Bis Aufs Messer Weekly News Jan 02 2025
Hi, welcome to another newsletter for January 2025 .. a couple cool records arrived like the BENZIN LP, JOHANNES BJÖRK - s/t LP, RICHTER BAND LP restock, new MOGWAI - The Bad Fire DLP, RITUAL ERROR - Dial In The Ghost LP, THORN WYCH - Aesthesis LP, V/A - Spiritual Jazz 17: SABA / MPS DLP, WARM CURRENCY - Petals LP restock, Turbostaat restock, EA80 restock, MEAT SHIRT - Acid Dove LP, PISSE - dubai LP and some PISSE restocks, JON COLLIN - The Other Dead Sea LP re press, some early music tapes as well like the UBALDO - moment temporalment heretat [I] TAPE, JON COLLIN - High Peak Selections TAPE etc …
Also Simon Joyner and Ned Collette will play the store on Jan 28th … show starts 19:30 - so come early to get a spot
We also added (adding) a few more second hand LPs and 7“s to our discogs
https://www.discogs.com/seller/XMESSERX
Thank you as usual
Til then thank you for all your orders & support.
Robert & Norman
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LP
AUTOBAHNS - s/t LP (phantom - Well, well - this one grows a lot! The first Autobahns LP with their 12 tracks sounds so fresh and so totally 80's at the same time to me, somehow maybe like the bullshit parts of the last 40 years do disappear for the moment the record spins. I always recognize myself playing this record again once it's over to keep that quirky-strange feeling going on. Usually I don't pick a certain song, but if I had to "Loss Of The Rights" with that "1982 coming of age" hook in the chorus is the real deal. Autobahns is the solo project of swiss italian musician Giuliano Iannarella, currently living in Leipzig (Germany).) 17.00
BENZIN - Treibjagd LP (static age - Berlin’s Benzin brings us a blistering barrage of blazing beats and breakneck bursts of brio on Treibjagd, their debut vinyl for Static Age Musik. While Benzin rips through their songs at hardcore tempos (Treibjagd’s 12 songs fly by in a mere 15 minutes), they’re a punk rock band at heart, with songs built around hooky riffs with eruptions of surf-tinged melody a la East Bay Ray from the Dead Kennedys. But while both the songs and the dry, punchy production recall proto-hardcore punk from the US west coast, the vocalist’s German-language speak-singing infuses Benzin’s sound with the icy cool of their country’s rich art-punk tradition (Bärchen und die Milchbubis). Songs range from the spiky minimalism of “Freundschaft” (which sounds like a long-lost Group Sex outtake) and “Traumaspirale” to more fleshed-out, garage-y tracks like “Zeichen Der Zeit” and “Treibjagd,” whose sassy, hip-swinging rhythms and big riffs could win over any Hives fan. Aficionados of artsy and agitated contemporary punk bands like Warm Bodies and Spread Joy are bound to fall for Benzin’s charms, but Treibjagd is a treat for any punker with an ear for a hyperactive hook. (Daniel Lupton)) 20.00
BLUE LAKE - Wheft LP (tonal union - Blue Lake's new offering 'Weft' sees its creator Jason Dungan unearth new musical terrain with a mini-album which presents the projects evolution. Finding inspiration in the craft of weaving and embracing a collective spirit as a band leader, all while readying a new studio album expected later in 2025. It follows the lauded album 'Sun Arcs' (2023) with Pitchfork naming it (Best New Music, 8.3), amongst numerous other accolades. Blue Lake is the ongoing musical project of American born, Copenhagen based musician Jason Dungan which serves as his artistic platform as composer and collaborator. Developed over the period of 2024 and witnessed at live performances across a swath of European cosmopolitan cities and festivals, the project stands at a new creative juncture. The earthy title track 'Weft' emerges with a sense of ease and familiarity as looping guitar riffs in open tunings bed in around a warm cello pulse that provides the essential heartbeat. These interlinking parts align to create his most explicit version yet of an American writing country music in Scandinavia. Dungan named the release 'Weft' as a reference to the weaving practice of his partner, Danish visual artist Maria Zahle, whose work "Torso" is featured on the album's cover. With her works providing a constant source of inspiration to his music and practice as an instrument-builder, Dungan found a symbiotic connection between their mediums, which is reflected in the music on ‚Weft'. 'Weft' is a collection of new works that casts a net into new sound territories with distinctive timbres yet always channelled through the refined lens of Dungan's prism. Infused with an ongoing connection to nature, it furthermore expands his unique meld of off-kilter folk, jazz, country and left-field experimental ambience. 'Weft' then is an accomplishment of growth, of bolder objectives and of collaboration with like minds. The Blue Lake project takes a dynamic step forward venturing into new creative spaces while leaving some clues along the way.) 28.00
HALB AUS PLASTIK - ... Halb Aus Beton LP (my ruin - The insider tip from Münster with their second longplayer, which once again reminds us of bands like Mittagspause, Male, S.Y.P.H. or Östro 430. Honest, simple punk that catches you from the first second! Sometimes you just don't need anything more!) 18.00
JOHANNES BJÖRK - s/t LP (infinite - Johannes Björk is a musician and literary critic based in Gothenburg. His music combines drones, pop melodies and field recordings to produce refined sketches rather than fully formed songs – resembling slowly refurnished interiors, rather than scenes with a clearly discernible subject. Originally released in a mini-edition of 12 copies for a show in Stockholm earlier on in the year, it is now presented in an expanded LP form with two tracks added in, and another two re-recorded. Accompanied in parts by renowned and emerging Swedish writers – such as Siri Ahmed Backström, Johan Jönson and Johanna Sköldbäck Martell – the music offers an electro-acoustic shelter, which houses both luminous and gloomy textures. Whilst the album shares an atmosphere with the emerging years of the Gothenburg scene to some extent, the songwriting bears witness to a production that treats lo-fi elements as integrated parts of the soundscape, though not in a way that overpowers the recording. For his debut solo album, Johannes carves out a landscape where pulsating drones form the background for the perfect melody, where field recordings and noise co-exist with harmonical dyads, and the feeling of an assuasive epiphany flow out of an ever-looming tragedy.) 30.00
JON COLLIN - The Other Dead Sea LP (early music - 2nd Pressing with new artwork - Gold riso-printed paste-on cover on reverse board white sleeves with handwritten titles, black-and-white insert and obi strip - Colour risograph-printed paste-on cover on reverse-board white sleeves with handwritten titles, with black-and-white insert 2022 Jon Collin's LP release on Laboratorio Palestro. Repressed this year on Early Music. Typically transportative new Jon Collin LP, recorded in Stockholm a few years ago. The JC vaults appear close to endless at this point - how much music is that in the past ten years or so now? - and more impressive still the quality of output, always rotating around similar themes and interests but somehow finding new intriguing modes of expression to draw you back in. The Other Dead Sea in part recalls the performances Collin delivered at our fifth birthday events last year, a compelling hybridisation of wordless Celtic folk song, fervoured blues and hypnotic drones that seems almost rapturous at times. Jon Collin as religious experience? Probably a bit OTT that, but since I'm no praying man I'll settle for the version of the eternal and the divine existent in 'The Lowering's' 19 minute medley (a medley! Just how infinite is the full thing?!) and the stately arcs of 'The Honour and Glory of Whaling' and hope that guarantees absolution. Amidst such uncertainty, Jon Collin proves himself a sure thing.
) 27.00
MEAT SHIRT - Acid Dove LP (phantom - In just over a year, MEAT SHIRT has found its way into the most demanding ears, and not only within the punk scene. The french far west (aka Brittany) saw the birth of a trio which does not forbid itself in any way, not unlike the pioneers of US hardcore that MEAT SHIRT readily cites as references : Zero Boys, Dicks, Minor Threat or Bad Brains. The band also knows how to venture into moving regions from garage punk (The Osees, Ty Segall, anyone?) to psychedelia or noise, building their very own stuff. "Acid Dove" brings seven relentless firebrands with singular energy. Like their first effort, this new opus was recorded by Jacky At the Movies recording in Brest and comes with a very special artwork by band drummer Hugues/Pzzl.) 17.00
MICHAEL ATHERTON - Windshift LP (infinite - Michael Atherton is a writer, composer and educator from Sydney, Australia. Originally born in Liverpool, England, to Welsh-Irish and German parents, his family later migrated to Australia in 1965. Moving to the suburbs in La Perouse, he grew up in a mixed, multicultural community, where he fostered friendships with existing indigenous members and Iberian migrants. His formative migrant experience and his curiosity about vernacular, as well as notated music, led him to study music formally where he was attracted to ethnomusicology. From a self-taught guitarist to an accomplished multi-instrumentalist, Michael’s recorded output spans many different genres and styles – he was a member of the Renaissance Players, an early music group; Sirocco, a pioneering cross-cultural folk group; and Southern Crossings, an innovative ethno-classical ensemble.) 30.00
MOGWAI - The Bad Fire DLP (The arrival of a new Mogwai album – their eleventh – is cause for great celebration. The album’s title, The Bad Fire, is a working-class Glaswegian term for Hell. It reflects the difficult time that members of the band were going through. New to the studio was American producer John Congleton, known for his work with Explosions In The Sky, Sigur Rós, John Grant and pretty much everyone in between. Congleton’s work can be heard on the album’s three singles. The album opener “God Gets You Back” sounds like Daft Punk being hunted by My Bloody Valentine, while “Fanzine Made Of Flesh” sounds like a victory parade for a baby yeti; and “Lion Rumpus” does actually sound like a lion rumpus. The music of Mogwai is a difficult thing to describe, but an easy thing to experience. At punishing volume, it can annihilate your body, leaving you as little more than a head which should by rights fall helplessly to the ground. Yet the music contains an updraft, a sense of beauty encased in the onslaught. This holds you up, suspended and empowered, reminding you that paradise is your birthright. This is especially true of The Bad Fire. It may have been created in dark conditions, but all that is transcended by the act of four musicians working together here, now, in the moment – the only place where Mogwai exist.) 34.00
OIRO - Ra Ta Ta Ta Ta LP (back in stock - *** RaTaTaTaTa - the rhythm in which the Mofapunx reliably release new studio albums. And OIRO will continue in 2024 where they left off with "Coole Scars" - less Rachut, more NDW, more drive, the drum machine shoots like an AK47 after the last rites, the bass crackles, the guitar rasps, the lyrics are snappy ever and ever and people have always given a damn about God and the world.) 20.00
OTIS JORDAN - Net of Atoms LP (back in stock - Net of Atoms is a new album from Otis Jordan, drawing closely from the previous two albums for Them There - Dodger Point (2020) and Restless Guests (2022) - Jordan delivers his most ambitious and well articulated full length work to date, perfectly rounding off a trio of releases for the label. The Glasgow based band leader has remained active since his last outing for Them There with contributions to the ongoing research project Folklore Tapes’ most recent V/A compilations and a split tape for the nascent ‘Ceremonial County’ series on the label. Most notably and surprising perhaps was his recent collaboration with Sam Mcloughlin’s Hood Faire imprint ‘Early Experiments in Recording Vol 1 (1976 - 2021)’ - a compilation which Jordan curated that unearthed early recordings from a slew of experimental heads and many now renowned in their field musicians. ) 28.00
PISSE - dubai LP (phantom. - Our favorite Fäkal formation is back just in time for the holidays with their new album, which is likely to be as popular as the related trendy chocolate that is currently emptying the wallets of philistines, er, gourmets X. 10 new numbers of rushed NDW punk with the pistachio flavor that we love - of course including synth and organ action. There is whining and nagging, the bass chops, the drums deliver a constant barrage, the guitar rumbles. As usual, a perfect mix of raunchy, catchy, party and vulgarity. Finally!) 18.00
RICHTER BAND - Smetana LP (back in stock - Returning to the Czech Republic with a reissue of Richter Band’s first album, Smetana (Czech for ‘Cream’), released originally in 1990. Pavel Richter gained a considerable reputation as a guitarist, playing in a number of Czech avant-garde rock groups, including Švehlík, Marno Union and Elektrobus, and became one of foremost figures of the Prague scene which opposed the socialist regime of the 70’s and 80’s. Towards the mid 80’s, he began to focus on calm music and subtle sound structures, playing a number of gigs channelling this energy wtih Oldřich Janota and Luboš Fidler, and eventually forming a new group alongside Štěpán Pečírka and Jaroslav Kořán. Smetana is one of the highlights of that creative period, characterised by a fusion of Richter’s gentle electric guitar alongside the fidlerophone, a unique percussive instrument, invented by Fidler, made of jars and struck by plastic strainers, and whose sound is similar in character to Tibetan bowls or Gamelan.) 28.00
RITUAL ERROR - Dial In The Ghost LP (Ritual Error is a subversive power stirring within the UK’s underground landscape. Melding the razor-wire sharpness of the Minutemen, the fury of early 90’s San Diego post-hardcore, and the metronomic noise-rock of the mid 90s – the London-based trio have cemented themselves as a band to keep tabs on. Their incendiary live show has earned them slots at Manchester Punk Festival, Decolonise Festival and chief support for legendary McClusky earlier this year at The Lexington. Composed of vocalist & guitarist Okala Elesia, drummer David Thair and bass player Alessandro Incorvaia, their output is a unique take on post-hardcore and noise-rock that channels the new paranoias of our uncertain age, bristling with off-kilter energy and frustration. They now prepare to unveil their debut long-player ‘Dial In The Ghost’ due for release via Manchester’s TNSrecords. ) 23.00
THORN WYCH - Aesthesis LP (Thorn Wych is a musical instrument maker and musician based in the Lancashire town of Bacup, specialising in work made from tree branches. Particular to her interest are UK native trees; so far Wych Elm, Lime, Wild Cherry, Oak, and Yew. With these unique instruments, crafted in her backyard workshop, she creates music that evokes memories of an unknown world—out of sync with time and place and beyond the boundaries of the material realm. Her pieces consist mainly of bowed string instruments, flutes and percussion, which she loops round, and grinds through pitch bending glitches and delay pedals; strange devotional songs sung in tongues, mashed up, chewed and spat out. 'Aesthesis' is Thorn Wych's debut LP that she recorded and mixed herself at home, often performing long improvised pieces, then later editing them down, cutting and pasting and overlaying other instruments. This album takes inspiration from such works as 'The Secret Book of John', the 1940 film 'The Thief Of Baghdad', and Lata Mangeshkar's 'Meera Bhajans'. She dedicates her work to Asherah the Holy Mother, keeper of the Tree of Life, without whom none of this would have been possible. ) 28.00
Tú LA LLEVAS - s/t LP (my ruin - Tú LA LLEVAS live in Hamburg. Antonio, Chris & Nicola come from different regions of the Mediterranean and recorded a great album earlier this year. 90s indie rock, somewhere between Dinosaur Jr., Pixies or Superchunk, with fantastic Spanish lyrics. Tú La Llevas is Greece, Italy, Spain. 7 songs, finest Mediterranean indie trash limited to 300 12″ vinyls. This is Tú La Llevas, a Spanish-Greek-Italian trio from Hamburg that brings back the spirit of the early SST and Matador records with a Mediterranean soul. Their songs are not about fucking (we miss you, Steve Albini), but about friendship, parenthood or just putting a smile on your face when you sing along. Tú La Llevas is Spanish for “You got it” and a silly answer to Yo La Tengo.) 17.00
V/A - Spiritual Jazz 17: SABA / MPS DLP (jazzman - All the Colours of the World in the Black Forest ‘High quality music to be enjoyed by many people all around the world, no matter where they are’ Andreas Brunner-Schwer, MPS Records The German SABA and MPS family of labels extended this sentiment to include music from musicians all around the world, no matter where they were from - and here on Spiritual Jazz 17 SABA MPS we explore that very theme. Throughout the ‘60s & ‘70s both labels released a wealth of music from a wealth of international jazz musicians coming from both North and South America, Europe, the Caribbean and the Far East. The aim was to release jazz that was exciting, innovative and interesting, regardless of style: there was swing, blues, bop, avant-garde, fusion – and spiritual jazz. Plurality became a defining feature and the immense breadth of their output made both SABA and MPS worthy European counterparts to American imprints such as Blue Note and Impulse.) 35.00
WARM CURRENCY - Petals LP (back in stock - Warm Currency—the duo of Australian artists/musicians MP Hopkins and Mary MacDougall—return for their third release on Horn Of Plenty, following up Returns (2022) and Live at the Petersham Bowling Club (2023). On Petals, the pair’s haunting folk music comes into sharper focus while broadening their sonic palette. Spoken word meets chanted incantations, gently fingerpicked acoustic guitar is placed alongside spindly piano melodies, the creak of floorboards in the background mirrors the creak of fingerprints dragged across guitar strings. ) 30.00
TAPES
FAMILY RAVINE - Rude Dusk TAPE (early music - Family Ravine is one of a few solo projects of Kevin Cahill, a musician, artist, writer and publisher from Toronto. I first encountered his music in the duo East of the Valley Blues (with his brother Patrick), and he is also active in several more solo and collaborative music projects, as well as running the label and publishing house Power Moves Library. Rude Dusk is a collection of pieces for strings and percussion, juxtaposing close-mic'd e-bowed acoustic guitar and thumb piano with echoing amplified lap steel to create a sound world where beauty and terror exist on top of one another; where the drifting-clouds loveliness of a descending lap steel guitar figure is offset by the urgency of one then several single long insistent tones, a symphony of alarms warning us that the clouds are actually on fire, get out of the sky) 12.00
DIE HÜHNERFICKER KOMBO - Pro Chicken TAPE (phantom - Recorded in 2022, got the mix at the "Open Air Bitte Sehr" in 2023 (they need donations right now!!) and finally launched in 2024. Now up to 15-strong, punning Eastneck country punk trash troupe with trucker, DIY repair, anti-antibiotic anthems and Jonny "Legende" Kurt.) 8.00
JON COLLIN - High Peak Selections TAPE (early music - C40 cassette in homemade board-backed kraft brown box, with wraparound risograph printed cover, insert and obi strip. Edition of 75 - Cassette version of Jon Collin's early self-release 'High Peak Selections'. Lyrical blues guitar improvisation of the highest quality.. ) 12.00
UBALDO - moment temporalment heretat [I] TAPE (early music - C38 tape in homemade board-back brown paper box, with two-colour risograph-printed paste-on wraparound cover and insert. Numbered edition of 80 copies. Cool new release by this solo project from Spain's Andreu Serra, who I believe is based in Brussels these days. The pieces are fragmentary. Some are done with skittery acoustic guitar, others have a murky electronic feel, and much of it has a rough (though not harsh) sonic surface. The electric guitar segments (with lots of random knob twisting) may be my fave passages. THE WIRE n.474 - August 2023) 12.00
V/A - Premonitions: Underground Cassette Network 1989-90 TAPE (Superb ferric foraging on London’s Infinite Expanse, charting lesser-explored recesses of Slough’s Sound Image label with ambient industrial doings from Downwards-related Antonym and TAL’s Konrad Kraft plus cult shade dwellers M. Nomized, Jack Hurwitz, Omega Ensemble, and many names new to us, at least. RIYL Spencer Clark, Discrepant, MAAT, Enno Velthuys “Birthed through the space provided by the Enterprise Allowance Scheme, a UK government initiative introduced in the mid-80s which assisted unemployed people who set up their own business, SoundImage set out to uncover and present new electronic music which captured a certain sense of magic and mystery.) 16.00
