I'd actually say 2012 was kind of a mess for Gnod overall. But it was an interesting year, though maybe the last that I'm fully into... But no tellin' for sure!
"Genocider" from Chaudelande, Vol. 2 (2012)
If you've been following Gnod closely, you've probably heard this old-school tune quite a few times. Maybe even have a few live recordings of it. Volume II eases in spare & slow with "Man on the Wire," switches up to a Buttholesque double-drum tribal segment, then cools out smooth for the drone-disco final third. And the party ends with another live staple "Entrance" (last 10 minutes of silence optional). Most of it's comprised of jammed-out berserkr drones and anguished howls. Typical.
Check out the combined V.1/V.2 CD-edition over at Bandcamp. Also includes a different-version bonus track of...
"5th Sun" from 7" single (2012)
Then there was the ltd-ed ["very"], now-OOP surprise single from Ireland's Trensmat Records. A label worth closely watching... Plus I think I like the trippy b-side version even better!
Innerspace Broadcasts, Vol. 3 by Black Gnod [Gnod + Black Bombain] (2012)
Further, there was a super-ltd-ed [of 160], now-OOP surprise livejam collaboration with Portugal's Black Bombain on Leeds' Cardinal Fuzz. That's the whole CD right there!
Wow. I'm a little surprised to find it, but there's Rocket Recordings' own ltd-ed [of 1,000], now-OOP split-EP with $hit + $hine. Just don't find myself listening to this one all that often.
"Visions of Load" from Chaudelande, Vol. 1 (2011)
O yeah, and there's a 2013 official video for "Visions of Load" off Chaudelande, Vol. 1 (part of #3, 2011). That tune appears on the only live Gnod tape currently downloadable from their SoundCloud.
I saw this new record at End of an Ear in Austin a couple of weeks back, but hadn't heard any of the tunes. Pretty cool, yeah?
"Sharpteeth" by Octopus Project, from Fever Forms (2013)
I think the only real Octopus Project I've covered so far is the Thunderbeam game Soundtrack (#10 of 2012's Top Ten Archival / Re-releases / Soundtracks / Compilations / Live / Misc...).
"Whitby" by Octopus Project, from Fever Forms (2013)
Lo-fi stop-motion origami-mation?
I swear I discovered Octopus Project opening for Pong years ago. Not like Brian Epstein discovered, just 'learned about.'
Another quality record from Maserati, after a few all-timers.
Top Ten!
"The Eliminator" from VII (2012)
Pseudo-single, or whatever you call an internet-released preview track to hype your upcoming album. In the old days, it was a single... and it came on a vinyl disc!
"Abracadabracab" from VII (2012)
As catchy & all-out as that one was, I suggest exploring the elektro-deluxe landscapes of this epic mid-album centerpiece. The whole record's real nice - another one with the textured LP cover as well...
Hey, who is that on "Synthesizer [Assisted By]"?? Why, if it isn't Steve Moore of Zombi (co-#5, 2012)!
"Solar Exodus/Lunar Drift" from VII (2012)
Just because, I made this video of a coupla atypical Maserati tracks. Vocoder & synths & something different. I like it.
And Emil continues to make the appropriate-styled official videos too. The album cover also features some swank art with a 2-texture embossed treatment.
L&C opened for Grails most recent mini-tour, and you can watch their Brooklyn show at this link (and the Grails set here.)
Long way to go & a short time to get there. Both of the two guys from Zombi (#5, 2011) were super-busy last year, and there's a ton of fun out there. Let's start with their side-splitting LP project, Brainstorm. I guess the single was Steve Moore's "Enhanced Humanoid," but here's a cool fan-vid to scope...
"Dawn of Primordial Life" by Steve Moore, from Brainstorm (2012)
Majeure's album side is the 20-minute "Atlantis Purge." Haha, epic.
"Tyken's Rift" by Steve Moore, from Light Echoes (2012)
Course that's not sufficient for either of these dudes - solo releases! Moore had this one, with the massive Part II of the title track, not surprisingly a ST:NG reference.
[Edit, 11/21: Wow, I botched that pretty good - bad "Light Echoes II" link, unclear that "Tyken's Rift" was the Star Trek reference... Fixed.]
"Extreme Northern Lights" by Majeure, from Solar Maximum (2012)
But don't forget about A.E. Paterra... he's gotta have his own (OOP) record too. And with its own catchy title track as well.
Zombi will be hitting the road again for December, opening for the fantastic Goblin reunion. Do try to catch them if you can!
Not only that, but these guys (bandmates in Zombi) have also started up a limited-edition cassette-tape label - VCO Recordings. You want some weird? Try the sold-out Rusting Cyphers of a Forgotten Sky from Jonas Reinhardt & Abyss of Fathomless Light.
On the lighter side, Abul Mogard's 2012 s/t debut tape (ed./100) is still available!
"Post-Crisis Remembrance" by Abul Mogard, from Drifted Heaven (2013)
And they're taking pre-orders for the follow-up right now... with a super-new official video preview. Each cassette order comes with full & free digital download.
[08/08/2013] Yep. I made it, Demdike made it too...
Although a bit short, a very cool set! I only noticed a few hints of original tunes or even anything that I recognized, and then a big chunk of "Kommunion" (below). The music was much like I hoped: dark & dense. Mostly run off some kinda Mac laptop and a bank of samples, effects, and patches... with a little vinyl spinning thrown in.
Got a chance to say hello at the end and thank them both for actually coming to Houston. I'd put the crowd at about 100 people, seemingly most there for Demdike Stare rather than the locals - which I thought was fantastic. I'm still a bit stunned that it really happened.
"Kommunion" live at Mango's, 8/6/2013
That doesn't really give too much of an impression of the actual experience in effect. The sound system was surprisingly nice at the little club. They did get the video projection up & running for Demdike's set - it looks like the same ones from the Berlin / Jodoverse show. Haha, those two earlier videos are kinda better representative.
Eventually a 2xCD collection was released with most of the vinyl, some alternate version replacements, and some bonus tracks... with different track order. So the original vinyl series kicked off with "Mephisto's Lament" - the second tune on the CD's, following "New Use for Old Circuits," which is not on the vinyl.
That's the whole 2xCD release right there. There's a 20-second-longer non-(Alternate Version) of "Unction" on the vinyl. Alternates are the vinyl deep cuts, but the big 'hits,' like "Mephisto's Lament" and "Violetta," transfer in their original form.
"Mnemosyne" from Elemental 2: Violetta @ 33.3 (2011)
That one comes over the same, but you have to be careful to get the right speed. Two YouTubers have put it up at 33-1/3 rpm... a mistake I myself have made. And here again, I think I'll side with the slower, wronger speed. Speaking of slower, I very much like the non-vinyl, 'bonus' CD tracks "Shade" and "10th Floor Stairwell."
Not to be negative, this kind of low-down spooky doomtronics seems to be on the way out for Demdike. Maybe just temporary until the next major project? Or yet another great act's style evolving away from what I dig? Only time will tell...
"Violetta" from Elemental 2: Violetta (2011)
Official video released when the vinyl pack was just launching. Anyway, the whole thing's pretty great - sometimes rhythmically inventive, sometimes moody & weird, sometimes something else... The CD's are streamable up there, and the vinyl's probably moot at this point. Couple more cool videos, then I'll wrap it up.
"Erosion of Mediocrity" from Elemental 3: Rose (2012)
Great tune, great video!
"Dauerlinie" from Elemental 4: Iris (2012)
Another favorite track for me. These last three made the digital transition unscathed. Okay, okay...
In February (of 2012), Demdike Stare also dropped a free Modern Love mix/Elemental podcast, "Irrational Advice" - worth checking out. (Tracklist info at the bottom of this post.)
So then there was/is the Slant Azymuth project between them & Andy Votel. For whatever reason, I've listened to this very few times. I never actively disliked it - maybe because it's vinyl only, and so less convenient? But I don't think that's the whole reason. Hold on, I'm going to listen to it now...
"Intervision 1" by Slant Azymuth, from Slant Azymuth (2012)
Maybe I've been put off by the first track/intro, "Gray Equidae," over a minute of cello scrapings & nonsense. (Maybe it's the cover art?) After that, the record alternates between Intervisions [above] and pieces with 'real' names. Like "Black Crolyn," which keeps it short but is still kinda nonsense - rhythmical this time. And yet "Intervision 2" is a little more like it.
"Helican Scan" by Slant Azymuth, from Slant Azymuth (2012)
Hey, I think I might be warming up to (parts of) this! The last couple are a 3rd, final, short Intervision [okay] and "U-Matic Thrill." Despite the name, this last track isn't a New Power Generation-era Prince jam. It's probably the most Demdikesque on the album. So, yeah... despite some weak points, I don't think I had given Slant Azymuth a fair shake. Pretty decent overall!
