Consciousness Removal Project it’s a one-man post-metal band from Tampere, Finland. Its only official member Antti Loponen is solely responsible not only for compositions, lyrics and arrangements but also for most instruments and the record production. Although, with the help of a live collective including Arttu Kimmel – guitar, Vesa Ahonen – bass and Artturi Mäkinen – drums, Consciousness Removal Project has also been able to perform live since 2008.
The music of Consciousness Removal Project has been published on the internet for free since 2004. The new album, released on 03 January 2013 and entitled “Tacit” it’s also available for free download (“name your price”) from their Bandcamp page (Click “Buy now” and enter $0 for free download), as well as a limited edition Digipack CD pressing hand numbered with binary digits. Support artists, we need them!!
And the music it’s gloomy, subtle and beautiful. Described perfectly by José at Terrorizer magazine: “It’s not the soundtrack for the eventual apocalypse itself, it’s the soundtrack for sitting on the porch on a quiet evening with a drink, thinking about it.” Read more Consciousness Removal Project – Tacit (2013)
Life and Living
progressive rock
Artifex – Suspension of Disbelief (2013)
If there is a space between King Crimson and Marilyn Manson, that space definitively it’s filled with the Italian Artifex. With roots back to the Psychedelic/Progressive Rock of the 70s and 80s, but with gloomy resonances of the Industrial Rock and Industrial Metal of the 90s, Artifex are building a brand new world out of Hard Rock bricks and modern sounds, electronic layers, but not at least, strong emotions.
Antonio “Mircea” Olivo (voice/guitar/electronics) founded Artifex in 1997, in Bologna, Italy, wanting “to recall that “verve” which had the great bands of the 70s, developing their sound in a modern key through the “balance” between analog and digital.”. The line-up was completed by Francesco Paonessa (drums & machines) and Davide Schipani (bass guitar, synth). By now the band released four self-produced CDs: “Tristis” (1997), “In-Side” (2001), “Artifex” (2003), and an EP entitled “Redux” in 2009.
“Suspension of Disbelief” will be released on 27th January 2013 and it’s a concept album based on the MAN’s emotions, an intermittent and laborious back to basics made of suspension and disbelief as well.
The album also have two special guests: Pat Mastelotto from King Crimson on drums featuring on “Witness of Transition” and Fabrice Quagliotti from Rockets on keyboards and backing vocals featuring on “Electric Lights”. Read more Artifex – Suspension of Disbelief (2013)
Navene K – Human Design, free EP (2012)
Navene Koperweis (aka Navene K), is an American drummer, multi-instrumentalist, composer, and producer, best known as the former drummer of Animosity and Animals as Leaders. Koperweis started drumming when he was eleven years old. He has played for The Faceless, and runs his technical death metal band, Fleshwrought, where he plays all instruments.
Debuted on record with Hoods on their 2003’s album “Prey for Death”. With Animosity featured on three albums: “Shut It Down” (2003), “Empires” (2005) and “Animal” (2007). Under the moniker Fleshwrought released in 2010 the album “Dementia/Dyslexia”. Featured on the second album, “Weightless”, by Animals as Leaders in 2011 both as drummer and engineering.
Plays beside the drums guitar and various electronic instruments.
He is also a dubstep/electronica producer, and is currently working on his debut electronic album. A tasteful peak into his upcoming works it’s this free, four track EP aviable for free download from his Soundcloud and Bandcamp page. Read more Navene K – Human Design, free EP (2012)
Panzerballett – Tank Goodness (2012)
Their previous album, “Hart Genossen von ABBA bis Zappa” was pointed out as his favourite record of 2009 by Clawfinger guitarist Bård Torstensen. About the same album Dweezil Zappa said: “Very well done. Normally, I don’t like people re-arranging my father’s music but this was a pleasant surprise.” Not at least, Randy Brecker said: “Panzerballett is the first band I’ve heard that really leads Music into the 21st Century!”
So, what Panzerballett are actually playing? This is an intense, extremely technical Jazz-Rock with some powerful Metal infusions. In-your-face type of riffs are smartly built-in into the classy, but modern flavored Jazz-Rock constructions. “Vulgar Display of Sauerkraut” sounds like Pantera versus Al Di Meola (I’m thinking of songs such as “Alien Chase On Arabian Desert”) – eventually. Double-bass drum slaughterings and killer riffs are merged with mystic flavored Jazz breakdowns. Read more Panzerballett – Tank Goodness (2012)
Illogistical Resource Dept. – Catharsis (2012)
The apocalypse comes from San Francisco. Or just the catharsis. The nature try to get back at us? Eventually. God knows…. 😆 But wont save us from ourselves.
Dan Menapace – Bass and Synths, Jim Harris – Guitar, and Noa Appleton – Drums are explorers, soundonauts. “Speak” it’s a modern, reiterated “Astronomy Domine”, a tasty and gloomy evoking of past values, but also a brave step into the unknown and the future.
This is a groovy, sometimes blowing in your face, but mainly gloomy and atmospheric Rock machinery build to explore the universe of sounds and find new paths for creativity and expression.
Released on 14 November 2012, the 8 tracks of “Catharsis” lead us into the dark world of our worst fears and subconscious.
“When Frogs Attack” starts menacing, the Primus taste is definitively there, but Illogistical Resource Dept. add their own flavor as well. Wicked riffs and spicy grooves are blending into a powerful, catchy song, an excellent “door opener” for an album full of different blends and flavors.
“The Secret Box” it’s a more Psychedelic flavored trip with a charming, mysterious aroma. What Forrest Gump’s mom said about life, it’s go to “Catharsis” as well: “Life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.” Read more Illogistical Resource Dept. – Catharsis (2012)
Byzant At Sunset – No Reason To Remix This, EP (2012)
Although, officially this is considered only an EP, featuring two originals and 13 plus one bonus remixes of “No Reson”, a total of 16 tracks is still a considerable quantity of music to go through. But this is a FREE RELEASE, so, this is one more reason to get “No Reason”! – the official debut of Byzant At Sunset.
“No Reason” have a strong The Clash kind of vibe, but the sound it’s smoothly adjusted to the nowadays expectations, wobbling basses, ska fueled guitars and the tasty saxophone gives a genuine Byzant At Sunset taste to the song. This is a manifest, a statement against modern days consumerism: “No reason is a reason good enough” express both anger and disappointment.
“Wildfire” is more like an improvisation, an eruption, a race through the fire of inspiration and creation. Although Byzant At Sunset it’s exclusively an on-line, world wide collaboration creative collective, some of their members not sharing not the same room, but not even the same continent in their lives, “Wildfire” have the nerve, vibe and wilderness of a genuine rehearsal recording. It’s like someone light up a cigarette but that unleash an unstoppable… wildfire.
And then we have 14 remixes from 13 outstanding producers from the Indaba community: ALBM, @ssic@, Bluetrax, Brushvox, Carda, DaveDaG, JohnnySix, Manu, mSelv, Richard Walker, Richinmusic, The ?uestion Mark, and, last but not least, Ultraglow featuring with two tracks. Read more Byzant At Sunset – No Reason To Remix This, EP (2012)
Muse – The 2nd Law (2012)
The waiting – and unfortunately the resistance – it’s over, the upcoming sixth studio album by Muse it’s set to be released on 1st October 2012, respectively on 2nd October 2012 in the USA.
The expectations are pretty high, “The Resistance” was a brilliantly super album which also put one Grammy Award for Best Rock Album in their pocket, although they were nominated in three categories. Along the way, Muse have won several music awards including five MTV Europe Music Awards, five Q Awards, eight NME Awards, two Brit Awards—winning “Best British Live Act” twice, an MTV Video Music Award, four Kerrang! Awards and an American Music Award. In a digital era with serious piracy issues, they still managed to sold over 15 million albums worldwide.
The album title refers to the second law of thermodynamics. The music it’s a colorful mixture of old and new, merging sounds and genres from roots back to traditional Brit Rock, invoicing mainly Queen, up to contorted, so-called “Dubstep” influences from American producer Skrillex. Read more Muse – The 2nd Law (2012)
Marillion – Sounds That Can’t Be Made (2012)
Unbelievable, but this is the band’s 17th studio album! Most of their fans are totally and exclusively in love with their debut trilogy of “Script for a Jester’s Tear (1983)”, “Fugazi (1984)”, and “Misplaced Childhood (1985)”, and everything after Fish leaving and “Clutching at Straws (1987)” seems to did not really mattered. And yes, this is kind of unfair, but Marillion after 1988 and with Steve Hogarth as their new singer, was a totally different plate of food – food for spirit, obviously. And yes, as Hogarth fairly noticed in an interview in 2000: “If we had known when I joined Marillion what we know now, we’d have changed the name and been a new band. It was a mistake to keep the name, because what it represented in the mid-Eighties is a millstone we now carry. If we’d changed it, I think we would have been better off. We would have been judged for our music. It’s such a grave injustice that the media constantly calls us a “dinosaur prog band”…”
And Marillion had a few great moments and several good albums in the last two decades, but mainly the media refuse to notice them. Read more Marillion – Sounds That Can’t Be Made (2012)
Katrin the Thrill – Evil Eye Charm (2012)
Katrin the Thrill reminds me of a young Patti Smith, she could be a drowning in melancholy PJ Harvey or a sober Courtney Love, possibly a less gloomy, but still dark enough Melissa Auf der Maur. Having some strong Post-Rock resonances, Katrin the Thrill exploring the path between building upon gentle acoustic layers and tearing the dreams apart by screaming guitars and pounding drums. A woman might seems sexy and fragile, but she is eventually even further dangerous and deadly when she strikes. “Evil Eye Charm” it’s like a walk through Wonderland: never really know what will jump off to you behind the next song. And this is definitively a positive tension which keeps your attention sharp throughout the album while every song has it’s own little Magic, it’s a painting with sounds from another universe.
One of my favorites is the closing “Warmer” because it’s not only warmer with some sparkling piano chords, but gave us the much anticipated release. But I love equally the whole journey from the pulsing start with “Losing” which kind of throw us into the eye of the rising hurricane, through the theatrical break-downs of “Under The Skylight” or the gentle chords of “Lyds”. Classic in the most possible positive sense, but out of the patterns, experimental, explorer, looking further, breathing and alive. Pretty charming journey actually, no fill-ups, no empty or useless spaces (moments), but struggling emotions throughout. Read more Katrin the Thrill – Evil Eye Charm (2012)
kafabindunya – Obi (2012)
According to kafabindünya, ordinary songs with lyrics limit the story that the listener imagines, by the content of the lyrics That’s why kafabindünya composes instrumental music and they want people to build their own stories and use their music as the soundtrack of their own fiction, only influenced by the song’s name. Denying the so called moody and repetitive harmonic structures used by most of the Post-Rock bands, kafabindünya focuses on composition and express feelings through music.
Formed at Istanbul, Turkey in the early 2000s, kafabindünya shared the stage with bands like Mogwai, Caspian, Kokomo, Arms and Sleepers and alike, in 2012, they finally released their debut album “obi” through Peyote Music. Merging heavy, intense moments with fluid and gloomy, smoothly layered cinematic moments and Oriental tests with Western sounds, kafabindünya creating their own flavored universe. One of my favorites it’s the explosive “When We Were Young” and the tumultuous closing act, “Yapılabilecek Bir Şey Yoktu”, but “Obi” it’s a 11 stationed, vividly colored, flawless journey gently adorned with surprises and exciting twists. Read more kafabindunya – Obi (2012)
