno dei pezzi più assurdi degli ultimi anni) o nella impetuosa "Ddiamondd". Da "Race In" a "Race Out" (chiusura impeccabile) non ci sono cali di tono, errori, sbavature o momenti di noia, tutto è stato studiato alla perfezione dai quattro geni di New York, matematicamente.

agent.org

For free previews of the EP and to purchase:

www.grayscalerecords.com/nicemonster

Nice Monster's principal songwriter, Matthew Gerken has collaborated with Christian Kiefer and Jefferson on an ambitious recording of songs for each US Presidency. Today, this project was a feature story on National Public Radio's All Things Considered:

Presidents' Songs: Of Legends And 'Mortal Men'

Kurt Lightner

A new collection of songs called Of Great and Mortal Men spans 43 presidents and 220 years of American history.

aclives gramados
cheiro de aranha
morta ou viva?

myspace

Voluntary Mother Earth's latest CD "Unacceptable Vegetable" was recently reviewed in Tarkus Magazine (issue #46) in Norway. If you understand Nowegian, check out their website and order a copy today to see what they have to say about our music.

Also the same album had been reviewed in iO Pages Magazine (issue # 81) in Netherland. Speak Dutch? Check out their website and get a copy today.

Voluntary Mother Earth TOURS 2009
We're currently planning a US tour for March 2009, and an European tour for May 2009, as well as applying to various festivals for the next summer.

-VME's "YOU CAN BOOK US TOO" Policy-
If you live in a musical community, no matter how small and no matter where it's located on the planet Earth, and would like to see us live, AND if you are part of your local scene, or know the clubs/bars/bands in that scene, YOU can book us too.

Interested? Send me an email at voluntarymotherearth ( at ) gmail.com for details.

Other than that, we've started rehearsing new songs which we hope to record and present to you next year.

Hope to see you on our next tour!

-Aki
Voluntary Mother Earth
-a Japan's premier absurdist rock combo

This is going to be the first show with the new drummer Fujita Fajita.
Should be fun.

See you at the show!

Aki
Voluntary Mother Earth

pérolas brilham por
entre as britas
extremas de câncer.

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キンギョ

]]> http://atrainv.wordpress.com/?p=122 Mon, 08 Sep 2008 09:39:51 +0000 atrainv http://atrainv.tr.wordpress.com/2008/09/08/todays-noise/

Typically when we think of Noise Rock, we think of Sonic Youth.  They are, undoubtedly, the poster-boys for the genre.  Although more melodic than most of their songs, Teenage Riot is a good example if you're unfamiliar with the sound.  Bull in the Heather is another pretty accessible song indicative of Sonic Youth's dissonant style.  Alternatively, Hüsker Dü and The Jesus & Mary Chain are arguably more mainstream (or at least less experimental) versions of the 80s Noise Rock sound.  Both bands went on to have a huge influence on the Pop-Punk and Shoegaze genres (respectively).

However, if we consider dissonance and over-utilization of feedback as defining motifs for the genre, the sound was probably pioneered by the Velvet Underground with their songs "Heroin" and "Venus in Furs."  In this case, the genre dates back to the 60s.

Coming back to the 90s, we see that Noise Rock has gone the way of all sub-genres of Rock'N'Roll: it has splintered further into more distinctive sub-genres.  Leading the Shoegaze movement, you have My Bloody Valentine with their lush yet abrasive, super-distorted style.  Math Rock was being defined by Don Caballero, taking more from the experimental time signatures and dissonance of Noise Rock than from the overly-distorted sound.  Earth was pioneering the Drone (or Doom) Metal genre, focusing on drawn out experimental distortion played at extremely loud decibels.

Post-Rock, combining elements of all these sub-genres in a more musically and conceptually intricate fashion, would become a mainstay throughout the late 90s and early 00s.  But we'll save that for another post.

What I really mean to talk about here is the resurgence of Noise Rock as it applies to bands today.  We're seeing more and more bands within the indie scene rejecting the stylings of the alt.country and twee-pop bands that were so common during the early and mid '00s.  As the pendulum swings back towards distortion, we see something more like this:

The sound, heard in recent bands like Parts & Labor and Titus Andronicus, relies heavily on percussion.  The constant driving beat is really what holds the songs together, because the majority of the other instruments are quite chaotic.  There's a certain frenetic yet stripped-down quality to today's Noise bands that draws more upon its punk ancestry than many of the genre's predecessors from the 80s and 90s.  However, that's about as far as its connection to punk goes.  The songs are filled with the synth pop "doop beep boop" that's been so common in recent indie pop, yet it seems strangely novel and refreshing when placed against the wall of sound being emitted by the other instruments.

Definitely give both of these bands a chance.  Not all of the songs will be your cup of tea melodically, but if you're looking for something with a frantic kind of energy that the indie scene has been missing recently, this is just what you need.

Maps and Atlases: MTV2 Interview

Maps and Atlases: Songs for Ghosts to Haunt To (Live)

Wow! Maps and Atlases are the best new (to me) band ever! Imagine Yes, Gentle Giant, Brian Eno, Dave Matthews, Peter Gabriel, Captain Beefheart, and Don Caballero playing some amazing psychadelic pop tunes, and that might give you an idea of the pop and technical might of Maps and Atlases! From Chicago! On tour now!

Maps and Atlases -- The Most Trustworthy Tin Cans (Live)

The Fall of Troy--Ghostship Part V (Live)

The Fall of Troy: as if prog legends Yes and King Crimson met Unwound, Drive Like Jehu, Voivod, and 2008 emo.  I would like to see a Fall of Troy/Maps and Atlases show.

Don Caballero (affectionately called “Don Cab” or “The Don” by fans) formed in the summer of 1991 in Pittsburgh, United States, released five albums on Touch And Go Records between 1993 and 2000, then disbanded in November 2000. Drummer Damon Che recruited new personnel for a reconstituted Don Caballero in 2003, but this new lineup has been met with mixed reception from fans. They have since signed to Relapse Records and released a new album, titled World Class Listening Problem, on May 16, 2006.

Download: World Class Listening Problem

Web: Myspace Page

Two men from Leeds, but a wall of sound. James Islip on the drums and Andy Abbott with a baritone guitar transform into monsters when entering the stage, make more noise than they should be able to. Often improvised, always loud, always hypnotic and enthralling, That Fucking Tank always leave an impression on the audience with their heavily riff-reliant intensity.

Take the slab-heavy mathematics of Shellac and injecting them with an elastic twang reminiscent of the Minutemen, always in the way of a good solid groove, be it fuzzed-out bass note roars or clanking staccato funk, these five songs on "a document of the first set" are guaranteed to have your puny frame forming unimaginable contortions in vain attempts to keep up with their multi-directional racket. You may feel your head bobbing erratically, joints grinding, clicking and locking uncomfortably while each toe tries to sneak your feet in a different direction, but I swear you won’t regret a single aching tendon.

"A document of the first set" is the debut from these two Ex-Kill Yourself members, recorded in a few brief moments in the top of a pub before a William E. Whitmore gig and catched perfectly the best moments to listen to That Fucking Tank: live and loud. The fine people at Jealous Records turned it into a record in May 2004 and the band with this delightful non-radio compatible name is releasing stunning records until today and regularly plays live gigs on the British Isles and Europe. Make sure to check them out, robust and riff driven math noise.

The rain travels all the way from Siberia and this is the first place it breaks.

Russian Circles is a three piece instrumental post-metal/post-rock band from Chicago. Similar to fellow Chicago residents Pelican, Russian Circles play epic, sprawling music which runs the gamut of heavy discordant metal to soft delicate passages. They are also known for their energetic live shows, which include tours with Tool, Red Sparowes, Minus the Bear and Daughters, as well as appearances at the 2006, 2007 & 2008 SXSW festivals.

Download: Enter

Web: Myspace Page , Website

Battles is a critically acclaimed American experimental band. The band's line-up includes ex-Helmet drummer John Stanier, ex-Don Caballero guitarist Ian Williams, ex-Lynx guitarist Dave Konopka, and Tyondai Braxton (son of avant-garde jazz musician Anthony Braxton), who also plays guitar and keyboard and creates live voice samples.

Download: Mirrored

Web: Myspace Page , Website

Hella began in 2001 in Sacramento, California as a two member band writing technically intricate music of a highly spastic nature. They play a blend of math rock, noise rock and avant-garde. On early albums, the band forged their classic sound, playing minimally arranged, abrasive instrumentals that still retain an idiosyncratic sense of melody.

In 2005, the band expanded their live band by adding Dan Elkan on vocals, rhythm guitar, and synth and Jonathan Hischke on bass guitar. In 2006, Hella’s line-up was expanded to include Hill’s cousin, Josh Hill (guitar), Spencer’s Advantage bandmate Carson McWhirter (bass) and Aaron Ross (Vocals).

Download: The Devil Isn't Red

Web: Myspace Page , Website