Utility Fog

Sunday, 29th of July, 2012

HE'S BAAAAAACK! After a month in Europe and Hong Kong, I've got a suitcaseful of loot to play you over the coming weeks. Only got back early on Saturday morning and haven't had a chance to listen to a lot yet, but here we go...
Scroll down to previous post for the big news... Last 10pm-1am show this week, so tune in at 9pm next Sunday night for 2 hours of the best postfolkrocktronica I can find.

So LISTEN AGAIN, and rest assured On demand streaming, the podcast and download (see bottom of post) aren't going anywhere!

Started with a huge special on a very special band: Sweet Billy Pilgrim. Tim Elsenburg & co have been making folk- & electronic-tinged indie pop for some years, and I first heard of them via their exquisite remix of a David Sylvian track. It was great to discover that their own music is no less beautiful, and for all that it's centred around lyrical melodicism, it never loses its experimental edge — even on the latest, probably most accessible album.
We had a nice range of stuff, including their entry in Lo Recordings' Explorers Club series of online EPs from 2010.

We follow them with a heap of tunes from Ninja Tune duo Grasscut, who are reminiscent to me of early Tunng's evocation of a dark, arcane English folk through a glitchy electronic lens. The last track on their second album features Robert Wyatt prominently, an appropriate guest. And along with their own vocals, we have sampled singing from crackly old 78 records. Both albums are strongly recommended.

Next, we find ourselves back in Australia. Melbourne's Peter Knight, jazz musician, composer, electronic musician, has written music for a theatre piece called Pin Drop which is on at the Performance Space from the 1st to the 4th of August - this Wednesday to Saturday. Check out the link!

Also on Saturday the 4th, the fantastic Fabels are launching their second EP at a possibly secret venue in Marrickville - check out their Facebook for details. With folk, electronic production and shoegaze in the mix, Hiske Weijers and Ben Aylward (the latter of legendary Sydney indie/shoegaze band Swirl) play with a drum machine in place of a drummer, and should put on a great show.

Moving west into the Blue Mountains we join Broken Chip, this alias now firmly hosting the ambient/drone side of Martyn Palmer's output, with Option Command for his beats. His new album Into The Diamond is available now from his Bandcamp and will bring a bit of glittery, bubbly calm into your day. You need it!

Also from the same region, Comatone has recently sent around some rare and unreleased tracks to Special People™, so tonight we heard a heavy bit of beat-trickery originally released on a breakcore compilation a few years ago.

Keeping with the heavy, we're off with emptyset next, from a 12" (and download release) of remixes of tracks from their Demiurge album. Already their Bass/techno sound has focused further on the noise aspect rather than the beats. Roly Porter (late of industrial dubstep legends Vex'd) has taken a similar journey, and here brings both droning noise and jackhammering beats. Very, very fine.

Cristian Vogel has also journeyed around ultra-technical beats and synth soundtracks for years, and it's great to have a new album of beats from him. They're somewhat Bass-influenced, both head-nodding and mind-massaging.

Berlin's Carsten Nicolai aka alva noto (somehow his moniker suits the lower case) has featured plenty on these pages, and it's great hearing his minimalist take on Björk from one of the recent Biophilia remix EPs. The fabulous Matthew Herbert has remixed her Icelandic majesty a number of times before, and turns in no less than three remixes on his EP. All great, too.

I came across Memotone via The Wire's latest Wire Tapper cover CD, and was intrigued enough to go and find his EP on Bandcamp. Thoroughly contemporary electro-acoustic/folktronic sounds with a bit of a Bass influence in there too. Looking forward to checking out his other stuff now I'm back from overseas...

Also with the folktronica, the wonderful Origamibiro have finally released their Shakkei Remixes album, which is most excellent. There are some great names on the list, including Plaid and the Upward Arrows incarnation of UFog regular Part Timer. And Bad Panda have a few of the remixes plus an exclusive track as free downloads!

Sweet Billy Pilgrim - Joyful Reunion [Luxor Purchase through EMI]
David Sylvian - The Heart Knows Better (Sweet Billy Pilgrim remix) [Samadhi Sound]
Sweet Billy Pilgrim - Here It Begins [Samadhi Sound]
Sweet Billy Pilgrim - Truth Only Smiles [Samadhi Sound]
Sweet Billy Pilgrim - Amina [Lo Recordings]
Sweet Billy Pilgrim - Stars Spill Out Of Cups [Wonderland Avenue]
Sweet Billy Pilgrim - Archaeology [Luxor Purchase through EMI]
Grasscut - From Towns & Fields [Ninja Tune]
Grasscut - Richardson Road (feat. Robert Wyatt) [Ninja Tune]
Grasscut - High Down [Ninja Tune]
Coldcut - Sound Mirrors (Grasscut Dub) [Ninja Tune]
Grasscut - The Tin Man [Ninja Tune]
Grasscut - Reservoir [Ninja Tune]
Peter Knight - Libby (from Pin Drop) [unreleased]
Fabels - Turquoise [Rabbit Releases]
Fabels - Nek [Rabbit Releases]
Broken Chip - full moon [Broken Chip Bandcamp]
Broken Chip - there's always tomorrow [Broken Chip Bandcamp]
Broken Chip - into the diamond [Broken Chip Bandcamp]
Comatone - Time Stretching Sickness [Proboscus Records]
emptyset - Function: Vulgar Display of Power (Roly Porter Variation) [Subtext]
Cristian Vogel - Deepwater [Shitkatapult]
Cristian Vogel - Lucky Connor [Shitkatapult]
björk - dark matter (alva noto remodel) [One Little Indian]
björk - virus (matthew herbert's fever remix) [One Little Indian]
Memotone - My Stranger [A Future Without]
Origamibiro - Flicker [via Bad Panda] {free download!}
Memotone - Ghost [A Future Without]
Origamibiro - Ballerina Platform Shoes (Plaid remix) [Denizen/Abandon Building Recordings]
Origamibiro - Dusk & Umber (Upward Arrows remix) [Denizen/Abandon Building Recordings]

Listen again — ~ 159MB

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