THE 2010 REVIEW

themilkman on Dec 19th 2010 08:49 pm

The 2010 Review

As 2010 bows out, it is time to look back on a year that has been rich in new music, some from very well established artists, and some from entirely new comers. Here are themilkfactory’s twenty favourite records of the year, and this year for the first time, this list is augmented with thirty other records that have marked the year.

With no less than four albums in the top 20, the year belonged to Rune Grammofon, and more particularly to Supersilent, who occupy two places, including the top spot. Room40 also place two albums in the twenty best records on 2010, while new imprints Desire Path, Hibernate and Textura also feature with some strong releases.
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MINAMO + LAWRENCE ENGLISH: A Path Less Travelled (Room40)

themilkman on Nov 4th 2010 01:18 am

Minamo + Lawrence English: A Path Less Travelled

MINAMO + LAWRENCE ENGLISH
A Path Less Travelled
RM427
Room40 2010

05 Tracks. 42mins02secs

Amazon UK: CD US: CD Boomkat: CD

The latest release to come out of the Room40 workshop is a collaboration between multi media artist and head of label Lawrence English and Japanese experimental quartet Minamo, which uses the latter’s extremely minimal template, built from electronic textures and processed and live guitars, as a platform to expand from, with Lawrence English adding electronic processing and field recordings as well as contributing bass and harmonium. In just over forty minutes of delicate grainy soundscapes, split into five tracks, Minamo and English create a very evocative soundtrack, set somewhere in between their respective sonic realms.

The album was recorded over a couple of years in both Brisbane and Tokyo, but there is nothing in its course that hints at such a time frame. Continue Reading »

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VARIOUS ARTISTS: 2 | Favourite Places (Audiobulb Records)

themilkman on Oct 28th 2009 02:07 am

Various Artists: 2 | Favourite Places

VARIOUS ARTISTS
2 | Favourite Places
AB026
Audiobulb Records 2009
10 Tracks. 56mins30secs

Icon: arrow Amazon UK: DLD Amazon US: DLD Boomkat: DLD iTunes: DLD

The concept is pretty simple: take a number of contemporary musicians with a taste for moods and atmospheres, task them with recording sounds from their favourite places in the world and use them in a composition. This is exactly what David Newman, head of Audiobulb, did two years ago, and the result was compiled in the first instalment of Favourite Places, with contributions from Biosphere, Taylor Deupree, Claudio, Leafcutter John and John Kannenberg amongst others. The second volume in the collection brings together musicians from the UK (Michael Santos, Icarus, Autistici, Calika), Australia (Lawrence English), Belgium (Yannick Franck), Japan (Sawako), USA (Jeremy Bible, He Can Jog) and Canada (Michael Trommer), giving them each a chance to introduce their very own favourite place. The booklet accompanying this CD contains photographs and a description of these spots, providing concrete complements to the recordings. Continue Reading »

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TUJIKO NORIKO, LAWRENCE ENGLISH & JOHN CHANTLER: U (Room 40)

Max Schaefer on Nov 4th 2008 12:20 am

Tujiko Noriko, Lawrence English & John Chantler: U

TUJIKO NORIKO, LAWRENCE ENGLISH & JOHN CHANTLER
U
RM435
Room40 2008
08 Tracks. 38mins57secs

Room 40 captain Lawrence English, musician John Chantler, and chanteuse Tujiko Noriko tumble together and tug apart over the course of U, inexhaustibly stitching the strong physicality of melodic lines to acoustic nuance, whilst crisp, agile, insistent digital tattoos envelop them and insinuate into every interstice.

Far from the jerky, skewed cut-ups of some of Noriko’s earlier work, U develops a judicious restraint to create a space for listening.  The album, though hardly esoteric, and sometimes lacking the edge of discovery honed by a confidently individualized voice, is thus easy to get lost in. Continue Reading »

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