Circle Of Pines - Dark Water Pond

Dark Winter/Neotantra: 2006/2019

When Neotantra first sprung up, I didn't think it'd include re-issues. The original Dark Water Pond came out some thirteen years ago, a seemingly lost digital release on a somewhat forgotten dark ambient net label. Not that Dark Winter doesn't have its share of recognizable names, but this is the sort of story you might expect out of Reverse Alignment or Dronarivm, not Neotantra. What gives?

At first I figured Circle Of Pines was somehow connected to Lee Norris, since everything tends to come back to him with his labels. Sleuthing about Discogs, however, I couldn't find any significant links. Consisting of Nathan Larson (manager of Dark Winter) and Seetyca, the duo only released a few albums under this alias, one of which ended up on one of those ...txt Nagual collections. Yes, the full album, Insistence Of Memory a single long-form composition, which fits easily when your physical release is a memory stick. That itself was something of a re-issue too, first appearing on Atmoworks seven years prior to Nagual 2. That is the only connection I can find linking Circle Of Pines to Lee Norris, and not a solid one at that since Lee never appeared on that label. Some associates and shared-label chaps have though (ISHQ, Vir Unis, Steve Brand), so there's that connection. It's the only one I can find, but who knows, maybe someone at Neotantra just really, really, really vibes on that Circle Of Pines stylee.

I should get more into who's behind this project, but honestly, I'd be here forever. While Nathan's released a fair chunk of material as Bunk Data and Samsa through his own Dark Winter, Seetyca has been relentless. Lord Discogs lists over eighty items to his name, and that's not even getting into side-projects like Serifenlose and International Spaceweather Orchestra (cool name, that). Okay, there isn't that much more, but geez'it, look at all those collaborations too. Dude's a busy-body, is what I'm sayin'.

Enough of all that. How is Dark Water Pond, and if it is indeed dark ambient, how can it possibly fit in with the drone glitch and ambient techno a Lee Norris label typically peddles? Well, if the title alone doesn't put you into an appropriate mood, opener Lichen Ritual definitely will. There's all the hallmarks of vintage dark ambient: sombre melody played at low volume, omnipresent drone creating a sense of claustrophobia, creepy field recordings echoing off caverns or catacombs. Are we sure this isn't a Cryo Chamber outing?

Pretty sure, as lengthy track Down To The Dreamy Sky features bleepy noises closer in kin to techno than gothic horror. Zerfrorenes Glas has a dubby synth echoing from the distance. Final piece Fissures feels more angelic than oppressive. Hey, it's something.

Nay, Dark Water Pond is a dark ambient album through and through, and good on Neotantra's risk taking so early in its life-cycle. Be interesting to hear just how far off the traditional 'Lee Norris Label' mould they may go.

Various - Dance Pool, Vol. 1

Sony Music Direct: 1993

I've touched upon Dance Pool in the past. In the way, way, way past. It was a pair of Canadian tie-in compilations called Euro Dance Pool, so if you need to know the history of Sony's dance music offshoot, you can scope those reviews out. Eh, they're buried too deep in the long-ago? Well, I'm not gonna' do another recap here. I mean, it's mostly self-explanatory what Dance Pool was, who it's biggest acts were, their impact on the German mainstream clubbing scene. Just think of all the top eurodance names from Germany in the early '90s, and Dance Pool likely distributed half of them.

So when Canadaland was seeing some positive gains with the music, Sony was right there to capitalize on it, premiering their own Dance Pool offshoot here, Dance Pool. Straight forward enough, but this Vol. 1 is an odd one. Oh, it's got some hits of the day, no question, just not the hits you'd expect from a clubbing label with German origins. I can only assume Sony didn't have full faith North Americans would be as interested in those sounds, so reached out among all its national subsidiaries to fill this compilation out.

Thus you get The Shamen's LSI (Love Sex Intelligence) (Beatmaster Mix) and Sunscreem's Love U More (Album Version). Yes, that version, with that lyric. While those were big hits at the time, they were UK acts, whom folks based out of Toronto and Montreal may not have been as familiar with. To say nothing of names like Bizarre Inc and Rozalla. Actually, I take that back, I'm sure everyone was familiar with Everybody's FREEEEEEEEEEeeeeetoefeelgood by that point. But nay, the only German representation we get here is B.G. The Prince Of Rap, with This Beat Is Hot for the zillionth time. Oh fine, it's the 'hard 'n' heavy' mix, which just sounds like C+C Music Factory.

Forget all that. Dance Pool, Vol. 1 is interesting for how 'of a time' it comes off, catching that weird inflection point where new jack swing was on the outs, but dancehall reggae was on the ins. Thus, you get Shabba Ranks' Ting-A-Ling and Mad Cobra's Flex with Joe Public's Liva And Learn and Cover Girls' Wishing On A Star. And in the middle of it all is Kris Kross' Jump, the rarer Supercat Mix at that, which adds dancehall raps among the bars Mac Daddy and Daddy Mac be spittin'.

And no joke, the tune still bumps to this day. Yeah, it was nauseatingly overplayed when this CD came out, but I dare any DJ to drop this now, and watch the crowd pop off like it was new. Possibly one of the greatest beats Dupri ever produced.

Anything else? C&C Music Factory do show up, as their original producing name Clivillés & Cole, for a ravey cover of Pride (In The Name Of Love). Eesh, and the tune was doing so well, before injecting a gospel version of Bono.

Czarface & Ghostface - Czarface Meets Ghostface

Silver Age: 2019

If any of the Wu needed an official full-length, super-sized cross-over event with Czarface, it'd be Ghostface. Similarity in names aside, Dennis Coles' alias has seen many iterations over the years, including multiple outlandish tales of origin. I don't know if the Ghostface we get is a whole new version or a returning one, though I could see the ghetto vigilante of 36 Seasons working here, as that one had a rather comic book origin story itself (lab experiments gone wrong, never gets old). Does make me wonder who else from the Wu might show up for a Czarface cross-over such as this, with a comic-ready backstory. Bobby Digital? Golden Arms? The Genius as one of those big-headed ultra-beings? Method Man as... Bluntman?

That isn't to say Czar Meets Ghost is some epic narrative of the two combining forces to take on injustices inflicted upon the streets and beyond. I mean, that would be dope as all Hell, but the group helmed by Inspectah Deck, Esoteric, and 7L still have yet to fully capitalize on the concept, so why would they here? Or maybe they have, and I just haven't heard it yet. There's been two more Czarface records since the MF Doom cross-over that I've yet to check out, some even coming with an included comic book. Ooh, The Odd Czar Against Us has a Days Of Future Past homage on the cover. 'Tis tempting...

For a supposed cross-over event though, Face n' Face doesn't feature as much Ghost' as you'd expect. Heck, the Killah is totally absent in a number of tracks, which I guess makes this more of a Czarface album, with Ghostface appearing on about two-thirds of it. Like, he's an apparition, or something (especially at the end of Masked Superstars, almost invoking 12 Reasons To Die). It's great hearing him when he does, his presence dragging this project deep into the slums of Shaolin.

Credit also given to 7L for coming up beats that suit the street-soul Ghost is well known for. Like, holy cow, that Mongolian Beef cut at the end, already a remarkably grimey bit of business, but the ganky soul-funk that bridges everyone's verses is permanently seared into my grey matter. Elsewhere, Morning Ritual features a rhythm and gnarly bassline that sounds like its constantly tripping over itself, suitable for a tune about sunrise regrets. The King Heard Voices brings even more great bass-stomp, while Listen To The Color has plenty of room to switch things up from gritty funk to slummy soul (no Ghost on that one tho'). This strong run of final tracks more than makes up for the album's somewhat sluggish start. Not that it takes long to get there, Czarface Meets Ghostface a rather short LP.

Still, 'tis better to get in with the dope cuts and out leaving them wanting more, than linger far beyond the concept needs. Even if that concept is nothing more than Deck and Eso' hanging out with GFK down in the slums for a late-night indulgence of hot noodle soup.

Ikjoyce - Cosmonaut

Neotantra: 2019

I didn't think it'd take me this long in returning to Neotantra, given how many of their releases I've bought since reviewing Wurrm's album. The offshoot of Fantasy Enhacing (itself an offshoot Neo Ouija) recently celebrated its twenty-fifth album, and a pattern of intent has definitely formed. A colourful pattern, wherein one must get them all, lest the gradient's purity be diminished. Erm, not that I'm implying some psychological manipulation in Neotantra's marketing, but I cannot deny it is a tad triggering for OCD types. *cough* *scratch of head* *tug of collar*

But no, the pattern I've seen form with Neotantra is in their choice of talent exposure. For sure you have the usual suspects within Lee Norris' orbit (Mick Chillage, Ambidextrous, Futuregrapher), but many new and unknown names too. Well, maybe not unknown to the savviest of heads out there, but certainly those with scant Discoggian presence, some of which are getting a nice little visibility bump by being on Neotantra.

That isn't to say this here Ikjoyce lacks for material within Lord Discogs' tomes. Dude's been highly prolific this past half-decade, over twenty albums to his name, plus another dozen assorted EPs and whatnot. Aside from the album Selene and this here Cosmonaut, it's almost entirely been self-released by Mr. Joyce, which is cool if you don't mind the hustle, but does limit how much exposure you can get. He was a frequent contributor to Electronic Music Philosphy's series of 'challenge compilations', where producers were tasked with creating a track with specific features (ie: Short Drones, Plunderphonics, You Can't Have Too Much Reverb, 808 Cowbell). I did fire up Ikjoyce's Spotify for a quick dive, and despite dozing off for seven hours after starting it, the streaming service still hadn't cycled through all that he has there.

I guess that's my roundabout way of saying that, despite 'trying' to take in his body of work, I'm still coming into Cosmonaut a little cold, unsure how this stacks up to the greater Ikjoyce discography. What I can say is this album has a bit of an old school, drone ambient vibe going for it, which is at times lovely, but also rather dithering, depending on the track.

The opener A Warm Embrace, and longest piece at over thirteen minutes goes mostly atonal and metallic, gradually letting the harmonious 'warmth' in. The subsequent tracks are more minimalist, though All Is Calm is quite tranquil in its sparse tones. It's not until track four, the first of two titular parts on Cosmonaut, that we get into some 'planetarium' ambient vibes, a lovely ten-minute piece that makes all the lead-up worth the wait.

The remaining tracks maintain that spacey vibe, Orbital Manoeuvres and Interception even getting a rhythmic pulse in their synth work. Cosmonaut ends on another blissy titular rendition, clearly making this album one of two halves. I quite liked the second, but some may prefer the more experimental first. Or like the little Mexican girl says, why not both?

Damon Wild - Cosmic Path

Infastructure New York: 2017

Damon Wild is the man behind Synewave, a very important label in the world of acid techno. While the Stay Up Forever posse were the main drivers of the sound in Europaland, Synewave kept the acid strong Stateside, all the while paying the usual homages to Detroit minimalism (as one must when making techno in America). The label had its niche, but because New York City wasn't really known as a techno-town, it never got quite the same exposure as the big prints out of the mid-west. So they kept chugging along, and Damon kept releasing records, on his own and as part of numerous collaborations, including with The Pump Panel. Yeah, that Pump Panel, though he didn't have a hand in their most famed remix. He was involved with their breakout single Ego Acid, so there's that.

Yet in all his years of releasing records, he seldom went the LP route. That makes some sense, the brand of techno he produces not really fit for the album experience. Still, sometimes a chap has more inspiration for a concept that just can't be sated with a 12” or two, so in the year 2017, nearly two decades after his first album Somewhere In Time, Damon Wild released his fourth LP, Cosmic Path. At this rate, he'll hit album ten by the mid-21st Century.

Naturally, I knew none of this going in. I only got this CD because I spotted it in the Ultimae Records shop, and thought it an interesting item based on cover art alone. Ah, the ol' impulse buy classic, never gets old. Thus I thought I might be in for some spaced-out goodness, and we do get that of a sort. I just wasn't expecting Cosmic Path to be so resolutely Detroit minimalist. Then again, Ultimae does host some Ostgut Ton records too, so I shouldn't be that surprised techno of this sort is there.

Still, I couldn't help but be surprised by how tracky this album is. It starts fine enough, opener 1242 all ominous drones and bleepy sounds, then Aquarius takes us off with a good thump of a rhythm, bassy pings and pongs echoing from deep space, and retro-futurism pads setting you off on cosmic bliss.

Following that we get a lo-o-ong stretch of that aforementioned Detroit minimalism. Looping techno beats, bleepy spacey sounds and not much else. It certainly sets a suitable mood, but feels like I'm listening to a run of warehouse tools. It isn't until track ten, Light that something resembling melody returns, thanks to more spacey backing pads. A couple tracks later, Space Race goes electro, and final cut Friday's Orbit slows things down some. Unfortunately, when so much of the preceding album is dedicated to faceless techno functionalism, such variety is too little, too late.

These aren't bad tracks, many of them reminding me of Planetary Assault System's recent offerings. They'd probably be better served as a continuous mix though, as most techno of this vein does.

Vector Lovers - Carousel EP

self release: 2016

Another of Martin Wheeler's yearly Vector Lovers EPs released through Bandcamp, though this unfortunately may have the fewest talking points. Solstice, Pale Blue Star, and even Road / To Ruin are more traditional EPs, a batch of four or five unique tracks, whereas Carousel is more of a single, one tune with different versions of it.

That in of itself is something of a talking point, most Vector Lovers singles having at most one remix to their name. Even in his Soma Quality Recordings era, very few of his tunes would have someone other that Martin provide a rub. Futures In Plastic, Microtron, Nostalgia 4 The Future were the main ones, plus a few others for a remix EP to coincide with Electrospective. I suppose you could count the 'remastered' tracks for that same compilation as remixes too, sounding rather different compared to the original cuts from many years past.

Any Vector Lovers track having multiple versions of it is rare, is what I'm getting at, and this here Carousel EP has four versions of its titular tune. I sifted through the bulk of his catalogue as archived with Lord Discogs, and this is the lone such item. Though honestly, it's only there because I submitted it (Solstice EP too, if I'm being modest), so whether there are other un-submitted examples out there, I don't know. I've just concerned myself with those EPs on his Bandcamp page. A strange fate I have found, chronicling Vector Lovers' Bandcamp singles within Lord Discogs' tomes.

The primary track is a fairly typical tech-house offering from Mr. Wheeler. Spritely melodies carry things along, while an unfussy rhythm with occasional splashes of white-noise wash keep a steady groove. It's almost proggy, back when prog was all about the minimalist twinkly sounds in the mid-'00s, which makes Carousel kinda' retro for a 2016 track. Definitely out of the norm for a Vector Lovers track though.

Carousel (Paris 92) is more in the usual electro wheel-house, the beat an odd soft thump that sounds like someone rubbing their foot along a carpet. Never mind that, it's the melody that dominates, a vintage melancholic bleepy electro ditty you can always count on Martin crafting. You'd think Carousel (Dub) would strip it out then, focusing more on the rhythmic portions, but no, the twinkly lead is here too, just subdued, more prominence given to the backing synths. I actually find this better than the original, but perhaps I'm just a sucker for the spaciousness of the sounds on display. Carousel (Ghosts) is the 'experimental' offering, minimal bleeps and tense strings teasing out the melody of the original. Some bell tones join in, but doesn't lead to anything of note before the track fades out. Definitely the sort of filler tune you'd find at the end of an album, or a B2 of an EP.

And that's all there is to Carousel. A nice tune with some decent variations, but little essential to the Vector Lovers canon.

36 - C45 Dreamloops 5-6

3six Recordings: 2019

Am I a hypocrite, liking 36's brand of overtly emotional music so much? I've gone on and on about how obvious sentimentality can turn other forms of music into hokey tripe (Dutch eurotrance the most egregious example), so you'd think I'd have similar thoughts on Mr. Huddleston's brand of ambient. This is a genre built around nuance and subtlety, freeform music making and abstract concepts. For sure Dennis does this too, but when he goes big on the emotional front, it's all in. Yet slide an overwrought breakdown and generic trance beat under some of these melodies, and I'd likely be rolling my eyes to the back of my head.

I honestly don't have an answer for this. Whatever it is that Dennis does with his compositions, it just hits that perfect sweet spot for yours truly, sometimes pushing close to the brink but never crossing that threshold. It's like the difference between perfectly crafted cheese, and a lump of dairy product that'll give you the lactose-runs. I suppose if a 36 track does get to be too much, I can always wash the palette with another D#m session from Michael Mantra.

But nay, I'm far from reaching that point with these Dreamloops. Even after four sessions and ninety minutes, the concept hasn't grown stale or run out of musical ideas. Yet here's Dreamloop 5, with a lovely three-chord sequence of layered pads that feels like the cosmos itself is doing meditative breathing, all the while a gentle piano plays along in support. That may sound New Agey, but something about the 36 stylee transcends such hokum, never sounding cliched or forced. And got'dang, when those airy choir pads emerge, escalating the emotional resonance within this piece, how can one not feel as though your soul's getting a good cleansing scrub? This keeps going for a full twenty-two and a half minutes, never growing tired or repetitive, only leaving this person feeling strangely refreshed in mind and soul. Hey, it takes a lot for me to get these sort of feels from music, and by gum, I ain't gonna hold back on the hyperbolic praise when it does.

I'm honestly rather thankful Dennis decides to tone things down a little for Dreamloop 6. There's definitely still an emotional undercurrent here, but doesn't quite build the same way the previous Dreamloops do. We're mostly in drone ambient territory here, synth pads harmonized in a warbly-warped sort of way (the authentic tape sound!). Different tones and timbre come and go throughout, the sparsest of piano occasionally heard beneath stretched melodies. And geez'it, that final, melancholy fade-out, sounding like a dirge coming from the catacombs of Cryo Chamber. How did this piece turn so dark and lonesome at the end? Considering how sparse the actual musical ideas are between these two Dreamloops, this EP sure takes one on quite the ride of emotions.

Perhaps a sad conclusion is fitting though, as this concludes 36's Dreamloops sessions. For now...

36 - C45 Dreamloops 3-4

3six Recordings: 2019

It's absurd how much of a 'tape industry' remains, isn't it? Vinyl I understand, the DJing circuit keeping it afloat long enough for a collector's market to emerge. How did tapes hang on though? Their initial unique features – portability and home recording – were completely and utterly usurped by the digital age, MP3s doing all that tapes could, and more. You'd think the market for blanks, much less professionally produced copies, would have utterly died by the 2010s. Yet here we are in the 2020s, the medium clinging on by the slimmest of margins. I wonder if there was some warehouse filled to the brim with unused blanks, just waiting for the time when a website like Bandcamp would emerge, suddenly creating a collector's demand curiosity for a format time would rather forget.

And it feels weird that there are two music formats I will never own for practical reasons. Vinyl is understandable, records bulky and expensive, but surely tapes are no more inconvenient than CDs to store. I've no means to playing them though. Sure, I could go out and buy a tape deck and hook it to my home theatre system, but why would I want to invest in an inferior playback device? Just to have a physical copy of something? I'll admit, there was a time that line of thinking might have worked on me, but I've since come around to digital if no CD option exists. Plus, with a Bluetooth hook-up to my main system, I can now play those Bandcamp exclusives on the big speakers!

Not that I'm saying artists shouldn't toy with whatever formats they wish – I'm no arbiter of what must be done for time eternal. I'm just wondering if I'm getting the full, proper Dreamloop experience by not hearing them as played from tape. Am I denying myself some ultimate listening euphoria in bypassing all that analogue hiss and occasional warping from repeated plays? Oh, what the heck, I'll take the digital. This music's great no matter where the sound originates from!

Anyhow... Dreamloop 3 carries on with the opulent layers of drone, but instead of relying on escalating loops, ol' Dennis gets his synth soloing on. Not that you didn't get a sense of him playing these live in the previous Dreamloops, it's just more pronounced here. Some five minutes in, they synth soloing dies off, letting a subtle twee-bleepy melody play. Most 36 tracks would end around here, maybe fading off, but no, we're only a quarter way through! Can he somehow maintain interest for the duration? Damn straight he does, though the synths do get to be a bit much towards the end.

Fortunately, Mr. Hiddleston dials things back some for Dreamloop 4, a piano melody the main focus while one of those vintage 36 heart-tuggers glides in the background. Oh dear, I hope it doesn't start taking centre-stage. I... I don't know if I could handle that much feels. Aahh, there it is... Fighting... manly... tears...

36 - C45 Dreamloops 1-2

3six Recordings: 2019

I'd seen these Dreamloops plenty of times while browsing 36's Bandcamp, but didn't give them much thought. Not that they didn't intrigue just a little, but as they were specifically designed as tape releases, I figured them another of Dennis' more idiosyncratic indulgences. Then I noticed they were on Spotify, so gave them a listen and... oh. Oh my! These are wonderful! Heck, I'll even spring for digital, since I've no use for tapes (they're all sold out anyway). Six tracks, each around twenty-two and a half minutes long, essentially a double-LP album then. Will probably be a bit on the pricier side as far as digital buys go, but it's worth it. Wait a tic'... There isn't a 1-6 option for Dreamloops, only the original three EPs? I mean, I don't mind paying for them separately either, but dear me, now I have to do individual reviews of each one.

The concept behind Dreamloops is simple enough: maximize the playing time of a standard 45-minute tape, a single composition per side. Indeed, this was how most ambient was produced in its underground scenes (shaddup, there was underground ambient scenes ...you just hadn't heard of them). It's just... a perfect length of time, twenty-so minutes. Stupid CDs and streams, making things longer than they need to be, all because the space is there.

Still, I did initially wonder if this would work in the 36 stylee. Part of Mr. Huddleston's appeal is that his ambient songs typically don't endlessly dawdle. I've checked out a few from him that breach the double-digit mark (Seconds & Forever the most prominent to my recollection), and I'm sure there's more in his discography. For the most part though, his music gets in quick, hits you with the big feels, then gets out before they overstay their welcome, even when you want them to linger longer (Sine Dust forever and ever...). Can these Dreamloops hold my attention in a similar fashion, or will they simply fade into the background, lulling me into a half-attentive daze?

Since I did spring for all six of these, that should answer the question. I mean, how can you not instantly get swept into the gentle lullaby of a melody in Dreamloop 1? It may be repeating the same simple notes over and over, but with the accompanying pad and soft rhythm that sounds like a spongy metronome, it's remarkably hypnotic such that it holds your attention for as long as it plays. This isn't a static series of loops though, grander pads building in intensity as the track carries on, giving Dreamloop 1 a startling sense of urgency for something supposedly intended to relax you. It's as though Dennis is forcing tension out of you before easing you back out. Dreamloop 2 is more straight-forward, getting in on that opulent space ambient vibe I so much enjoyed in Sine Dust, and never grows old even as it keeps going, with plenty of gentle lead-out. Cosmic dreams ahead, Captain!

ACE TRACKS: March 2021

And that's the bulk of my 'B' albums done! Wow, only a tiny portion of my original music collection remains to be reviewed now, that first clutch of 'C' album. I can count them all on three and half hands! On the other hand and a half, there's all these new items I've gathered in the meanwhile, a huge pile that'll probably take me through the summer to get- (*receives word that music festivals are cancelled again this year*) ...that will take me into the summer to get through. Man, it's so tempting to just knock off those remaining 'C's, but I've spent a decade getting to this point. There's time for another lengthy detour. Plenty of fun stuff to get into there, believe you me.


In the meanwhile, here's a heftier ACE TRACKS playlist than recent months. Being more productive rules!


Full track list here.


MISSING ALBUMS:
Nacht Plank - Broad Tape Band

Percentage Of Hip-Hop: 27%
Percentage Of Rock: 5%
Most “WTF?” Track: Not any particular one, but there definitely are some wild tonal clashes between songs.

Ah yes, the return of the 'Too Many Incompatible Genres' playlist. Most of my early ones were like that, back when I was reviewing music from a much wider assortment of items within my collection. When newer purchases, and thus more refined tastes, started dominating things here, this was no longer such an issue, though I cannot deny some of those recent playlists did sound rather homogeneous.

Maybe I could arrange these tracks with more structure, so the flow together better, but eh, I can't really be bothered. Besides, how can you not adore the absurdity of a playlist that goes from Lars Leonhard into Nine Inch Nails into The Oak Ridge Boys into Westside Connection into Perturbator? It so wacky!