v/a: Reading Sounds

lvjcdr004
cd-r, limited edition of 100
May 2007

Cover image is a medieval miniature painting taken from Geoffroy Tory's Book of Hours (Touraine, 1533).
Picture on backcover is from the title page of Bill Nye's History of England (J.B. Lippincott Company, Philadelphia, 1900).


1. Brent Mini & Eric Lampton: Vast Active Living Intelligence System (Synchronicity Music) (5:28) — Philip K. Dick: VALIS
2. Iamheard: Hongistola (2:48) — F. E. Sillanpää: Ihmiselon ihanuus ja kurjuus
3. Santtu Hirvikorpi: Komako (4:29) — Yasunari kawabata: Yukiguni
4. Palvelu: Toinen laulu (4:46) — Comte de Lautréamont: Les Chants de maldoror
5. Haute Cuisine: Une Saison en Enfer (4:10) — Arthur Rimbaud: Une Saison en Enfer
6. Robert Horton: "Iam not a centipede", said Mary Poppins. (8:49) — P. L. Travers: Mary Poppins
7. Vellamo: Mirdja (3:58) — L. Onerva: Mirdja
8. Alligator Crystal Moth: White Lilies (4:02) — Henry David Thoreau: Walden
9. Hydor Kephale: Gothic Knife Rule (10:16)  — The Bible: The Gospel of Luke
10. Marko Marin: Virtahevon kuolema (4:56) — Tommy Hellsten: Virtahepo olohuoneessa

A compilation of sound inspired by classic literature. The artists are responsible of defining "sound" and "classic". Musically compilation lies everywhere between minimalism, ambient, free folk and prog electronica. ************* Notes on Vast Active Living Intelligence System from Reading Sounds Brent Mini & Eric Lampton are characters in Philip K. Dick's novel Valis (Vast Active Intelligence System). Mini is scarcely masked interpretation of Brian Eno (from his ambient era), Eric Lampton in turn is David Bowie (around Man Whon Fell to Earth). In the book, Mini and Lampton have made a movie together, which resembles the mentioned movie with Bowie. The music of Mini is called "Synchronicity Music" (aka ambient), which is desribed briefly in the novel: computer-created random sounds … constant low murmuring… I have been tried to carry this piece of mine out based on that description. My intention is not to imitate Eno and Bowie, and the result doesn't really sound like their music. The words are also from Dick's novel, from a song Lampton wrote, and are intentionally quite banal. Ville Moskiitto ************* Notes on Virtahevon kuolema from Reading Sounds Truthfully I had a lof of different books in my mind when I was composing this song, but the right one came up when I was polishing the original mix up. Virtahepo olohuoneessa, written by Tommy Hellsten, is a book on alcoholism and the problems of human mind. It's no secret that I've had a huge share of problems in my life and I am still dealing with them. I have always been as honest about the subject as an introvert Finnish man can be. In the book the psychological problem, whatever it is in your case if any, is pictured as hippopotamus in your living room. In the end, if you figure out your problems and start living a normal, reasonably carefree life, the animal dies and the living room of your mind is finally free from any burdens that might restrict your life. My goal is to figure out myself and kill the animal, hence the name of the song, "Virtahevon kuolema", The Death Of Hippopotamus. Hopefully you will enjoy listening the song. It's a perfect way to end Reading Sounds, even if I say so myself. Marko Marin ************* REVIEWS "Tämän Luovajan julkaiseman kokoelman ideana on, että kukin artisteista on käyttänyt kirjallista lähdettä teoksensa pohjana. Osassa kyse on inspiraatiosta, jolloin materiaalia ei tunnista, osassa käytetään tekstiä aivan suoraan. Kiekon avaa Brent Mini & Eric Lampton raidalla, jossa pienet vesipisaran kaltaiset piippaukset "tippuvat" hiljaisuudessa, ja lopussa on puhesyntetisaattorin oloisesti lausuttuna pätkä tekstiä. Se ei toimi kunnolla missään vaiheessa ja jää täysin tylsäksi. Iamheardin Hongistola puolestaan on pianoa, myrskyä ja taustarätinää, ja tavoittaa hyvin sen Sillanpääläisen tunnelma jota ollaan hakemassa. Samoin onnistuu Santtu Hirvikorpi Komakon hitaan kitaran kanssa. Sitten siirrytäänkin hankalammalle alueelle: Palvelun Maldororin lauluista otettu kappale on muka-herkkää epävireistä metsäfolk-laulua halvan rumpukonesoundin ja muutaman soinnun päällä, onnistuen pilaamaan upean alkuteoksensa oikeasti herkän tunnelman aivan täydellisesti. ”Perässä seuraava Haute Cuisinen Un Saison en Enfer on onneksi täysin eri maata: kuoron oloisella aallolla viimeisteltyä noiseambientia, joka asettuu Rimbaudin tunnelmiin oikein hyvin, vaikka kyseessä onkin teos josta ei sen lähdettä tunnistaisi, mikäli asiaa ei olisi painettu kansilehtiin. Robert Hortonin Maija Poppanen -raita puolestaan toimii kappaleena varsin mainiosti, mutta ainakin minun päässäni kohdehahmo assosioituu paljon tätä varsin minimalistista maisemointia railakkaampaan menoon. Vellamon Mirdja palaa jälleen akustisemmalle linjalle, ja muistuttaa minua hyvin siitä miksi en pidä metsäfolkista lainkaan: vaisua laulua ja lausuntaa velton kitaran päällä. Siis kaikki neofolkin huonot puolet ilman sitä esityksellistä vahvuutta joka pitää kyseisen genren voimallisena. (Tosin jos artistin ideana onkin tässä ollut tehdä hyvästä lyriikasta täysin ponnetonta, hän on onnistunut tavoitteessaan erinomaisesti.) Alligator Crystal Moth on tehnyt häröisän, hitaan mutta lopussa revittelevän jazzin oloisen tulkinnan Thoreausta, joka ei ehkä juuri muistuta Waldenia mutta on silti ihan kivaa kuultavaa. Sitä seuraa levyn varsinainen helmi, Hydor Kephalen 10-minuuttinen noiseambientia ja hidastettua jouluevankeliumia käyttävä Gothic Knife Rule. Siinä harras tunnelma on saatu sekä säilytettyä että hajotettua samanaikaisesti, niin että hitaaksi vääristetty, erittäin kauniisti rytmitetty puhe on yhtä aikaa täysin vakava ja silti hukan huvittavan oloinen. Lopuksi soi Marko Marinin kosketinteos Virtahevon kuolema joka ei alleviivaavalla mahtipontisuudellaan ehkä nouse kiekon merkittävimpien raitojen joukkoon, mutta tekee juuri sopivaa kunniaa Tommy Hellstenin kirjalle. ”Reading Sounds ei täysin toimi kokonaisuutena, eikä kaikista sen kappaleista saa ideaa kunnolla irti edes tietäessään mistä on kyse, mutta sen parhaat hetket ovat huomattavan onnistuneita." (Jiituomas / Kuolleen musiikin yhdistys)   * "The idea behind this Luovaja label compilation is that each of the artists has used a literary source as the basis of their project. In some tracks it's been just as inspiration, and is thus unrecognizable, others make direct use of the text. The album opens with a Brent Mini & Eric Lampton track, in which small waterdrop-like beeps "drip" in silence, and which at the end has some speech synth like spoken text. It does not function at any point and remains purely boring. Iamheard's Hongostola is piano, storm and background buzz, well reaching the feel of F. E. Sillanpää being sought. Santtu Hirvikorpi's slow guitar in Komako is a similar success. Then it's a turn towards a more difficult area: Palvelu's piece out of Les Chants de Maldoror is fake-sensitive out-of-tone forest-folk singing on top of cheap drum machine sounds and a few cords, utterly ruining the tender mood of the wonderful original. Luckily the following track, Un Saison en Enfer by Haute Cuisine is of completely different quality: noiseambient refined with a choir-like wave, fitting highly well with Rimbaud - even though one would not recognize the influence if it wasn't printed in the sleeve. Robert Horton's interpretation of Mary Poppins works nicely as a track, but I must say that I'd associate her with more energetic tones than the minimalist soundscaping presented here. Vellamo's Mirdja is a return towards acoustic songs and a reminder on why I do not like the Finnish "forest folk" at all: weak singing and speech over a lame guitar. It contains all the bad traits of neofolk without any trace of the interpretative strength which keeps that genre so vivid. (What must be noted, though, is that if the artist's actual intent really was to turn a great lyric into an insignificant one, this is a brilliant success.) Alligator Crystal Moth has created a distorted, slow but near the end loosening and jazz-like interpretation of Thoreau, which may not resemble Walden much, but is still an enjoyable listen. Next is the album's real gem, Gothic Knife Rule by Hydor Kephale, a combination of noise ambient and a slowed down reading of the nativity scene in the Gospel of Luke. On it the sacral mood has been both preserved and broken down, so that the distorted, wonderfully paced speech as simultaneously utterly serious and still slightly amusing. The album ends with Marko Marin's keyboard piece Virtahevon kuolema, which doesn't in it's blatant pompousness really reach the level of the better tracks on this record, but does pay excellent homage to Tommy Hellsten's book. ”Reading Sounds does not really function as a whole, and not all of its tracks carry the idea well enough even when the listener knows what they are about, yet its best moments are highly successful indeed." (Jiituomas / Kuolleen musiikin yhdistys) * "Reading Sounds on Luovaja is an interesting concept compilation inspired by classic literature. Lots of lesser-known Finnish ensembles give way to more familiar underground bands such as Alligator Crystal Moth and Robert Horton. Favorite tracks include Santtu Hirvikorpi’s “Komako” which sounds like snow-clad pine forest turned into sounds and the rainy, primitive bedroom folk of iamheard." (Mats / Broken Face) * "prior to mikael sending this disc to me, i hadn't heard of his finland-based label. his mentioning of a compilation of sounds that were based off of classic literature, piqued my interest. granted, not not fun beat them to the punch with their extravagant tapeworms eat bookworms a few years back, but the literary theme, outside of the packaging for it, was pretty hard to pick up in the music. could this one be any different? how the hell would i know? i take a real hands-off approach towards books, and as a result haven't read or even heard of most of the ten books which provided inspiration. those literary works, in order, being: valis, ihmiselon ihanuus ja kurjuus, yukiguni, les chants de maldoror, une saison en enfer, mary poppins (saw the movie!), mirdja, walden, the bible (okay, i have managed to hear about this one before) and virtahepo olohuoneessa. ”one of the best and worst things about books is how they're open to interpretation. that's one of the real reasons that i'm not too into reading. i always fail to grasp the 'greater meaning' and then someone tells you, no, that wasn't about a poor family living in the midwest, it was a dichotomy between blah and blah. then i just get pissed. with that in mind, one of the things that i like the most about this cd is how you have different artists, from different locations, with different books creating music that blends well together, for the most part. maybe all of the books that they read were really just metaphors for pleasant folk-based music? ”reading sounds wisely starts off with brent mini & eric lampton's piece. synchronocity music most projects the feel of the book, which is science-fiction. not only that, but the artists' names are actually taken from the book, and the end of the track features a computerized voice reading an excerpt from valis. their track has a spacey minimal feel to it, and i think that it does a good job establishing theme and mood, yet it's one of the cd's weaker tracks. ”from there we'll go to one of the best pieces of music by iamheard. the novel it's based off of is titled the loveliness and wretchedness of human life, and judging purely by the name, i think that they do a great job of conveying that imagery. hongistola's a moody number that centers around a sample of a thunderstorm and pairs that with delicate and somber piano playing. ”santtu hirvikorpi's komako was inspired by a late 1940s japanese novel. graciously, santtu will employ some sounds and instrumentation that are recognizable as being traditionally asian, while also bringing in a western folk element. ”after that prettier offering we're greeted (annoyed by?) a kitschy old school drum machine loop (mogwai's superheroes of bmx, anyone?). palvelu will also use some minimal piano playing and the way that his vocals are recorded, actually makes me kind of like this song. the biggest issue that i have with this is that its inspiration was supposed to come from a book of prose from 1869. the drum machine just seems like a really odd choice to me. ”the droning layers of haute cuisine's une saison en enfer seems to do justice to rimbaud's hallucinatory inclinations. the song is nothing remarkable, but it's short and sweet. ”ah, hell yeah, robert horton, one of the two artists i recognize on here. robert doesn't disappoint either with his lush "i am not a centipede", said mary poppins. the first half of the track involves a simplistic layer of repetitious drones in the background and what i'm guessing is a xylophone. the xylo taps are spaced out so that each one is giving the room that it needs to vibrate, echo and eventually drone away, building up the atmosphere. the latter half will add some acoustic guitar plucks to the mix. heavenly. ”mirdja, by vellamo, is a lovely bit of minimal acoustic folk. i'm a firm believer that you can't have too many folky finnish ladies with nice voices. it's a very wonderful language that's mind boggling to have to enunciate, but it sounds so beautiful sung. i especially like the second half of mirdja with the multi-tracked and panned spoken word vocals seemingly coming at you from everywhere. ”alligator crystal moth, i've heard of you, too. while i'm not very sure how their blend of traditional folk and psych-rock impulses convey henry david thoreau's "social critique of (the) contemporary western world and the study of simple life", it sure sounds great! the affected guitar noise and feedback which closes out white lilies was a real punch in the arm. ”another nice job with the arrangement comes by way of placing the two worst songs in the last positions. hydor kephale's gothic knife rule is far too long at ten minutes and the music itself is minimal electronic, in a not too dissimilar vein to the valis track, which is alright (but not at that length) and then added to that are affected, multi-tracked vocals, giving it a dark vibe. i'm pretty sure that the lyrics are taken from the gospel of luke 2:1-20, and are delivered in a talking manner. one layer's slowed down for maximum effect. i couldn't make it past six minutes before i skipped ahead. ”... which prematurely brought me to marko marin's virtahevon kuolema. comparatively, i'd probably rather listen to gothic knife rule. it's summed up best as new age. awful. there's a bit of percussion that's not so bad, but the synth screams enya! shit, i'd rather listen to enya's sail away than this. bummer. "listening to this disc in its entirety might leave you feeling kind of salty, but knowing that you can hit stop after that great eighth track and not miss out on anything is nice. as with nearly every good compilation, you're going to get some bad songs, some really good ones, and a handful of alright ones. in that tradition, reading sounds was a success. seeing as how the best artists on this disc don't have releases on the label (yet, marko marin does), it doesn't give me a very clear idea as to the direction of luovaja. then again, it wasn't meant to serve as a sampler." (avant gardening / Smooth Assailing)

Yölaulajat: Helmiä sioillle

lvjcdr003
cd-r, limited edition of 50
38:55
June 2006

Kyrpä pillu tissi seisoo nyt (0:30)
Svengaa Esa svengaa (4:01)
Nissisen Jaakolla oli talo (0:53)
Yhteiskunnan paska (2:19)
Vatupassi (0:28)
Mummo ja pappa (2:42)
Jotkut on luotuja kuolemaan (0:42)
Kattokaa jätkät (2:35)
Maalaiseloa (2:39)
Oletko sinä isäni (1:06)
Joka huoralla on (2:19)
Anaaliprolapsi (0:47)
Joonatan (3:35)
Lemuria (1:22)
Mummo paskantaa (1:53)
Terve uusi asukas (4:43)
Leijat (0:56)

Acoustic punk chansons, improvised in the moment. This is what happens when naïve hits into puberty.

SOLD OUT

*************

"Laulu on ilomme ja työmme"

–Yölaulajat

"To sing is our joy and job"

– Yölaulajat

*************

Kaikki biisit improvisoitu, nauhoitettu ja masteroitu Jyväskylässä 2005 ja 2006. Kiitos äidit ja isät, siskot ja veljet, vaimot ja lapset, ystävät ja vihamiehet. Teidän on Taivasten Valtakunta!

– Satakieli & Luhtakerttunen

All songs improvised, recorded and mastered in Jyväskylä in 2005 and 2006. Thank you mothers and fathers, sisters and brothers, wives and children, friends and fiends. Yours is the Kingdom of Heaven!

– Nightingale and Marsh Warbler

*************

"Olen nähnyt Suomi-folkin tulevaisuuden, ja sen nimi on Yölaulajat. Konstailematonta, maanläheistä, rehellistä, juurevaa ja aitoa ilmaisua vastapainoksi kaikelle läpituotetulle, kylmälle, epäaidolle ja epärehelliselle konemusiikille; lauluja kaikkein olennaisisimmista peruskysymyksistä ja niistä kaikkein tärkeimmistä asioista, joita maan mierolainen kohtaa tiellään ihmiselon aikana. Tätä on suomalainen metsäfolk kaikkein autenttisimmillaan. Vuoden ellei vuosikymmenen ellei vuosituhannen ellei kaikkien niiden levy." (pH /OOOOO)

*

"For some obscure reason, your humble servant in Lord was just handed a sound recording by a Finnish musical ensemble called Yölaulajat (which translates as "Night Singers"). I was delighted when I saw on the cover of the recording a quote from the Book of Moses, and thought this might include some welcomed new gospel music from a bunch of religious young men who have chosen to celebrate our Creator through their musical skills. In joyous expectation I inserted this recording to my compact disc player, but horror horror! Soon I found this was all but blasphemous mockery of the worst kind! A song after another followed a pile of some of the most disgusting and vile filth I have ever witnessed. An obscenity after an obscenity. These "songs" (do I even dare to honor these stinking products of deranged mind with such a word?) were all about disrespectful, even Satanic accounts about copulation, defecation and sodomy, even involving some elderly people! DISGUSTING, DISGUSTING! Truly, as I've seen in my visions, a horrible porno death awaits us all! "Vengeance is mine", says our loving and merciful Lord! Horrifying will be the fate of a blasphemer in the flames of Hell! Let's join our hands in prayer to save the souls of these forsaken youths! And don't forget to send our church your donations! All major credit cards accepted!" (Harri Teikka / MySpace.com blog)

*

"Kesän 2006 riettain levyjulkaisu taasen on Yölaulajien debyyttialbumi Helmiä sioille (CD-R, Luovaja). Parisenkymmentä rivoa rallia, laulelmaa ja juttua. Mikään ei ole pyhää ja vaikka välillä tolkuton retostelu on melkein liiankin päällekäyvää, on tämä silti hitsin hauska. Ja kyllä tältäkin levyltä mainion hittisinglen saisi: miten olisi vaikka 'Svengaa Esa svengaa'/'Anaaliprolapsi'?" (Ville Moskiitto / Shortcuts to Enlightenment)

Majakka ja Perävaunu

lvjcdr002 (2006)
cd-r, limited edition of 50
68:54
January 2006

yksi.Fotoperiodismi (27:28)
kaksi.Radiotekniikan Perusteet (21:37)
kolme.Ystävyyskaupunki (19:49)

M&P; = Simo S. ja Mikko V.
Äänitetty Tampereella syksyllä 2004
ja keväällä 2005.
Kansitaiteen teki Heikkisen Saila.

Recorded in Tampere in fall 2004
and spring 2005.
Cover art by Saila Heikkinen.

Massive, improvised journeys through static space

SOLD OUT

*************

Parhaimmillaan improvisoitu musiikki taltoi vallitsevan tilan, ajan ja ilmapiirin. Äänitettä ajatellen kuunneltavissa oleva lopputulos riippuu soittajien näkemyksistä, käytettävistä instrumenteista, äänityslaitteistosta ja vallitsevista olosuhteista joita ovat tila, aika ja ilmapiiri. Jossain mielessä improvisoitua musiikkia sisältävä äänite on siis tallenne toisen sisällä.

Toivottavasti jotain tämäntapaista välittyy myös tämän äänitteen kuulijalle. Kahden kaveruksen soittamaa musiikaalista äänimaisemaa havainnoidessaan kuulija voi kenties saada häivähdyksen soitosta kumpuavasta ilosta ja luomisen riemusta kiirettömissä syksyn ja kevättalven iltapäivissä.

Simo Saukko maanantaina 19.12.2005

*************

At its best, improvised music captures the present space, time and atmosphere. As for a recording, the final result for listening depends on the players' vision, the instruments available, the recording equipment, and the prevailing circumstances, which are space, time and atmosphere. In same way a recording including improvised music is therefor a recording inside of another.

Hopefully something like described here forwards also for the listener of this recording. As the listener senses the soundscapes played by two buddies, he maybe can get a slight hint of the delight and joy of creating that derives from playing music in the hasteless afternoons of fall and early spring.

Simo Saukko, Monday, December 19th 2005

 

REVIEWS

"Ensikuunteluilla kummastuttaa tähän duoon liitetty impro-leima. Mitäs improa se tämmöinen on, jossa ei edes tapahdu mitään? Majakan ja Perävaunun sähkömusiikki paljastaa kuitenkin salaisuutensa vasta tarkemmalla kuuntelulla. Levyn kolme parikymmenminuuttista kappaletta ovat hitaita, minimalistisia ja näennäisesti muuttumattomia, mutta pinnan alla kuohuu. Muutokset äänen kaaressa tapahtuvat välillä lähes huomaamatta. Ei kai improvisaation tarvitse aina olla niin hyperaktiivista?

"Majakan ja Perävaunun esikoislevyn pelastaa ambientin ikävästä maailmasta kaksikon rohkeus äänenkäytössä. Esimerkiksi "Radiotekniikan perusteet" on jopa ilkeän kuuloista, särisevää ja riipivää ja siksi nautinnollista. Pelkkää särinää ei levyllä toki ole. Ehkä parhaiten syväkuuntelussa toimii "Fotoperiodismi", joka on ajoittain jopa jossain määrin melodinen. "Ystävyyskaupunki" keskittyy hitaasti jumittavaan rytmiin.

"Majakka ja Perävaunu kuitenkin vaativat kuulijaltaan ehkä hieman liian paljon. Lähes 70-minuuttisen levyn tarkka kuuntelu palkitsee, mutta palkitseeko lopulta tarpeeksi? Levyn kolme pitkää kappaletta ovat äänimaailmaltaan sekä rakenteeltaan loppujen lopuksi kovasti toistensa kaltaisia ja voipi olla niin, etteivät kovin usein tietään levysoittimeen löydä. Potentiaalia kumminkin on ja juuri tällä hetkellä kuulostaa hienolta, joten uutta putkeen, kiitos." (Ville Moskiitto / Shortcuts to Enlightenment)

*

"Majakan ja Perävaunun devyytti on kuvauksensa mukaisesti 'improvisoituja matkoja staattisen tilan halki'. Surullisen kaunista äänimaisemaa, jossa minimalistisen elktrotaustan päällä seikkailee pari eri tasoilla olevaa kuviota. Silloin kun ei liikuta liian tutulla maaperällä - niin kuin käy Fotoperiodismissa, jonka erottuvin melodia on usein kuin suoraan Pienestä rumpalipojasta - levy on kerrassaan viehättävä.

"Improvisaatio näkyy rakenteilla leikittelyssä, ei hajanaisuudessa, ja se on tämän tiimin selkeä vahvuus. Erityisesti keskimmäinen raidoista, Radiotekniikan Perusteet, on todella hieno, yhdistäen maalailua ja radionoisemaista pientä säröä. Myös Ystävyyskaupungin junnaava rytmi toimii kivasti. Silti valehtelisin, jos sanoisin etteikö pitkästymisen vaara ole halki levyn koko ajan läsnä. Vaikka kuinka kyseessä onkin hyvätasoinen tavara, ei 20-30-minuuttisia raitoja mitenkään pysty pitämään täysin kiinnostavina näin hienovaraisin menetelmin. Joko yhtyeen täytyisi lisätä palasia mukaan, tai sitten lyhentää yksittäisteostensa pituutta. Tässä muodossa jäädään vain kiinnostaviksi, mutta ei päästä todelliseen vaikuttavuuteen.

"Erittäin lupaava ja usein hyvin kauniskin, mutta ei sen enempää." (Jiituomas / Kuolleen musiikin yhdistys)

*

"–– Also on the Finland tip is the hypnotic flights of fancy by Majakka ja Perävaunu. Brought to us by the good folks at Luovaja , these massive improv pieces do a wonderful job of creating an atmosphere for cosmic excursions. Each of these three sprawling pieces (ranging from 20 minutes to 27 minutes) unfolds slowly, but is always led by a sure hand. This is the work of someone's creative vision, and this duo pulls it off quite well. This is the music of the changing seasons, when everything is in bloom, but dying. These tracks contain the aural depictions of nature's yearly decay. It's the sound of falling leaves and browning grass, everything and everyone looking for their place to hibernate for the oncoming winter. With each subsequent listen, you realize that there's really something special happening here. Really lovely. – –" (Brad Rose / Foxy Digitalis)

*

"–– Also on the Finland tip is the hypnotic flights of fancy by Majakka ja Perävaunu. Brought to us by the good folks at Luovaja , these massive improv pieces do a wonderful job of creating an atmosphere for cosmic excursions. Each of these three sprawling pieces (ranging from 20 minutes to 27 minutes) unfolds slowly, but is always led by a sure hand. This is the work of someone's creative vision, and this duo pulls it off quite well. This is the music of the changing seasons, when everything is in bloom, but dying. These tracks contain the aural depictions of nature's yearly decay. It's the sound of falling leaves and browning grass, everything and everyone looking for their place to hibernate for the oncoming winter. With each subsequent listen, you realize that there's really something special happening here. Really lovely. – –" (Brad Rose / Foxy Digitalis)

Marko Marin: Heijastu, katoa ja ole valmiina

lvcdr001
cd-r, limited edition of 100
36:14
October 2005
 
Molemmat vanhukset Osa 1 (1:34)
Joulukuun ensimmäiset päivät (4:19)
Saapuneen postin laatikosta (6:07)
Persoonallisuuksiemme sadetakit (2:44)
Kaikki jotka pimeää hengittävät (7:12)
Auringon holhouksesta vapautuneet (3:59)
Molemmat vanhukset Osa 2 (3:24)

Composed and arranged by Marko Marin
Produced by Jaakob Karhu
Photos by Kaarina Luova
Thanks to Taavi
Recorded in 2004 ja 2005 in Vilppula

Electronic soundscapes with strong ambience. Inspired by Tangerine Dream, Mike Oldfield, Vangelis and modern soundtrack music. Marko Marin is known for his scores for some of the recent Trash Video movies, and his music has been played in Finnish Avaruusromua radio show.

*************

"Reflect, disappear and be ready. Letters From The Mailbox. Every name on this release are giving away parts from a certain story, but I won't tell you the complete version. I don't know the details myself and I also think it's always better that the listeners form their own opinions about the music.

Originally the story came up during the summer of 2004. After that, it slipped from my mind. About three weeks ago we noticed that I have enough tracks for a possible release. We chose the best tracks and decided the final look of the release. There was enough material for me to choose and even the budget was already calculated, so that was fairly easy and it only took two days.

So now the job is done. Hopefully the cd is in a safe place and not as a coaster or laying in a trash can." (Marko Marin / Saturday, August 13th 2005)

*************

"Heijastu katoa, ja ole valmiina. Molemmat vanhukset. Saapuneen postin laatikosta. Levyn sekä kappaleiden nimet viittaavat tiettyyn kehystarinaan, mutta tarkka kuvaus siitä jääköön hämärän peittoon. En itsekään tiedä sitä yksityiskohtaisesti ja on aina parempi, että kuulija muodostaa oman käsityksensä asiasta.

Alkuperäinen idea syntyi kesäkuussa 2004, jonka jälkeen se unohtui lähes kokonaan. Muutama viikko sitten huomasimme, että kappaleita olisi tarpeeksi mahdollista levyjulkaisua varten. Materiaalin valinnassa ja julkaisun lopullisessa muotoilussa kului aikaa noin kaksi päivää. Kuvia löytyi paljon ja pakkauksen tyyli oli jo tarkasti mietitty kustannuksia unohtamatta.

Nyt urakka on siis ohi ja toivon mukaan levy on turvallisessa paikassa, eikä esimerkiksi toimi lasinalusena tai loju roskakorissa." (Marko Marin / lauantai 13.08.2005)

REVIEWS

"This is an excellent exercise in the art of making synth based soundtrack music circa 1985. As I listened to "Heijastu…", I kept making references to, among others, Vangelis, Klaus Schulze, Tangerine Dream, & Mike Oldfield... there is a lot of hero worship here.

"While Marin's compositions don't move me in the least (though I suspect it many of the Foxy readers might become closet fans) I have to respect the massive amount of talent it takes to create an album like this. That said, I was highly skeptical of this disc being the work of Marin and him alone. Solo instrumental efforts too often take a turn for the worst and become highly indulgent and grossly self-gratifying. When no checks and balances are in place, the urge to create can grab any project and warp it in to a stinking pile of Rick Wakefield. Of course "Heijastu…" is an indulgent piece of work, as many prog/synth/soundtrack albums are, but in a way that embraces the symbiotic relationship of cinematic imagery and evocative sound rather than wallowing in its own importance. Each of the seven tracks reaches for and affects a different emotional center. Each does in achieving the goal of creating an engaging sense of drama throughout the entire disc. Whether it was the intention or not, it is very easy to block out an entire scene using any of these songs. Image after image present themselves effortlessly as each scene is set for action. Ultimately it is the true relevance of Marin's compositions as well as the lack of irony, cheese, and to a lesser extent, pretension that makes this disc a refreshing listen. Whether you want to praise or pan the genre itself, you have to give credit to the passion and performance he lays of the line." (Chris Jacques / Foxy Digitalis)

 

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"– – Up next is Marko Marin, with the 2005 release 'Heijastu, Katoa Ja Ole Valmina,' on the Luovaja microlabel. This is a rather strange electronic disc, playful at times, kind of an odd blend between a Phillip Glass side project and the lighter side of Brian Eno’s outings with Jon Hassell. – –" (DaveX / Stratling Moniker)

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"Marko Marin’s music is rooted firmly in the atmospheric electronic tradition of artists like Vangelis and this release offers an emotive string of compositions, each woven from batteries of synth. Canned percussion, canned piano, canned strings. It’s a marvel how such artificial raw material can be woven into honest and evocative music.

"Now I have to admit, this is one of those releases that challenged me to confront my own prejudices. In general I have a strong distaste for electronic music when its production renders the proceedings blatantly artificial, or ‘plastic’ as I like to say.

"A simple example – no synth piano will ever have the rich under and over tones of a true piano, and I don’t understand why, in general, anyone bothers with the substitute. I personally feel that if you don’t have access to the real thing then better not to betray your musical vision with a cheap electronic substitute.

"You can imagine that at first I therefore resisted the impossibly clean, metronomic execution of this album; the whole damn thing screams MIDI from every pore. Yet repeated lessons broke down my resistance and I have to admit – if this album had used real instruments it would have lost a lot of its charm.

"The pieces are melodic to a fault and the music has a very vocal quality, with the various synthetic instruments almost singing, albeit wordlessly. That’s a remarkable feat at the best of times, but especially for music with this aesthetic. Ironically I really like the synth piano and think it works better with these compositions than a real piano would have!

"The music also serves well in the atmosphere department, though I must say its spirit is generally quite light and even optimistic. It does range through a number of emotional palettes, but this release is neither gloomy nor melodramatic. I would guess that were he a classical composer, Marin would take after Mozart more readily than he would Mahler.

"My only substantial complaint is about the programmed percussion, which is particularly flagrant in its artificiality. I must admit this is one area where a fuller, more organic feel would be welcome. I’m not entirely sure whether the production and timbre of this release is intentional or the product of limited resources, but certainly the drums (while not totally devoid of the necessary sway) are less than convincing.

"But really this is just nitpicking on my part. It’s a very considered and carefully composed CD-R release with some catchy themes, clever arrangements and beautiful moments. Marin has subsequently worked on soundtracks (this release dates back to 2005!) and that seems like a natural progression for this artist. I really enjoyed this sincere and atmospheric, if slightly cheesy, CD and I’m curious to hear more of Marin’s work." (Henry Lauer / Heathen Harvest)