Camouflage – Your Skinhead Is The Dream
‘You head was the reason
I spoke to you
and then
it was your smile
that made me sure.
Our alliance is
like China
and that is why
I’m full of fear
that something
will get broken,
which is so fragile here.
Come on my little dwarf.’
Photo: Isidora Vassili
It has been quite a while since we last heard new music from Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds. Specifically, since 2013’s ‘Push The Sky Away’, but that time comes to an end this September with a new project; a project based on a less than ordinary idea: to premiere a new album in the form of a concert film screening.
A film event posted on Los Angeles art house chain Laemmle Theatre’s website let us know that: “Nick Cave &The Bad Seeds’ new album will be released at midnight into 9th September 2016, with the film making its premiere on 8th September” and that “contrary to usual practice”, no tracks will be pre-released to media or as singles”. The album is still untitled and the event makes it clear that the film screening will be the first time “anyone anywhere will be able to hear and experience the songs”. One more thing that needs to be said is that, according to aforementioned post, the choice in filming style reflects the “intimacy and starkness” present on the mysterious new record.
Doesn’t it all sound very exciting? Maybe more is on the way and we will definitely keep you posted!
Debbie Maliotaki
In the meantime, let’s remember the title song from their latest, so far, work. Here is ‘Push The Sky Away‘.
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Natasha Khan aka Bat For Lashes/SEXWITCH etc. releases her new Bat For Lashes LP, ‘The Bride’ on 1st July. A pre-order of the LP will get you the lead single ‘In God’s House’ instantly and if you pre-order on iTunes or Amazon, you will receive ‘Sunday Love’, both out of ‘The Bride’.
Natasha Khan is a very talented woman, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and singer. She started in 2006 with ‘Fur And Gold’, following her earlier 7’’ vinyl debut single ’The Wizard’, but it was not until April 2009, though, that she made her blast when her LP ‘Two Suns’, reached no. 5 in the UK Albums Chart and was certified Gold with 100.000 copies. Her musical concerns won’t stop at Bat For Lashes and, in August 2015, she forms SEXWITCH, a psychedelic-folk world music group. She is very active making music, performing live and collaborating with other musicians, and what can be said is that she is an original talent in music. Bat For Lashes is her indie/alternative character, a blend of pop music with a kind of rock arrangement in it, that puts her name in the front line. ‘Sunday Love’ is a fantastic song with a very catchy refrain and a cinematic, excellent official video, and judging from that, we expect an ideal release on July 1st. Luckily, she set a very ambitious threshold by sharing two very good songs out of her upcoming album.
Mike Dimitriou
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Vlimmer – Loslösung EP (LDD01, Last Day Deaf)
This is our first ever free exclusive release for our label, by German act Vlimmer.
File under: ambient, cold wave, drone, krautrock, minimal
-Front Cover-
-Back cover-
Tracklist:
1 – Hinabgezogen
2 – Losgelöst
3 – Begraben
4 – Aufgelöst
5 – Zeitentschleunigt
To stream or download LDD01 follow this link.
Berlin based Vlimmer are here to push avant-garde electronica in more experimental and dark paths. Having released I , ‘II‘ , ‘III‘ all since November 2015 via Blackjack Illuminist Records, they have made the dark music collectors talk a lot about that project. I discovered them 2 months ago when I listened to ‘Verankerung’ from their first EP, they caught my attention immediately and my ears sent the right vibes to my soul; I was amazed! And I was thrilled when my eye caught certain information on their page: ‘IIII‘ is already made and out very soon.
Vlimmer make music all the time, giving it out in various formats (cassette included). They make music for our personal delights and their landscapes are esoteric, so it all demands our attention. Vlimmer use synths, computers and shoegazing stuff, and still they manage not to sound blurry or chaotic, because they are very capable of composing narratives. Vocals are on, though in a distance, you know: large halls and long decays that throw more dazzle over the music and all rhythmic aspects only exist in paleness as a reminder: you are not travelling alone, we are arranged to help you. Help you with what? You see, Vlimmer can drown you, help you through the tunnels, or even guide you to the forest and it all occurs to me as a comment on society and life itself.
In ‘Grenzbereich’ (Border Area) no 3 track, I strongly felt Vlimmer staring at me, staring at life in a distance. Does it all seem like Maldoror? They are dark but not evil; their art is pumping in urban life’s passions and questions. Listen to ‘Finsterblindheit’ (The Dark Blindness) and you might hear how barren and sad fertility can be, but, on the other hand, the main melody may take you back in the flourishing experimental pop of the 60’s in slow motion— only it’s a typical dark shoegazing song of our times.
As you go on to listen to ‘III‘, a lot instruments (or midis) will appear in front and back as flashes or as fellow passengers to the trip; ‘III‘ is somehow cinematic if you listen to it from start to finish and, to be honest, the journey they take me on is always by train. They take me from urban sites to the forest, and then again to another place where few people dwell; we travel. We find no pagan stuff along the way— but something grounded and earthly caressed me during ‘Erschöpfung’ (Exhaustion), while they took me from dark to white.
You realize that one has to be descriptive and true when it comes to releases that are not of the common music, because we don’t deal with a pop/rock genre, and every artist is a universe that needs a certain attention from us to feel what it is all about. Vlimmer are one of them and may take you to the unheard without soda in it. If we could speak of the genre they are evolving in, and it is really annoying for everybody to play and mix or invent names, we’d say it’s pure alternative dark ambient, shoegazing urban (not industrial), the music we’re listening to. If you feel that I’m wrong, then your point of view might be clearer and more precise and that’s the magic in music, and especially in music of that kind.
My lonely journey accompanied by Vlimmer was amazing, and I will get on board for the next one with them for sure. It all made my darkness bearable and, somehow, we ended up safe in a misty place where music is still overwhelming everything…
Mike Dimitriou
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The admired rock/doom trio recently put their ink in Relapse Records! The wolves are lurking in the U.S. with Karma To Burn this summer, but the wind has already blown a whistle:a new release in September! They have been silent since 1994’s ‘The Church Within‘, but now we can clearly hear Scott Weinrich’s howling:
“The time is now for rebirth of The Obsessed. Fueled with the anger, wisdom and energy of all things past, this monumental achievement is the culmination of many years of dogged determination and the belief in the music. This music that we and many others find healing and inspirational. At last it sees the light, uncompromising and laden with passion and intensity that we’ll immortalize on our new album. We’re happy to officially announce our signing with Relapse Records. They also believe in the music and are very understanding of our integrity, vision and aspirations. On tour right now in the USA, we are celebrating this experience with glorious sound. Join us on this golden road. Thanks to all who believe!’’
Get ready for doom/hard rock signed by the glorious band; it’s gonna be dusty and hazy and melodic and ritual and heavy! The guys let out a demo version of ‘Be The Night’ on May 26th, and when the summer is over they will release their new stuff.
Mike Dimitriou
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Fans of British ghostwave band idie (In Death It Ends), it’s time to cheer up a bit! A few days ago idie released their ultra fresh EP ‘Servitors’ and guess what? It is available for free digital download. The EP contains 5 tracks, running at about 20minutes, and you can get it here.
Christos Doukakis
This one, not from ‘Servitors’, is one of our IDIE favourites:
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It has been only a few days since we discovered Vore Aurora. Based in Alameda, California, that electro duo is evolving cold wave to lava wave. Jonah Phillips on synths and drums, and A’llisabeth Barrett on vocals, form a group of musicians that turn cold wave music into burning lava. Vore Aurora have been releasing music since early 2016, having published 3 singles so far. It seems that they are going to produce an LP, perform live and try to spread their art on the web.
It all started on February 14th with ‘Carmine‘, then came ‘Null Plus Void‘ on March 1st, and more recently ‘Envenom‘ on April 18th. This is all about typical American electro sound that may reach your ears warm and A-class on the hardware, along with their ace on the table: A’Lizzabeth Barret’s vocals, so warm and passionate, whilst performing a character and letting the Californian whining on the guitar to embrace her vocals in ‘Carmine‘. ‘Null Plus Void‘ lets the cold wave vein guide us with determination through their trip, and finally we end the journey in ‘Envenom‘ terminal. ‘Envenom‘ is a masterpiece, a song for the masses to dance to or an anthem to touch them. Listen to their musings and the arrangements they make or how that cold wave has the structure to cause the listener to take off. I shouldn’t forget to mention the lyrics: they judge and grieve, and they command.
Related Links:
www.youtube.com/channel/UCoYm45m8T4qGXjUHU2175Hw
Mike Dimitriou
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Norwegian Black Metallers Svartelder, whose lineup comprises members of Carpathian Forest, Nordjevel, In The Woods.. Den Saakaldte, Pantheon I, Old Forest and Doedsvangr, have released the long acclaimed debut full length album titled ‘Pyres‘.
The six-track album, set for release on Dusktone in June 2016, is available as a digipack CD , as well as a Limited Edition A5 Digi CD limited to 100 copies hand numbered, and a 300 copy Limited Edition vinyl.
The artwork has been done by Khaos Diktator.
Recorded in Norway at the Woodscave Studio. and mastered by WSL Studio in France, “Pyres” is the follow up to Svartelder’s ‘Askebundet‘ EP, which hit the streets last year, also on Dusktone as well.
Aside from founder and frontman Doedsadmiral Svartelder’s lineup comprises of Maletoth on bass and guitars, AK-47 on drums, and Kobold on keys.
There is no doubt that the band’s sound is firmly rooted in black metal, but Svartelder’s strength lies in the fact that not only is its lineup vastly experienced, it is also able to draw that experience from a variety of different musical backgrounds and influences. And this is something that allows the band to mix different elements together, bringing a fresher, more varied, approach to the overall sound.
Tracklisting for ‘Pyres‘ as follows:
01 – Guds Helvete
02 – Ingen Vet Jeg Var…
03 – Stygian Macrocosmos Pt. I
04 – Stygian Macrocosmos Pt. II
05 – Realm of Breathing Eyes
06 – Devil Of The Flesh
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David Brieske is the man behind the Fsik Huvnx project. It’s high time you got to know this artist, and we believe that the following interview, should be the best way! You can call it ambient, ethereal…whatever…This is music to get lost and dream with…
Hi David. Could you please introduce yourself to Last Day Deaf readers regarding your Fsik Huvnx project? What does the name mean?
I’ve been doing things as Fsik Huvnx for about ten years now. I had started working with sound and creating compositions, much like musique concrète. Being a visual artist first and foremost, I saw this music as an extension of that work and complementary to it.
The name means nothing and there is no specific way to pronounce it. It came about haphazardly, but I chose to use it because it will appear foreign to anyone because it’s not in any language, therefore making the project a bit of an enigma.
What is your musical background? Which artists have mostly influenced your Fsik Huvnx sound?
I don’t really have any musical training except for the music classes that I had in grade school. I’ve never taken lessons on any instrument and I’ve just started to teach myself how to read music in the last month.
I’m a really big fan of the collaboration of BJ Nilsen & Stilluppsteypa, along with David Jackman’s work as Organum. I’m sure there are some Eastern influences in there somewhere.
Back in 2012, ‘The Temple’ was supposed to be released on Iki Jime Owen Meany Records, but plans were aborted. What were the reasons? Finally, you digitally released it on bandcamp…
I don’t know the whole story, but the guy running the label just decided to call it quits. We had it mastered, the design was ready, but it never happened. I really like that album and will have it out someday in a physical format.
‘Sarmoung’ was released on cassette format by Other Electricities. Are you satisfied with this release regarding the label? Which other artists from this label would you suggest to our readers?
I was really impressed with what we did with ‘Sarmoung’. The packaging couldn’t be better. Emile from Other Electricities runs her label well. Everything is very professionally done. I have a record by Steven Hess & Miles Tilmann which is such a gem.
‘Sarmoung’ is like a maze or a puzzle. It is the soundtrack to discovery that leads to even more mystery. Would you like to help us solve this puzzle then? Would you like to leave it to the listener?
In a way, I was trying to create a soundtrack for an imaginary film. The album really just put itself together as I would find older recordings I had forgotten about, and added new material from improvisations. The titles came from things I had been researching or books I was reading at the time, all of it mostly based around philosophies. I really don’t like to divulge much information about my work, leaving the listener to discover things on his own, much the way David Lynch stays silent about his films.
In what way does sound on ‘Sarmoung’ differentiate from ‘The Temple’?
I’ve never really thought about it. I think they both go well together. ‘The Temple’ definitely has more sounds to it on the first side. I was really experimenting and putting a lot of things in there. There’s a lot of layering. But I didn’t have a synth at that time, which really dominates ‘Sarmoung’, sounding like an organ.
As far as I know, you are leaving for India for a period of time! Is it a professional trip? Would you like to share some information about this?
I’ll be in India for most of April. The trip was kind of planned on a whim, but I’ve always wanted to go there and airfare is cheap right now. I’ll be making field recordings there, along with plenty of pictures. No agenda, so far, but there are some cities in Rajasthan I’d really like to see.
Which are your favorite ambient and field recording musicians and why?
It’s one thing to just make field recordings, and another to be able to take those recordings and manipulate them in a way so as to give them feeling with the addition of musical elements. I really think Loren Chasse does this well under his project, Of. (Try to Google that one!) As for ambient music, Elodie can do no wrong.
Please name 3 desert island records, books and movies.
For music, it would have to be ‘Yasimika’ by Jali Musa Jawara, ‘Rocks Will Open’ by Of, and maybe ‘The Sky’s Gone Out’ by Bauhaus. But I’ve travelled quite a bit in desert areas and really appreciate the silence where I could be reading anything by Paul Bowles, ‘Klein und Wagner’ by Hermann Hesse, and ‘A Happy Death’ by Albert Camus. Not a huge film buff, but I could watch ‘The Sheltering Sky’, ‘Beach Café’ over and over. Maybe a Béla Tarr film.
You are also known as a visual artist. How do you combine both arts?
I haven’t done much visual art in the last three years. Occasionally I think of beginning a painting, but it never happens.
What are your future plans as Fsik Huvnx? Are you going to continue creating music under this alias?
I don’t have any plans to end the project. Actually, I have been working on a new album. Fsik Huvnx may go through some transformations and become something quite different from what it is now, I’m not sure. I have a lot of ideas, it’s just being able to realize them that’s the hard part.
Photo credits: Ringo Jimenez (first one), Janese Weingarten (second one)
Christos Doukakis
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