| FluxEuropa - dark music and more FluxEuropa has suspended active publication and no longer requires items for review. The site is, however, being maintained as an archive and you can still order Amazon products which helps to subsidise its continuation. |
 |
 |
|
home
> music >
MUSIC NEWS APRIL 1999 FluxEuropa is pleased to receive material for
review. The postal address is: early musicNAXOS Naxos was founded by Klaus Heymann in 1986 as a budget but quality 'classical' label, a balance achieved by using good, but relatively unknown, artists. Avoiding duplication of the musical cannon, the company produces a wide range of very cheap CDs including a good selection of music for viols, a popular instrument from the 16th to the 18th centuries but rendered obsolete by members of the violin family which better suited changing tastes. Naxos' main featured artists for this period are the Rose Consort of Viols and the Red Byrd choral group. Look out for works by William Byrd (1543-1623) Orlando Gibbons (1583-1625), John Jenkins (1592-1678), William Lawes (1602-1645), Marin Marais (1656-1728), and Thomas Tomkins (1572-1656). Rik - 7 April 1999 filmic C17H19NO3 Formed in 1992, C17H19NO3 is the awkwardly named solo project of John Bergin of the goth band, Trust Obey. John is also a graphic designer and science-fantasy comic-book artist and carries the dark mood of his graphic concerns into the musical dimension. This epic-sounding work is a motion picture soundtrack and maintains a fast and dramatic pace with an air of menace and suspense. Guest-vocalists include Jarboe (ex-Swans) who also features on the Middle Pillar compilation reviewed below. Rik - 7 April 1999 innovative metal IN THE WOODS MADDER MORTEM Strange In Stereo from In The Woods has good male and female vocals by Ovl Svithjod and Synne Diana and almost completes the group's move from their Black Metal origins to a more mature, atmospheric sound. Madder Mortem were formed as Mystery Tribe in 1993 and issued their first CD, Misty Sleep, in 1997. The latest CD contains both new material and some remixes from the earlier album. Agnete M Kirkevaag also provides good female vocals, and their offering is generally both more experimental and more gothic than the one from In The Woods. The first track seems to be a demonstration of control: just when you think some heavy rock guitars are about to go into overdrive...they don't. Madder Mortem aptly describe their music as having "spells of controlled aggression". Despite Misanthropy's outstanding success, readers will be disappointed to learn that Misanthropy founder and boss, Tiziani Stupia, is closing down the company and selling off the backlist due to a personal desire to move on to bigger and better things. Rik - 7 April 1999 other OBERON Mysteries is the second album from Bård Titlestad's Oberon and features an arty combination of romantic piano music, filmic keyboards, folky acoustic guitar, singing, and, thanks to guest musicians, clarinet, oboe and snare drums. The result sometimes sounds like a classical recital, sometimes like synthpop, sometimes like Apocalyptic folk and sometimes like rather dated pop/easy listening. Failing to fit into a category is no problem providing an artist can create one of their own, but I don't think this quite succeeds. Rik - 7 April 1999 ROZENGRAGHT Rozengraght's New Roze EP consists of three tracks ('New Roze Parts I - III'). It's a demonstration of vintage clattering metal bashing industrial from this Austrian ensemble. It's quite captivating although Andreas Maurer's vocals don't seem to fit in here - he sounds like he's crying. Maybe someone with a bit more venom, or even instrumentals, would've sounded better. JOHN MARSHALL - 7 April 1999
compilations It's a pleasure to sink into the otherworldliness of another excellent compilation from Prikosnovenie reflecting their predilection for ethereal female vocals and dreamy ambient music. I particularly liked Tragos Adein's 'Le lac où je suis mort', Les Secrets de Morphée's 'Sarabande' which uses instruments and mouth music to produce an exotic dance tune and Ataraxia with live versions of 'Bontrrop' and 'Ophélie'. Rik - 7 April 1999
VARIOUS New York dark music retailers, Middle Pillar, have launched their own label and their premier production is an excellent compilation featuring previously unreleased material from fourteen bands. My personal favourites are 'Falling Softly' from The Machine In The Garden, 'Conjuration To Lilith' by Unto Ashes (dreamy and haunting neofolk with bells if not whistles), 'Petals In Sequence' by Mors Syphilitica (penetrating female vocals) 'Petals From A Rose' from Quartet Noir (a slimmed-down version of Tony Wakeford's Orchestre Noir with gurgling electronic harpsichord), 'Malcolm's Righteous Dub (Spacious Mix)' from The Changelings (dreamy with distorted female vocals), 'Leaving The Isles Of The Blest (Remix)' by Backworld (apocalyptic folk), and 'Breathe' by Jarboe (ex-Swans, distinctive vocals and wind-chimes). Tony Wakeford also appears in a duo with Tor Lundvall. The compilation is in a limited edition of 1000 copies and is marred only by the gatefold digipak which was nicely designed graphically by Derek Rush of Dream Into Dust but remains somewhat 'functional'. Rik - 7 April 1999
Our Macedonian friends, Kismet, now have a website based in their homeland: Rik - 7 April 1999
|
||
 |
 |
VARIOUS
HOME
| ART
| BOOKS
| FILMS
| MUSIC
| MUSIC
2 | PERSONAE
| LOCALITY
| MISCELLANY
| LINKS © FluxEuropa.com |