Vuzh Music Blog

My post detailing my favorite netlabel releases of 2010 was quite popular, and led to a lot of people discovering some cool music, which is one of my main goals, aside from promoting my own music. It is my humble opinion that all netlabel artists ought to have the same goal: namely to promote the stuff in the netlabel underground that they think is really great at the same time as they promote their own stuff. That way ALL of us benefit, both listeners and producers. Right? Right.
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With this in mind, I am going to be focusing on each artist (hopefully-this will depend on if they want to participate or not) whom I reviewed in the best of 2010 post, re-running the review I originally wrote, but I’m ALSO going to ask each of the artists reviewed to recommend a few completely FREE netlabel albums that THEY have enjoyed recently.
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Previously we’ve had recommendations from:
1.) Mystified
2.) Marc Weidenbaum
3.) Christopher McFall
4.) Andreas Brandal
5.) Meteer
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Gurdonark’s unassuming little record from 2010 made my best-of list, here was my appraisal:
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Gurdonark – Butterflies of North Texas
http://fluttersongs.blogspot.com/2010/07/gurdonark-butterflies-of-north-texas_24.html
Gurdonark’s unique brand of sampling-synth musical fancies takes a move into slightly darker territories than last year’s wonderful “Seven Virtues”. Don’t look for scary dark ambient or anything though! Self-described “kid music” with odd modes, interesting sounds and unexpected changes.

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Robert Nunnally, a.k.a. Gurdonark has a few things to say, and a few recommendations to make, so let us make haste to LISTEN:
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I’m a huge believer in Creative Commons music, and in a sharing culture in general. I find solace in netlabel and other free download music–a musical connection to my imagination and a sense of exploring new lanes on forgotten but welcoming highways. I see the netlabel movement less as a monolithic Tower of Babel, and more as thousands of rivulets of water which will grow into a redefining stream. Here are a few of the albums that inspired me.
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Phillip Wilkerson – The Way Home
The releases at Earth Mantra, an ambient label, are quite regular and yet almost always quite inspiring. I’d like to single out one: Phillip Wilkerson’s “The Way Home”. Phillip works in both “dark” and “light” ambient music, often using vintage drones to explore new melodic hallways. “The Way Home” explores his lighter side–not the light of the new age, but the warmth of innovative sound in search of an innovative melodic sonic experience. I listen to this album when I want to find a little serenity. This album is not cheap grace, but costly discipline, in pursuit of an ambient pathway.
http://www.earthmantra.com/release-detail.php?id=154

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I should also give a shout-out, while I am on this topic, to Stillstream, the ambient netradio station which is affiliated with Earth Mantra
whose playlist, shows, live performances and even live chat show what incredible vistas Creative Commons music can achieve, if a dedictated group of listeners believe in it. I offer special thanks to Palancar, the ambient artist who operates both Earth Mantra and Stillstream.com.

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Altus – Black Trees Among Amber Skies
The Canadian artist Altus has released a fine body of work. His 2010 release “Black Trees Among Amber Skies” is meditative without being sterotypic meditation music. When I seek to collect my wits, I find them assorted easily on the spindles of this sound. I like the way his songs subtly shift from sound to sound, creating a whole that is more than the drone of the parts.
http://www.altusmusic.ca/blacktrees.html

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I love ambient and chill music, but I am not the captive of those genres. I think that netlabel music is wonderful in a world of niches, and not just two. Here are a few releases in other genres:
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Cagey House – B is for Breakfast
I love contemporary classical music and novelty songs. An artist who shares my love for each is Cagey House. His songs tend to run Ramones length, and always show a strong sense of fun. Yet the fun is only the handle on the mirror. The real fun-house is contained within the glassine core of his music, where he explores ideas from modernist music and free jazz like a
serious academic dressed as Pierrot at a costume party. Cagey House’s “B is for Breakfast” is BP 055 on the Bypass netlabel. The Bypass Netlabel wins a special prize for its DOS-style graphical user interface on its website. This album features manic melodies, absurdist spoken word sampling, and contemporary classical nods with a wink from a left eye, a right eye, and a third eye. Cagey House is netlabel music at its best–unconcerned with fashion, unafraid of fun. My music sounds nothing like Cagey House music, yet I consider him a huge influence.
http://bp.bai-hua.org/index.shtml

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Lucas Gonze – Ghost Solos
Netlabel music seems too young to me to inspire urban legends, but already it has its now small-town myths. One such myth is the notion that only electronica and lo-fi experimental music emanates from the Creative Commons scene. Lucas Gonze approaches music from another place altogether. Using his guitar and a vintage mandolin, he makes recordings of public domain sheet music from the 19th and early 20th Centuries. the vibe here is not “virtuoso”, but “insightful sharer”. Those who, as I do, both completely love and to some extent nonetheless reject pop music, will be delighted to find these melodies neither as safe nor filled with sentimentality as the brochures say. In the same way that John Fahey may have been the first truly ambient artist, Lucas Gonze may define truly experimental music in our era–by way of the time machine.
http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Lucas_Gonze/Ghost_Solos

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Adam and Alma – Back to the Sea
When we rush to the ramparts to resist pop music, let’s be sure and lose to the invasions by the
stylish songwriters who are Scandinavian at heart. The wonderful 23 seconds netlabel out of Sweden, provides unapologetic pop electronica.
Adam and Alma’s EP “Back to the Sea” mines pop and electro to create a sound that is buoyant but not drowning in pop sentimentality. The track “Smile for Me, Sun”, an upbeat, seductive flirtation with the star around which our planet orbits, may qualify as the official soundtrack to the brighter sides of 2010. Ellen Arkbro and Johan Graden, who comprise this electro duo, leave me wanting more–more vim, more vigour, and more Adam and Alma.
http://www.23seconds.org/043.htm

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These are but a few of the wonderful releases that caught my eye this year–and space permits only the merest mention of German artist Entertainment for the Braindead’s
banjo madness on her EP “Roadkill” on aaahh-records.net, or Josh Woodward’s continued conquest of American pop modes on his “Ashes” release on his site joshwoodward.com. I cannot let the moment go by without a mention of Mark Stolk (Mystahr’s) amazing experimental label, Just Not Normal. There are so many fun releases available. I could go on, but I’ve gone on and on.
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I agree with you, C. Reider–one way we can help spread the word about Creative Commons music is to discuss the music we love. My own tastes run a wide gamut-and I am delighted that Creative Commons music fulfills so many of my hopes and daydreams for what a new music culture will be.

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Thanks Robert!

Posted by C. Reider

My post detailing my favorite netlabel releases of 2010 was quite popular, and led to a lot of people discovering some cool music, which is one of my main goals, aside from promoting my own music. It is my humble opinion that all netlabel artists ought to have the same goal: namely to promote the stuff in the netlabel underground that they think is really great at the same time as they promote their own stuff. That way ALL of us benefit, both listeners and producers. Right? Right.
–
With this in mind, I am going to be focusing on each artist (hopefully-this will depend on if they want to participate or not) whom I reviewed in the best of 2010 post, re-running the review I originally wrote, but I’m ALSO going to ask each of the artists reviewed to recommend a few completely FREE netlabel albums that THEY have enjoyed recently.
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Previously we’ve had recommendations from:
1.) Mystified
2.) Marc Weidenbaum
3.) Christopher McFall
4.) Andreas Brandal
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This time we’ll get Björn Asserhed’s recommendations. His musical project Meteer came out with a great album in 2010, here’s what I had to say about it:
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Meteer – Unless
http://www.bfwrecordings.com/releases/Meteer/Unless/
Blocks of odd samples move in rhythmic patterns a la Biosphere or Taylor Deupree. Somehow, even with all the ring modulation and lo-fidelity and occasional distortion, (not to mention lack of overt beats) it still feels like a lush ambient techno piece.
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Now then, here are recommendations from Björn of Meteer:
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Hi there
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Thanks for reviewing Unless EP and also for this healthy net label promo initative.
I took a tour through my archive. The following I think are really worth mentioning from 2010:
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Piper_ben :: Photosynthesis EP
Deconstructed house beats fills this four track EP. The blend of sounds sounds like something from the future.
http://www.bfwrecordings.com/releases/PiperBen/Photosynthesis/

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Quarterbit :: Kyoto series
Kyoto is not easy listening. The constructions breathes of playful experimentation and I cant help to love it.
http://lab.pubspaces.com/2008/06/ps004-quarterbit-kyoto-series/

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Motionfield :: The sound of snow
The title is well chosen. This is an ambient snow album. Slow pads in huge halls and melodies of melancholia. Sounds going in the Biosphere direction but with its own twist.
http://passagemusic.net/index.php?id=46

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Texel :: Liike EP
Analogue sounding as it is, its not at all old school. Progressive rhythms and nice, warm pads takes you to dreamland on a Boards of Canada kind of highway.
http://www.bfwrecordings.com/releases/Texel-Liike.php

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Since you asked for music not related to myself I did not mention my collab project with Closer Contact, that I am most proud of in 2010:
http://www.bfwrecordings.com/releases/CloserContactMeteer/Geography/
A follow up on this album is going to released 31st of January on BFW.
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Cheers
Björn Asserhed

Thanks Björn!

Posted by C. Reider

My post detailing my favorite netlabel releases of 2010 was quite popular, and led to a lot of people discovering some cool music, which is one of my main goals, aside from promoting my own music. It is my humble opinion that all netlabel artists ought to have the same goal: namely to promote the stuff in the netlabel underground that they think is really great at the same time as they promote their own stuff. That way ALL of us benefit, both listeners and producers. Right? Right.
–
With this in mind, I am going to be focusing on each artist (hopefully-this will depend on if they want to participate or not) whom I reviewed in the best of 2010 post, re-running the review I originally wrote, but I’m ALSO going to ask each of the artists reviewed to recommend a few completely FREE netlabel albums that THEY have enjoyed recently.
–
Previously we’ve had recommendations from:
1.) Mystified
2.) Marc Weidenbaum
3.) Christopher McFall
–
This time we’ll get Andreas Brandal’s recommendations. Here is what I had to say about his new recording from 2010:
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Andreas Brandal – Breaking a Mirror
http://andreasbrandal.wordpress.com/2010/12/11/new-mini-album/
Calm cinematic soundtrack-ish atmospheres and scenarios. It is constructed like a kind of collage music, but breaks into intimate little musical themes with real instruments. Quite lovely. I will need some more of this composer’s work.
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Now then, here are Andreas’ recommendations:
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Here’s five good ones that come to mind – in no particular order:
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Jake Vida – Drowning In Thought
http://pointlessblank.wordpress.com/2010/11/04/a2i-6-jake-vida-drowning-in-thought/

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All Black Everything – Gentle Floor
http://allblackeverything.bandcamp.com/album/gentle-floor

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Heu{s-k}ach – Un
http://www.monocromatica.com/netlabel/releases/tube216.htm

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Ennio Mazzon – The Possibility Of Joy
http://www.restingbell.net/releases/rb068-the-possibility-of-joy

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Ennio Mazzon – Skriða
http://www.q-tone.com/site/pages/releases/dl15.html

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I realise that I forgot one amazing album on my list. It was originally released as a CD-R, but I see that the
band has put it up for free on their site:

Hiroshima Bird Market – “Bridge Bypass All”
http://hiroshimabirdmarket.blogspot.com/2010/07/bridge-bypass-all.html

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I co-run the label Twilight Luggage. Most of our releases are available
as both free download and CD-R, so my recommendation will naturally be to check out our site 🙂
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www.twilightluggage.com

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Thanks Andreas!

Posted by C. Reider

My post detailing my favorite netlabel releases of 2010 was quite popular, and led to a lot of people discovering some cool music, which is one of my main goals, aside from promoting my own music. It is my humble opinion that all netlabel artists ought to have the same goal: namely to promote the stuff in the netlabel underground that they think is really great at the same time as they promote their own stuff. That way ALL of us benefit, both listeners and producers. Right? Right.
–
With this in mind, I am going to be focusing on each artist (hopefully-this will depend on if they want to participate or not) whom I reviewed in the best of 2010 post, re-running the review I originally wrote, but I’m ALSO going to ask each of the artists reviewed to recommend a few completely FREE netlabel albums that THEY have enjoyed recently.
–
Previously we’ve had recommendations from 1.) Mystified and 2.) Marc Weidenbaum.
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This time we’ll get Christopher McFall’s recommendations. Here’s what I had to say about his new release:
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Christopher McFall – A Long Time Running for the Suicide Strays
http://www.archive.org/details/rb090
Sepia loops of tones & textures clustering and spreading apart. Unmissable.

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Now then, here’s Christopher’s recommendations:
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I’ve a few recommendations that I’ve listed below:

1. Coeval – Distante 3: This is my favorite release of 2010, period. Coeval is even more stunning with this release than in previous releases in the series. The rendered field recordings/music composition on Distante 3 convey an amazing sense of dark cinema. It’s hard to believe how under exposed Coeval’s music is because Coeval one of the best things happening out there on the field recording/ambient music circuit.
http://www.con-v.org/cnv58.html

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2. Alessio Ballerini – Blanc: It’s my understanding that this music was created for a video installation. The music for this release is lush with layered textures of sound and music. Static and distortion characterizes some instances and then parts emerge exhibiting ambient soundscapes coupled with guitar, piano played in a modern classical style and field recordings. It’s an exceptional release and one not to be missed.
http://www.zymogen.net/releases/zym026/
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Those are the two big ones that I have for 2010. Great stuff to be found with both of these.
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Best regards,
Christopher

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Thanks Christopher!

Posted by C. Reider

My post detailing my favorite netlabel releases of 2010 was quite popular, and led to a lot of people discovering some cool music, which is one of my main goals, aside from promoting my own music. It is my humble opinion that all netlabel artists ought to have the same goal: namely to promote the stuff in the netlabel underground that they think is really great at the same time as they promote their own stuff. That way ALL of us benefit, both listeners and producers. Right? Right.
–
With this in mind, I am going to be focusing on each artist (hopefully-this will depend on if they want to participate or not) whom I reviewed in the best of 2010 post, re-running the review I originally wrote, but I’m ALSO going to ask each of the artists reviewed to recommend a few completely FREE netlabel albums that THEY have enjoyed recently.
–
Previously we’ve had recommendations from 1.) Mystified.
–
This time we’ll get Marc Weidenbaum’s recommendations. His indispensable website Disquiet is one of the netlabel underground’s most important resources. He curated a compilation which was one of my favorites from 2010.
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V/A – Despite the Downturn: An Answer Album
http://www.archive.org/details/DespiteTheDownturnAnAnswerAlbum
Marc Weidenbaum’s sonic activism compilation reacting to an article by Megan McArdle in the Atlantic Monthly, in which artists used the article’s accompanying illustration as a graphic score. Nice concept, and lots of cool music on here, including one piece by yours truly.

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Here are his comments and recommendations:
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I’d like to add one comment by way of introduction. I entirely agree with your statement that it’s “important for the netlabel underground to actually talk about netlabel music,” and not just “promote” it. I do, though, want to propose that not all talking is verbal or written. A lot of the best netlabel communication occurs in the form of remixes and collaborative projects. However, that is musicians talking to musicians, and I agree it is necessary to communicate in a more broadly accessible language — e.g., the best-of list. So, here goes. Three of these five are on netlabels, one is a podcast, and one is a project housed on a musician’s website. The latter, two, though, being freely available, strike me as being netlabel in spirit.
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For a Touch Radio podcast entry, saxophonist Thomas Ankersmit did a spell of Deep Listening inside an echo-heavy Estonian hanger:
http://www.touchradio.org.uk/touchradio_56_thomas_ankersmit.html

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Elisa Luu’s The Time of Waiting emphasizes variety: playful beats, quasi-orchestral extravagance, and a real keeper that artfully employs processed vocals:
http://www.archive.org/details/LBN003_-_Elisa_Luu_-_The_time_of_waiting

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The music on Diego Bernal’s Besides… is the like some secret side-project team-up between Ennio Morricone and DJ Premiere, mixing atmospheric melodrama and rough beats:
http://exponential.bandcamp.com/album/besides

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The track “Homage to Jack Vanarsky,” featuring viola and motorized gadget, on the album Solo Viola d’Amore by Garth Knox, sounds more and more like a duet the more you listen to it:
http://shskh.com/

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Tim Prebble’s Synaesthesia project invites musicians to respond in sound to photos that he posts. In this case, one from Bali. Gamelans not required:
http://disquiet.com/2010/01/07/tim-prebble-synaesthesia/
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Full list of 2010 favorites at:
http://disquiet.com/2010/12/31/best-free-releases-2010/
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Happy new year.

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Thanks Marc!

Posted by C. Reider

My post detailing my favorite netlabel releases of 2010 was quite popular, and led to a lot of people discovering some cool music, which is one of my main goals, aside from promoting my own music. It is my humble opinion that all netlabel artists ought to have the same goal: namely to promote the stuff in the netlabel underground that they think is really great at the same time as they promote their own stuff. That way ALL of us benefit, both listeners and producers. Right? Right.
–
With this in mind, I am going to be focusing on each artist (hopefully-this will depend on if they want to participate or not) whom I reviewed in the best of 2010 post, re-running the review I originally wrote, but I’m ALSO going to ask each of the artists reviewed to recommend a few completely FREE netlabel albums that THEY have enjoyed recently.
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We’ll start off with Mystified!
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The original post read:

Mystified – A Pale But Lasting Hope
http://magnatune.com/artists/albums/mystified-palehope/
Mystified puts out a lot of good stuff, and then he puts out some fucking great stuff. This release falls into the latter category. Rattling percussion elements and zigzagging synthetics form imaginary sonic structures. Loops that fall out of sync. Among my top favorite things I’ve ever heard from this artist. Please note that this release is on Magnatune, and so it streams freely, but you need to pay a $15 fee before you can download (but then you can also download everything else in their catalog).

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I asked Thomas Park of Mystified to recommend a few albums that are completely free that you can download right now.
Here’s what he gave us:
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Saluki Regicide– “The Shades To Appease”
Musician extraordinaire C.P. McDill brings back his project “Saluki Regicide” in a totally awesome way with lots of samples and science fiction-ey touches.
http://www.archive.org/details/wh143

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Rivers of Ashes – “Breaching the Fabric”
Superb instrumental dronescapes with lots of emphasis on mood and texture.
http://www.archive.org/details/wh149

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Altocumulus– “Household Apocalypse”
A mature musical mind makes mayhem with ordinary household objects and a touch of synth.
http://www.archive.org/details/Jnn115HouseholdApocalypse

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Tribe Of Astronauts– “Musick For Aerodromes”
Weird and varied pieces with a connecting theme of desert mysticism. The tribe continue their eccentric journey.
http://www.archive.org/details/eg0_029

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Fosel– “The Left Hand Of Darkness”
The excellent Fosel continues to evolve before our very ears with this great dark ambient / experimental release.
http://www.archive.org/details/The_Left_Hand_Of_Darkness

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Also, if you’d like, you are welcome to note that “A Pale But Lasting Hope” is now available on ITunes and all major services:
http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/a-pale-but-lasting-hope/id409595191

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There you have it!
Thanks, Thomas!

Posted by C. Reider

Remixes for my 20 year anniversary remix compilation are coming in!
There is still a month to get tracks ready for it!
Check out the details here if you are an underground / netlabel musician:
http://vuzhmusic.com/blog/?p=541
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Japan’s minimal tech master Taisougao contributed the first beat-oriented track:

Vuzhmusic TB303＋TR626 Psychedelic micro acid house mix fix by taisouegao
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It’s pretty fucking great, as you can tell!
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So far most of the remixes I’ve received concentrate more on the drone aspect of my work… this is awesome too, check out Mysterybear’s track:
Deep Structure (for C. Reider) by mysterybear
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Yeah!
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So far then, lots of kick ass drone stuff, a couple of keen noisy tracks and now I’ve got one good beat mix. All of these are important aspects of my work.
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I do hope the Taisougao isn’t the only track to be rhythm oriented though! After all, some of the work on the Electret Quintet is the best stuff I’ve done, in my own opinion.
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Posted by C. Reider

A list of some of the stuff planned for (the first part of) 2011.
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• Promote the new Crook’d Finger release! It’s out now! It rules! Go HERE!
• School: Cad Inventor & Museum Studies this semester.
• Listen to more Giacinto Scelsi, Morton Feldman & Keith Fullerton Whitman, because I am not as familiar with those artists as I would like to be.
• Listen to LOTS more netlabel music.
• Make beautiful objects.
• Re-release an album previously released on CDr in EXTREMELY limited quantities by a guy who collaborated with Muslimgauze, (details forthcoming in the next months)
• Finish the 20 year anniversary compilation (there’s still time to contribute if you’re a musician: go HERE for details)
• Maybe get that handheld recorder for site recordings?
• Finish the major release for C. Reider… consider the big collaborative project that may or may not go along with it. If the collaborative project is decided against, then I need to find some way to move Vuzh Music more into the realm of curated netlabel featuring many other artists and not just my music.
• Complete the re-master for the Unseelie Court & re-release that.
• Mix & master & release the Tarkatak collaboration (following up from 1998’s the Druser Pricid)
• Finish & release the cassette release that I have in the works. Take that cassette, when done, and TRADE with it.
• Consider the ‘Pulsa’ project idea. There are a couple of directions it could go in.
• Consider the follow-up Crook’d Finger that’s been moldering on the hard drive for years. Also consider the ‘compilation tracks’ release.

Posted by C. Reider

This drone was previously a 59 Hz tone. Obviously it was not a 100% pure sine wave. It was transformed into this drone using nothing but high & low pass filters and equalizer. No additive processes (effects) used aside from volume.
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Formerly Sine Drone 1-1-2011 by vuzhmusic

Posted by C. Reider

Around the turn of the century, I used the project Crook’d Finger to produce some fun, grooving techno stuff – distinct from my sometimes po-faced solo work.
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Only two releases ever came out by this project (though more material is still in the vault). The debut EP split with FZZY PMPR “Aft” came out in 1999, and was re-released as a standalone EP in 2009 (free download link).
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Now, finally the second release is available, also for free download.
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Crook’d Finger vs. Harlan
Crook’d Finger vs. D.Rhythm:O
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Originally released in extremely limited quantities on cassette in 2000, this release takes on some taped sounds sent in by percussionist Harlan and runs in peculiar directions with it. A slightly darker & more atmospheric mood comes in with the remix of D.Rhythm:O, now surviving with the more well known name Dronaement. This remix is from some tapes of the various incarnations of the band from that time period.
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The Crook’d Finger stuff is, without a doubt, the most approachable music I have ever done, and I always thought it could reach a wider audience. Maybe now that it’s available in such a free and open format, it can.
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FREE DOWNLOAD LINK:
http://www.vuzhmusic.com/releases/versus.html

http://www.vuzhmusic.com/releases/versus.html

http://www.vuzhmusic.com/releases/versus.html

http://www.vuzhmusic.com/releases/versus.html

Posted by C. Reider