Aren't ALL gifts 'free'? Isn't that what makes it a gift? Hey, if the advertisers and marketers of the world say it, then it must be true. So here's a goodie-bag of free inter-webular downloads that have grabbed my ears lately:- A C Slate no r makes interesting sound collages by looping instrumental tracks as beds for spoken-word samples that are strung together in ways to suggest a kind of narrative. My faves are the apocalyptic "Angels Watching Over Me," and "$ money piano $," an examination of materialism. Check the tracks called 'tape stories.' Negativland fans will want to peep this.-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Buttress K. O'Kneel has a new release that layers multiple versions of that most ultimate of classical music cliches, Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons." Any new music from this Australian outlaw is worth a notice, but this one represents a completely new direction, forgoing the usual breakcore mashup madness for a dizzying mix of wedding music, Steve Reich-like phase-shifting, and mind-fucking psychedelia:B'O'K "The Four Four Seasons" Which reminds me of this similar mix:
Beethoven Dada - unfortunately only a minute-long clip. We want the whole thing!------------------------------------------------------
mw ensemble, a New York-based avant-classical crew, have a 40-second track for piano and vacuum cleaner that is, in fact, called "I, for piano and vacuum cleaner ~A." It is really quite cool. Available on this collection:mw ensemble "6 Green Songs"--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Music For The Muted is a German ambient/noise/drone combo with a new EP whose tracks all have numbers for names. I particularly like "7," seven minutes of slowly-growing dark clouds of electronic sound dramatically rolling across the sky; somewhat reminiscent of the "Forbidden Planet" soundtrack.SoundcloudMediafire-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------OH/EX/OH are seriously bringing the ambient/noise/drone thang. Str8 outta Manchester, this prolific artist traffics in some pretty dark 'n' spooky stuff at times. This name-your-price EP is suitably atmospheric: OH/EX/OH "Entropic"Some really nice stuff - I love the slowly-shifting chords of "The Holy Fallout." But this collection of audio vérité, however, isn't that scary at all:OH/EX/OH "Tokyo Field Recordings"I was alerted to this artist when they sent me an actual postcard in the mail. Which I promptly lost for a few months. Glad I found it again.
Gene M., one of our super-swell readers who contributed the lost files of Ruth Welcome's "Zither Magic" album recently, has gifted us with another album called "Zither Magic" that couldn't be more different. In contrast to Welcome's minimal one-(wo)man-band arrangements, old-world folkiness and classy '50s cocktail lounge feel, Karl Swoboda's "Zither Magic" is a big, brassy, fully orchestrated, swingin' Sixties album that reduces the role of the zither to a kind of almost surf-y lead guitar over twist/swim/frug-able versions of hit pop songs. Don't dread yet another version of "Yesterday" - this one swings like a rusty gate, dad, played at a breakneck tempo that Mr. McCartney probably never envisioned. "Theme From A Summer Place" could be a Dean Martin backing track. A beautifully dreamy "Ebb Tide" takes a break from the craziness to take us on a stroll down a lonely beach. "The In-Crowd" is wild enough to get Twiggy workin' that mini-skirt. Outta sight!Karl Swoboda - "Zither Magic"Thanks Gene!
An entire 20-track album performed on nothing but the much-maligned keyboards made by Casio (a company that previously had been more famous for manufacturing things like watches) might not sound too promising, but in the hands of France's master of toy- and naive-pop, Carton Sonore, the Casio is not used as a joke, or for '80s nostalgia, but is overdubbed into an orchestra of widely varying moods and textures. The Casio, of course, has a "little" sound, so Carton Sonore wisely works within its parameters to create lovely instrumental miniatures that do indeed suggest the album's name. Listen/purchase:Carton Sonore: "Lullabies From Outer-Space"This gorgeous tune, filled with all kinds of Space-Age magic, is a free download:Carton Sonore: "Berceuse 07"The beautiful "Berceuse 13" is another fave, as is the round-like "Berceuse 6." None of which are funny or gimmicky (not that there's anything wrong with that!) See, Cage was right - anything can be music. Nighty-night...
By request, the Caribbean awesomess of Raw Spouge.
The New Wave Covers For Oldies Lovers collections are back up now too, thanks to a wonderful maniac.
Baseball season has officially begun, so let's pay tribute to America's Pastime the MusicForManiacs way:
Deranged Umpire - "Umpire's Call"Deranged is right: a free download of some guy in a Cookie Monster growl exclaiming nonsensically about how happy he is to be at a baseball game, even enthusing about the food ("Clap for the food court /clap, clap...The foods and the beverages/clap, clap") over a low-rent synth that does sounds like a ballpark organ, if the organist was all goofed up on cough syrup. It just goes on and on for 7 minutes, with no rhyme or reason. Will profoundly annoy most people. Made me laff!
Over the cheapest possible drum machine, Mr. Lynn Rockwell, from parts unknown, plays and sings everything on this private press wonder from 1970. An instro version of the James Brown classic "Night Train" kicks things off with plenty of swingin' horns, followed by the sweet clarinet blowing of "Blue Prelude," which also introduces Lynn's somewhat homely but lovable vocals. Wilbert Harrison's proto-rocker "Kansas City" is remade as a finger-snappin' jazzy lounge tune. Roller-rink organ joins the fun on such songs as "String of Pearls," originally by Glen Miller's big band, now rendered here by a very, very little band. And dig that hipster jive on "Satin Doll"!
Side two's first four songs are originals by Rockwell, highlighted by the bizarre "Spiders": "I got spiders in my bathrobe, baby/there's no escape for you." Suddenly we're in a dark, remote cocktail lounge somewhere in David Lynch territory. I'm really liking the moody clarinet work on this album. Closing out the album are remakes of the country standard "Oh Lonesome Me" and Engelbert Humperdinck's "Release Me," tho I don't recall Engelbert's version having horns that wander from channel to channel for no apparent reason.This album comes to us courtesy of Jaouad, our only known Moroccan reader. Where my North African peeps at?!Lynn Rockwell - One Man Band Much thanks to Jaouad.
You probably know StSanders' 'Shred' videos - they received millions of views before YouTube yanked most of 'em off. Well, they're all in one place now on the mad Norseman's (or is he Finnish?) own site, and I can't think of a better way to do April Fools' Day then to spend the afternoon watching "classic" rock acts videos get re-dubbed. As Buttress O'Kneel (whose own shenanigans we'll be covering soon here) said to me:the band ones are so so so good. not only is it GENIUS to compose music and lyrics BASED ON THE ACTIONS AND MOUTH-SHAPES OF OTHER MUSICIANS (like, this is something even john cage never imagined!), but then to layer the pieces in heaps of cultural references as well (notice the 'simpsons' section in the eagles one, and the 'luke's theme' in the springsteen one - there are SO MANY!)... good golly, this is high fucking art. and all that stuff comes AFTER the fact that i'm sitting here with tears in my eyes, unable to breathe with laughter.st sanders may actually be making the highest - and most powerful (and most original) - art of the 21st century. i bow down to his greatness.StSanders VideosYes, a genius of the avant-'tard. He has his imitators now of course (someone even did a Captain Beefheart one), but it doesn't get any better then this Eagles one. The music's so good I'm gonna buy the mp3 (you can do that now, too.)
