Para Halu – Beats & Pieces

Band / Artist: Para Halu
Year: 2012
Genre: Breaks, Dub, Psytrance, Techno, Trance

My Review:
Apparently, if you want psytrance, the only place to go for it would be the middle east and surrounding parts of eastern Europe. Thats it. Nobody else seems to be able to do it.

So this is Para Halu. He's from Hungary. Here's a website for him.
http://www.parahalu.net/

10 years ago, he started up making music, and 5 albums later, he's still at it. He decided to honor that anniversary by releasing a free album of 7 long-lasting psytrance tracks. Its a great thing.

So the review of this would probably be something along these lines. If you enjoy early Infected Mushroom, music from Juno Reactor, 1200 Micrograms, or Alien Project, then you'll enjoy this. It has a pretty clear psytrance feel, with some minor experimentation in it's presentation, bringing in breaks and ambient elements as well as some new agey synthpop sound and field recording in the final track. Its a good one for exercising to.





Para Halu – Beats & Pieces

A moment to reflect.

WHEW. So much stress and tension in the states this last week, today feels like a release of all of it. I stayed up all night trying to write, and today I feel tired, but overall, so stress free for a day.

I won't mention political leanings or anything, but isn't it nice to have that all finished? So today i'm gonna post a few great chill things to help everyone relax for a couple days, and relish the moment where we all get back to seeing the bigger issues that we should care about (Like helping hurricane victims in the New England area, please donate something if you can).

Anyways here's a short recording for everyone. Consider it sleepytime music, or a moment of reflection.

The winds of Ocean Breeze lament Staten Island's dead from finitor on Vimeo.

The Womb - The Fourth Wall

Band / Artist: The Womb
Year: 2010
Genre: Alternative Pop, Indie Electronic, Indie Rock

My Review:
So it was labeled as pop, but the category would better be described as mid 90's alternative pop. WOO PIGEONHOLING GENRES! Alan Driscoll is the name of the head of the band, and apparently their style changes a lot from album to album.

I found this about him/them on a failed IndieGoGo Project.

Since 1998, I have been releasing records as The Womb, all of which have been free for anybody to download. I work with lots of different musicians in lots of different musical styles, and while I began in England, I'm now based in Melbourne, Australia.

I want to find out if it is possible for me to make a living from music while continuing to give my records away for free. With that in mind, I would like to create an album of personalised songs, in which contributors can ask me to write a song about any topic, or serving any purpose they choose.

Honorable ideals, and hopefully he/they get there soon enough. Anyhow, back to the music.

Here is an album working to recast early to mid 90's alt pop through the contemporary indie rock of the early 2010s. The first time I listened to this was on the end of a long road trip without air conditioning or conversation and my car just would not play in the right order. I was not in the mood..

..but coming back to it when i had fresh ears was nice. It has some snarky qualities, and social commentary that seems straight out of a good 90s alternative. The sounds vary a bit from track to track, playing off of all kinds of different influences, but the whole thing still shows its unity. The tracklisting is also very nicely laid out, with the most electronic song at the end, and a bright beginner and ballad-like ender. I didn't really feel like every song on the album needed to be kept, but the one thing is for sure, they have good sound quality and they do a good job presenting themselves.

The Womb - The Fourth Wall

ONE MORE! BONES - Halloween Mix 2012

Band / Artist: BONES
Year: 2012
Genre: Techno, House, Electro

My Review:
ONE LAST THING. I got this one this morning, and I just could NOT help but leave the one last mix on Halloween night. I hope you guys have a great time. Here's what BONES had to say with it.

Crawling into the land of the living on Hallows eve, the creature is back. It took several necessary body parts to create this monster, and so the wait is finally over. Halloween is just the beginning, so get your haunt on for eternity with this one...

Intro - The Waiting Room
VCMG - Aftermaths (Gesaffelstein Remix - Haunted Intro Edit)
Dillon Francis -Bootleg Fireworks (Burning Up)
Valention Khan - Cigarettes
J-Trick & Reece Low - I'm So Hot
Kenneth G - Bazinga
Crookers - Bowser
Kurd Maverick - Hell Yeah
Disco Of Doom - Brown Acid
Los Ghosts - Musik
Tiger Stripes - Snake Charmer (Botnek Remix)
Novalima - Machete (Savage Skulls & French Fries VIP Remix)
LDRU - Showtime (Craig Williams Remix)
Proxy - Shut Up! (VCO Remix)
Galantis - Tank
FYOR - Thriller On Acid
Boyz Noize - Stop
The Prodigy - Smack My Bitch Up


BONES - Halloween Mix 2012

The Mad Tea Party – Halloween Eleven, Rock-N-Roll Ghoul, & Zombie Boogie

Band / Artist: The Mad Tea Party
Year: 2009, 2010, 2011
Genre: Rockabilly, Surf Rock, Garage Rock

My Review:
Surf rock / Rockabilly music out of North Carolina with a really uplifting yet greasy sound, that really gets that feeling of joy you get after you scare the shit out of someone, and get to laugh at  them. There's only a couple tracks apiece, but they are fun stuff for a Halloween celebration. They'd be a great band to have at a Halloween party. Since they have only a few tracks to each of their Halloween sets, I’m gonna post 3 to make sure you have enough to really jam to it.

Anyhow, here's their blog.
http://themadtea.wordpress.com/

Not only is it great for Halloween, but its  driving music for all the freaks and goths out on a summer cruise with the windows down. Hell, do your yourself a creepy little ho-down with this stuff. Some fruit-infused moonshine and some black food dye would go great with it. 

Stay classy.

The Mad Tea Party – Halloween Eleven
The Mad Tea Party – Rock-N-Roll Ghoul
The Mad Tea Party – Zombie Boogie


Also, as a Halloween gift for all of you who enjoy this, or are having a party and need some music, here is a set of Halloween mixes by DJ Doctor Toast. They are mostly oldies and rockabilly tunes.

DJ Doctor Toast - Vintage Halloween Mixes

Alright! That concludes the October Halloween music fest. Happy Fright Night!

Pretty Lights - Halloween Funtime Single

Band / Artist: Pretty Lights
Year: 2012
Genre: Electro, Breaks

My Review:
A little treat from Pretty Lights that he released only minutes ago.

This guy is popular as shit these days, and I count him as an unsung hero of the music industry. While people fawned over the “Pay what you want” release of In Rainbows by Radiohead, and Nine inch nails dropping their own free album, he was dropping album after album for free, and making his money from playing shows.

This one is just a single, but its still a great, fun electro track with a lot of beat, and a nice usage of the Halloween theme. Go grab it and enjoy the last large post, which should come out tomorrow .

PrettyLights - Halloween Funtime

Microhorror Compilation Vol. 1 Parts I, II, & III

Band / Artist: Dr. Von Pnok, Various Artists
Year: 2007
Genre: Chiptune,

My Review:
For a bit I was considering chopping this mix myself and making my own personal best of to slip in here, but I realize that my tastes on this one aren’t as important as yours.

So this time I’m sharing 3 albums in a set. All of it is chiptune music, made specifically for being creepy in honor of Halloween. Personally I felt some of it missed the mark, but with three of them, there is surely a full album worth that you could pull out of here for the next time you want to feel like you're playing splatterhouse in the dark by yourself as a kid all over again

Microhorror Compilation Vol. 1 Part I - The Crypt

Microhorror Compilation Vol. 1 Part II - The Lab
 

 Microhorror Compilation Vol. 1 Part III - The Graveyard




P.S....


VOLUME TWO! BizzzzZAP 

No need to thank me. I know I'm awesome.

Black Circle Records, TakeMeToTheMorgue!, Oddio Overplay, Silber Sounds of Halloween

Bands / Artists: Various
Years: 2011, 2011, 2006, 2007
Genre: Garage Rock, Electronic, Soundtrack, Experimental, Dark Ambient, Noise-Rock, Drone, Rockabilly, Sound Collage, Goth
 
My Review:

This one is all about the haunted house scores, although there is a BUNCH of other stuff here. Totally worth having a look.


Black Circle Records

Soundscapes, drones, score elements. This is an album perfected for playing in your haunted house that you REALLY should be making. This was probably my favorite of the creepy soundtracks I found, for how subdued and ominous it proved to be.

Apparently there are like 6 record labels called “Black Circle Records”. This one is located in the UK. I know very little more about them.

Watch out for that second to last track, its very loud harsh noise, whereas the rest of the album is most definitely not that.

Black Circle Records - Halloween in a Haunted World Remix Project


TakeMeToTheMorgue!

A lot of dark and creepy scores, and some really mean grungy techno and metal stuffs in the mix. There are a few tracks that I would cut before using the mix somewhere, but overall, this is a pretty solid addition.

TakeMeToTheMorgue! - This Dark Virus


Oddio Overplay

A good collection of creepy stuff. This one is a great halloween set, with more sound collages and classical sets in the midst of it than the others. Some of it reminds me of playing through Hell in Doom 3. You will probably want to edit some of it out and keep what you like most though.

Oddio Overplay - Calling All Fiends


Silber Sounds of Halloween 

I thought it hilarious that one of my favorite tracks from this was from a band named “Planet Cock”. This one is a much wider mix of genres, like the last one.  There is some really good garage spooky rock in here to be had, like the track from “Drats!”. Same as the last one though, I would probably go through it and pick out what you really enjoy to keep or use.
Silber Sounds of Halloween

The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble, No More Cocaine, Blob

Bands / Artists: The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble, No More Cocaine, Blob
Years: 2011, 2012, 2007
Genre: Dark Jazz, Dark Ambient, Jazz, Post-Rock

Overview:
Today is all about the Dark Jazz. Very little of this would fall closely to traditional jazz, be it the soulful or the modernist types. I'm sure someone out there would love to lecture me about the name and requirements of jazz, especially in all of its nuances. Jazz aficionados get their panties in a bunch way too easy. ANYHOW. It's a great choice for your front porch while handing out candy, or if you just wanted something as background music for a slightly nefarious candlelight dinner. Anyone pulling a “Hannibal” out there?

The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble

Some subdued creepy that plays out nicely over 9 tracks. They create a very interesting feeling, bringing references to a wide variety of music in history, including moments of “Gloomy Sunday”, most popularly covered by Billie Holiday long ago. There aren’t as many creepy dark moments in this as their name would have you believe, but it is still a very good album, probably my favorite for the day.

The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble - Live - I Forsee the Dark Ahead, If I Stay 



No More Cocaine

This is a band comprised of the members of King Fear & The Court of Wolves. They decided to take the music that fits a certain attitude and move it under a pseudonym. Here's an excerpt describing the project.

“No More Cocaine incorporates shamelessly many different influences ranging from Dark Jazz and Dark Ambient in to the IDM and Trip-Hop. If it's dark and laid back, it's probably somewhere in the list of influences. Primarily sounds like Dark Ambient with Dark Jazz overtones.”

This is like a darker, slower, and far less jazz oriented than the first post of the day. Still one of the most ominous album covers I could hope for.

No More Cocaine - Midnight EP


Blob

This is very modern psych-jazz. I could imagine it being used for some weird David Lynch scene in a movie, or for an acid trip scene a-la Easy Rider. It isn't as consistently dark as the others seem to be, but it is FAR more faithful to the jazz moniker, and still has some seriously ominous moments throughout. If someone were to make a haunted lounge/cocktail bar, this would sound awesome for it.

If you are a real jazz lover, then this is the perfect Halloween album for you.

Blob - Halloween

Andrew Lagowski, Hellscion, NovA17

Band / Artist: Andrew Lagowski, Hellscion, NovA17
Year: 1995, 2012, 2012
Genre: Techno, Industrial, Hardcore Techno, Trip Hop, Breaks, Electro, Dark, Ambient, Dark Ambient, Film Score, IDM

My Review:
So I had hoped to have a really special exclusive to offer today, but that didn't really come together like I was hoping. BUT I WAS PREPARED. Instead I'm serving up 3 different flavors of dark electronic goodness.

Andrew Lagowski

Dark techno is what I'd like to find a lot more of. Like, REALLY dark. This one is well on its way there. It has these nice buildups, that slip back into a murky subdued sound of ominous ambient. I was enjoying the plays on build and release that is common in techno. Sadly its only available on heere as a Lo-fi format.




Apparently this album was even reviewed in Wired back when it came out. Good on ya.

Andrew Lagowski – Prismatic ()


Hellscion

This is his 4th release, and he's getting better and rougher every time. This one is right on the edge of EBM, and i really wish there was a vocalist growling out some great lyrics across the top of this, I dunno, something about hell and bondage or something. Either way, its dark and gritty.



Hellscion - Burning Bridges


NovA17

This one is some nice hip-hop beats, edging on horrorcore beats. An interesting instrumental album with a really dark edge to it, biting horror scores and dark ambience from horror, only to hack them up and loop them into the beats. This is the most chill of the posts today. It comes off like the little brother of "Genocide Memoria" from LFO Demon.

NovA17 - FFUNS [darkhiphop instrumental]


Alright. Enjoy another night of fright and horror.

City Reign - Ahead Of Ideas

 

Band / Artist: City Reign
Year: 2012
Genre: Indie rock, Alternative rock, Post-punk

My Review:
This band from Manchester UK just emailed me. Their logo is perfect style for this blog, wouldn't you say? Anyhow, they released this new single in preparation for their new album (called "Another Step") being released.

Here's their website.
http://cityreign.net/

I'm really enjoying their work. If you're a fan of Placebo, Interpol, Julian Plenti, or Editors, then you'll enjoy this. They have a clear sound, and the higher pitched voice in the songs reminds me of acoustic sets by placebo I used to have, but much more fleshed out. The orchestral finish for the song is great.

City Reign - Ahead Of Ideas

But thats not all folks. 

Since it's just a single, I snooped around their bandcamp page, and found a 5-track EP that would help sate your appetite.

City Reign - Daybreak EP

Darius Greene - Theory of Escapements

Band / Artist: Darius Greene
Year: 2007
Genre: Dark, Jazz, Experimental, Neovictorian, Operatic

My Review:
My friend says “It sounds like something with Primus and skits from Insane Clown Posse in the Nightmare before Christmas” I find this to be an apt start to describing it.

Darius Greene is an artist out of Chicago who works in a very vaudvillian style. If you're enjoying his release here, and would like  to find more of his works, his website could help you along, that links to soundcloud and many other places.
http://about.dariusgreene.com/

There are probably half the songs on here that directly pertain to Halloween, or goblins, ghouls, and what have you. His work has a very operatic quality, sometimes moving more toward a circus chorus, sometimes sliding more into the rock opera quality of sound. I was really enjoying the way that the lyrics played out amidst the sound as well. They poetically lay out their story, giving you something meaty to listen to, with a nice imagery.

Darius Greene - Theory of Escapements

Since it is a smaller release, I feel like this should have a little additional track. So here’s Bats & Brooms

..And Bones & Shells 

EDIT; Well. that was short-lived. He's paywalled all but the Bats & Brooms single. Sorry..

Graffiti Mechanism, a little more than the normal.

Band / Artist: Graffiti Mechanism
Year: 2009-2012
Genre: Acid, Acid House, Ambient, Dub Techno, Techno, Lo-fi, Chillout, Chiptune, Dark, Downtempo

My Review:
In 2011, my life had gone sideways on me. Some friends were helping to pull me out of a lull that had and has somewhat persisted since mid 2010, like a cloud over and through my life. During a part of that, I started to find my artist legs once again, and began to build back some of my joys and motivations. I was playing through a lot of music I had missed out on during a stint where I had been mentally vacant, and had saved a folder for a day when I needed to focus on something.

And that is how I found Graffiti Mechanism.

This guy is named Adam Crammond. He runs, or has a hand in running a netlabel called Proc-rec, I believe it started up in 2007. He has released so much work, that I still find new pieces of his.

Today will be special because I'm showcasing 4 of them, showing a progression I noticed.

Graffiti Mechanism - Blotter Beats


The first one I'll post as these are all in chronological order. This isn't just acid in the way it's often heard. He brings in a background in ambient and noise.

The drug references seem to be a sign of where he intends for you to go with his music, and that he wants to make you dance a little while you're there. It seems to cycle back on itself, always gaining complexity as it reloops, and the sound seems to pick up more muddled layers while others fade inward below. The use of Lo-fi sounds as a tool instead of an issue with equipment is so interesting a choice to me, and it really works for him.

Graffiti Mechanism - The Fabric Of Existance

A step from acid in some ways, but keeping it going as the lifeblood of the tracks in many ways. This shows an evolution more from the kind of music made to dance the night away on drugs, to something showing a growth and a maturity. It is where I start to pick up on what I called Acid-daze, the sound that seems to be created for you to sit in a dark space and contemplate all layers of your life on hallucinogens.

Graffiti Mechanism - Fueled By Emotion

The first album I heard. This is the point where he really stepped into this meditative acid-daze sort of sound. I looked beck through everything of his I could find, and nothing else seems to capture this sound that he suddenly grasped with both hands and began knitting into a wonderful dreamscape.

I'd rate this one the highest of all of them if I were to be the type to rate albums. I can honestly say that something about this album helped me to find and heal some small part of my soul, although i cannot quantify that in any way. I can still listen to this on repeat for a whole day without even a trace of regret.

Graffiti Mechanism - Synesthesia

The shortest of the albums, an EP by any standard, even if the tracks are 7+ minutes each. This compounds on the top of the "Fueled By Emotion" set, adding a more clear and meditative approach to the sound he is exploring.  If he continues down this path, I do wonder what he is going to incorporate into it next.

Either way, Hats off to Graffiti Mechanism.

Connor Bird - Where Winter Hides

Band / Artist: Connor Bird
Year: 2012
Genre: Acoustic, Folk

My Review:
So, I got this email. The guys from Moosick sent me an artist interested in sharing his music with you. Aren't they a peach? Also the music is good too.

Mr. Bird is doing a short album of emotionally raw, exposed acoustic work. Unlike a lot of the acoustic music you tend to hear, this isn't as stripped down and minimal. There are complimenting flourishes of an accompanying guitar, adding slides, and soft ambient layers into the tracks. It still has a lot of that comforting simplicity of acoustic folk.

I made sure that he didn't have a website or anything, and he let me know that if anyone was interested in the music and wanted to get in touch with him, to please email him at flon1992(at)yahoo(.)com Please don't hesitate to do so, or even just tell him how cool he is. It's still such a rarity to find musicians willing to share it all like this, with nothing expected back.

I can't shake this feeling while listening to it about the years of jesus camp in the summers, not that this is christian music or anything, it just keeps triggering the memory. Anyhow.. Go give it a listen.




Connor Bird - Where Winter Hides

JJ - Kills

  
Band/Artist: JJ
Year: 2010
Genre: Synthpop, Mixtape, Bastard Pop

My Review:
So this swedish pop music duo named JJ decided to do something fun, and they made a hiphop mixtape. It's got a flavor of hiphop and r&b with a little rappy bits here and there, and then layered over with some soft dream pop stuff sounding like Royksopp doing punk on one end, and like Die Antwoord on some serious downers on the other end. 

This one falls under what I call “Bastard Pop”, that mercilessly chops up music, and uses the mulched bits to make something all its own. In some cases that can be mashups, and in others it can be something very far away from the originals, like music by Pogo or Dangermouse. Give it a shot.

Also if you like chopped & screwed mixes, then go ahead and download this version. I personally hate chopped & screwed, but my opinion isn't where you find your love for music is it?

JJ – Kills

Lastrapink - Portals

Band/Artist: Lastrapink
Year: 2009
Genre: IDM, Acid, Dubstep, Chillstep, Electro, Breaks

My Review:
This album is nice for all the reasons I love IDM. Its unnassuming, quirky, inventive, and humble in what it presents, a simple album for you to listen to and enjoy. No grandeur, no overcomplicating the beats. It brings a unique flavors and approaches to the fold, but you could just as easily ignore that and enjoy a simple jam session.

So just to give the in depth review of it, I'd say this. An album grabbing up the old flag of Acid IDM from the mid 00's (Such as some modern AFX albums) and blending it with the structural layout of more chill breakbeat tracks. The artists wasn't satisfied to leave it there, taking the chances with elements of dubstep, dub, drum n bass, more emotive ambient, and some tech house as a way to cohesively bring all of the album progressively along its path.

A good album to relate this to would be "Wicklow house" by Vertical67. I always feel like I'm referencing that one. Either way, give this one a listen.

Lastrapink - Portals

The Windom Earle All Stars - A Series of Minor Personal Tragedies

Band/Artist: The Windom Earle All Stars
Year:2011
Genre: Punk, Synthpunk, Synthpop, Indie Rock, New Wave, Punk

My Review:
This album is sort of a compilation, but all of the bands listed are just the members of Windom Earle, a digital garage punk/ new wave/ comedy band.. thing. They have a ton of music released on their website, and here is that website.

http://www.windomearle.com/ 

I enjoy this album a lot, for its silly lyrics, and the way it all comes together in the playback. It has just enough comedy to be funny without distracting from the performance overall. I don't know how much more i can say to explain this album, and I suggest it for a test listening.

The Windom Earle All Stars – A Series of Minor Personal Tragedies

Pumpkins & Ghouls

WHO ELSE IS LOOKING FORWARD TO HALLOWEEN!? OH GOD I'M SO EXCITED I COULD PEE. 

For all of the month of October, at least all of the scheduled music posts will be music for the 'ween if I can make that happen. 
Starting back on November I'll be back onto Non-Horror/Fright/Halloween themed music.

Also, if anyone is near New Orleans this Halloween, let me know. It'd be great to meet up or hang out with people who like the blog.

Nine Inch Nails - The Slip

Band/Artist: Nine Inch Nails
Year: 2008
Genre: Industrial rock, Alternative rock, Electronica

My Review:
You might have heard of this band before just a little bit. This was farly and widely publicized, and probably shouldn't be something I go out of my way to post, but it was well worth a review and download. After being around for 20 years, and managing to be incredibly popular, Nine Inch nails released this album as a gift to the fans that had given so much money and love throughout all of those two decades.

This is one of those rare albums that is free, not a promo, and you would hear a song from it on the radio. There was a feel to this album that seems like since Trent Reznor had no monetary incentive behind it and the release, he took liberties and just explored it in whatever way he wanted to. Some big NIN fans were a little harsh on this, especially closer to the end, but I personally enjoy something that shows a growth and a personal touch, especially with what this album represented. It even comes with a collection of artworks, all minimal, ominous, and gritty, representing each track on the album.

The sound is similar in ways to with teeth, using some really strong, hard hitting rockstar sounds, and warping them with a mindblowing expanse of synth hookups, circuit bending mods, post processing edits, and god knows what else. There are a few tracks that harken to the rare "Still" EP that was released with the "And All That Could Have Been" tour video and album, as well as some tracks harkening to the "Ghosts" project released earlier the same year. It isn't the longest album, or maybe the best of their track history, but it really holds its own, especially with the slow down and fade out that it has, and how far it steps from (and around, and within) the rest of the NIN discography.

If you are a fan of Nine Inch Nails, enjoy the gift, and hopefully the band will come out of their retirement and make another album in the future.

Nine Inch Nails - The Slip

Mos Dub

Band / Artist: Max Tannone
Year: 2010
Genre: Dub Reggae, Hip-hop, Mashup

My Review:
A set of mashups using dub reggae remixes and Mos Def tracks from mostly Mos Definite and Black On Both Sides. The man behind the album, DJ, Producer, Remixer, and all around white guy from New York, Max Tannone. He looks just like my friend Scott, who I lovingly nicknamed Skurt Burton, but I digress... play that funky music white boy.
Overall its a great album for not being too long, and not being too overbearing. Some mashup bands are just not meant for many places other than the dancefloor, and as much as I like a good night out dancing, I don't feel like that is the way most music should be enjoyed.

anyway, if you want to read more about the tracklistings, they are in a Readme with the download. enjoy!


Max Tannone - Mos Dub