=  JANUARY 2006 =

Steve Pescott

Akron Family

Alan Davidson

Gold Leaf Branches

Jeff Penczak

Fursaxa

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ALLIGATOR CRYSTAL MOTH – SOLIS

(CD-R on Musicyourmindwillloveyou, http://mymwly.blogspot.com)

    'Solis' is the second release from Alligator Crystal Moth, the tape exchange duo of Michael Donnelly (Brothers of the Occult Sisterhood, Terracid, et al) and Brad Rose (The North Sea, The Golden Oaks, Digitalis Recordings supremo), following the 'Magic Swamp Kingdom' CD-R on Foxglove a while back. Googling on the name suggests the alternate search "Alligator Crystal Meth", but based on the music herein, a giant crystal hookah is probably a more applicable image. 'Can of Words' is a hazy morning stroll through a Moroccan Souk, as produce stalls unfold like exotic flowers amid the tendrils of kif smoke. Quite who is playing what is not clear, but it all beautifully atmospheric with loosely adhering percussion and stringed objects engaged in deep conversation (as is the whole CD, really). 'Searching for Atlantis' is drone rock par excellence, a rare crystal clarification of the surface of the Bardo Pond via dark guitar glissandi and drum lifeforms playing intuitively off each other. 'Hallowed Ground Beneath My Feet' is a classic MYMWLY rain forest trek; acoustic spaces created by flute and guitar and percussion invaded by jagged electric creatures. 'Fraternizing with the Enemy' has an Indonesian feel, as well as playing with things modal and Middle-Eastern. 'Cheap Food for Secrets', a more lengthy piece, is a near free rumination played on many things drummed and plucked – travelling from chaos to clarity in a way that is emblematic of the work of both artists involved. 'Waking the Ecclesiastics' is pure tribal-hippie freakdom after the fashion of Amon Duul the First with (someone's) vaguely disturbing vocals as a real standout point. It sounds like the nausea that precedes vomiting on Ibogaine (but in a good way). Finally 'Ribs Make Walls' (the title reminding me of an ossuary chapel I saw in Portugal once) imagines life as a particle of matter attached to the side of a temple bell – giant resonance becoming the entirety of existence. Another extraordinary release on this label and deserving of a wider audience than it will probably reach via the CD-R label underground.  (Tony Dale)

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XENIS EMPUTAE TRAVELLING BAND – GOAT WILLOW

(3" CD-R on Barl Fire,

 http://homepages.tesco.net/~beautiful.day/Barl_Fire_Recordings.htm)

    This beautiful 3" CD-R object launches off from XETB's previous ethereal folk-meets-electronic drone model into ancient woodland acoustic explorations akin to some of the tribal folk coming out of Finland (Keijo and Kemialliset Ystävät are reference points) and also not too dissimilar to the extended works of the Wooden Wand collective, as well as casting a nod in the direction of the focussed, percussive rain-forest sounds coming out of Michael Donnelly's MYMWLY collective. 'Goat Willow' is comprised a single 19 minute track divided into four sections. The first is a scattered whirlwind of multi-track incantations and pagan trance-drone. This segues neatly into a folk song is inspired by the Devonshire saying "Ellum do grieve, oak he do hate, willow do walk if you travel late", and the results are perfect burning man erection soundtrack fodder. The second section fades into eerie strumming and tolling of bells and a high keening chant of the central vocal motif, before the third section – a vaguely torch-lit processional of ambiguous destination – steers the piece back to abstract sonic expressionism. The final section reiterates the folk theme as spoken word over acoustic guitar much in the style of Current 93. All instruments were played by Phil Legard except for a guest appearance by "the spectre of John Cockren on scrotal tambourine". I'm not even game to ask…

    This is another outstanding outing by the increasingly essential Barl Fire imprint, and as always, the pressing run is tiny so be not tardy if you want one. (Tony Dale)

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DAVENPORT - RABBIT’S FOOT PROPELLER

(CD on 3 Lobed Records www.threelobed.com )

    The ‘New Weird America’ phenom appears to have developed suitably elastic-walled parameters during its short life span which can easily embrace free jazz outpourings, tweaked back porch atonality, bongos-in-the-dust work outs and of course, amorphous blobs of general whathaveyouness. So it shouldn’t get anyone’s pants in a flapdoodle if a “group” of Davenport’s stripe are roped into New Weird America’s scheme of things.

   Though the crib sheet paints Davenport as some kinda Cowsill-like extended family, the credits appear to suggest it’s a solo exercise from one Clay Ruby, who hails from Madison, Wisconsin. His ‘Rabbit’s Foot Propeller’ is his (their) first full-length together after a scattered trail of limited editions, cassettes and CDRs on various underground labels. Their (or his – this could get repetitive) modus operandi is one of loaf-eye impro folk of an ultra obscured nature. I say ultra obscured for good reason as their (his!!) recording technique shows itself to be a truly devolved process where “flying blind” becomes the order of the day. A portable recorder is used which comes minus an erase head, so the sessions could allow for numerous overdubs, but ones that couldn’t be monitored. An audio equivalent of the ‘Exquisite Corpse’ dadagame, in this case revealing the Jewelled Antlers of Thuja, the torso of early Smog and the butt of Aum Rifle (sorry). Two befuddling examples of this anti-craft are the opening ‘Propeller Invocation’ which fuses melodica/ tin whistle trills onto scuttling tin bath/baking tray tonalities and the splendidly deep-fried ‘Trolling in the Wake Song’ in which Clay’s ghosted mumblings are bustled out of the foreground by bubbling tar noise and a faux monochord. You think you’ve heard everything? Well, Mr Ruby and his wooden crate of tricks think otherwise. A release that definitely needs its head felt for bumps and the strangest rabbit related work since ‘The Night of the Lepus’ flick and the torment that Archbishop Brennan underwent during a Father Ted episode. (Steve Pescott)

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GARY HIGGINS – RED HASH

(CD/LP on Drag City Records, http://www.dragcity.com)

    It's taken a while for me to get around to writing about this reissue of 'Red Hash' (it was released in July 2005), but that it probably because listening to this wonderful disc is an experience most likely to cause one to drift off into a kind of pot-bliss reverie rather than get down and analytical about it all.  Collectors have been grabbing copies of this one for years now, but the beautiful transfer that Drag City has made allows it to be heard in its full glory without paying collectors prices for the handful of copies that surface periodically.  The Gary Higgins story is steeped in the zeitgeist of 60s and 70s and its arcs of starburst highs and crashing come-downs.  Higgins formed his first band Random Concept in his native Sharon, Connecticut in 1963. Around 1966 the band, which included Simeon Coxe of the Silver Apples, moved to New York City where they played gruelling multi-set nights alongside the likes of Tiny Tim, the Lovin' Spoonful and The Blue Magoos.  After realising that they were on the road to oblivion anyway, Random Concept split - Simeon staying in NYC and Higgins returning to CT with the core group that would record 'Red Hash', pianist Terry Fenton, guitarist Jake Bell, and bassist Dave Beaujon. Bucking the prevailing trend towards heaviness, Higgins began writing and performing introspective acoustic material, and formed the band Wooden Wheel with Bell, cellist Maureen Wells and multi-instrumentalist Paul Tierney (also key contributors to 'Red Hash').  As small-town hippies, they would have stood out in Nixon's America, and it is unsurprising that Higgins was targeted by The Man, and in 1972 he was arrested, tried and convicted for dealing hashish.  'Red Hash' was recorded in a series of round-the-clock sessions while Higgins was out on bail awaiting sentence, thinking he might never get another chance to record.  It is a remarkable record to have made under those conditions.

    What Higgins and various members of Random Concept and the Wooden Wheel created during roughly 40 hours of recording in February 1973 was and is remarkable.  'Red Hash' (the name given to Higgins by fellow inmates while he was on remand) is bearded-loner-psych-folk of the highest water.  The record starts with the signature rural sounds of' 'Thicker than a Smokey', recent covered on the Six Organs of Admittance CD 'School of the Flower', and it's the kind of track that would have been a major hit if Higgins had been part of the West Coast singer-songwriter scene. Seemingly effortless melodic and rhythmic structures flow like fine wine though the arteries and veins of this music as the lyrics somewhat map out elements of the then-dying hippie dream. 'Windy Child' is another stand-out, and it's in the recessed vocals of this track that one really begins to notice an understandable undercurrent of melancholy resignation. Here as throughout, subtle instrumental touches (flute, mandolin, violin typically) and sympathetic backing vocals add an ocean of dignity to the recordings.  Higgins doesn't have the strongest of voices (witness 'Telegraph Towers'), but it rarely matters because the overall arrangements use his vocals so well. The record finds its strongest groove in the lilting hypnotism of 'I Can't Sleep at Night' (which must logically predate his dealing conviction, but reads like it could be a direct response to impending incarceration), the aching depression of 'Cuckoo' (darker than anything on 'Pink Moon') and the astral shimmer of 'I Pick Notes From the Sky', which is so gravitational in its charismatic pull that you could probably built a cult on its foundation. But for me, it all comes together on the impressionistic 'Stable the Spuds', which couples stoned rustic ruminations with a devastating melodic lilt, waves of violin and some kind of treated piano effect that sounds like wind chimes attached to the pearly gates.

    A couple of bonus tracks are thrown in, one an early 80s home recording and the other a 1975 recording done in Massachusetts after Higgins' release from prison,  and they beg the question as to what else is out there, both from the 'Red Hash' sessions, and from later on in his musical life. Perhaps lost forever, or perhaps being saved for a follow-up release, hopefully the latter.  This is a great example of a record that vanished leaving few traces at the time, but which thanks to the dedication of collectors and fans can now be discovered and enjoyed by the audience it so richly deserved originally. (Tony Dale)

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MI AND L'AU - SELF TITLED

(Young God Records YG31 www.younggodrecords.com )

    Last summer I had the very great pleasure of seeing Mi and L'au on tour with Josephine Foster. The audience was extremely quiet and respectful, almost to the point of being mesmerised, and when the first song ended the duo quickly began the next, without applause. Having accepted this as the natural course of events, the same thing happened after every song! Apparently Mi and L'au were becoming increasingly worried that the audience didn't like them, but the thunderous applause and standing ovation that followed their last number must have set their minds at rest. This release almost has the same effect...it certainly arrests attention, almost whispering in the listener's ear. Much of the sound is sparse, and, appropriately enough the bones of the album were put together in a small isolated cabin in Finland, where the pair live. There is a feeling of slowly thawing sexuality, and small lights in empty darkness. Additional instrumentation was added by members of Akron/Family and Antony and the Johnsons, and it's been done tastefully, allowing the songs plenty of room to breathe. The album would have sounded fine without overdubs, in my opinion, but the variety of sound provided makes for a slightly more reassuring listen. On 'Older' the sound of hands sliding to make chords cuts through the wash of strings very nicely, maintaining the song's intimacy. The lyrical content echoes that of the music...simple, sometimes repetitive phrases, but always intriguing! "Will they find us naked white or red?" sing the duo on "Burns", and often the album feels as if the pair are lost in their own dream-landscape, divorced from everyday mundanity, but somehow still within the grasp of danger. If I'm waxing overly lyrical, then that's the effect Mi and L'au have on me! There are many exquisite moments here...right from the start, on 'They Marry' when Mi's vocal swells into ever so slightly out-of-synch double tracking, and on 'I've been watching you' when L'au intones phrases whilst behind him guitar chords gently descend. My favourite song here (as it was live) is 'Merry-Go Round' ("here's a bottle of wine, here is my lick"), but there's not a dud song here. The (almost) last words on the album are 'What's to come of tomorrow, what's been done with today...make tomorrow what's to come...make tomorrow'.....I'd suggest you make tomorrow the day you nip out and buy this CD! (Alan Davidson )

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AKRON/FAMILY & ANGELS OF LIGHT - SPLIT ALBUM

(Young God Records YG30 www.younggods.com )

    It seems that Akron/Family have become Michael Gira's house band at Young God, and this is a very good thing. They do the first seven songs here on their own, then are joined by Gira and become his Angels of Light for the next five. Left to their own devices they seem to take smatterings of styles from rock's past and mix them together, whilst adding a contemporary edge, to make the result well and truly their own. Some bits sound vaguely Zappaish, but morph into 'almost-prog'. On the second song, 'Moment' the frenetic opening and punchy chord sequence sound not unlike Led Zeppelin, but then a theme reminiscent of Yes's 'Yours is no disgrace' begins to weave in and out. If this makes the album sound disjointed then I'll quickly add that it works beautifully......the songs are interesting to dissect, but are still great songs whatever.

    There are plently of gentler, more reflective moments, too, sometimes joined by interesting bits of looped electronica/feedback/saxophone. Through headphones there are some really trippy bits of stereo panning to enjoy. Personally I really, really liked 'dylan pt.2' with the vocals heart-jerkingly plaintive atthe beginning and end, but becoming more aggressively soulful as the band beefs things up in the middle section. And 'oceanside', too is an arrestingly sad song.....which made me think of Tim Buckley's more wistful work.

    After Michael Gira joins in, the band don their alt-country hats for a brilliantly grizzled version of Dylan's 'I pity the poor immigrant'. It's a great match, too, with some cascading slide work counterbalancing the appropriately dark vocals. The mood is sustained on the next song, 'the provider' where some banjoesque sounds and drones (e-bow?) set the scene for some distinctly uneasy-sounding lyrics.

    On 'one for hope' a more positive mood develops, (I think it's about a new-born child), although the way they're sung isn't unlike Lou Reed at his most cynical. The old Swans song 'mother/father' sounds distinctly tribal, with primitive drumming and chanting, which is a neat contrast with the last song, 'come for my woman' which swells beautifully in understated, albeit somewhat threatening fashion into a tale perhaps of deceit, perhaps of death.

    The album took only nine days to complete, and perhaps because of this it sounds very fresh and passionate. Earlier on, Akron/Family sing 'Sad that imagination it fades because everyone must get paid, so that catalogue stuff can get made' ........and it's their imagination which I applaud wholeheartedly. This could easily have been a double album. Maybe next time! (Alan Davidson)

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VARIOUS ARTISTS – GOLD LEAF BRANCHES

(Digitalis Recordings, PO Box 700810, Tulsa, OK 74170 USA)

     This massive (as in nearly five-dozen tracks sprawled across three CDs) compilation comes wrapped inside a swatch of wallpaper whose design gives the set its title. Opening with the startling announcement that our beloved Ben Chasny died last year on June 26^th, so his intimate acoustic tribute to Townes Van Zandt, ‘Thousand Birds’ serves the dual purpose of reminding us just how precious these two artists were and is a fitting memoir of Ben’s work with Six Organs of Admittance (Departure?) [See our accompanying interview with Mr. Rose for his explanation of this confusing comment from the obviously still-breathing Chasny.].

     While most of these artists may be unfamiliar to folks outside the readership of Terrascope Online and Rose’s Foxy Digitalis e-zine, he has nevertheless successfully accomplished a monumental task of assembling some of the finest examples of avant noise, experimental, electronic, wyrdfolk sounds from over eight countries (including England, Scotland, Ireland, Argentina, USA, Belgium, Finland, Australia) on four continents, making this a true “World Music” compendium. From Brisbane, Australia, we’re treated to Stuart Busby’s relaxing-yet-mournful trumpet loops of ‘First Steps,’ while Steven R. Smith continues to amaze us with an orchestra’s worth of instruments (gourd guitar, harpsichord, clay flowerpots, bouzouki, et. al.) flowing through his Eastern/Central-European-flavoured cacophany on his side-project Hala Strana’s ‘Fanfare.’ I also can’t say enough about the excitement I get from listening to the medieval acoustic wyrdfolk (think ISB-meets-Gryphon) of Rebecca Loftiss’ (aka The Gray Field Recordings)’ remake of ‘Rune of the Moon and Endymion’ (originally on her debut album ‘As One Cast Down By Sadness’), featuring Rebecca’s ethereal, disembodied, spoken-word ruminations over a confabulation of flutes, oboes, dulcimers, guitars and anything else that she can get her hands around, such as her violin solo at the end that adds a classical air to this already haunting composition.

     Admittedly, the myriad schools of music (and non-musical/improvisational noise/field recordings) represented here will surely not be to everyone’s taste. I personally had a hard time sitting through some of the more adventurous, mad, percussive danse macabres amidst musicians attempting to saw their violins in half or crush them into kindling on the Finnish tracks that make up nearly 20% of the collection. Strong stomachs (and ears) are required for the indescribable, anti-musical headfuck of tortured souls Visitations (‘Untitled’), Belgium’s Funeral Folk offshoot, Silvester Anfang (‘Corporelijck Punieren’), Austin’s Weird Weeds (‘Soda Jerk (Sex With Strangers)’), and Kuu Putoaa’s set-closing, bowel-cleansing, wolf-howling (‘Braspyreet’), which are all just plain silly. I also had a hard time swallowing the screaching, Nina Hagen-on-a-bad-trip shenanigans of WOLFMANGLER (aka Polish immigrant, D. Smolken)’s self-described “shambling doom metal” on ‘I Dance Because She Likes It’ (as well as the metallic, pants-shitting, loudspeaker warbling of his “harsh black metal” side project Dead Raven Choir’s ‘We Will Not Whisper’ that will probably induce panic attacks in Einstürzende Neubauten, Ministry and Rammstein fans), Plat Ypus’ atonal derangement of ‘Jazz,’ and The Lost Domain’s goofy kabuki theatrics and psychotic barnyard noises on ‘Death Dances.’

     Still, with so many tracks to choose from, there is always something new waiting around the corner that will have you scouring the internet for more material from the likes of James Blackshaw, whose bowed 12-string imbues ‘No Ghosts’ with the requisite haunting air; or Belgian songwriter Annelies Monseré and her piano-driven, otherworldly, whispered torchsong ‘You Were On My Side (Guitar)’ which suggests we may have another Marissa Nadler waiting in the wings. And if you don’t believe me, then check our dear Marissa’s own haunting ballad, ‘Lilly, Henry, & The Willow Trees’ which recalls the heartmelting tones of Buffy Sainte-Marie, Vashti Bunyon and Alisha Sufit.

     If your musical inclination is slanted towards weird, hi-wired, electronic, metallic scrapings, you’ll delight in ‘Insolación de Soles Aledaños’ from Reynols’ Anla Courtis; if flatline drones are your musical cup of mead, prepare yourself for Robert Horton’s ‘Beauty of Decay;’ the minimalist organ drones a la Tony Conrad of Pefkin’s (aka, the solo project of ex-Electroscope vocalist/guitarist Gayle Brogan)’s ‘Blast Beach;’ Christina Carter’s moaning, monotonic organ drones accompanied by (ex-husband) Tom Carter’s heavily treated guitar shrieks on Charalambides’ ‘Voicebox;’ the teeth-rattling sine waves of Agitated Radio Pilot’s ‘Innumerable Night;’ the ambient guitar soundscapes of Jani Hellén’s visually impressive ‘Last Sunbeams In A Darkening Hall;’ and the hypnotic, freefalling spacewalk (herein identified as a “live harmonica and Akai headrush”) of Mike Tamburo’s curiously titled, ‘No More Dripping From Windsor’s Beard.’

     Weird, post-acid folk fanatics will not be disappointed with contributions from wyrdfolk superstars Timothy, Revelator (a cover of Sydney Carter’s ‘Friday Morning,’ featuring Timothy’s immediately recognizeable banjo plucking and gruff monotone softly cushioned by the soporific tones of an unidentified female accompanist); a live collaboration between In Gowan Ring and Nick Castro (‘Unborn Child’); Rose’s own North Sea (whose ‘Gulwenneth of the Green Wood’ is a strolling, strumming visit to the zombie birdhouse complete with tweeting sound effects that is reminiscent of his contribution to the Folklore of The Moon subscription series, “Full Pink Moon’); and Keijo Virtane’s mesmerizing, Eastern-flavoured guitar solo on ‘Moving Beyond,’ (although the free-form skronk of his collaboration with The Free Players (‘Just Before’) is a rather tedious and difficult listen).

     Rose also includes numerous field recordings from artists like Chris Thorn (aka Snake Oil), whose ‘Untitled’ acoustic guitar solo sounds like it was recorded out in his backyard in the middle of a rainstorm and Claypipe’s ‘Amongst Slow Dust of 60 Years,’ which combines squawking horns, buzzsawing violins and the recording ambiance of a discarded military bunker in Wellington, NZ to create an unsettling scream of agony.

     I’m also new to the Australian folk/psych/noise scene emanating from the indie labels, Kindling and Musicyourmindwillloveyou (MYMWLY), but Rose presents an intriguing introduction via the former’s aforementioned Busby and Leighton Craig and Eugene Carchesio’s otherwordly horn skronking and freejazz noise (‘Here I Give Thanks No. 1’), and MYMWLY’s psychedelic nogoodniks lurking behind the Brothers of the Occult Sisterhood, whose ‘Missing Peace’ is a sludgy slice of mind-alterating pschedelia that meanders around the room with no direction home like the bastard child of Spacious Mind and Bardo Pond, conceived after massive consumptions of bongloads of righteous boo. Their sister (bother?) project 6Majik9 is less successful with the live submission ‘Debris,’ which sounded like the magical musicians left the tape running whilst setting up for their performance by checking microphone and instrument levels behind an unintelligible stage rant, although the 6 Organs-ish, Eastern-flavoured sitar-like guitar drones (with Jew’s harp accompaniment) of Occultist Michael Donnelly’s solo project, Terracid (‘Sky Love This Day’) and Snowfoxx’s virulent string scrapings on ‘Love Style One,’ which may appeal to the more tonedeaf air guitarists in the audience, suggests that MYMWLY may be a label to watch in 2006.

     Finally, if experimental music is not your bag, you’ll still dig the straightforward acoustic folktale of Joe O’Connell (aka Elephant Micah)’s ‘Ruination of The Runaways’ (despite the live recording’s overmodulated distortion); the tender, acoustic folk whisper of Rameses III’s ‘The Tidal Straw,’ which gently tiptoes around the room so as not to disturb the sleeping inhabitants; the strange but wonderful, minstrel-in-the-forest, “ether folk” of Phil Legard’s Xenis Emputae Travelling Band (‘Song from A Wasted Orchard’), the strolling Irish rovers, The Magickal Folk of The Faraway Tree’s harmonium and guitar-driven singalong, ‘Being Here Has Caused Me Sorrow;’ the serene, melancholic violin/guitar duet of A. and M. Jarvis’ ‘Rice Leaves,’ the rolling guitar, glistening chimes and lilting flute of Anvil Salute’s ‘Vines Through The Window,’ and The Juniper Meadows’ (aka Rose’s confab with Chris Skillern)’s stirring guitar duel on ‘A Mess of Cedars.’

     So if your music library includes such “out” collections as ‘OHM: The Early Gurus of Electronic Music,’ Last Visible Dog’s ‘Invisible Pyramid: Elegy Box,’ Timothy Renner’s wyrdfolk collection ‘Hand/Eye,’ the Time-Lag/Eclipse collaboration, ‘By the Fruits You Shall Know the Roots,’ or even the grandpappy of weird, goofy shit, ‘The Conet Project,’ you need to make room for the occasionally baffling, frequently infuriating, yet always fascinating ‘Gold Leaf Branches.’ (Jeff Penczak)

FURSAXA – AMULET

(CD on Last Visible Dog Records, http://www.lastvisibledog.com)

  Fursaxa has always been a more powerful proposition live, with Tara Burke's transcendentalisms working their magic best in a communal trance-out setting rather than caged in grooves or pits in various media. The recordings on 'Amulet' go a long way to rectifying this, translating the live experience pretty well for those without access to her gigs, or those who wish a keepsake of those journeys to be periodically played and marvelled at. (In the interests of full disclosure, let's note that 'Amulet' is a more formal reissue of material previously available: a re-release of the tour CD-R 'Amulet' conjoined with approximately half of another live CD-R called 'From the Cult of the Moon Mountains'.) While on her studio albums, tracks are usually quite short, in the live format they spiral out into extended, ritualistic realms. 'Rhiene' sets up a dripping stone tower of looped, enchanted vocals, barely adorned with percussive and wind instrumentation, reinforcing the contention that Burke has been cast here from some distant medieval world, either through folds in time, or quantum leakage through dimensional walls. Indeed the track itself stops time, freezing raised hairs on the back of the neck in perpetual salute. The shortish 'Rodeo in the Sky' is more earthborn; warm electric guitar tones anchoring Burke's vocals in a more familiar place, though even on this track, a shamanic pull is exerted. The near 14 minute 'Crimson' kicks off in pure Hildegard von Bingen style, with hypnagogic dark-age vocals over church-organ stylings, before familiar ecclesiastical patterns are warped into psychedelic abstraction. It's extraordinary stuff, evoking the sounds made by tiny spirits arcing around each other in some cosmic Leyden jar. 'Song to the Cicada', recorded in July 2004  at "The Cicada Festival" on Burke's home patch in the Fishtown district of Philadephia, also clocks in at nearly 14 minutes. It's primarily instrumental, and less involving than the tracks on which Burke's vocals are prominent throughout, but even so it seems to pass in an eye-blink of hijacked time. Vocals are introduced around the 10 minute mark, and wail like a muezzin call to prayer. 'Tyranny' sings the drone electric, with fuzz-bliss provided by the Bardo Pond's Michael and John Gibbons and some funereal drum-thunder propelling the Fursaxa sound close to a full-band drone rock sound. Dark and processional it is, as is the following track 'Trobairitz', which offsets droning organ and shards of guitar disintegration - again from the Gibbons - against soaring, free, vocal mantras. Finally, a circuit back to a near unaccompanied aesthetic is made. The giddy loops and drones of 'Renounce' are not recommended for those engaged in the either the operation of heavy machinery or long-distance driving: in the former case one is apt to wind up part of the machinery, and in the latter case one could possibly snap out of the track at its conclusion to discover that a dozen or more freeway exits have been missed. (Tony Dale).

SPIRAL JOY BAND – LULLABIES FOR JEFF DEAN

(CD on VHF Records, http://www.vhfrecords.com)

    The Spiral Joy Band was formed in 2001 as a hook up between Pelt members Mikel Dimmick and Mike Gangloff, and Karl Precoda (Last Days of May, The Dream Syndicate). Until now they have privileged live performances over recorded works, and these performances have typically featured extended drone works for acoustic instruments much like Pelt's recent work on '(Untitled)' and 'Pearls from the River', also both on VHF. Instruments used and abused include tibetan singing bowls, gongs, sruti box, esraj, tanpura, shenai, and tongue drum, as well as a range of more conventional western paraphernalia.

    'Lullaby 1' concentrates on the metal, placing the listener inside a Golden Triangle hilltop temple filled with bells and gongs being struck and bowed in ever more skull melting ways until consciousness gives way leaving a single sonorous chord ringing in its place. 'Lullaby 2' is insanely long at nearly 42 minutes, evolving from the deep listening trance space created by Gangloff's esraj, to some Last Chord at the End of the Universe action as furious percussion and shrieking shenais push the track over the edge of sanity, and an infinite number of howler monkeys toss their typewriters out of their trees in admiration and sympathy. By its conclusion, most listeners' nerve endings are quite possibly going to be arcing like downed power lines. 'Lullaby 3' thrums with expectancy in the early stages of its 26 minute duration, deeply placed bells and whistles giving way to circulating tampura drones and stately piano figures as if to overwrite the jarring electrical storm of 'Lullaby 2' with a heady tropical sea breeze, though it too gets frenetic in its latter stages. Although the entirety of the release is some kind of high-water mark for Eastern-influenced acoustic drone, this final track points the way towards some promising new avenues for exploration. (Tony Dale)