CATALOG
cc030 - cardboard sax/wasteland jazz unit split 12" (lmd to 300) $11ppd us/$13ppd canada+mexico/$18ppd world
CARDBOARD SAX is Holly (Uneven Universe), Dan (Uneven Universe, Haunted Castles, Body Morph), and Olson (Wolf Eyes, Graveyards, Dead Machines) on saxs and electronics. Amazing use of space and restraint on this killer LP debut. Haunting excursions into the dark basement sax damage happening across Michigan these days. Perfect recording and a great example to introduce this trio to the world outside the midwest.
cc035 - pbk "the deadened stream of eve" cs-46 (lmd to 60) $6ppd/$8ppd world
Michigan is not a lovely place. I have found myself lost in parts of Detroit where packs of dogs roam the streets. One such time, a group of about five circled my car and began barking. Not wishing to hit them, I accelerated slowly and they rushed to the front of my car meeting it head on. It took me a few minutes to figure out how to get out of the situation: finally, I had to throw my car in reverse so they would run to the back of my car, and once they had done so, put it back in drive and get the hell out of wherever I was. To me, that is how Michigan is, at least the dying cities. It's fucked up and dangerous, even though it was probably cute at one time. I feel like the air holds that feeling that I had when I was nervous and trying to avoid causing harm to any living creature. But for Michigan noise artists, they're used to it. The abandoned cities and their lonely streets filled with fear are evident in every release I listen to. This is no exception.
cc036 - vestigial limb "katyn spring" cs-30 (lmd to 40) $6ppd/$8ppd world
Sitting here and listening to the Vestigial Limb master for the fortieth time, I find myself having a difficult time trying to describe it. Everything I write ends up with the phrase "from hell" tacked on to the end. But that is what this tape is. A dark journey into slow dark folk loops, tape manipulations and dense layers building up into an all around evil feeling. I am positive that Ray Shinn could make beautiful drone music that everyone would eat up. Not to say this isn't beautiful, it is. It's just twisted and scary and the soundtrack to how I want my world to end.
cc039 - peter j woods "read this. don't read this" cs-20 (lmd to 55) $6ppd/$8ppd world
This is probably the best I have ever heard Peter J Woods sound, it just happens to be a coincidence that I am releasing this tape. I feel like he's really come into his own lately and this release is no exception. It seems as if he has taken inspiration from his influences to create something familiar yet entirely unique to what is happening in the noise scene currently. The two pieces on this release are beautiful examples of an artist using sound in subtle, captivating and exciting ways.
cc029 - charlie turner "incomplete tape ii" cs-40 (lmd to 40) $6ppd/$8ppd world
Five killer tracks recorded by St Louis' Charlie Turner in 2009. The first time I saw Charlie, I was amazed by how simple his set up was. I think it was just a miniKorg and a pedal. He's added some more effects to his aresenal, but I believe he stands in the forefront of the "less is better" harsh thinking.
cc034 - water "dialysis" cs-40 (lmd to 60) $6ppd/$8ppd world
This tape is messed up. Completely composed of samples, it's unlike anything I have ever released or ever thought I would release. The second I heard the master, I was overwhelmed with how great it was. Recommended if you like: Eno/Byrne, The Books. Really mellow and beautiful yet catchy and fun at times. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
cc027 - wether "chinese grasp" cs-20 (lmd to 40) $6ppd/$8ppd world
Mike Haley lays down two sides of blackened drone and harsh industrial squall. Dark and slowly manipulating loops start the A side as buried walls of feedback creep up on the listener. Side B is a killer drone with background scrapes and other manipulations.
cc024 - plasmic formations "arriving at the end to find another beginning" cs-60 (lmd to 30) $6ppd/$8ppd world
During the winter of 2008, in the desolate wasteland of Dayton, OH, "Arriving At The End To Find Another Beginning" was captured on tape. Prior to touring within a collaborative duo (opposite Teeth Collection), PLASMIC FORMATIONS (YES, COLLAPSE, GHOST OF OBTUSE, BLACK ALMAS, KVLT OF UNICRON, MEANING), recorded the two progressive synth exploration pieces which are found on this release. The selections included showcase the cold, etheral and ambiant style that PLASMIC FORMATIONS has become known for over the past 8 years of performing.
cc022 - swamp horse "ravish" cs-30 (lmd to 50) $6ppd/$8ppd world
Cassette Gods described Swamp Horse's first cassette on Husk as "serious dank cave shit". I couldn't agree more. Swamp Horse is Josh Lay and Morgan Rankin overwhelming listeners with synth drone washouts. This tape is going to go fast so I recommend you grab it now.
From Smooth Assailing: swamp horse is the kentucky-based duo of husk records proprietors josh lay (cadaver in drag) and morgan rankin. the only info that i can find on rankin is that he's more known for his work in the visual arts field.
contact/paypal - tonightgoldencurls [at] gmail [dot] com
The Deadened Stream of Eve was recorded in late June while PBK was reflecting on the demise of the GM factories of Flint, photos he had taken that weekend of his city as a ghost town, and the killings and protests in Iran. It's a really heavy release, in an emotional sense. Synth tones slither and die and emptiness is personified through audio. So much goes on throughout this release and it is hard to choose what to mention, but the general feeling of dread never goes away, and that's what makes me keep going back to this release as the summer slowly dies and the skies start to turn grey.
On Side A, tapes and record manipulation create an intensely strange atmosphere while static groundcover and some looped vocal samples make way for drums and dark drones. The noise answer to freak folk? Doubtful, but something I hope to hear a lot more of over the next few years.
Side B has organ tones while distortion and abused metal manipulations creep over them to leave a desolate path of destruction and filth.
The A side finds Mr Woods in a stark and dismal setting. A slow industrial-type beat (like a sleep deprived Swans) that gets some killer panning treatment before some amazing textured harsh moments filter in. This piece seems completely controlled while evolving slowly into darker territories.
On the B side, crushing lows fill the first half of this piece as distorted vocals make their presence known. I can not begin to articulate how great the vocals sound on this side. Unlike the first tape, this side starts off a bit harsh and slowly mellows out into a beautiful subtle creeper of an end.
Includes listening instructions. Well worth a read in order to help you enjoy the experience of this album even more.
side a sample
side b sample
dead metaphors sample
1968 sample
side a sample
side b sample
side a sample
side b sample
while cadaver in drag can be enigmatic, varying their sound a bit from release to release (but how great was raw child? damn), lay's solo work has pretty much been in the grim noise vein. visually, ravish would seem to follow in those footsteps with the gothic font and occult-like artwork, so i was pretty surprised when i heard this one.
raw child had a song that was appropriately entitled walking through the gates of hell. if i were to name side a's untitled track, it would be sauntering through the pearly gates. not at all what i would've expected, but it's nice to defy expectations (sometimes). this revolves almost exclusively around warm drones and shimmering electronic ambiance, which is pushed to the forefront, that freely moves in and out of the mix. i think that the word celestial suitably sums this side up. there's not much in the way of dynamics; this is enchanting music for zoning out to, plain and simple.
side b takes a turn for the somber. the ubiquitous ambiance is now stern, less inviting, even harsh at times; haunting the piece like a spectre. the drones have been replaced by multiple layers of a lifeless stuttering hum... this is more like the josh lay that we know and love. i'm really liking the slightly understated synth loop that's holding everything together (along with the mechanical pulsations in the background). this is all bleak, but i dig it. it comes across as side a's evil twin, just as captivating, but more likely to make the temperature of your room seem a few degrees colder.
From Cassette Gods: While it is not a Cassette Gods law that I do so, I avoid writing about the same artists over and over again. We get sent a lot of tapes, and, as a guy who writes mostly about Harsh Noise, I tend to have plenty of new things to ramble about. Which is why it should be surprising that I am writing about another Swamp Horse tape only two months after I wrote about the last one. And this is only their second tape! Perhaps when they release their third, I will be again so compelled to write that I will continue to cover their entire discography.
My review of the self titled cassette on Husk was positive, but I wouldn't say it was a rave. When CG was sent a promo of "Ravish" I thought I'd sit back and let one of my colleagues take a crack at it. When I found that nobody had claimed the tape, I popped it in my player, with no intention of reviewing it. This time, Swamp Horse has become, like, my favorite new band.
The A side contains one long shimmering drone that rises and falls with it's own woozy logic, with tones that conjure a low-fi Vangelis, without the heroic melodies. It's much less spooky than the previous cassette; where the self titled tape was the soundtrack to the creeping approach of a Lovecraftian forest beast, this first side is the morning after, when the sunrise finally breaks on the faces of the night's survivors. Side B is a return to doomier territory, but retains some of the glassy high-end sheen of the A side's palette. Beneath touches of spikey, hairy distortion, a nebula of synth tones swirl and churn. A more science fictiony affair, perhaps-- like watching a second generation VHS dupe of Event Horizon on a really small TV, and still getting the shit scared out of you.