Psychedelic free folk/jazz/rock merchants formed in Bristol 2002, featuring the lysergic sounds of double bass, sax n' flute, sitar, electric noise, super-fuzz, northumbrian bagpipes and vocals straight out of 1969 era Fairport. The band follow in a linage of psychedelic English bands, like Gong, Man, Hawkwind and Soft Machine even. The work of Fuzz Against Junk has included the techniques of collective improvisation. The tapestry of their music can at first be confusing, for it is the aural equivalent of a constantly agitated kaleidoscope be each instrument freaking-out in ever new ways.
A Flock Of Bleeps (2003). A winning collaboration between two of the psy trance scenes best producers. The legendary Simon Posford (Hallucinogen, Shpongle) and the highly prolific Bemji Vaughan (Prometheus), Younger Brother is guaranteed to be huge at underground parties and in the homes of trance and chillout fans everywhere. Younger Brother is the latest trance project from Simon, who has been concentrating on his downtempo project Shpongle, and will be a welcome 4/4 dancelfoor return to his numerous dance music fans. Still he has brought the latest influences with him merging them together into a new blend of Shpongle's slow beats and the faster dance of Hallucinogen's trance.
Prometheus' influence further accentuates the eclectic nature of this project with a wide range of sounds, samples, effects and beats that create unique fusion of musical fantasia…
Gargantua’s music provides a mind-boggling abundance of colors, moods and compositional schemes. Dense polyphonic structures are interwoven with seemingly harmless, “mock-heroic” tunes, morphing into either jagged interplay of guitar and replicated violin, or irreverent choral enunciations, electronic soundscapes and piano staccatos. Carnival fights here with Lent, seriousness with the grotesque, corporeality with sterility, baroque excess with ascetic introspection. This is a truly “Pantagruelian” vision of music that is self-conscious, self-mocking and highly goal-oriented. And surprising as it may sound, its intransigent, mathematical logic does not prevent the Polish artists from playing with a sharp rocky edge…
Lilliput Orkestra is a french jazz quartet from Toulouse. Lilliput plays only original compositions mixing jazz, brass band mood, free improvisation and grooves.
Anthony Rother - Elixir of Life (2003) & Anthony Rother - Magic Diner (2003).
Anthony Rother is an electro-techno producer from Germany who rose to prominence in the mid-'90s on the label Kanzleramt before founding numerous labels of his own, most notably Psi49net and Datapunk. Influenced primarily by Kraftwerk and Detroit techno, Rother was born on April 29, 1972, in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. Rother's electro sound ("Simulationszeitalter", "Hacker") is characterized by repetitive machine-like beats, robotic, vocoder-driven vocals, melancholy, futuristic mood and lyrics that often deal with the consequences of technological progress, the relationship between humans and machines, and the role of computers in society. In addition to electro, Rother also composes dark ambient music ("Elixir of Life", "Art Is a Technology").
The Eyesores is the best known project of Alec K. Redfearn, a Rhode Island songwriter/composer/musician (who primarily plays accordion). He was made the front man of the band with their third album, Every Man For Himself & God Against All. The band grows and shrinks with the needs of the various projects, but in general also includes Olivia Geiger on violin, Margie Wienk on vocals, cello, and double bass, Ann Schattle on french horn, Erica Schattle on bassoon, Domenick Panzarella on guitar, and Matt Mclaren on drums. Redfearn himself is known for playing his accordion like a guitar (through the use of distortion, drone and noise). The band started as an outlet for Redfearns more singer/songwriter material, but has grown far from these roots, and have since brought their music to film scores, theatrical performances, and dance troupes.
Max Melvin is a duo formed in Hamburg, Germany consisting of Andreas Bruhn and Stefan Rekittke. The pair mostly produce electronica, and in particular downtempo music.
Satellite (2003). It is not very often that the massive lounge and chill-out scene produces artists that are able to develop the potential and qualities to make an album. This is definitely true of Max Melvin, however. Max Melvin are back with their second long player “Satellite”. And, when you hear this excellent eleven-track course in relaxation therapy, you will probably think the producers Andreas Bruhn and Stefan Rekittke are the most relaxed people in the world. The two guys from Hamburg don’t seem to know the meaning of rush and stress…
Lost Terrain (1992). Seattle's Jeff Greinke is considered by many to be one of the great talents in the ambient/experimental music scene. His career has progressed from early experimentalism, through his mid-period ambience and fourth-world atmospherics, to his recent work in a loop-oriented world/jazz/ambient hybrid style. The one release of Greinke's most often mentioned by fans of his work is 1992's Lost Terrain, originally issued by Silent Records. With a sound that ranges from austere minimalism reminiscent of Budd and Eno, to strange, surreal soundworlds uniquely Greinke's own, Terrain showcases all that is strong and unique about Greinke's work. Out of print for several years, this crucial mid-period release is now available again, digitally remastered and repackaged, from Hypnos Recordings…
Swod is the recording project of Oliver Doerell and Stephan Wohrmann, two accomplished musicians who met in Berlin sometime in 1991. Oliver plays guitar, bass and all manner of electronics - he is also a long-time family member of City Centre Offices having recorded an album and an EP under the “Dictaphone” moniker in between composing and performing musical pieces for theatre, installations and film over the last few years. Stephan plays piano and drums, arranging an almost neo-classical structure within a recording that already sounds ghostly and cinematic. Translated as "go", "Gehen" (2004) represents a labour of love from two musicians experienced in the art of seductive and evocative music making…
Patrick O'Hearn is an American multi-instrumentalist musician, composer, and recording artist. While his musical repertoire spans a diverse range of music, he is an acclaimed new age and ambient artist in his solo career. In 1985, he began his solo career releasing music, which he continues to this day. Eldorado (1989). This is a marvelous experiment in contemporary, Middle-Eastern-flavored electro-acoustic music. O'Hearn seemed to be embarking on a new direction in his musical career with this thoughtful yet sensuous blending of ancient and modern modes of expression. The album features two prominent Iranian artists - singer Shahla Sarshar and violinist Farid Farjad - though the music was obviously ahead of its time in the notoriously conservative world of adult alternative music…