Council Meeting Memo #098 — Five for Friday

Blawan: SickElixir (XL Recordings, Album)
His productions always sound like they’ve been dragged across concrete. Skuff’d and scratch’d to fuck. This is a welcome attribute. Believe the hype. SA 🇵🇸

Ø: Sysivalo (Sahko, Album)
Stunningly beautiful deep-space ambient trip — from the much-missed Pan Sonic frontman Mika Vainio, completed shortly before his untimely death. And unlike the band’s more abrasive output, this is instantly accessible. Weightless for the most part — sounding like dark matter being slowly sheared in zero gravity. The narrative switches up mid-way though with piercing kicks on ‘T-Bahn’ before flinging you into the void….forever. SA 🇵🇸

Salford Electronics: Rain Must Fall (Industrial Coast, Album)
I mean, do I really need to describe the (brilliant) music within? Check the artist name, his continuing obsession with rain, it’s on cassette only and the artwork is bleak monochrome. The accompanying notes states “Let the rain wash away, all the pain of yesterday.” which sums it all up succinctly. Needs a wax reissue, thanks. SA 🇵🇸

C. Lavender: Convex Umbra (Old Technology, Album)
More room-filling drone from the consistently excellent Old Technology label. Surgeon chimes in on the first track which is the shortest but the most intense of the four pieces on offer. Soon settles into a drift that demands the listener do fuck all. ‘Sentient Signal Projection’ was the clear winner; unhurried, sinister > repetition, saturation, resonance. SA 🇵🇸

ZÖJ: Give Water To Birds (Bleemo, Album)
Outernational communique that confidently straddles folk, spoken word and ambience. Brian O’Dwyer and Gelareh Pour (who describes her work as ‘Neo-Persian Experimentalism’) weave gently shifting patterns of sound around traditional bowed instruments (Kamancha and Ghaychak), guitar and drums. Departing track ‘Marbles for Kaylie’ made the most impact with me. Spellbinding. SA 🇵🇸