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Messages - Mark Mushet

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1
Now Playing / Re: Currently listening, part 1
« on: January 07, 2015, 06:15:27 PM »
Quote from: drone on on December 28, 2014, 01:44:07 AM
Jon Hassell/Brian Eno--Fourth World Vol.1 Possible Musics.  Remastered reissue of 1980 release.  Probably a huge influence on artists like Peter Gabriel, David Sylvian, O Yuki Congugate, Steve Roach, etc.  Treated trumpet, drones, subtle African percussion...achieves a very otherworldly and psychoactive ambience.  Excellent essay by Eno about the time period and the album, and a really great, fascinating interview with Hassell. 

I have this on CD already from years ago. Is there an improvement in the sound? It's hard to know if they've actually done any real work on it from what I've read.

np:

Marsen Jules Sinfonietta
Loren Dent Anthropology Vol. 1 (looking forward to 2 and 3 now)
Eluder Hunter's Ridge

M

2
Now Playing / Re: Currently listening, part 1
« on: December 21, 2014, 12:18:32 AM »
Phew! It's been a long time!

1. Marsen Jules "At GRM"

Two very deep, darkish swelling/receding drone pieces. The best of a kind! Doing a video for this one in the months ahead.

2. Chihei Hatekeyama "Winter Storm"

Long form pieces similar to David Sylvian's excursions into installation soundtracks. One track not unlike Robin Guthrie.

3. Loscil "Sea Island"

More loscil. Always welcome though I've yet to feel quite as attached to this as I have with past releases.

4. Vicky Chow plays Tristan Perich's "Surface Image"

One long piano and electronics piece that recalls Riley and Reich but with a harder edge.

5. Christopher Bissonnette "Essays in Idleness"

My favourite of the year. "Missing Chapters" seems to quote "Music for Films" but otherwise quite a distinct set of unsettling, beautiful atmospheric sketches.

3
Now Playing / Re: Currently listening, part 1
« on: January 18, 2013, 11:28:07 AM »
Quote from: ffcal on January 18, 2013, 10:38:54 AM
Quote from: Mark Mushet on January 18, 2013, 12:34:53 AM
Dream Logic by Eivind Aarset

I enjoyed this too, but thought that the album was a bit too short.

Have been enjoying the reissue of Deux Filles' Silence & Wisdom/Double Happiness, a strange ambient project from the 80s involving Simon Fisher Turner.  Also listened to a disappointing 2012 release from Moebius and Asmus Tietchens that was too abrasive and glitchy for my taste.

Forrest
Hi Forrest! Happy New Year!

Yes, Dream Logic could be longer but it may be that it was an ECM thing. Ralph Towner once told me that he liked ECM's view that the "classic" vinyl-dictated album length of approx. 40 minutes was reasonable when expecting a certain level of quality from an artist in that measure every couple of years. BTW there are many excellent live chunks of Dream Logic on YouTube.

4
Now Playing / Re: Currently listening, part 1
« on: January 18, 2013, 12:34:53 AM »
Dream Logic by Eivind Aarset
Narrow Garden by Eyvind Kang

and two CDs by harpist Julia Rovinsky that feature transcriptions of Budd/Eno's Arc of Doves and Budd's The Room plus some Part and Glass. Lovely stuff!

Then there's Fluxion's Traces and John Cale's Nooky Wood...

Otherwise I'm discovering old blues recordings and looking forward to the new krill.minima, Food and Celer releases. And there's a loscil/bvdub collab happening...

5
Other Ambient (and related) Music / Re: Taylor Deupree "Faint" Box Set
« on: January 18, 2013, 12:20:42 AM »
I was never fully sold on his previous music but this is really excellent and the whole package is gorgeous. As much as I like the new Eno, this gives it a run and outclasses Lux on packaging by a long shot.

6
Other Ambient (and related) Music / Re: Eno interview
« on: November 12, 2012, 01:13:08 PM »
Well, considering the covers of Kite Stories etc., I'm pretty sure Eno had his hand on the tiller for this one! Just got the pre-order download and have to say it's really nice. I liked his last collab too, Drums Between the Bells.

7
Other Ambient (and related) Music / Re: Eno interview
« on: November 11, 2012, 12:21:21 PM »
I wish somebody would take the cover art process out of his hands. Milk Sea was promising on that front but, really, after the brilliantly bang-on work on the ambient series, there's no excuse for his recent visual work on CD covers. And I guess the Indie laid off some proof readers as you noted! Also, when the English end a proclamation with "Don't they?" or "Aren't they?" then surely a good journalist should take that as a challenge to counter and make things interesting. That said, looking forward to hearing it.

8
Now Playing / Re: Currently listening, part 1
« on: September 28, 2012, 10:05:12 AM »
Some real gems out this year:

Loscil - Sketches from New Brighton

A favourite for many reasons, plus I enjoyed doing a portrait session and field recording there with him this summer.

Celer - Engaged Touches

Re-release on Home Normal. I know there's too much Celer out there but this one is a solid set of thick, warm atmospherics.

David Wenngren & Chris Bissonnette - Meridians of Longitude...

Also on Home Normal. Surprised I've seen no other mention of this.

Pjusk - Tele

This duo remains strong and this one had me from the start and bears repeated listenings well.


9
Other Ambient (and related) Music / Re: Dead Can Dance 2012
« on: September 28, 2012, 09:47:10 AM »
I saw Brendan solo last year with Robin Guthrie. Very good show all 'round. DCD is another matter for me. I think they still look and sound great and have done some pleasant enough new work to go along with the reunification.

I just find I can't relate to what I have to describe as the early music/ethno/mystic/escapist pastiche that they eventually perfected and polished into the ground. And lyrically (because they foreground it) it can be just silly romantic goop. Nonetheless, I still cherish some of their work.

I liked the '93 version of DCD because Brendan revealed himself as a sincere balladeer with a great voice. Lyrically kind of naive on occasion, but compelling.

But, as with Magazine (who I prefer for their power, wit and continued lyrical relevance) they should continue on for as long as possible because, whatever your view, the world's a better place with them in it!

M

10
Now Playing / Re: Currently listening, part 1
« on: August 11, 2012, 11:01:24 AM »
Quote from: ffcal on August 09, 2012, 02:24:27 PM
K. Leimer - Day Music (an interesting multi-file long-form release that rests somewhere between Music For Airports and the piano/electronics collaborations of Mathias Grassow and Bruno Sanfilippo; very nice and droney; the four 70+ minute files can supposedly be played simutaneously, but I haven't tried that one yet)

Now this sounds interesting! Having recently listened to Somnium  I want to explore more long-form works again.

11
Now Playing / Re: Currently listening, part 1
« on: August 11, 2012, 10:59:00 AM »
Aside from the easy recommendations of artist's projects I've worked on this year (Forrest Fang's two wonderful releases and loscil's piece for Tweaked Conspiracies), I've been relishing a recent resurgence of really great Canadian (chamber?) prog/pop this year. In particular:

Mean Sun by Vancouver's Brasstronaut
Glass Kites by Vancouver's Glass Kites
Adventures in Your Own Backyard by Montreal's Andrew Watson


12
Forum Member Projects News and Promotion / Tweaked Conspiracies - with music by loscil
« on: July 06, 2012, 10:44:52 PM »
Hi all,

Here's a 90 second teaser for the two channel video installation I produced with an original piece of music by loscil. Now to get proper screenings arranged...

Tweaked Conspiracies-excerpt on Vimeo

13
Forum Member Projects News and Promotion / Re: Forrest Fang- Seeds Of Memory EP [Treetrunk 200]
« on: June 18, 2012, 09:16:43 PM »
This is really lovely..but the link isn't working at present!

14
Forum Member Projects News and Promotion / Re: Forrest Fang news
« on: December 16, 2011, 10:42:31 AM »
Looking forward to this, Forrest!

15
Now Playing / Re: Currently listening, part 1
« on: December 11, 2011, 07:10:16 PM »
Quote from: drone on on December 09, 2011, 04:29:42 PM
Bernocchi/Budd/Guthrie-Winter Garden.It's great, yeah, although nothing really new.  Guess I'm a bit disappointed there wasn't more Bernocchi and/or more experimenting going on.  If you don't listen close it's hard to tell it's not just G&B.

I don't think we're ever going to get a serious departure from Robin and Harold. I view their releases as a kind of angelic sonic comfort food that comes along more frequently than I'd ever imagined it would and will be very sad when it comes to an end.

16
Other Ambient (and related) Music / Re: Serious listening?
« on: November 09, 2011, 04:15:09 PM »
Quote from: DeepR on November 09, 2011, 02:31:00 PM
I just get the feeling that the conditions in today's world do not allow for the development of talent and creativity to its highest potential. Modern life has too many distractions.

It feels like we are on the downside of a great hill that has only recently been climbed. But I suppose we should expect the unexpected, too. I know people who argue that there are unprecedented levels of creativity unleashed by our current circumstances. I tend to agree though it's hard not to see everything as being fragmented beyond repair sometimes.

17
Other Ambient (and related) Music / Re: CDs, bye-bye
« on: November 09, 2011, 03:23:58 PM »
Quote from: SunDummy on November 09, 2011, 10:25:37 AM
I have one ipod, and thousands of CDs. Is downloading perfectly green?  Hell no, but I do think it's greener than shipping/making CDs, LPs, etc.  Manufacturing, shipping, and displaying a CD + me driving to the store to get it, vs. a download:  seems clear.

I think we're headed for more of a cottage industry model for CD manufacturing in any case. I have an iPod 32gb Touch that was given to me. I like it. But one good drop and it all goes away. Then I'll have to have had another device or two as back-up.
In reality, like so many technologies, these things are not so much replaced as they become another layer in the great swelling techno-midden. I was recently in rural Washington state and came across displays of commercial music cassettes in gas stations!

18
Other Ambient (and related) Music / Re: CDs, bye-bye
« on: November 08, 2011, 12:35:21 PM »
Quote from: SunDummy on November 08, 2011, 11:34:19 AM
I suspect that the packaging for ipods, etc. (and the materials to make them) is not greater than the materials for cds, LPs, etc. but I could be wrong.

I can't imagine we could get a complete data overview at this time but it would certainly be helpful.

There is no contest between, say, a CD digipack in a light wrap vs. virtually any hard plastic encased, plastic insert nestled iPod. Even the little ear buds are way overdone in terms of packaging. Then there's the retail floorspace now dedicated to the marketing of such things.

Now, as CD/DVD sales move online, more packaging is required and more transportation infrastructure and energy is used in the music retail industry equivalent of the single occupancy vehicle multiple trip model!

19
Other Ambient (and related) Music / Re: Serious listening?
« on: November 08, 2011, 11:10:44 AM »
I completely agree. Worse still is the fact that the conditions you describe affect our ability to communicate effectively in other aspects of our lives. Politics and daily social discourse is affected in myriad ways. Relationships suffer, levels of potential connection to art suffer. After that, producers begin to pander to the condition so that complexity and nuance in all aspects get dumbed down.

OTOH I see some glimmer of resistance from young people who are seeing this all take place.

20
Other Ambient (and related) Music / Re: CDs, bye-bye
« on: November 08, 2011, 10:17:42 AM »
Quote from: SunDummy on November 08, 2011, 09:55:20 AM
I think the whole movement toward downloads (music, books, movies, whatever) is a good thing, in the long run.  Seems like a huge savings in packaging resources, fuel for shipping, etc.

Unfortunately there is a grim parallel to the photo industry here. People thought that the near-death of film would be better for the environment. Bzzzzt! It meant that even more mining and orgiastic production of gadgets took its place. And instead of film sections in photo and drug stores we now have massive racks of batteries. 

All those Chinese e-waste peasant worker-bound obsolete Kindles, iPoos etc. need replacing at ever increasing rates. All of this, of course, eventually relates to our corporate overlords' need to ensure supplies of heavy and other metals from sources in Africa and, in China's case, the sea floor. The political ramifications are obvious. This is why the US has forces in central Africa right now, not for Obama's stated reason of doing the right thing vis-a-vis the excesses of the Lord's Resistance Army or whatever.

And in terms of packaging, one only has to look at the layers of plastic even the smallest gadget accessory comes embedded in.

In short, we are doomed as a civilization. Meanwhile I am grateful to Amazon for keeping Canada Post alive with all the *individual* CD shipping needs necessitated by the demise of bricks and mortar outlets.

OK, now to put on the new Harold Budd CD and pretend there is nothing wrong in the world...  ::)

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