Pete Fosco - Breath Radiant




Both contemplative and uproarious. Quite simply stunning.

C36 released on Brad Rose's Dial Square Tapes in 2010.

Breath Radiant

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Pete Fosco - Vacationlanded




... a vision as wide as the horizon ...

C44 released on L'Animaux Tryst (Field) Recordings in 2011.

Vacationlanded

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Pete Fosco - Altar of Dusk




The cover is the entry point. The vague memory of things lost. Absolutely beautiful guitar-drone improvisations from the immaculate Mr Fosco.

C44 released on Jehu And Chinaman in 2013 in an edition of only 30 copies.

Altar of Dusk

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Outermost / Thirdorgan - Silent Baby / Superlovers In Amagasaki




Kei Yokota and Akihiro Shimizu sharing a double CDr set released in a metal box on the latter's Alienation in 1999. If you are partial to wearing a hat, I suggest you hold on to it.

Silent Baby / Superlovers In Amagasaki

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Grunt / Outermost - Stab In The Ears




Mikko Aspa and Kei Yokota either side of a C20 released on Kei Yokota's Cat Move in 1995? Yeah, thought so ...

Stab In The Ears

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Outermost - Beware Of This And That




3" CDr from 2001.

Beware Of This And That

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Outermost - Doku no Hana

Harsh Japanese scum noise from Kei Yokata/Outermost, issued as a tape in an edition of 60 copies by the Labyrinth label in 1998.

Outermost - Doku no Hana

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Kuwayama-Kijima - 01.06.16




A constant theme of the work of Kiyoharu Kuwayama & Rina Kijima is the incorporation of the urban venue within their improvisations. This was recorded "at the bottom of the highway at midnight".

Superior illustration of the scope of human imagination released on Trente Oiseaux in 2001.

01.06.16

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Kuwayama-Kijima - 01.05.10




CD released on Alluvial Recordings in 2003, ably using the acoustics of the warehouse in which it was recorded.

01.05.10

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Kuwayama-Kijima - 02.08.23




Kiyoharu Kuwayama on cello and Rina Kijima on violin, using the sounds created within an abandoned ocean-side pier to create astonishingly atmospheric improvisations.

Released on Bernhard Günter's Trente Oiseaux in 2003.

02.08.23

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Egypt Is The Magick # - Egypt Is The Magick #




Self-released C96 from 1998. A series of long spontaneous jams that make me want to get naked, paint myself blue and sit in the woods smoking mushrooms ...

Egypt Is The Magick #

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Egypt Is The Magick # - How Many Pieces Of The Puzzle Can The Mind Go Without?




Excellent CD that has more of the psychedelic about it than their other releases. If you enjoy the occasional bad trip ... and who doesn't! There is absolutely no line-up information on the release itself. The disc has "all these numbers to show that solomon worshipped the goddess" written on it ... what else do you need to know?

This was jointly released on NNCK's Sound@One and Psych-O-Path Records ‎in 2000.

How Many Pieces Of The Puzzle Can The Mind Go Without?

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Egypt Is The Magick # - The Valentine Process




Ramshackle shaman-folk from a virtually mysterious Californian collective. They centred around Adam Mortimer and David Shuford (aka D. Charles Speer and is a member of No-Neck Blues Band and was in Black Dirt Oak, Enos Slaughter, Les Conversions, Rhyton and The Suntanama). The only information on this line-up is that David Shuford is joined by "Pakhet" and "Atum" (?).

LP released on Mad Monk in 2007.

The Valentine Process

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Flatgrey - Untitled

Untitled mini-album of actionless, "wall noise" psychedelic roar from Lashen Orendorff's appropriately-monikered Flatgrey project, issued as a run of 50 one-sided cassettes by Rundownsun in 2006.

Flatgrey - Untitled

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Wreck Small Speakers On Expensive Stereos - Worlds Fall Apart




This is one of my favourite tapes. The first track "Together We Sense" manages to represent the greatest Fall aesthetic (Yvonne Pawlett on keyboards, Marc Riley on bass, Karl Burns on drums and Martin Bramah on guitar). But it's obviously not. It's the project of Michael Morley and Richard Ram. The comparison is the greatest compliment that I could possibly offer given that I am one of the biggest Fallheads you could imagine. This clunky chopped up thirty one year old creation should be held up as one of the high points of musical achievement ...

C60 jointly released on Every Secret Thing and Big Bright Thing Cassettes ‎in 1984.

Worlds Fall Apart

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Wreck Small Speakers On Expensive Stereos - Cave




Richard Ram on bass, Bruce Blucher on drums, Martin Kean (who was also in The Chills and Stereolab) on guitar and Michael Morly on guitar, organ and vocals. This is an inevitably lo-fi live recording apart from the final track which has the feel of being recorded in a bedroom somewhere, with even the clunk of the record/stop buttons on the tape recorder left in.

C56 jointly released on Every Secret Thing ‎and Art Raith Productions in 1985.

Cave

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Wreck Small Speakers On Expensive Stereos - River Falling Love




Originally, this was a 12" released on the mighty Flying Nun Records in 1987. It was reissued on CD by Ajax Records with an additional five tracks and this is what you have here. The sounds are much more defined than on previous releases and would be their final recordings before Mr Morley began to concentrate on The Dead C.

River Falling Love

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Wreck Small Speakers On Expensive Stereos - A Child's Guide To ...




"Wreck..." were Michael Morley (The Dead C, Gate, etc) and Richard Ram and delivered superior twisted lo-fi rock offerings during the early Eightites. This retrospective is compiled by Bruce Russell (who is also in The Dead C) from live and studio material and comes in the form of a C60, released on Bruce's hugely influential Xpressway in 1988.

A Child's Guide To ...

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Dissecting Table - Impressionism




Ichiro Tsuji is a genius who appears (perversely) to want fewer people to hear him the older he gets. He now releases his prolific multi-format and extremely limited art almost exclusively via his own UPD Organization.

This is a double CDr, single-sided C34 and DVDr set released in 2010 in an edition of eight copies.

You'll need to extract both parts to the same folder.

Part 1

Part 2

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Blomit - Untitled

Typically bizarro American Tapes one-sided lathe-cut LP released in a numbered edition of 30 copies in 2003. Because no play speed was specified, this was ripped at both 33 and 45rpm. It sounds wrong on both speeds. Oh, and it's AM307 for all you completists.

Blomit - Untitled

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1000schoen - Vein




1000schoen (or Tausendschoen if you prefer) is the work of Helge Siehl who in a previous incarnation was a member of Maeror Tri.

This is the most gorgeous channel-switching motorik ambient drone that you possibly could dream of ... play this in a very large room at full volume and lose your mind ...

Four 3" CDr set released on Underwater Orchestra Records in 2002.

Vein

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Various - Greek Electronic Music - 1




Originally, this was an LP released in 1974 featuring Michael Adamis, Dimitri Terzakis, Stephanos Vassiliadis, Nikos Mamangakis, Charis Xanthoudakis and Yannis Vlachopoulos. This is the CDr edition re-issued in 2006 courtesy of the wonderful Icelanders behind Creel Pone.

Greek Electronic Music - 1

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Nikos Veliotis / Costis Drygianakis - 28/04/2001




Costis Drygianakis manipulating tape recorders and Nikos Veliotis wrenching all kind of sounds from his Cello. Recorded live at the Small Music Theatre in Athens in 2001. Released on absurd the same year.

28/04/2001

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Dawn of the Dead - Island of the Forbidden Face

An early, very small-edition one-sided LP by Dawn of the Dead (aka John Olson) on American Tapes. This one came out in 2000 as catalog #AM104. The cover drawing is mounted on cardstock with a spiral binding and the side of the record without grooves is spray-painted and covered with a sticker.

Dawn of the Dead - Island of the Forbidden Face

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Mecha/Orga - 56:24

Nearly an hour of slow-motion drone by Mecha/Orga (aka Georgios Sakkellariou), released as a CD by Absurd in 2007. Starts out friendly enough, but grows steadily more enervating as it goes it. Fans of Birchville Cat Motel probably already know about this guy.

Mecha/Orga - 56:24

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Cranc - All Angels

Free-improv string trio of Rhodri Davies (harp), Angharad Davies (violin) and Nikos Veliotis (cello), recorded live at London's All Angels Church in 1999 and released on Costis DrygianankisΔίσκοι ΕΔΩ label in 2000.

Cranc - All Angels

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Οπτική Μουσική - Τόμος 2

Second album by Costis Drygianankis' Optical Music project from 1994, this one ought to please fans of O Yuki Conjugate, Jeff Grienke, Brian Eno or Muslimgauze. Low-key, soundtrack-like ambience with a light touch.

Οπτική Μουσική (Optical Music) - Τόμος 2

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Κωστής Δρυγιανάκης - Μετα-Οπτικά Τοπία

Another fantastic album by Greek composer Costis Drygianankis, "Post-Optical Landscapes" from 1999 is denser and stranger than "ThoughIspeak..." (posted yesterday). On this album, Drygianankis took loads of recordings (of string instruments, flutes and bassoons, piano, voice, and unrecognizable percussive/shuffling sounds) made between 1976 to 1998 and collaged them into two long and unsettling pieces.

Κωστής Δρυγιανάκης (Costis Drygianakis) - Μετα-Οπτικά Τοπία

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Κωστής Δρυγιανάκης - Εανταισγλωσσαιστωνανθρωπωνλαλωκαιτωναγγελων

Here begins a week of Greek avant-garde music, starting with an album by composer Costis Drygianakis, the title of which translates to "ThoughIspeakwiththetonguesofmenandofangels" (but you knew that already). It was released in 1999 as a CD on Δίσκοι ΕΔΩ, but is made up of recordings from 1997 (mainly of string instruments, percussion, and voice) that have been manipulated in the studio. 

Κωστής Δρυγιανάκης (Costis Drygianakis) -Εανταισγλωσσαιστωνανθρωπωνλαλωκαιτωναγγελων

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Davy Walklett - Sacred Hymns & Twisted Blues




Davy Walklett is Smell & Quim's "Milovan Srdenovic". This is a C48 released on Underground Productions in 1990. This ain't no S&Q but the tape fuckery turns up now and again. This is Beefheartian Delta/Swamp blues complete with gratuitous farmyard vocals. This is a tape that stands up on its hind legs and smiles right at you ...

Sacred Hymns & Twisted Blues

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Smell & Quim / Taint - Untitled




S&Q in full-on PTV party mode. Keith Brewer in full-on Keith Brewer mode. Quality 7" bit of vinyl released on Red Stream, Inc. in 1993.

Smell & Quim / Taint

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Smell & Quim - Tit Wank




Delirious and genius.

C60 released on Freedom From in 1997.

Tit Wank

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Smell & Quim - Eat Pussy




Creaking noise vibrations from England's finest purveyors of filth fluid straight from the dirty hands of Milovan Srdenovic!

C20 released on Kadef in 1997.

Eat Pussy

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Smell & Quim - The English Method

Here's the excellent debut Smell & Quim cassette, "The English Method", self-released on Stinky Horse Fuck in 1988. Those of you who only know S&Q as harsh-noise buffoons might be surprised by this one. 


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Nobuo Yamada - Cheap Metal Motion 2




"My activity was the tenth year in this year. I produced it as a sequel to first product "Cheap Metal Motion" of 2002 as the knot. I chose six used metal junk art objects as an axis by work production and a live performance mainly in these ten years and expressed the property of the sound to contain to the object. Fetishism to the texture and shape of the metal junk objects drifts in the background along with the sound. (package art : wood board, rusted wire, brand)"

Released on ABH in 2012.

Cheap Metal Motion 2

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Nobuo Yamada - Composition Sound At Japanese Working Situation




This gentleman hears and interprets the world around us in the most lyrical manner imaginable.

CDr released on his own ABH label in 2003.

Composition Sound At Japanese Working Situation

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Nobuo Yamada - Mono-Te-Oto




Ever been tempted to attach contact mics to random objects or marvel at the tuneful juxtaposition of children's toys and, erm, random objects? Of course you have! Anyway, your best efforts couldn't compete with this collection of carefully considered composition and the type of abstraction that would make the Zero Gravity people swell with pride. This is another three CDr set released on ABH. This time it's 2003.

The final track on disc three ("Toy Piano + Bowstring") is missing ... I've never been able to find it so if anybody is sitting on that, please share so we can finally complete this masterpiece!

Mono

Te

Oto

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Nobuo Yamada - WP3




Nobuo Yamada using items found around his house in order to make atmospheric noise on a triple CDr collection released on his own ABH label in 2004.

WP#1: Metalic Rain -Improvisation Of A Phenomenon With Raindrops-

WP#2: Tap Water Vibration -Relation Between An Object And Vibration By Water-

WP#3: Shower Jamboree -Innocent And Natural Feedback Which Takes Place In A Shower Hose-

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Kiyoshi Mizutani - The Same Thing Makes Always Her Laugh




Kiyoshi Mizutani was a member of Merzbow until around 1990 when he left to concentrate on his own work. This early piece is closer to his work with Masami Akita than his later releases that incorporate field recordings ...

LP mixed by Masami Akita and released on his ZSF Produkt in 1990.

The Same Thing Makes Always Her Laugh

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Reiko. A – Coruscanto

Though she's appeared on some 30 Merzbow albums, Reiko Azuma has not published very much of her solo noise. Even this tape, self-released on her Nekoisis label in 1995, features Merzbow and Achim Wollscheid/SBOTHI on the first side. Still, it's a rare (and quite good!) recording by an artist who was there since "Japanese noise" began, yet managed to keep a rather low profile.

Reiko. A – Coruscanto

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Edgar Wappenhalter / Dolphins Of East Belgium - Untitled




Completely agree with the Mrs on the "flirtation". Edgar Wappenhalter is actually Steve Marreyt (who is also in Silvester Anfang) and these particular impressive cetaceans (given that Belgium is a land-locked country) is Lieven Martens.

C66 released on Cauliflower Dreams in 2007.

Edgar Wappenhalter / Dolphins Of East Belgium

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Dolphins Into the Future - Ke Mirning Pu'uwai

Imagine a Windham Hill new age album, full of tasteful synth wash and nature sounds. Now imagine that same album played on a 30th generation cassette tape that's been left baking in the sun for several months. That's sort of what this tape is like. Belgian artist Lieven Martens' Dolphins Into the Future has some sonic affinity with the blown-out basement-psychedelia of The Skaters and their solo/pseudonymous orbital projects (particularly Monopoly Child Star Seekers), early Oneohtrix Point Never, and the more placid exponents of the New Zealand sub-sub-undergound. The new age flirtation is borderline-distasteful, as if Martens is channeling Vangelis via Hive Mind, but somehow it works. Those bird chirps and whale songs (??) are vastly more enjoyable to listen to when slathered in ugly hiss. Released by Cetacean Nation Cassettes in 2011.

Dolphins Into the Future - Ke Mirning Pu'uwai


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