REVIEW: RUSS STEDMAN - "Blowing Chunks Of Theory" - 2012

RUSS STEDMAN
"Blowing Chunks Of Theory" CD album thing
http://www.russstedman.com/album-pages/056/056.htm
Mostly? entirely? instrumental? Fun musical and sonic puns about music, like "Diamonds & Pears." "One Mile High" is slow and spacey, like a Prince song played at 20 BPM? This album is not like symphonic dubstep dirge digeridoo glitch-witch or anything out of left field, Russ is giving ya/me what ya/I want, which is great songs, great production, great performances, great fuckin' guitar tone that makes me wanna pick up a guitar myself, and drumming that sounds like a live drummer, except better. It ain't fuckin' rocket science. "Vitreous Humour" is another favorite, it's like rocked-out MIDI files of a Marilion song or something. Hah. "Eat The Sun" contains some symphonic elements, don't get me wrong, some cool phrasing, fiddly bits, cool shit to go around. Also, "A Tin Teardrop" which is bulbous, also tapered? No, but it does sound like a fitting tribute to Dr. Beefheart & His Electric Teeth. "Insomnia," god DAMN those drums are cool! "Try Eating That (In Stereo)" and "Leaping Stink Snow" are an humorous pair of homages maybe to the "Zoot Allures" era, and to Frank's Synclavier years respectively. Or I could be totally wrong, fuck if I know. "Stale Trident" brings the proceedings to a close, in grand, lighters in the air, fog machine, laser finale fashion. Get it now, stop reading this. Shut up.
Ian C Stewart

REVIEW: Distant Trains - Congratulations On Your Suicide CD, 2010

Distant Trains - Congratulations On Your Suicide CD, 2010

DISTANT TRAINS
Congratulations On Your Suicide
CD, 2010http://www.sleeponthefloor.com/releases/016/016.htm
Distorted bass guitar with clean drum programming and wandering keys on top. Plus vocal. "Take Care" is like a doom metal version of Soul Whirling Somewhere. And the bursts of bluesy guitar, I should not be enjoying this. The production can be summed up in two words: clean scuzz. Just like the early work of one of my favorite bands, Idaho. "Desert" is probably more like Queens Of The Stone Age, maybe? I enjoy the distorto-bass guitar-forward songwriting, vocals waaaaay off over there in the semi-background. The elements are familiar, but the picture is still pretty.
Ian C Stewart

REVIEWS: Bat Lenny - "Shadowland" and "The Atomic Toybox" CDs

Bat Lenny - Shadowland CD, 2008

BAT LENNY
Shadowland EP
CD, 2008
http://batlenny.com
Progressive pop that is equal parts Yes and XTC, and no, I don't just mean ELO. In days of old, the "Shadowland" suite would merely have been known as side four of the new LP, a 17-minute theme in 5 parts. Bat Lenny is the King Crimson of the underground.
Ian C Stewart

Bat Lenny - The Atomic Toybox CD, 2009

BAT LENNY
The Atomic Toybox
CD, 2009
Massive prog-pop a la Mike Kenneally. I really enjoyed this one. "Gravity" opens with a single synthesizer note being filtered, kind of like any old song by the Human League. The song starts with a minimial drum beat, which is vamped on and reacted to by the other instruments, gradually building up into a groove like the Police. Primus meets E.L.O. This album is Marillionesque (I guess, Genesisesque would make more sense) in its scope. Repeated listenings required and rewarded.
Ian C Stewart

REVIEW: Vocabularinist – Monkey Brains Controlling Robot Arms CD, 2006

Vocabularinist – Monkey Brains Controlling Robot Arms CD, 2006

VOCABULARINIST
Monkey Brains Controlling Robot Arms
CD, 2006
Funky, mechanized grooves with miles of vocal loops. And funk. It's not Meat Beat Manifesto, but it's also not Perry Como, it's not a lot of things. Rhythm and melody. "All Refelctions End Here" is kind of like the bastard offspring of Gary Numan and early Nine Inch Nails, but better. Dark electronica. Have I said Skinny Puppy enough yet in this issue? In the early 1990s, we called this stuff 'industrial,' just meaning that it's dark and girls could dance to it. "Getting To Thou" gives those headphones a workout, all the elements jumping across the stereo spectrum. "It's A Dull Ride" is like drum & bass Pop Will Eat Itself. Monkey Brains Controlling Robot Arms is fun, funky and futile to ignore.
Ian C Stewart

REVIEW: Mekigah - The Serpent's Kiss CD, 2011

MEKIGAH The Serpent's Kiss CD, 2011

MEKIGAH
The Serpent's Kiss
CD, 2011
This CD is many types of metal, all at the same time. It's like a cross between My Dying Bride and Dead Can Dance. It's heavy and epic as a motherfucker. The production lends itself to headbanging and air-piano playing, or so I've been told. They have the male/female vocal thing down. The music of "In The Garden" sounds like Mercyful Fate crossed with Enya. It's the kind of unique plot twist that heavy metal needs to keep my attention. This album requires repeated listenings. Dream Theater meets Yanni? Wait, there is some saxophone, so maybe King Diamond plus Kenny G? Gothic jazz metal. Absolutely unique.
Ian C Stewart

REVIEW: Squeegeed Clean - Synchronised Fucking Up And Pre-Emptive Flashbacks CD, 2011

Squeegeed Clean - Synchronised Fucking Up And Pre-Emptive Flashbacks CD, 2011

SQUEEGEED CLEAN
Synchronised Fucking Up And Pre-Emptive Flashbacks CD, 2011
http://squeegeedclean.bandcamp.com
This CD compiles two previous releases of this Aussie posse, which includes Skot, Graz, amd Funkmeister G, I think. This is the cleanest and most polished avant garde noise free jam love I've heard in a while. Guitars, synths, drum machines and percussion, often with tons of echo and delay. The first nine tracks date from 2005, the last four were made in 2009, but the sound is coherent, cohesive, tight and professional as far as this type of thing usually goes. Meaning no huge volume spikes or anything else that will blow out your eardrums and/or speakers.
Ian C Stewart

REVIEW: Mass Debate - "Shun" CD, 2011

mass debate - shun

MASS DEBATE
Shun CD, 2011
Funky hiphop with large beats, fat basslines and an Aussie female MC/singer. The production is clear and thumpin'. The lyrics are all questioning governmental politics, racism and sexual politics. The more overtly sexual lyrics remind me of Lady Sovereign and Princess Superstar. The songs are sharp, snappy, quick in and out. I haven't heard a combination of political energy and pop music this smooth since Chumbawamba. Catchy pop rap that probably sounds great on the radio. Beats and production by Skot, Ernie and Meagan D, who also did the rhymes. Consolidated, remember them? "if you fuck up, just sit on your hands," nice hook.
Ian C Stewart

REVIEW: 'kirchenkampf' + Pixyblink "Nevermore and Nevertheless" CD, 2011

kirchenkampf' + Pixyblink - Nevermore and Nevertheless CD, 2011

KIRCHENKAMPF + PIXYBLINK
Nevermore And Nevertheless CD, 2011
Cohort Records
John Gore and ambient cohort (get it?) Pixyblink bring the massive, exhaling whoosh on this one. Drones, arranged to decay, and not. There's a looping, high whooshy thing on opening piece "Affair De Coeur" that is quite something else. "Enfant Terrible" vacillates between quiet beauty and obnoxious aggression. Hellish soundtrack music. Or, soundtrackish hell music, take your pick. "Profanum Vulgus" is a cool title for one of the more understated pieces on this album. The quiet moments in general are terrifying and beautiful. "Mal De Mer," I like the way the synths are being tweaked and freaked in both speakers. "Laborare Est Orare" ends the album on quite a majestic note, literally. Awesome.
Ian C Stewart

REVIEW: Moljebka Pvlse &; Cría Cuervos "Vid vägs ände" (Road's End) - CD

MOLJEBKA PVLSE and CRIA CUERVOS
Vid vägs ände (Road's End) CD, 2011
Cohort Records, 128 Condo Street, Monticello, IN 47960 USA
http://cohortrecords.0catch.com
Two long pieces, assembled by Sweden's Moljebka Pvlse and Italy's Cría Cuervos. Epic drone-ambients. "pa vndrande fot (Traveling By Foot)" fills the air nicely, with several twists and turns. It's cinematic in spots. "det ar aldrig for sent att vanda om (It's Never Too Late To Turn Back)" is a cleaner drone, reminding me of the music for the film 'Baraka', it feels profound, especially around the 20-minute mark, it sounds like a didjeridoo or its eastern equivalent, and a bit of feedback behind it. The last few minutes, with the reversed vocal sample loop is astounding. Gorgeous.
Ian C Stewart

REVIEW: amptext + bass / Blk w bear - split CD, 2011

amptext + bass / Blk w bear split CD 2011

AMPTEXT + BASS / BLK W BEAR
"Nine Strings" / "Ten Outtakes & Demos"
Split CD, 2011Cohort Records
The first track by amptext + bass, "The Ghosts Of Silent Radios," sounds like about four different scores by John Cage played at the same time, which, for all I know, it might be. It sounds like a person playing a cello. There's a bit of messing-around with a handheld tape recorder (I assume), the air in the room. An old telephone in a box, or something. Hard core avant garde. "Bodyment 1" and "Bodyment 2"  continue with the same template, while the final two pieces are less tape-menacing and more live performances, if that description makes any sense. The cello playing is deft and scrapey, and the pieces include lots of silence.  Nice. The tracks by Blk w bear that follow are of the ambient noise ilk, or dark ambience. "Valve Languere [Vasoline Mix]" includes some interesting samples and loops which gradually fade across the inner ear thing. "Reade Lactid" sounds like some sampler abuse, of which I approve. "Salt Water Coughing" finishes up sounding like a pipe organ being devoured by a poltergeist. This deeply experimental split CD is available now. Handmade covers, the whole deal. John Gore really does this sh1t up.
Ian C Stewart

REVIEW: Azalia Snail - "Celestial Respect" CD, 2011

Azalia Snail - Celestial Respect, 2011

AZALIA SNAIL
Celestial Respect CD, 2011
Silber Records
Raw and ethereal at the same time, two qualities long thought to be mutually exclusive. "Solar Riser" opens with multiple layers of vocal and keyboard drones. "Burnt Cookies" starts with a satisfyingly simple drum beat and builds into a sort of a gothic Rolling Stones full-band groove, disappearing behind a wall of echo. The songs are interspersed with keyboard and vocal passages which are themselves cloaked in slapback echo. "Fallen Down" is a straight, quiet passage near the end. The overall tone reminds me of the first couple of Jarboe solo albums I heard, and, like those, "Celestial Respect" is its own thing.
Ian C Stewart

REVIEW: KNITTING BY TWILIGHT - WEATHERING - CD, 2011

Knitting By Twilight - Weathering CD 2011

KNITTING BY TWILIGHT
Weathering CD, 2011
http://www.itstwilightmusic.com
Fascinating, percussive instrumentals with art rock tendencies. It would be lazy to say Dead Can Dance with special guest Robert Fripp, so I won’t say it. The soundtrackish, professional production places this album into a category all its own. And though the song title “Harold’s Budds” may tip their hand, Knitting By Twilight is more than mere gauzy piano. The layers of hand percussion deserve a special mention, and the unique, darkly Asian tone of the cymbals. The dynamics ensure that this is not some overly-rigid MIDI new age pastiche, or something. I’m losing the plot trying to say how much I’m enjoying this. I do! I’m reminded of David Sylvian’s better instrumental pieces.
Ian C Stewart

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REVIEW: Evan Peta - Mockingbird Hill CD, 2011

EVAN PETA - MOCKINGBIRD HILL

EVAN PETA
Mockingbird Hill CD, 2011
www.dezvalentino.com
This is a good album for fans of rock guitar in all its guises. Classic rock with clean, harmonized riff and vocals just like that band Masters Of Reality. "It's All Too Much" opens in grand fashion, amid squalls of lead guitar. Tuneful guitar rock. Is this freedom rock? "It's All Good" is like Blue Oyster Cult meets They Might Be Giants. Or is it? "Jazz And Peanut Butter" is a delightful thrash-speed romp for guitar, bass and saxophone sound, definite Frank Zappa territory there. "Gamma Ray Shuffle" is built on a John Bonham drum break, but not the one most people use. Cool. "Peace, Love & Nuclear Fusion (Part 3)" is a pretty/menacing instrumental keyboard ditty, a la Ace Frehley's "Fractured Mirror." "Dorian Gray Scale" is a fun guitar/bass riff pattern thing. The last song, "Mockingbird Hill" is a similarly enervating procession. Of rock.
Ian C Stewart

CD REVIEW: Greg Stomberg and Dan Susnara – The Second Acid Fest – 2010

GREG STOMBERG and DAN SUSNARA
The Second Acid Fest CD, 2010
Metroweb Studios
Greg Stomberg excitedly relates an apparently true tale about a drug party. Dan Susnara’s music bed is comprised of samples, sound effects, guitars, and other stuff. The vibe is folky and spacey, befitting the subject. “And Other Chemical Misadventures Of” opens the proceedings with eight and a half minutes of sprawl. “On Blackhawk’s Land” adds a hint of menace to the trippy vibe, with heavily-effected drones flying around in both directions. This album takes full advantage of the stereo spectrum, again befitting the hallucinatory subject matter. Expansive and grandiose, this is the opposite of easy listening. “We’re All Working For The Common Good” fires up a bluesy bit of distorted guitar and drum machine, which is like Ministry with Joe Walsh or something. “…what are you talkin’ about, man…?” looped. One might ask the same of you. “Exports, Procession And Wolfbiker” is eighteen and a half minutes of freaked-out funhouse vibe, which is like Skinny Puppy’s “Spahn Dirge,” conceptually, at least. Pretty in some spots, rockin’ in others. “Ambling Down,” the closer, is definitely more along the rockin’, riffin’, almost prog rock-like in scope. Lo-fi prog rock for stoned baby boomers.
Ian C Stewart

CD REVIEW: Russ Stedman – Cherry Creek, 2011

RUSS STEDMAN
Cherry Creek CD, 2011
http://www.russstedman.com
The winter of 2010/2011 was a bitch for some of us. After spending a night in a mental care institution, Russ came out and made a concept album about his experience. The tone of the songs is dark but not bleak. Sad, but not hopeless. “I’ve Given Up Again” opens with Gilmour-esque acoustic strumming. “I’m Only Happy When I Cry” picks up the pace, somewhat, and deploys a stabbing line of synth octaves. I like the frantic vibe of “Short-Term Disability”. The production job is impressive, as usual. Note-perfect, clean as a bell. What? “I’m a spoiled little bitch and I don’t want to work anymore,” goes this one, titled “I Don’t Wanna Work Anymore.” “And I Think” is funky and fun, like Bjorn, John and John. “When Will The Drugs Take Effect?” is a moody, eight minute epic that’s something like Jane’s Addiction meets New Order or something, and the drumming is rad. “Cherry Creek” is the book-end, a companion piece to th opening song, except it builds up into a whole big coda thing. Another damn fine release from Sted.
Ian C Stewart

another AUTOreverse Issue One excerpt – CD review – BACCHUS JIHAD (1995)

BACCHUS JIHAD
BACCHUS JIHAD CD
Music that has no agenda, and that can’t be compared to anybody else’s has always appealed to me. That’s the case with Bacchus Jihad. This CD was really relaxing, and very emotionally absorbing. The vocals, (especially in the first track “Cranial Bedfellows”) are absolutely beautiful. The CD contains a lot of machines, a little chanting, and other fun-filled effects. There is a lot of unmasked potential here, and I hope everyone who read this will give them a true listen. If I had to throw it at a certain group of listeners, I would reocmmend this to anyone who likes a cross between industrial and gothic, and has a sense of humor.
Kim Rizzo

CD REVIEW - TEENAGE SLOTS – WE OUTLIVED REAGAN – CD 2011

TEENAGE SLOTS
We Outlived Reagan
Stedmusik CD 2011
http://www.russstedman.com
Gorgeously rendered trips down memory lane. The beauty of modern technology is that you can go back and make everything sound as it was intended. The circa-1986 songs are energetic, melodic, tuneful, energy-up. This genre would be, I guess classic midwestern punk rock, if that’s not an oxymoron.“Ronald Reagan Is A Dick!” Don’t dance the poot. Righteous. “People On Drugs” gets one hell of a retrofit, with booty bass drums and autotune vocals. And there’s a whole current of anti-jock rhetoric, which amuses me to no end.
Ian C Stewart

BUY NOW, BEFORE THEY RUN OUT!!!!!!!!!!

CD REVIEW - JESU – INFINITY – 2009

jesu infinity

JESU
‘Infinity’
CD/vinyl/download
49:31
http://www.avalancheinc.co.uk/jesu.html
THIs is one long track of the continued evolution of Justin Broadrick, the long, slow, gradual, career-length, fascinating shift. “Infinity” is one continuous piece, with all instruments handled by Broadrick, which is very cool considering how it sounds like an entire band. “Infinity” is something I’ve waited a long time for, a doom pop epic. It starts off quite heavy actually with a double-bass drum program that is just slammin’, as always. His beats are always immacuate! The sonic landscape changes throughout, instruments fading in & out but it’s not like a big ambient piece or even like a jam. Just a very long pop song! It dates from 2009 but this is already my top track for 2010 & I’ve only just heard it the one time this morning!!!!!!!
YOW!

CD REVIEW: TOD HOWARTH – OPPOSITE GODS – CD – 2010

TOD HOWARTH
“Opposite Gods” 2010
CD or download
www.todhowarth.com
So….Tod got the memo that all of the many KISS-related releases of the past year will be heavy, dark, tuned down and surprisingly well-done. (That list of albums includes Ace Frehley’s “Anomaly,” KISS’s “Sonic Boom” and Bruce Kulick’s “BK3″.) The advantage of Tod Howarth’s creative autonomy is that if he wants to put a relatively happy sounding-song in the middle of the playlist, or if he wants to put some keyboards way out in front of the mix, then he’s gonna do it! (That’s one thing about the current wave of of KISS-related stuff, it’s a bit one-dimensional, whereas Tod can layer all the vocal harmonies he wants since he doesn’t have to keep it simple enough for onstage reproduction, if ya know what I mean.) This is a full-on, Todd Rundgren-style do-it-yourself-er of an album, all the instruments, all the songs. And you’d never know this fact just by listening. The album is cohesive, the production is great & modern, the songs are complex & deep. I hope “Opposite Gods” finds a wider audience than KISS obsessives. I LIKE IT and it gets better with every listen. Plus occasional swearing. NICE.
Ian C Stewart

CD REVIEW: RUSS STEDMAN – ALERT BUT WITHOUT ACUTE DISTRESS

RUSS STEDMAN
Alert But Without Acute Distress CD
www.russstedman.com
Opens with a funny & fun note-perfect cover of Iron Maiden’s “Prowler” (the opening joint from their 1981 album ‘Killers’), only missing maybe a touch of wah-wah on that main riff. Nitpicking. Track two, “Why Am I Alive” continues the hot-rockin’ air guitar & cowbell inspiring frenzy this time with KISS lyrics from the song “Tomorrow and Tonight” (from their 1977 album ‘Love Gun’), among other lyrical appropriations. “Find them and Kill them” is a moody jazzbo instrumental with kind of heavy metal guitaristic soloing a la maybe Al DiMeola. “My Haunted Heart” continues in a ballady, minor key manor. “Random Word Generator” could be from Frank Zappa’s Synclavier period. ie, a grooveless frenzy of MIDI tones, suitably pointillistic and information-dense. Closer “Penis Dimension” IS a Zappa cover, so there ya go. Maiden to Zappa in one album by way of KISS. & can I just say, the production is so damn nice. Everything sounds clean as a freshly shaved beaver.
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