Friday, February 08, 2008

Transmission Write-up


With thanks to Mr. Sienko!


A lamb is not made of bread, an Axolotl is not a fish but lives in water, and The Skaters do not own skateboards...what can this mean?

AV-aerie.jpg Clockwise from upper left: Lambsbread, Axolotl, Skaters, C. Spencer Yeh.

It's a respectable hike to anywhere from the AV-Aerie (2000 W. Fulton), but that works to its advantage sometimes. The end-of-the-world feel of its west loop location isolates the events, preventing easy escape hatches to a bar or convenience store for smokes. You're here for the duration; please do not remove your seatbelt until the ride has come to a complete stop.

This land-of-neverland location works well for the four out-of-town guests appearing there on Friday (9 p.m., $5 donation, not BYOB, so bring $$$s for beer), each of whom finds it fun to take you, sonically speaking, to the furthest edge of town, and drive off, laughing as you disappear into a pinpoint in the rearview mirror.

  • California's The Skaters (who derive their name not from skateboarding, but from a poem by Edward Blunden...or Emerson, or Tennyson, or something with an "en" sound at the end of their name) utilize hand drums, wood flutes, and delay pedals (not to mention their squibbly throats) to conjure the missing two hours of recordings NOT released by Amon Duul I from their marathon six hour trip/jam, all painful LSD hangover and anguish;
  • Axolotl is Karl Bauer, and though he originally came on to replace Ohio-based Emeralds (whose equipment is too fried to perform just now, thank you), the lineup continues to mutate, as now there is talk of Baltimorean Bauer teaming up with Afternoon Penis, a solo project from one of the guys in Double Leopards as the duo Coatmagnets. Confused yet? No? Well, then explain it to me, cuz I'm lost! Anyway, check samples on Myspace for more info - sounds like good, rich droning soundscape, probably controlled by some sort of mixing device.
  • Lambsbread, who previously claimed to be broken up, are once again taking their fast, aggressive free-noise-improv (don't call it "hardcore punk" please) out of Ohio and into our fair state. Expect a majestic mess that you yourself will have to clean up later.
  • C. Spencer Yeh is billing himself under his own name, suggesting that the focus will be on his solo violin playing and complex vocal airstreams, rather than the incantory horror of his "band" project, Burning Star Core (which itself can be anywhere from one to four members in size). Fresh off his mention in the new "33 and 1/3" book about Throbbing Gristle's 20 Jazz Funk Greats!

Local support includes free improv guitar/perc/drum duo Binges and superhuman(e) sludge metal from Animal Law.

- Chris S.

Tonight...

Please note: Emeralds have had to cancel (damn!) but they have been replaced by Coatmagnets, which is Karl Bauer from Axolotl and Nate Nelson from Mouthus/Religious Knives/Afternoon Penis


Thursday, February 07, 2008

Show Re-Cap

Wednesday February 6, 2008
The Empty Bottle
Chicago, IL

BLOODYMINDED
Bongripper
Winters In Osaka

BLOODYMINDED
James Moy - Synth
Isidro Reyes - Synth + Vocals
Mark Solotroff - Vocals

01. OVER BEFORE YOU KNOW IT
02. ANGEL OF DARKNESS
03. MIND THE GAP
04. GIRLFRIEND ATTEMPTS TO EXPLAIN SCHIZOPHRENIC EPISODE BY REVEALING CHILDHOOD SEXUAL ABUSE
05. AS IF
06. OUTSIDE THE GATE
07. SHIVERY
08. TWO DROPS OF BLOOD
09. CIRCULAR RELATIONS
10. CHINATOWN
11. VISITING AN EX-GIRLFRIEND IN THE HOSPITAL – AIDS WARD
12. WITHIN THE WALLS
13. A SONG FOR LISANNE, A YOUNG MODEL
14. TEN SUICIDES

Well, we were pretty doomed from the start, with the ultra-crap weather that continues to hover over Chicago, lately. An afternoon and evening snowstorm pretty much guaranteed that attendance was going to be poor last night. In fact, the headliners, Hewhocorrupts, did not even bother to turn up. For the record, Bongripper lives further away, and fuck, James lives in Milwaukee!

Winters in Osaka kicked off the night with two contrasting pieces. The first was the hard and heavy one, with really intense guitar work... almost black metal-style (?) ... but blending in really well with the harsh electronics. Their second song was an adaptation of theme music from "Cannibal Holocaust," and their version indeed had a soundtrack-esque quality to it. I enjoy how W.I.O., somewhat similar to Oakeater, never deliver the same type of set twice (unlike us... ha ha!).

Bongripper was up next, and they sounded just as good as I had hoped they would, through the Empty Bottle's PA. That said, it was their own insane towers of amps doing most of the work. Doomy and psychedelic, their set - also comprised of two long songs - was heavier to me than their spacier Flowershop set... more akin to the recent Ronny's stomper.

We were up last and we pretty much got down to work before we lost any more of the dwindling crowd. Heber never showed up, so we did it as a three-piece... Isidro on high-end synth, James on mid- and low-end. After a couple of technical glitches caused by our increasingly destroyed synths, we got going at pretty much full steam, cruising through the 14 songs in about 23 or 24 minutes. For a small crowd, the audience participation was solid. Thanks to everyone there, for that. The MiniDisc recording is crystal clear and hearing James' "sequenced" synth notes on "Ten Suicides" was amazing! Really morose stuff. Unfortunately, that track was pulled out of temporary storage in memory of Eric Stanis from Winters in Osaka. Isidro's vocals were great last night, particularly on "Ten Suicides," as well as on the new track that we debuted, "Circular Relations."

Thanks to Adam (W.I.O.), for putting the show together. Thanks to Bongripper, for showing up and for delivering the goods. Thanks to everyone at the Empty Bottle, for being such excellent hosts, as always. Thanks to Isidro's brother, Rodrigo, for videotaping us. Thanks to everyone who showed up on such an utterly shitty night.

We capped of the night at Taconazo on North Avenue... some tasty lomo, lengua, higado encebollado, etc. Then today, we had a tasty band lunch at Kuma's... James finally had the Slayer, while Isidro and I both tried the new Pantera... yeah, I know... but it was delicious!


New London Photographs

I just posted five new photographs taken at the Slimelight show by Will Bankhead. Thanks go to Will for sending these additional shots!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bloodlustchicago/

Wednesday, February 06, 2008

OUT NOW: B!097 The Fortieth Day "I" CD



OUT NOW:

BloodLust! 097
The Fortieth Day "I" CD

$14.00 USA/$17.00 World @ postpaid

(CD edition of out-of-print cassette, originally
released in a numbered edition of 50 copies in 2006; The Fortieth Day is the duo of Isidro Reyes and Mark Solotroff, both key players in the power- electronics outfit BLOODYMINDED, a unit known for its confrontational live shows. Here, Solotroff and Reyes show off their kinder, gentler side, using guitar, bass, and synth to improvise "sustained, withering blasts of high-pitched noise that are as distinct from one another as spotlights sweeping across the night sky; jackhammer clatter, jet-engine whines, and forlorn keyboard melodies dart in and out of those huge sounds with the grace and impunity of plovers picking a crocodile's teeth" [Bill Meyer, Chicago Reader]. Professionally duplicated CD, single panel, double-sided insert; black and white artwork; in jewel box with shrinkwrap; Released in 2008)


Relentlessly Caustic

Sshe Retina Stimulants on Tape Fiend

Sshe Retina Stimulants has a new C-90 cassette out called "Special Bill," featuring two live sets, recorded in 1997, in Chicago and in Toronto . The cassette is packaged with a handsome offset-printed j-card, and it was produced in an edition of 100 numbered copies. It was released on a new sub-label of Diophantine Discs, appropriately named Tape Fiend: http://www.tape-fiend.com

Typical eBay Scenario

Intrinsic Action "Manhattan Power Surge" 7-inch
http://tinyurl.com/3b2hgq

Tuesday, February 05, 2008

Wednesday Night




I hope that the images of snow are not an accurate prediction, but the news is saying otherwise, tonight...

More eBay Madness!

And interesting timing, too...
http://tinyurl.com/2bjyzo


Solo Live 001 on eBay

In case you missed it the first time around...
http://tinyurl.com/25joxp

Mark Solotroff + Sshe Retina Stimulants

In 1996, NG5361 and I collaborated on a recording project entitled, "Excellent Manipulation of Distorted Tape Death," which was released on BloodLust! as a four cassette, six-hour box set (4 x C-90). The project utilized progressive analog tape generations and sound fidelity decay as both a direction for the concept that we worked under and for the sounds that we manipulated and ended up with.

Refer to: http://www.discogs.com/release/284880

In 2006, NG5361 revisited those recordings, in a more digital manner, and he came up with two new masters: "The Edit" - a disc of eight tracks, each drawn from one of the original cassette sides -- and "Super Density Assemblage" - two self-explanatory, 28-minute-long tracks, built from multiple sections of the box set.

The first of these new masters will be released on CD in late-February, as BloodLust! 101 Mark Solotroff + Sshe Retina Stimulants "Excellent Manipulation of Distorted Tape Death - Part One - The Edit"

Here is a preview of the design:






Sunday, February 03, 2008

Postage!

After two epic Post Office runs this weekend, all paid orders (mail-order + eBay) have been sent out --- except the one related to the message below to H. Hegray.

I am looking forward to hearing what people think about the new releases...

Thanks for the support!
Mark


eBay Insanity

The "Effete" cassette compilation, which features a track by my old band, Intrinsic Action, along with Sigillum S, The Grey Wolves, etc., just sold on eBay for $190.00! Thanks to the ever-watchful xdefenestratorx for pointing it out to me. Look here: http://tinyurl.com/26balp




Attention: H. Hegray

IMPORTANT:

If Hendrik Hegray is reading this --- please send me your mailing address, via e-mail.

Thanks,
Mark