Black Mountain - In the Future (2008 Canada). Many bands that have a retro bent, try hard to capture the essence of the late 60s or the early 70s. Rare is a band that understood the mindset of 1978. To me, “In the Future” is like discovering the most interesting looking album at the local Montgomery Wards, set inside some ancient mall that felt more like a DMZ than a shopping plaza. Black Mountain has captured the aura of what Arista Records originally intended to do, before giving into crass commercialism. It’s the type of album you can hear over and over, because of the many different textures, colors and styles. But not in a modern post-rock kitschy way. Rather with the perspective of the 1970’s landscape already in mind. The kind of album, in fact, you WANT to hear over and over in one sitting. Prog rock for the arena concert scene of 1978, and that’s not the same thing as arena rock. Those who were there know the difference. And if you don’t, pick up “In the Future” and compare for yourself. Recommended.
Radio Massacre International - Septentrional (2006 England). RMI have to be viewed as one of the most innovative of recent groups. Certainly within the electronic music space, a field that has the same devotion and non wavering loyalty to sub-genres as does heavy metal. You’re either “Berlin School” or “Ambient” or “Techno” or any other such labels, but you shouldn’t be all of them say many fans. RMI, who started out pretty much “Berlin School”, is now all the above and more, with recent excursions into trippy Krautrock and whatever else they feel like doing. “Septentrional” is one of their most polarizing CD albums (RMI’s privately released CD-R’s are even more off the rails). Produced by Ian Boddy and released on his DiN label, “Septentrional” is RMI at their most modern and controversial. But in a paradoxical way. See, “Septentrional” has more of that ancient mellotron than any of their other albums. Of course it’s put through the production grinder and is echoed, technoed, phased and manipulated through Boddy’s mad scientist lab. It’s all rather fascinating. Headphone music for the modern age. In fact, I now rate this amongst the top quadrant of RMI albums, and that’s quite a statement given they have such an impressive body of work. Keep it going guys!
Radio Massacre International - Rain Falls in Grey (2007 England). As stated in the “Septentrional” blurb, RMI are one of today’s most innovative groups. Case in point: “Rain Falls in Grey”. On this outing, RMI pays their respect to Syd Barrett. Musically this is RMI’s most overt space rock effort, with raging electric guitars and ferocious drumming. As well, RMI has successfully created those magical atmospheres that one would tyically find on an old German Ohr release, who themselves were enamored with late 60’s Pink Floyd. This being RMI, one is never too far from classic mid 70’s Tangerine Dream, and the combination of the early Krautrock sound with “Berlin School” electronics is highly fascinating. After a bit of a lull at the beginning of the decade, RMI has created a triumvirate of classic releases starting with “Emissaries”. Each represents an entirely different sound. Rare is this kind of innovation found, much less from a band whose recording history is almost 15 years old.