Unearthed from Airwaves & Glyphs of Erebus Sublime reviewed & charted.
VITAL WEEKLY (811)
A new label from Canada with two great releases in the micro-electric world. The artwork is well done by a professional designer and has a high, spacey character. The music is made by the unknown S*. The musician loves to work with with two reel-to-reel machines and plays with the tapes with loops, speed, etcetera. Electromagnetic crackles, droney sounds, noisy-glitches and several layers makes this music something special. Mostly this kind of music is made with a more academic starting-point. I do not know why, but in this music there is a lot of emotion, although the sounds are harsh, subtle and noisy. Maybe it has to do with the ideas of the musician to create a psychedelic atmosphere, so that the listener can fly away into the sky to other planets. The first release consists of reinterpretations of the music of S*. Six musicians including Coingutter, i8u, Tomas Phillips, Richard Chartier, Jeff Carey and Scant Intone worked with S*’s music and created a complete album, sounding as if it is the work of one person. On the second release, S* plays together with Katherine Kline of Montreal’s psychedelic noise and industrial outfit Dreamcatcher. Samples of voices and cut-up technics makes this second release more human and less industrial. The two musicians play carefully with the electronic bleeds and tones. Lovely album. IO Sound has made a good start with these two beautiful releases which are recorded in 2008. I do not know how many more recordings S* has made, but it these are the only one, it is a real pleasure to discover this spacey emotional world. (JKH)
RAVAGE DIGITAAL (translated from the Dutch)
Sometimes I get those pleasant surprises in the mailbox, for which I’m very happy. The label IO Sound from Canada, recently established, has immediately launched two beautiful editions of S*. Who S * is the label does not say. The only thing known is that in 2008 recordings were made ??and that he creates music with tape recorders, a mixer, feedback and other electronics.
The CD is in form and space named Glyphs of Erebus Sublime, with many references to other planets. Glyphs or Erebus Sublime is made with KK, or Katherine Kline, a member of Dreamcatcher, a psychedelic noise band from Montreal. Oddly enough the album contains a lot of emotion. Often electronic music in this part of the musical field utilises a clinical approach to sound. This CD knows to build tension and takes the listener into a psychedelic world. The minimal use of noisy sounds, creaking and waves, emerging bleeps and appearances creates a tension that will not let go. Unearthed from Airwaves is more noisy in nature and consists of reinterpretations of music performed by S* by various musicians, such as Coingutter. The musicians work with two tape recorders, working with loops and the tempo of the composed music. Although a compilation CD, it is good that it is consistent with palette, as if only a single musician was at work.
Who S* is remains a mystery. According to the label, the origin is unknown. Anyway, names really do not matter. S* creates a tense, crackling, rich world. I await with expectation the follow-up to S*’s journeys to other planets, taking us by storm with the electronic processing of reality. (Jan Kees Helms)
/ CHARTS
CKUT 90.3FM (Montréal) // Top 30 November 29th & 22nd 2011
