At first glance, one can hardly avoid the pun in the name of the band Ð
well done lads! Their website
www.testicicles.com/main/ is
worth looking at and you can buy the music from it too (by download I
think).
This single is from the Album For Screening Purposes Only which in all
honesty, I wonÕt be rushing out to buy, or download from the website.
Not to damn these kids too much, it is very well put together, some of
the credit going to the mixer, producer, and engineer of course. Maybe
itÕs my age showing, but I canÕt help feeling like I heard it all
before. It reminds me of the game Quake II that I used to play, and
music my sister listened to about 10 years ago. That being the usual
American rock music, unless of course your name is Metallica, Korn, or
any other classic heavy rock band no band seems to live up to these
days.
If you are of teen years, your going to love this like all the rest, but
if itÕs going to appeal to us older folk (of 22+) please present
something original, and stop screaming your heads off for money Ð fun
and evidently lucrative though it may be.
(E Walton)
You might have heard of the movie The Proposition which has
been getting mentions in the arty press. It seems to be about
bleak people in a bleak land doing bleak things, but don't
take my word for it.
So, you'd expect -- well, I'm not sure what you'd expect but
what you get in the beginning is cello, synth,
and violin lines that run on like a hot dry day. That's sort of what
I expected but there is art here, and a good deal of craft as well.
This is the sort of thing that NC does very well, and has had a good
deal of practise at, not to mention Warren Ellis, but I'm not sure
what his exact input has been.
Atmospheric; a little stifling; lots of slow shadows.
(Eguuneena)
Nizlopi is made up of Luke Concannon (vocal/guitar) and John Parker
(double bass) who apparently met on a schoolbus at the age of 13.
Styles that appear in the duoÕs output include Jazz, Grove, Indian
Gurbe, Soule, Hip Hop and Experimental. Their single, the JCB song
(with an award winning animation video) with lyrics from the point of
view of a 5 year old is refreshingly innocent and cute (especially if
you watch the video), and the other two songs are highly enjoyable.
What I liked most about this music was the range of styles covered, with
incredible funky bass playing from John Parker and Luke ConcannonÕs
fresh and simple vocals. I also loved the way that the traditional
drumkit was replaced with a Òmouth-kitÓ (strange percussive mouthy
noises) which was much less overbearing. In short, I would recommend
this to anyone who wants to listen to current musicians who actually
care about what they sound like.
(M.N.)
Berliners, The Jeans Team have been going since 1999 and have been
producing likeable German pop which has been picked up on various people
including the late John Peel.
Here we have a piece of lighthearted electronic funk with stylish
gliding grooves and lots of space. There's also, on the 7", a remix
by New York's My Robot Friend which cooly rocks along.
(Dr Boots)
Soft voices and grooved guitar backing with a kickalong rhythm:
This is artful understated pop with a touch of soul and nothing
particularly Japanese about it at all. Perhaps the names are ironic.
In any case they are in fact David Best and Matt Hainsby who hail
from England and sound quite international.
(Dr Boots)
Fisk Industries is another who played the recent Bleepfest in London
and so, if you're expecting some interesting electronica here, you'd
be exactly right. It is actually a great joy to be promoting music and
labels that haven't been squeezed dry by accountants, lawyers, and
marketing departments. Here we have the real thing with only minimal
layers between musician and audience.
I'm not sure how programmatic the idea is here but the result is
six tracks with interesting textures and accessible grooves and it's
all very nicely crafted.
(thunderfinger)
Bovaflux was recently at Bleepfest 06 and provides a
nice line in rounded-tone slow synth grooves with subtle melodies
meandering around. It's a sweet spacey world that you can go to
late or whenever the soul needs some soothing. It's not totally
soppy however as there's enough textural interest to keep it
from being new-age factory output.
Also as a matter of interest, all Highpoint Lowlife releases
are under Creative Commons and the artists have control of their
destinies.
Mstation Pop etc Commentary, Reviews
pre Dec 04 reviews are here
Thu, 30 Mar 2006
Test Icicles, ÔWhatÕs Your Damage?Õ
CD, Domino
Nick Cave, Warren Ellis, Soundtrack for The Proposition,
LP, Mute
Nizlopi
JCB Song
Clear
Helen
Extra special bonus material Ð The JCB Song Video Animation by Monkeehub
From Album ÒHalf these songs are about youÉÓ
CD, FDM Records
The Jeans Team, Nonstop
7"/Download, defDrive
Fujiya & Miyagi, Ankle Injuries/Photocopier
10" single, Tirk
Fisk Industries, The Isle of Wight EP
6 track EP, High Point Lowlife
www.fisk-industries.co.uk
Bovaflux, Where There Was Nothing,
LP, High Point Lowlife
Bovaflux.co.uk
