Dieter Muh #52 (Poster).

Soundart at Seven

WhenWed, 13 November, 19:00 – 22:00

DescriptionHappy Birthday to us all A live stream of our birthday party. This month Soundart Radio turns seven - come and help us celebrate with performances by Soundart members. An evening of noise, ritual, and splendid projections. Performances from: Grymbart, with Marg and Byrt - A little welcoming ritual. The Oima Orchestra - Electronics with singing bowls from Soundart regulars. Germseed “May a Germseed her burning, plant in your self's area to create bright time for your black golden listening face musics. Accept and be seized.” Dieter Müh - Created as a two-piece in 1994, Dieter Müh has been a solo project of sound artist Steve Cammack since 2009. The sound has developed over the past 19 years, with walls of noise constructed from samples and loops creating a dense soundscape with surprising consequences. Shokku - An audio visual collaboration between Hannah Drayson (Sorry) and Ben Hudson (Baconhead). They have performed at the BFi, Big Chill Festival, Simplexity Bristol, Bangface Weekender and Cafe Concrete (Plymouth) Contains flashing lights.

MuhMur SoundArt Radio Broadcast : 31/10/2013

Halloween, a very wet and windy Halloween and I was in the SoundArt Studio with my beloved collection of Smell & Quim paraphernalia. I was lucky enough to be mailed a "promo" for their upcoming album "Quim De La Quim" on Stront Records - a label run by Pete Zincken - and I decided to create a two hour show around it. Great fun digging in to some old S&Q vinyl. Early 1990's, probably 1993 and I chanced upon a shop in Leeds called Bad, a basement vinyl emporium that stocked the weird and wonderful and experimental. It was here I bought the Smell & Quim 7" "Miss Piss" purely on reasons of; 1: Great name, 2: Great cover and 3: It was on Stinky Horse Fuck Records. A win win win situation! My love of everything Smell & Quim has not wained since that day. Bad also introduced me to the sound of Merzbow and Intrinsic Action. Great shop now sadly defunct.

Please have a listen. Copy & Paste:
http://www.mixcloud.com/muhsteve/muhmur-smell-and-quim-special/

Playlist.
01: Smell & Quim  "Sucking A Dead Man's Cock"  (Tesco Organisation) 1993.
     (From the "The Jissom Killers" LP).
02  Smell & Quim  "Pukka Fukka"  (Old Europa Cafe) 1997.
     (From the "Meat/Pregnant Aisan Special" CD/Tape).
03: Smell & Quim  "Death Baby Fuck" (Red Stream Records) 1993.
     (From the split 7" with Taint).
04: Smell & Quim  "Tampax Woman"  (Solipsism) 1999.
     (From the "Porn Again" CD).
05: Smell & Quim  "Xanadon't/Desperhardon"  (Must Die Records) 2012.
     (From the compilation album "Must Die Records Sampler" Cdr).
06: Smell & Quim/The Members Of Tinnitus  "Alpha"  (iDeaL Records) 1999.
     (From the "The Alphabet Fanatics" 7").
07: Smell & Quim  "Inter-Lewd #3"  (Mental Guru Records) 2000.
     (From the album "Spaceshit" Cdr)
08: Smell & Quim/The Members Of Tinnitus  "Beta"  (iDeaL Records) 1999.
     (From the "The Alphabet Fanatics" 7")
09: Smell & Quim  "Fuck Factory"  (Stront)  2014.
      (From the forthcoming cassette album).
10: Smell & Quim  "Miss Piss"  (Stinky Horse Fuck Records) 1993.
      (From the 7" single).
11: Milovan Srdenovic  "Pig Stealin' Man"  (Idwal Fisher)  2002.
     (From the album "Live At The Packhorse-Leeds-14/05/02 Cdr).
12: Smell & Quim  "Skunk Pussy"  (Stinky Horse Fuck Records) 1991.
     (From the "Jesus Christ" LP).
13: Smell & Quim  "Turner Over To Sod (Excerpt)" (Songs For Conscientiousness Rape) 1993.
     (From the album "A Sod's As Good As A Wank To A Blind Arse" Tape).
14: Smell & Quim  "Dreamfucker (Pissed Off Mix)"  (Kay Ogden Percy Mather) 2011.
     (From the album "Lavatory" CD).
15: Come  "Come Sunday"  (Come Organisation) 1979.
     (From the "Come 1" 7").

Next programme will be on November 14.

The Haxan Cloak #3

My mother used to say "If you can't say anything nice then don't say anything at all" but I have had such a disappointing time listening to the latest album by The Haxan Cloak I thought I'd mention it. The  eponymous debut LP and preceding 12" (both on Aurora Borealis) were excellent releases, so much so I went and bought the T-Shirt but this LP has to be the last straw.
Very polished. The album (I bought the 2x12"EP version) has a very polished sound, a computer generated sound that carries echoes of mid 1990's Scorn and a bit like Zoviet*France when they weren't that good. Side A (which carries the title track - parts 1&2) sounds like a condensed soundtrack to a "Resident Evil"esque film. There are lots of sounds, tweaks and beats and little piano doodles but the tracks don't go anywhere. I realised I was just listening. Side B is very similar ... nice pulsebeat fades on the "Miste" track, but it is like listening to an audition recording for a video game soundtrack. Side C is "The Mirror Reflecting Parts 1&2" and is quite simply a poor man's Coil. Side D starts with "Dieu", and a violin can be heard in the distance. The violins on the first LP were so good, skeletal and orchestral playing like the Mauthausen Orchestra but here they are hidden behind a very poor rhythm. "The Drop" started with a bad five note keys pattern .. needle off the groove.
So - A big let down and a shame. The last Haxan Cloak I shall buy - unless (of course) things pick up but at the moment it is music for The Wire readers.

Sleaford Mods - Jolly F*cker

A.M.K.

I have always enjoyed the sound of A.M.K. I came across them about twenty or so years ago and have always bought their stuff when I've seen it. My favourite being the "Mecca" 12" that Harbinger Sound put out a few years back. On my trip to Germany last week I managed to pick up a copy of "Spur N" a cassette release by Hamburg based label Fragment Factory.
A.M.K. is the project of turntabablist Anthony King, based on the West Coast of USA and owner of the Banned Productions label. (Or "Bent Productions" if you are German). The theme of "Spur N" is railway tracks. "Spur N" is a C22 (11 minutes a side ... can't help thinking that this would have made a lovely 10" single). "N. Gauge" is lock groove and rolling stock with an occasional ghostly bell clanging in the distance. Lock groove(s) which you can close your eyes and travel / journey the distance. (Marval at the construction of sounds). "Rapido Memoria Technico" is side two. "RMT" is more of a sound collage with more elements and a faster pace - less hypnotic. The piece begins with the sound of an old steam train with a "Casey Jones" whistle. Loops are built from the sound of stream. The occasional bell is there again clanging through the fog, faster and less..."ghostly".
An interesting release on what is becoming a highly collectable label. Artwork is by Michael Muennich.
Go to www.fragmentfactory.com and purchase.

Circulation Of Light

Have just spent a pleasant while listening to the latest release by Circulation Of Light, the solo project of Kinit Her member Nathanial Ritter. I really enjoyed last years "Emersal Tracings" cassette released by Black Horizons and Kinit Her have become staple favourites here at Hartop Towers.
"Winding/Winded" is a C30 (could be C20) on Sangoplasmo Records. Information on the tape is scarce, to be honest the packaging is pretty poor, an unlabelled cassette with a small piece of card folded in the case. It is as if the artwork was an afterthought. The print that is there is so small (unreadable to these 50 year old eyes)!
"Winding" is the sound of resonating bells (church bells) with prepared piano and auto-harp. Very meditative, it is easy to get lost in the resonance. The track has slips and clicks like it is an old vinyl recording, whether it is deliberate or not? It doesn't harm the track though. "Winded" has gentle chimes and xylophone. Very peaceful with a Tibetan / Gamelan vibe. 23 Skidoo (obviously) brought to mind.
Limited to 100 copies and costing just $6 from www.sangoplasmo.com

Apologies for poor photograph!

Dieter Muh #51 (Hamburg Gangeviertel)

 Thirteen years ago Dieter Muh played two gigs on consecutive nights. Dresden and Leipzig, and we did not like it. It was at the end of the "2000 Harbinger Sound Travelling Circus & Freak Show" tour of Scandinavia and Europe. By the time we played these two shows our equipment and patience had reached the end of its tether .. Recently - well the last few performances - my feeling after finishing is "I want to do that again". The night after Bremen I got the chance to play at the Radio Gagarin Festival in Hamburg, and after a great night out in Bremen I was itching to play live again. The company of Jurgen, Chris and Helge helped. I haven't enjoyed myself so much in quite a few months! 

The gig was organised by Radio Gagarin. Thomas Beck (AKA tbc) was the coordinator. The venue was close to the St Pauli district of Hamburg known as Gangeviertel. B*Tong played as did Feine Trinkers Bei Pinkels Daheim and local project Der 2te Freund. This evening was my first hearing of 1000 Schoen, the project of ex Maeror Tri member Helge Siehl. Helge manipulated sounds generated from a sculptured piece of metal, a transfixing performance .. and after the weekend I am now addicted to the sound of B*Tong & 1000 Schoen. The sound on the evening was perfection. Monitors (yes ... monitors)! like wearing headphones. It made my sound easier to perform with the minutiae voices and delicate frequencies. 

The evening was recorded for broadcast, I will put up a link when available.

DJ for the event was a lovely chap called Martin who spun some Column One, Laibach and Scanner. He should have been working the Asmus Teitchens gig on Friday night. 

Pictures.

1: Bringing 'em in off the streets!

2: DJ St. Martin.

3: Der 2te Freund.

4: Jurgen Eberhard of Feine Trinkers Bei Pinkels Daheim.

5: 1000 Schoen.

6: Dieter Muh (photo by Chris Sigdell).

7: Radio Gagarin crew. Harald on the left and Thomas Beck on the right.

8: Chris Sigdell of B*Tong.