alrealon musique – 5th anniversary comp

Okay we might have to cover this over the course of a missive or two as we’ve just had reported sightings of a third instalment ready to drop for download love in a week or three. We refer of course to the Alrealon Musique imprint who this year celebrate 5 years of existence. Set up in 2008 by Philippe Gerber principally to provide a outlet for his solo musical output as John 3:16, the label has quickly come to be seen as a safe haven and crucial cornerstone on the industrial / dub / experimental / dark electronic and modern classicist scene these days boasting a closely engaged and supportive of each other tight knit community. For me personally, aside some of the finest records we’ve had the pleasure of hearing emerging through the imprint, most notably and without question perched at the top of the list being the Stockhaus-ian playground that is Rasplyn’s frankly jaw dropping ’14 black clouds’ which I urge all Glass, Nyman and Hermann devotees to clamp your ear gear around at the earliest opportunity – alrealon musique has always been thought upon around our gaff as sharing a melodic mindset with the much missed Scot imprint Benbacula or else a darker old school variant of the mighty Warp empire. ’frequencies of existence – 5 years of alrealon musique’ be its name, as said whittled down to – up to now – 3 easily digestible portions ’Part 1’ of which is a free download featuring 9 cuts from the labels enviable roster. The collection opens with John 3:16’s ‘I am the light of the world, the truth shall make you free’ mentioned in despatches previously, it combines regal majesty with forbearance, bleached in industrial motifs and swirling eddies of spectral echoes reaching back through the ages all kissed with a masterly dub drilling paired to a glorious dust ravaged Arabesque cyclone – formidable stuff. Hauntingly beautiful and formed from a melodic marriage that entwines the archaic noir chamber motifs of the criminally neglected preterite with what first sounds like the aching glacial cries of ex post facto is Rasplyn’s offering ‘circle round’ – yet hang fire for mid way through something of the dark cinematic romance of dead can dance begins to blossom and unfurl to captivate and entrance. Think I’m right in saying that we haven’t as yet encountered Cold Metal Future whose ’navigate between the stars’ begins ominously stilled before erupting into a busying and frantic headphonic subterranic smartie that jitters and jars like a dark hearted Wagon Christ. Fluid’s ’unjust’ finds itself obliterated on the Speak Onion mix amid a furious blizzard borne assault of frenetic blip gored glitch terror which ought to appeal to lovers of Atari Teenage Riot. Now I’m thinking that when confronted with a band calling themselves Omega Dub Experience your not expecting to have your ears lobes sandblasted off with some harsh species of death thrash punk – of course that’d be silly – by the same token neither would you expect to hear something so shitfaced you feel an urge to email them to found out exactly what their smoking. ’views from outer space’ is as you imagine from the title – a space walking zero gravity psych dub trip – sort of – for here there’s elements of jazz noodling, lounge lilts and an obvious spiritual connection to Sun Ra which in truth sounds ripe for those Frank Wobbly and Sons dudes not least because this sounds very much left of centre Casino Vs Japan groove. Another who’ve slipped our radar thus far are MaCu, they/he/she stump up ’quoted monologue’ – a weird ear drone ambient cutie presaged by ghostly apparitions and ever darkening atmospherics whose stillness chills to the very core. Ebinger -again another debuting listening experience – appear to have updated the whole sound art craft of the 60’s TV spy theme noir soundtrack with an ice hearted glitch minimalism that plugs distantly into the Orbital psyche. I think I’m right in saying that I’ve a download of this lots current full length to rescue from the cyber library which based on the evidence of this will be sooner than later. This features a guest appearance by John 3:16 and is titled ’digi blue’ by the Use – dislocated funky radiophonic scratchiness blowing in an exotic sea breeze is what you get for your trouble, cutely kooky psych trance perhaps a Balearic flashback, whatever the case this subdued beat bleached effervescent sound shower is quite unlike anything around in planet pop this minute. Last up for this first volume of the compilation – Laica who better known to kith n kin as Dave Fleet dubs up an already heavily sedated ’environs II’ for his ’dub mix’ – now if you thought the original mix was veering close into Autechre realms then this new stripped bare minimalist rephrasing is up so close and personal its shaking hands, that said spice the mix a tad with the subtle strains Detroit techno disciplines and you have a super chilled blighter that ought to turn on self respecting subscribers of old school Rednetic, Uncharted Audio and Smallfish imprints. Part 2 and 3 of the celebratory collection will be featured in the next missive. http://www.alrealonmusique.bandcamp.com/album/frequencies-of-existence-5-years-of-alrealon-musique-alrn038-part-1