Universus Vol. 1 CIRC014 Released: June 14th, 2011
Tracklist: 1. Misel Quitno – Im Halbhohen Gras (Caural Remix) – Download 2. Take – Generation Gap 3. Peripheral – Ratrace 4. Sun Room Generator – Abduction
Circuitree has handed us Caural’s track for free download (below). As the press kit aptly describes it, “this is one for the jazz heads and glitch hoppers alike”.
Guest author and friend-of-the-blog Dylan Boynton invites you to familiarize yourself with the music of Amon Tobin, weighing in on how Tobin?s newest album fits into his anthology.
Before Ableton Live there were guys like Amon Tobin, mastering clunkier tools to produce music for smaller audiences. For those unfamiliar with his name, Amon (formerly ?Cujo?) has been one of the most influential producers in the world of IDM dating back to his first release in 1996. An Amon Tobin track can be listened to several times over without hearing every nuance. Much like other artists who produce such masterful output, Tobin?s works are at worst interesting, and are often on the vanguard of industry trends. But the industry has changed, and while the visibility for production specialists like Amon has increased, so has the competition. With the release of his newest album earlier this spring we wondered if a producer from the 90s could remain stylistically relevant in an age of renaissance for electronic music. Thanks in part to an expressed interest in new styles, it?s easy to argue that he?s succeeded.
Artist Background
Amon’s early music was heavy on breaks but mellow in spirit. Amon?s trend toward more aggressive sounds showed most noticeably on his fifth release, Out from Out Where a cosmic journey through a collection of masterfully woven samples. Venturing into the commercial sector, Tobin next provided the soundtrack for a video game, Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory. Albeit a paid gig, the assignment wasn?t too far out of the comfort zone of an artist whose productions often bear a theatrical sense of dark and light motifs. It?s easy to imagine the gristly hero of the game prowling though warehouses while this dark and wondrous score plays; a 6 channel version was produced as well, which makes for a transcendent listening experience. The album received favorable reviews and helped generate some overdue recognition for Tobin.
Foley Room, his last release, delves into the cacophonic world of foley artists, providing ample creative flexibility for an artist known for his detail-oriented production. Tobin himself recorded most of the samples used, and the results elude classification even further than his previous work. The samples take center stage in mostly fast-paced instrumental compositions that befit an action-packed or otherwise suspenseful film sequence.
ISAM (2011)
Amon Tobin?s seventh studio album, ISAM, is a sample-heavy showcase of expertly-produced headphone music that, like many (good) electronic albums in recent memory, is difficult to pin to a single genre. Amon, perhaps influenced by his recent interest in heavy-hitters Noisia, Excision, and Eskmo, forays into the world of snarling bass and glitchy industrial beats throughout ISAM?s 13-track catalog. These descriptions , by history?s account, would fail to accurately describe Tobin?s style, whose works have transformed from hyperactive electronic jazz into something more likely to evoke images of mechanized, industrial soundscapes.
With the release of ISAM, Tobin seems to cast aside theme and narrative in order to explore purposeful dissonance, with screeching bass and electronic blips alongside cooing female voices. Tobin?s music is often?and jokingly?lumped in with the nearly descriptionless ?IDM? (intelligent dance music), which perhaps fits after all, as the jarring sounds and glitchy vocals ensure that no one will be dancing to ISAM. While this may be his most testing release, this is an experiment in sound not to be missed.
When Jack Spatafora?s latest monthly music compilation, 2critpicks was half Junip, we knew something was up. Either the world was ending, or they were playing here this week. I?ve been patiently waiting for this zombie apocalypse thing to happen, yet nada. Nothing. Not even a mild Rabies outbreak. Maybe some of us can dress up like zombies for the show and have the best of both worlds. I don?t know. I?m just trying to make the best out of the situation here. I mean, we at Brasky are partial to Junip, but now that I think about it, I really wouldn?t mind the zombie thing either. Anyways, I?m digressing.
Along with Junip, Helado Negro and King of Spain will also be opening. The doors blast open with shotguns blazing at 8:00PM. Get your tickets to the zombie apocalypse at $3 off if you order your tickets in advance. That?s just plain smart.
Also, the doors won?t blast open, there won?t be shotguns, and doing either of the two will probably get you kicked out now that I think about it. But hey, Junip. If a Swedish soft rock band isn?t enough to get you outta yer? house hole on a Tuesday night, I don?t know what to tell you.
The Tampa City Council will be voting on our zoning requests for the new store location, (4500 N. Nebraska Ave.), this Thursday, June 9 at 6:00 in the City Council Chambers, located on the 3rd floor of City Hall, 306 E. Jackson St. Aside from a parking waiver, we have requested zoning allowing us to sell beer, wine and liquor on premise and to go. Our vision behind this is to open a small brewery and winery to compliment our homebrewing and winemaking shop, which will use half of the building. Wine and beer making hobbyists can experience the whole range of the craft by observing a professional brewing and winemaking operation, tasting artisanal beers and wine, interacting with the brewer and winemaker and shopping for equipment and supplies, all under one roof.
Our hopes are also to contribute to the revitalization of Seminole Heights by giving our newly purchased building a face lift and further establishing the neighborhood as a destination point for craft beer and wine enthusiasts.
So please show your support by attending the meeting or by sending an email to the Council members below. And if you are able to support us by attending the meeting, please join us at Tampa Bay Brewing Company afterwards for some great beer and wine.
BRSKY wants to see your magnanimous emails to the elected officials below:
In a city where every coffee shop barista and/or free lancing twenty-something has started a psych/dream/pop “band”, Matt & Kim have been fixtures in the Brooklyn scene for years, winning over both music elitists and casual listeners. It’s hard not to like a duo that seems to have as much fun making and performing music as their fans have listening to it. In a time when sometimes hard-to-enjoy-live music dominates the playlists of indie-savvy listeners, Matt & Kim is the kind of show you go to because it will be fun and not just because the lure of the “scene”.
The Thermals
Much of the preceding also could be lauded on the Thermals. Traveling from Portland, the Thermals bring pop energy to punky tunes driven by the vitriolic cries of Hutch Harris. Hutch is truly one of my favorite vocalists over the last 5 years, finding the right blend of whim, anger, and well-chosen words to rage against religion, conservative America, and all that bullshit that serves to divide. Despite tackling a variety of heavy topics with genuine frustration, the Thermals ultimately take all of it with a grain (pillar?) of salt in favor of having fun, making them another great band to go see.
Universus Vol. 1
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