OMAR, USTAD MOHAMMAD Virtuoso From Afghanistan (Smithsonian Folkways) cd 16.98
Reissued now for obvious reasons, this 1974 concert recording documents an example of the vital and exciting musical tradition that Afghanistan's former Taliban regime attempted to outlaw. The late Ustad Mohammad Omar was most certainly a virtuoso on the short necked lute called the rabab (similar to India's sarod). Here, he's heard accompanied by the percussion of now-famous Indian tabla player Zakir Hussain. The rabab, considered Afghanistan's national instrument, is played with a pick called a shahbaz, and has a deep, resonant, mesmerizing sound. The Afghan classic music heard here features lovely, stately melodies and much rhythmic improvisation. By the end of the first, 20+ minute track here the listener will be utterly entranced. And of course Smithsonian Folkways does their usual thorough job with the booklet's informative text.
RealAudio clip: "Emen/Tintal"

OMD Dazzle Ships (Virgin) cd 12.98
We've all got our old favorite records that maybe we haven't heard in a while, but it only takes a few bars of the lead-off track to immediately bring it all back and make us wanna dust 'em off again... This was the case when a special order was recently placed for Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark's 1983 album "Dazzle Ships"-  a seeming direct follow-up to Kraftwerk's 'Radioactivity' - featuring shortwave radio broadcasts, chiming synth lines, speak-and-spells, and earnest, emotive vocals. Take tracks like the bouyant "Telegraph"- it's pure synth-pop goodness, combining an innocent exuberance with considerably more weighty, dark subject matter. An overlooked experimental electronic pop gem, this album is full of wonderful songs and sounds, courtesy of core members Paul Humphreys and Andy McCluskey. In a time when 'the '80s' are seemingly everywhere - and frequently in the most watered-down, cliche forms - it's nice to catch a few quality moments with a brilliant, good old friend. FYI: Jim thinks 'Organization' is way better, but this is definitely OMD's most exploratory moment. 
RealAudio clip: "Telegraph"
RealAudio clip: "ABC Auto-Industry"
RealAudio clip: "Of All The Things We've Made"

OMEGA MASSIF Geisterstadt (Radar Swarm) cd 16.98

OMEN, THE (OST) (Varese Sarabande) cd 17.98
This soundtrack won an academy award in 1976 for best score and we can see why. It is so fantastic. Jerry Goldsmith also scored the original Planet of the Apes, Chinatown, Poltergeist, and the first Star Trek movie, among others. The Omen is full of maniacal chanting in latin and slow, super creepy instrumentals. Listening to this record made me feel like you feel as a child, when you're left alone and you're afraid to walk down the darkened hallway to the bathroom. It almost made me afraid to walk out back, behind Aquarius to get my bike where it was parked in one of the 'slaughterhouses'. Do you remember when Gregory Peck finds out his child's mother was a wolf and then shaves the patch of hair off his head to reveal the triple 6's? Ohhh... and do you remember in Omen Two when the black bird pecks the womans eyes out on the foggy road. The Omen one and two are irrefutably two of the most amazing 80's horror movies! But this soundtrack functions just as well by itself, a haunting and beautiful epic slice of evil!
RealAudio clip: "Ave Satani"
RealAudio clip: "Where Is He?"
RealAudio clip: "A Doctor, Please"

OMFO Trans Balkan Express (Essay) cd 16.98
Watch out Senor Coconut! You might have someone on your tail. This is a record that was put out on a German label by an Amsterdam based Ukrainian born electronic artist known as German Popov who calls his project OMFO(Our Man From Odessa). With its Kraftwerk inspired title, Trans Balkan Express is made up many traditional Eastern European folk songs gone totally electro, dubbed out and quirky. OMFO do the same kind of genre and global combinations and bastardizations that Senor Coconut has made famous and somehow manage to come out sounding so endearing and infectious instead of schlocky and annoying. Old world sounds given a proper modern weirdo twist. Trans Balkan Express actually came out a couple years ago without much press or attention. Though it was a big hit at KUSF and much college radio it didn't seem to get its rightful attention. But thanks to its inclusion in the Borat movie and soundtrack it's been given a new lease on life. And with a new record in the works and an upcoming tour with none other then Senor Coconut we're sure to be geeking out to lots more OMFO in the future.
MPEG Stream: "Magic Mamaliga"
MPEG Stream: "Chupino"

OMFO We Are The Shepherds (Essay Recordings) cd 16.98
Anytime you can get metalheads to start dancing and smiling you know you got some special skills! The latest offering from Amsterdam based and Ukrainian born electronic prankster/mastermind German Popov (aka OMFO), has been making all sorts of folks tap their foot and start grinning goofy wide smiles as we've been blasting this from our stereo. We Are The Shepherds picks up where Trans Balkan Express left off, with old world eastern European sounds given a proper weirdo kick in the ass. It makes so much sense that this outing was co-produced by kindred spirit Atom Heart (aka Senor Coconut) as these two have such a grasp on making electronica that's as goofy as it is good, so spazzy and well crafted. Sort of like Aavikko doing world music! The last three times we've been playing this folks who are usually camped out in our metal section couldn't help themselves and had to take one of these home with them. So fun and undeniably charming!
MPEG Stream: "Shepherd Disco"
MPEG Stream: "Tequila Gang Bang"

OMIT Interceptor (The Helen Scarsdale Agency) 2cd 17.98
Omit is the longstanding project of New Zealand's finest electron technician Clinton Williams, who dropped out of high school close to two decades ago and holed himself up in a farmhouse in the middle of nowhere New Zealand to wrangle with analogue synthesizers, 8-track tape decks, unruly drum machines, and a small army of effects pedals. There was a time in the '90s when Williams' output was ridiculously prolific, through countless cassettes in tiny editions and a handful of lathe-cut singles. His work caught the attention of the Dead C's Bruce Russell, who was so taken by Williams' work that he collaborated with the man as Dust/Omit and released a handful of discs through Russell's seminal Corpus Hermeticum imprint. Upon the release of the 1997 3cd boxset Quad, Williams' Omit project began to slow down tremendously. The quality of work had certainly continued, but the wealth of releases was considerably diminished. In 1999, there was Interior Desolation, brilliant with its squealing pigs adding to electronic claustrophobia. Then Anomalous released Rejector in 2002; and Helen Scarsdale had the honor of releasing the epochal darkness of Tracer (2005), and now the skeletal rhythmicist drones on Interceptor.
Working in isolation has lead Williams to develop a language which is entirely his own, yet exhibits a curious convergent evolution with many of the other greats in DIY electronics - most notably Chris Carter from his days in Throbbing Gristle, Mika Vainio and his early hyper-minimal phaseshifting experiments in post-techno, and the gaping proto-industrial paranoia of Klaus Schulze. His work is simultaneously ponderously huge and effortlessly simple, as his sounds hover along intertwining sweeps of synthetic ambience grafted to simple rhythmic structures. The saddest melodies in the world poke through Omit's cold and barren surfaces, accenting the isolationist tendencies already inherent in these sounds. Interceptor is a slight detour in the Omit aesthetic, and the detour was by design as Williams had ventured outside of his hometown of Blenheim in search of a job. But he also brought two suitcases of gear with him to continue his recording. The frustrations he felt in his failure to secure employment are matched in the bleak gestures found on Interceptor. Williams had stripped away much of the grandiose sweeps of ambience and shadow, leaving behind a life-support system grid of overlapping, phase-shifted blip and click. An undertow of hypnotic tonalities pulls those rhythms towards a crepuscular gloom, which as with all of Omit's work are effortless in their compositional appearance. Anybody, and we mean ANYBODY, who has a passing interest in electronic music - contemporary, historic, surreal, arcane, Warp-ish, Kompakt-ish, or otherwise - has got to do themselves a favor and investing the time into Omit. The rewards are infinite from this under recognized, autodidactic genius.
MPEG Stream: "LockNut Shadow"
MPEG Stream: "POD 4 Lander"
MPEG Stream: "Loop ReBounder"
MPEG Stream: "SkiMMEr"

OMIT Interior Desolation (Corpus Hermeticum) cd 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
With dozens of self released tapes, a 3cd boxset, and a handful of collaborations with Dead C/A Handful of Dust guitarist Bruce Russell, this New Zealand reclusive misanthrope returns with more dark & claustrophobic dronescapes. Found sounds, homemade instruments, & barely perceptible rhythms are forced into Omit's mostly broken 8-track in the form of tape loops which shift and pulse ominously. Plus the recurrent motif of squealing pigs. An absolutely stunning record!!!

OMIT Quad (Corpus Hermeticum) 3cd 23.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Clinton Williams (aka Omit) is a misanthropic recluse who dropped out of high school and holed himself up in a small house in Blenheim, New Zealand to construct hundreds of hours of sinister looping sound collages. 3 discs of field recordings and bedroom drone constructions as if Nurse With Wound were to remix Main, obsessively illustrated with black and white diagrams. We have only a limited quantity of these...

OMIT Rejector (Anomalous) cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
BACK IN STOCK!!!
Over the past ten years or so, Omit (aka the hermetic New Zealander Clinton Williams) has released dozens of cassettes through his DeepSkin imprint. Fortunately, he's allowed a few of his albums to be released as actual cds, including a couple of really fantastic albums on Corpus Hermeticum. Rejector is another album from Omit that's been released as cd. Rejector is in its second pressing thanks to Anomalous Records, who salvaged the album from SySecular who originally released the album as a cd-r. As Omit's work for haunted synth / loop constructions are incredibly well-executed and sublimely creepy, it's a very good thing that Rejector has moved beyond CD-R status and is available again. Omit's work has clear predecessors in '70s Kraut synthesists like Conrad Schnitzler, Kluster, and early Tangerine Dream; yet his apparently sinister intentions and sci-fi isolationism push his productions closer to the sounds of mid '80s Nurse With Wound (i.e. Homotopy To Marie) and Zoviet France (i.e. Mohnomische). His work uses some amazingly simple techniques of counterpointed tape loops (crackling wood, creaking doors, down-pitched tape splice clicks, etc.) that warble in and out of phase with each other, while dark synth drones swell in and out of the mix to form slowly developed two or three note melodies. As with all of the Omit recordings, Rejector comes highly recommended!
MPEG Stream: "Full Relay"
MPEG Stream: "Divider"
MPEG Stream: "Rejector"

OMIT Tracer (The Helen Scarsdale Agency) 2cd 16.98
Over the past few years, we have made quite a fuss over the free-noise / dronescraping scene out of New Zealand, as perenially great artists such as the Dead C, Birchville Cat Motel, Flies Inside The Sun, Surface Of The Earth, RST, Eso Steel, Seht, Peter Wright, and many others form a population that is proportionally way larger than countries many many times the size of New Zealand. Amongst all of those NZ artists we mentioned, there is another artist who gets name-checked from time to time: Omit. At one time back in the mid-90s, Clinton Williams -- the sole knob twiddler and tape-splicer behind Omit -- put all of today's hyper-prolific cd-r artists to shame with his own stream of releases through his own cassette and lathe-cut imprint Deep Skin. An artist whose paranoiac aesthetic was completely wrapped up in the bunker mentality of '70s analogue electronics, Omit never really made the logical transition by updating from cassette to cd-r, having only re-released a fraction of his old tapes on disc, the Rejector reissued on Anomalous, the Quad boxset released on Corpus Hermeticum and now the monumental double disc set Tracer, rescued from obsolescence by The Helen Scarsdale Agency.
While Williams calls the tiny farming comunity of Blenheim, New Zealand his home, there is very little in his work that latches upon the gristled noise and feral folk tunes heard in many of his fellow New Zealanders. Instead, his work sprawls from the sci-fi bleakness that ran through the post-psychedelic explorations of German electronics, most notably Klaus Schulze, Conrad Schnitzler, and Cluster. At the same time, Omit's kosmische homage stands as an eerie parallel to the Raster-Noton sound that ripples with Omit's millenial horror, albeit through the sterility of digital production. Comparisons have also been made to early '80s Cabaret Voltaire, but Omit is infinitely better in executing his ideas than CV ever were. It could be said that Mr. Williams is a man in the wrong time, in the wrong part of the world; and all things considered, Mr. Williams would probably like it that way. Perhaps the best way to make the world's most isolating music is to be thoroughly isolated oneself.
Following his previous work on Anomalous and Corpus Hermeticum, Tracer demonstrates a finely crafted execution in these bleak, isolationist recordings. The slow moving synth sweeps, creeping electric atmospheres, unnerving loops of mechanized clamour, and low-slung rhythmic austerity have all of the trappings of industrial culture strategies in using technology to critique technology's alienation over mankind; yet, Omit has never really stated what this is about, instead leaving hints that Omit is merely a reflection of Clinton Williams' soul expressed through blighted electronic hypnosis. Emotive expressionism isn't something you think of when it comes to Cabaret Voltaire or Throbbing Gristle, but that's the ground where Williams has consistently tred. You would be hard pressed to find an electronic album as majestic, melancholy, and profoundly human as Tracer.
MPEG Stream: "Sequester"
MPEG Stream: "Syn Flex Dump"
MPEG Stream: "Clicker"

OMOIDE HATOBA Black Hawaii (Alchemy) cd 21.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

OMOIDE HATOBA Daiongaku (Alchemy) cd 21.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

OMOIDE HATOBA Kinsei (Birdman) cd 13.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Boredoms guitarist Yamamoto's trio has made their poppiest record yet and still it kicks ass, never sickly sweet at all, just excellent chiming guitars alongside a whole lot of that genre-twisting racket we already love Hatoba for perfecting. This is the US version of the import, and it has an extra song NOT on the import.

OMOIDE HATOBA Livers & Giggers (Japan Overseas) cd 13.98
1987-1993 live collection from this Boredoms offshoot.

OMOIDE HATOBA Suichi Joe (Alchemy) cd 21.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

OMOIDE HATOBA Vuoy cd 27.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
This is Omo's, second major label effort, not scheduled for US release. Their records keep getting better and better, this one reaching new heights of toothy melody and sludgy sweetness, along with their usual tour through the murky depths of rock's weirder edges. Yamamoto (of Boredoms), Tsuyama and friends explore new post-rock-electronica realms...

ON s/t (Celebrate Psi Phenomenon) cd 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
This one is a total mystery. Not sure where they're from (New Zealand we guess) or what their story is, other than the fact that it was released on Campbell Kneale's (Birchville Cat Motel) Celebrate Psi Phenomenon label, and that it is one seriously blown out punked up slab of garage-y scuzz and roll. Heavy and noisy, spastic and sludgy, when this was playing in the front of the store, Allan went up to see what black metal record was playing if that tells you anything. Filthy and crumbling ultra distorted guitars, boy girl vocals WAY down in the mix, riffs that go from paint peeling shred to gut churning rumble. Some ungodly hybrid of vintage Dead C, the Butthole Surfers, The Germs, Flipper, recent AQ faves the Violent Students, and recent Siltbreeze noisemakers Times New Viking. This is definitely punk as fuck, but wrapped in layer after layer of guitar grit and broken amp splatter, classic punk rock swallowed whole, chewed up and spit out in huge sludgy gobs of grrrrr and rrrroooaaar. Epic sludgescapes of pound and churn, showered with wild lightning bolts of squealing feedback. There seem to be pop songs in there somewhere, but don't even try to dig that deep, you'll just end up bruised and bloodied, or you'll lose a hand or an arm. Best to just lay back, close your eyes real tight, clamp your hands tight over your ears, let these noise rockers just back their ten ton punksludge steamroller right over you and pray you survive.
MPEG Stream: "We've Got TV"
MPEG Stream: "Fire Down Below"
MPEG Stream: "My Head"

ON BROKEN WINGS It's All A Long Goodbye (Eulogy) cd 13.98

ON BROKEN WINGS Some of Us May Never See the World (Eulogy) cd 14.98
Still more metalcore, and STILL we can't get enough. This is some seriously punishing, pummelling brutality. Plenty of death metal chug and that double kick/muffled guitar syncopation that drives me crazy no matter how many times I hear it. It wouldn't be metalcore without some sensitive emo-boy breakdowns, and there's some of that here, but those sensitive moments are brief, and before you know it are buried under a full metal crush, squealing feedback, pounding double kick, paint-peeling riffs, throbbing earthquake bass. On Broken Wings seem to have a thing for the half time breakdown, that slow-down-to-a-crawl, guitar tuned so low the strings hang loose from the fretboard, molten lava riff, with sub-human death metal grunt vocals, and Metallica's 'One' style double kick bursts. SO HEAVY. It kills me. A wicked wall of sludge, grinding and throbbing, before it erupts into a full-on metallic fist to the sternum. There's also some weirdly melodic post rock bits, but even those bits are slathered with massive drop-D (or C) riffs that mow down everything in their path leaving a stage full of destroyed equipment and a pit full of broken bodies. There's even a couple handclaps(!), that's right just a couple, dropped in the midst of the metallic maelstrom, but you'll just have to find those yourself. So good. Quite possible the heaviest metalcore record yet!
MPEG Stream: "Listless"
MPEG Stream: "Maybe The Earth Is Flat"

ON FILLMORE On Fillmore (Locust) cd 14.98
On Fillmore is Darin Gray (Brise Glace, Dazzling Killmen, Gastr Del Sol) and Glenn Kotche (Boxhead Ensemble, Wilco). These two put their heads together and come up with something new for both of them. Acoustic bass and vibraphone are the foundation, laying down simple almost jazzy/funky grooves. But the focus seems to be on wild and scattered percussion: triangles and chimes and bells and drums and pots and pans are WAY up in the mix and are responsible for most of the tecture and melody. The sound is kind of how you imagine Brise Glace or You Fantastic covering Sun Ra with a purposefully limited pallet. Very hypnotic and noir-ish, slightly jazzy but more just simple, dark and moody.
RealAudio clip: "Unexpected Guest"
RealAudio clip: "Cricket Conquers Cave"

ON FILLMORE Sleeps With Fishes (Quakebasket) cd 14.98

MPEG Stream: "Taisho"
MPEG Stream: "Showa"

ON THE SPEAKERS s/t (17 Reasons / Universal) cd ep 6.98
Creeper Lagoon fans can take some comfort that after a brief break, former singer guitarist Ian Sefchick of their fave band has gone on to make more poppy goodness in On The Speakers. Following a similar path to that of his former band in more ways than one, Sefchick's new combo released this EP on the lil' indie label 17 Reasons last year only to have it re-released shortly thereafter on major label Universal. Not surprisingly, On The Speakers sound bears more than a striking resemblance to the Creeper Lagoon template of catchy clever guitar indie rock. Each of these six songs come complete with soaring choruses, boyish vocals, winking lyrics and swelling teen movie soundtrack fuzzy distorted guitars.
MPEG Stream: "Could I Be Right"

ONCE AND FUTURE HERDS, THE Lion-Colored Hills (Pseudo Arcana) 3" cd-r 8.98
The Once And Future Herds brings together two overlapping Jewelled Antler duos: The Blithe Sons (Glenn Donaldson and Loren Chasse) and the Skygreen Leopards (Glenn Donaldson and Donovan Quinn). The material on this five song, 18-minute lil' 3" cd-r released by our friends PseudoArcana in New Zealand finds Glenn, Loren and Donovan relaxing back at the ranch (literally, this was recorded on a hillside out at Borges Ranch State Park) after a hard day of wrangling field recordings. As Jewelled Antler efforts go, this leans in a country-folk direction, more strummy and structured than is sometimes the case, with guit-fiddle to the fore and vocals that, at times, remind us of a muffled, mumbled Devendra Banhart. But all the weird, textural nature ambience you'd expect is also fully in the mix. It's really really nice and all you Jewelled Antler fanatics need to jump on it now, as we only have a dozen in stock of this limited release.
MPEG Stream: "Ranch Raga"

ONDAR, KONGAR-OL & PAUL EARTHQUAKE PENA Genghis Blues (TuvaMuch) cd 14.98
Soundtrack to the fabulous documentary movie, which hopefully you were lucky enough to see. Blind blues musician Paul Pena travels to Tuva (Central Asia) to compete in their national throat-singing competition, a skill in which he is entirely self-taught. A funny, touching movie, and of course blessed with some great music! So, here's the hard-to-find soundtrack album.

ONDE One (Ondemusic) lp 30.00
With a press release that simply declares this as "sinister psych, semi-acoustic noise" and a photograph on the back of the LP with the band posturing with instruments in a crumpled shack out in the forest, this record was pretty much made for Aquarius. Onde is a project that has come out of Noise Maker's Fifes, a theatrically Neo-Dada ensemble in the same orbit as Nurse With Wound and HNAS. The best known member of these groups is Timo Von Luijk, who had recorded briefly in Mirror with Andrew Chalk & Christoph Heemann and more recently has continued on with Heemann as In Camera. Onde delivers with the sinister psych and semi-acoustic noise with four long form slabs of drone murk with one side being more of the dark, gloomy drone strategy, the other belonging to a monstrous heaviosity for sheer noise. The mellower shadowy half recalls Taj Mahal Travellers meandering through electronics and instrumental flutter with bits of the impressionist atmospheres of Mirror and In Camera coming through. On the flip, Onde crash head forward into the acoustic noise compaction of bowed metals, screeched steel strings, and growling amplifiers somewhere between Birchville Cat Motel, Organum, and Sunroof! It's pretty awesome.

ONDO Alliansen (200mg) cd-r 8.98
We discovered the 200mg label via their recently released No Skull Left Unturned retrospective, which covered all the various Man Is The Bastard offshoots, the music of course was amazing, but it was also incredibly packaged, with multiple discs, patches, pins, books and booklets, so over the top. We decided to dig a little deeper and discovered a whole slew of strange and mysterious dark sounds, from ambient drone to outsider blackness to noise, everything we heard we dug, so we decided to dig a little deeper and list everything we could get.
This release, from an entity known simply as Ondo, comes to us from Sweden, and is one looooong 40 minute track, of deep metallic dronemusic, thick shimmering layers of distorted sound, reverberating buzz, and smeared streaks of electronics. The sound is creepy and ominous, very cinematic, it's not hard to imagine some long tracking shot of an old graveyard, huge black birds soaring overhead, a dilapidated old house, a rusted out car in the yard, a tire swing barely shifting in the afternoon breeze, the sort of sloooooow shot that builds the suspense, that readies you for whatever horror might lie in wait. That's what the music of Ondo sounds like. Long drawn out tones, deep resonant notes, thick crumbling corrosive rumbles, bits of feedback and snippets of voices, everything dripping in effects and oozing with menace. This is definitely dark ambient music, but it's not all that ambient, it's active, some strange lifeforce inhabits these sounds and propels it forward, along with the listener, drawing us ever closer to some inexorable doom. Awesome.
LIMITED TO 101 COPIES! Packaged in a cool oversized screenprinted cardstock sleeve, inside a 12 page printed black and white booklet on thick cream colored paper, packed with cool creepy old woodcuts.
MPEG Stream: "Alliansen"

ONDO Mahavishnu (Paradigms) cd 12.98
The second of two new releases on the always kick ass Paradigms label from the UK. The first being the reviewed-elsewhere-on-this-list latest release from 4AD ethereal drifters The Victims Shudder, the other, being this, the latest slab of crushing black ambience and deep dark dronemusic from Sweden's Ondo. Weirdly enough, we were already fans having dug heavily the cd-r released on 200mg a short while back, and were already pining for more, and voila. Whereas that cd-r was a single looooong song, this disc is split into distinct movements, each a bleak and caustic chunk of truly ominous ambience. Actually, there is so much stuff going on, and this is so dark and heavy, it's almost disingenuous to call it ambient music. This is cinematic abstract free noise drone music. Heavy enough to worm its way inside the ears of drone inclined metalheads, but dark and blissed out enough to keep the drone obsessed in downtuned druggy nirvana.
The label mentions early Earth, Raison D'Etre and Fennesz, and damn if all three of those don't definitely apply. Pretty melodies are buried under slabs of grinding buzz, chords are woven into undulating sheets of fuzzy sound, everything is hissy and glitchy, with a gauzy sheen. Imagine Earth 2 as reimagined by Christian Fennesz and you might be getting close. Chords and notes, churn and throb, blackened sounds pulse ominously enveloping crystalline shimmers and music box like melodies, voices and samples are chopped up and distorted, riffs are pulled apart into washed out smears of sound. Some of the tracks definitely border on serious doom territory, while others are blurred distorted dreamscapes, all skittery and smeared, dark pianos, radio distortion and amp buzz, distant melodic whir, all tangled into something creepy and beautiful, strings draped over crumbling industrial crunch, all woven around heaving heaviness, rendered in slow moving swells. Way recommended for fans of things slow and low, dark and doomy, murky and mysterious.
LIMITED TO 500 COPIES. Packaged in a white dvd style case, with a full color cover and printed black and white insert.
MPEG Stream: "Mahavishnu"
MPEG Stream: "Forrest"

ONDSKAPT Dodens Evangelium (Next Horizon) cd 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
This is another one of those record we've been trying to list for ages but only just now managed to get enough of. This latest offering from Swedish black metallers Ondskapt will fit perfectly right there on your shelf next to your Deathspell Omega, Funeral Mist, Watain and Nortt records (that is assuming you don't alphabetize). Super reminiscent of old Mayhem (circa De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas) this is black metal in the classic style, buzzing and furious, epic and majestic. Few modern bands can pull that stuff off and not sound like second rate clones, but Ondskapt sound straight out of the early nineties EXCEPT for their strange penchant for doom! Amidst all the buzzing and blasting, there are all sorts and manner of doom, lilting, loping, seasick bits of midtempo doominess with creepy arpeggiated minor key melodies over simple pounding drumming, droning, buzzed out slow motion dirges with Iron Maiden-ish leads over the top, stretches of doom-flecked Burzumic buzz, all wrapped in black and surrounded by brutal bursts of black metal and occasional stretches of droning near-ambient malevolence. Then there's the vocals as well, which are pretty bizarre, veering from sort of shouted, through a bullhorn, political rally sort of vocalizing to full on throat shredding howls, demonic shrieks bordering on total hysteria a la Weakling. That's sort of what makes Ondskapt so cool and weird, a definite homage to the classic sound of Scandinavian black metal, but mixed with a heaping helping of depressive doom, and then all that sort of weird stuff, strange vocals, obtuse riffing, convoluted song structures and creepy ambient interludes, all mixed into a bizarrely brilliant black whole!
MPEG Stream: "Djavulens Ande"
MPEG Stream: "Feeding The Flames"

ONE INCH OF SHADOW The Birthday Of Angels And Mannequins (Perun) cd 12.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
This release on Polish label Perunrun comes to us via AQ pal Smolken who is Dead Raven Choir. One Inch Of Shadow are DRC labelmates in Poland and share a similar aesthetic although OIOS are essentially a pop band, but sort of a slowcore pop band, all murky and dreary and reverby. Creeping lugubrious basslines, whispery, heavily affected vocals, dreamy, swampy ambient backgrounds, simple shuffling beats, fuzzy far-away horns, smeary indistinct melodies, and repetetive, pulsing, rhythmic arrangements make this a gorgeously hypnotic late night listen. Fans of Low and Codeine, and even Tindersticks or the Blackheart Procession might really dig this.
MPEG Stream: "In Chapels and In Hotels"
MPEG Stream: "Things To Change"

ONE MILE NORTH / COLOPHON / THE WIND-UP BIRD Conduction. Convection. Radiation. (Music Fellowship) cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Although this cd is credited to the individual talents of three artists -- Colophon aka Jefre Cantu of Tarentel, the guitar and synthesizer duo 1 Mile North and The Wind-Up Bird aka multi-instrumentalist Joe Grimm -- you really can't tell where one ends and the other begins. Indeed, Conduction. Convection. Radiation. as a whole is a cohesive, near-seamless work. Very spacious, drifting and atmospheric, the first three tracks are by 1 Mile North, and the following three are by Colophon. Gauzy drones cloud the skies with occasional austere guitar melodies coming in and out of focus. The latter four tracks are by The Wind-Up Bird and they're crafted from delicate elements such as violin strings that softly wheeze, and piano keys that sound as if they're being struck as if by random raindrops. Beautiful and haunting.
MPEG Stream: COLOPHON "Texas Heat"
MPEG Stream: THE WIND-UP BIRD "Violin & Trumpet"

ONE SHOT s/t (?) cd 17.98

ONE UMBRELLA Solve (Tell-All) cd 7.98
Does this One Umbrella possess special powers a la Mary Poppins? Not quite sure, but we can say that they are a duo from Austin, TX whose members have suitably unconventional, enchanting names Quebron and Novella, and whose soundscapes just might set you adrift. Their 23 minute long debut floats in from the outer space wing of the new SF label Tell-All Records. Layers of drones ebb and flow, while gentle and not so gentle digital glitches, pulses and hisses provide the more insistent elements along with an occasional unexpected pretty piano melodic line. Sooo dreamy.
MPEG Stream: "ITXITXX"
MPEG Stream: "XESTYL"

ONEIDA Nice / Splittin' Peaches (Ace Fu) cd 9.98
Yes. God created a new Oneida ep and it is GOOOOOD. Unearthly constructions of aural impairment deliver us once again unto the artfully murky and damaged realm of Ooooonnnneeeeiiiiiiiiiddddddaaaaaaaaaaaa. This ep psychedelically drones its way through guitar drawn melodies and distant, fuzzy, darkly dreamy vocals. "Hakuna Matata"'s 15 minutes is an entrancing ROCK monolith that forcably delivers the nearly signature-Oneida prog-psych-rock kick in the head we've grown to love. This is a must-have for all fans of this band of Oberliners and hopefully a teaser for the next full-length. Might even be the release to sway the many Oneida-doubters on the AQ staff...
MPEG Stream: "Summerland"
MPEG Stream: "Inside My Head"

ONEIDA Preteen Weaponry (Jagjaguwar) cd 14.98
Ok, we admit that we have never been the biggest fans of this group, having only reviewed one previous full length and an ep out of the almost dozen or so they have released over the past ten years. And even when we gave praise to the releases we reviewed, not everyone here was so convinced. Their was always something a little too precious, mannered and often inconsistent about their past recordings that left many of us unsatisfied. Overrated, we thought. So we are all quite wonderfully surprised that their latest has become a unanimous store favorite. Big time! A far cry from the lush lavender orchestrations of The Wedding, the last Oneida record we dug, Preteen Weaponry is the first part of a planned trilogy that showcases the bands new beefed up sound. One full of thick rumbling krauty trance pulse, acidy sheets of distortion, and big dynamic cavey pummel. Comprised of three long parts, Preteen Weaponry is less vocal-driven than previous outings. In fact, there's barely any vocals on here at all or melodic song structures even. Instead we're introduced to the album by a loud buzzing wall of subtlety shifting noise before the drums make the song propel forward in a lurching rhythm while bass keyboards and guitar start begin layering interweaving progressions reminding us of This Heat, Cave or a more fucked up Mogwai. The rhythms become more tribal and Boredoms-like for the second piece with layered and swelling sheets of feedback that build intensely into the albums only vocal passage before unwinding into the final part. Beginning with an almost cosmic peacefulness before hurtling full throttle into the sonic stratasphere, exploding and unfurling synth stabs and loud ear-shattering drones leave us aurally exhausted by the end. Definitely the heaviest and trippiest album we've ever heard from this group, and one that makes us extremely excited for the next two rounds. If you dig any of the bands mentioned above than you need to have this record. We're doubters no more!
MPEG Stream: "Preteen Weaponry Part 1"
MPEG Stream: "Preteen Weaponry Part 2"

ONEIDA Preteen Weaponry (Jagjaguwar) lp 17.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Ok, we admit that we have never been the biggest fans of this group, having only reviewed one previous full length and an ep out of the almost dozen or so they have released over the past ten years. And even when we gave praise to the releases we reviewed, not everyone here was so convinced. Their was always something a little too precious, mannered and often inconsistent about their past recordings that left many of us unsatisfied. Overrated, we thought. So we are all quite wonderfully surprised that their latest has become a unanimous store favorite. Big time! A far cry from the lush lavender orchestrations of The Wedding, the last Oneida record we dug, Preteen Weaponry is the first part of a planned trilogy that showcases the bands new beefed up sound. One full of thick rumbling krauty trance pulse, acidy sheets of distortion, and big dynamic cavey pummel. Comprised of three long parts, Preteen Weaponry is less vocal-driven than previous outings. In fact, there's barely any vocals on here at all or melodic song structures even. Instead we're introduced to the album by a loud buzzing wall of subtlety shifting noise before the drums make the song propel forward in a lurching rhythm while bass keyboards and guitar start begin layering interweaving progressions reminding us of This Heat, Cave or a more fucked up Mogwai. The rhythms become more tribal and Boredoms-like for the second piece with layered and swelling sheets of feedback that build intensely into the albums only vocal passage before unwinding into the final part. Beginning with an almost cosmic peacefulness before hurtling full throttle into the sonic stratasphere, exploding and unfurling synth stabs and loud ear-shattering drones leave us aurally exhausted by the end. Definitely the heaviest and trippiest album we've ever heard from this group, and one that makes us extremely excited for the next two rounds. If you dig any of the bands mentioned above than you need to have this record. We're doubters no more!
MPEG Stream: "Preteen Weaponry Part 1"
MPEG Stream: "Preteen Weaponry Part 2"

ONEIDA Secret Wars (Jagjaguwar) cd 14.98

ONEIDA The Wedding (Jagjaguwar) cd 14.98
First things first, it was just brought to our attention that those Oneida guys actually BUILT A GIANT MUSICBOX (apparently the largest in Eastern U.S.) out of plywood, saw blades, marine pilings and motor parts. Then they put it to good use forming the foundation of this album. Okay, hang on a sec, can we just say, HOLY SHIT!!
Before we were aware of this considerable undertaking, we'd already written the following review. While we have added a few points, we still stand by our initial glowing praise:
A very different Oneida greets us on their latest album The Wedding. More somber and delicate, less propulsive, abrasive and multipersonality-ed, but fortunately still unmistakably Oneida. The compositions and the album as a whole appear to be their most cohesive and even-keeled (in style, mood and tempo) to date. It's a refreshing change from past albums which been very rollercoaster-y with some of the band's strongest and weakest moments right next to each other -- perhaps due to their jam tendencies to fearlessly and freely follow their muse. Having said that, by no means does this shift indicate that Oneida has become any less adventurous, dynamic or challenging in their music-making. Hell, the fact that they dreamed up *and* constructed a GIANT MUSICBOX is proof of this alone (although to be honest, a few of us couldn't actually hear the music box, mixed as it is amidst the usual rock instrumentation, and due to the fact that the giant music box apparently ends up sounding a bit like the synths it's nestled up against). These guys are fucking astounding musicians with a wealth of creativity and chops that show no signs of drying up anytime soon. The analog synthesizers with which they've created some dense, fierce and otherworldly atmospheres in the past have been joined by not only the musicbox but also an impressive string ensemble (arranged and assembled by New York's Fireworks Ensemble's Brian Coughlin) which certainly makes for some of the band's most stunningly beautiful and introspective songs ever. Also contributing to this new persona is the consistency of the vocals which occasionally swoop up to falsetto, but generally linger in the gentle range of Pink Floyd's David Gilmour or Radar Brothers' Jim Putnam. Definitely more psych-folk than psych-rock, although the sixth song bursts in and jars everyone out of their seats with its over-the-top, near-metal balls rock. Whoa! Nonetheless, quite a stunning achievement. Highly recommended.
MPEG Stream: "Heavenly Choir "
MPEG Stream: "August Morning Haze"

ONEIDA / PLASTIC CRIMEWAVE SOUND split (Jagjaguwar) 12" 11.98
This vinyl-only split 12" from Oneida and Plastic Crimewave Sound is pretty darn rulin'. Recorded during their Thank Your Parents session, Oneida's "Psychedelic Maze" is an eerie and homespun late-night jam which sparsely used ukuleles, hexoleles, a lute and homemade drums to conjure a sorta hokey but amazing self-conscious folk sound that's almost more Sun City Girls-ish than Oneida-y. PCS's side is a fuzz-soaked drone-rock opus. "End of Cloud" utilizes some production tricks, motorik drumming and various waves and blasts that creates a pulsing frenzy to which a very stoned person could "meditate".

ONELINEDRAWING The Volunteers (Jade Tree) cd 14.98

ONELINEDRAWING Visitor (Jade Tree) cd 13.98
You may remember Onelinedrawing from the split he did with Rival Schools a while back, and boy did we love that record. But this is the first we've heard of OLD on his own. And the sound is much less rocking. Much more sensitive and lo-fi, recorded mostly at home directly to his lap top and featuring mostly voice and guitar with the occasional 'full band' effort. Weary and emotive male vocals that brought to mind Soul Asylum, Goo Goo Dolls and Wilco. Jangling indie-pop rock with dreamy acoustic-y Sentridoh-ish ballads and shining, driving songs like the college radio ready "Smile". Pretty cool.
RealAudio clip: "Um..."
RealAudio clip: "Smile"

ONENESS OF JUJU African Rhythms 1970-1982 (Strut) 2cd 17.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Spanning the years 1970 to 1982, this is a wonderful double-disc collection of cuts taken from Plunky Branch's career as the bandleader of such acts as Oneness of Juju and Juju & the Space Rangers, also as a principal behind such personalities as Roach Om and Ndikho Xaba. Generating a big big sound that drew as much from African rhythms as it did from James Brown-style funk and soul / r&b, gospel and free jazz, the various Juju projects made use of African percussion, smooth velvet voiced female divas, Rhodes organ, clavinet, piano, synths, violins, you name it. (It might be a little too "jazzy rare groove" sounding for some, so listen to the soundclips first.) The name Oneness of Juju may not be household to us, yet at the time, a lot of important musicians were super into them. Ornette Coleman, whose free jazz was a lot weirder than Juju's consistently rhythmic appeal, gave the band use of his legendary NY loft complete with recording equipment; Sun Ra used some of the Juju musicians for Space is the Place; they played at Sam Rivers' loft; even legendary Paradise Garage DJ Larry Levan did a remix for them. And in the '80s, Branch made it out to Africa where he played with King Sunny Ade and Fela. What a career. Lots of liner notes, as is usual from the excellent African diaspora reissue label Strut.
RealAudio clip: ONENESS OF JUJU "African Rhythms (Album Version)"
RealAudio clip: OKYEREMA ASANTE FEATURING PLUNKY "Asante Sana"

ONENESS OF JUJU African Rhythms 1970-1982 (Strut) 2lp 19.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Spanning the years 1970 to 1982, this is a wonderful double-disc collection of cuts taken from Plunky Branch's career as the bandleader of such acts as Oneness of Juju and Juju & the Space Rangers, also as a principal behind such personalities as Roach Om and Ndikho Xaba. Generating a big big sound that drew as much from African rhythms as it did from James Brown-style funk and soul / r&b, gospel and free jazz, the various Juju projects made use of African percussion, smooth velvet voiced female divas, Rhodes organ, clavinet, piano, synths, violins, you name it. (It might be a little too "jazzy rare groove" sounding for some, so listen to the soundclips first.) The name Oneness of Juju may not be household to us, yet at the time, a lot of important musicians were super into them. Ornette Coleman, whose free jazz was a lot weirder than Juju's consistently rhythmic appeal, gave the band use of his legendary NY loft complete with recording equipment; Sun Ra used some of the Juju musicians for Space is the Place; they played at Sam Rivers' loft; even legendary Paradise Garage DJ Larry Levan did a remix for them. And in the '80s, Branch made it out to Africa where he played with King Sunny Ade and Fela. What a career. Lots of liner notes, as is usual from the excellent African diaspora reissue label Strut.

ONEOHTRIX POINT NEVER Betrayed In The Octagon (No Fun Productions) lp 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Oneohtrix Point Never is the work of Brooklyn's Daniel Lopatin who also records as Infinity Window with Taylor Richardson, operating in that curious resuscitation of progressive electronics which so far hasn't strayed into the dodgy waters of vapid ambient-lite found in so so many New Age records from the late '70s and '80s. Yet that's exactly the time period which Lopatin seems intent on mining. Fortunately for all of us, Lopatin enjoys the benefit of being born well past the New Age nadir, and he can selective mine the past through a darkening lens of noise culture and with a skepticism that selects against dopey (even if earnestly penned) philosophies and woefully lackluster music. Nope, Oneohtrix Point Never is none of these, despite a conscious nostaglic trip into the cosmic drones of Klaus Schulze and the lazer-ping melodies of John Carpenter. The label tag of No Fun Productions should also be an indication of where this may lie on the musical spectrum.
Both sides of Betrayed In The Octagon open with two sprawling pieces of densely layered electronic swoosh and sweep, with more of a sci-fi sound design feel than anything else. It's not entirely ominous in these emanations of analog synths, but a gloominess persists just beneath these tumbling oscillations of electric drone. The other pieces bubble and percolate with clunky, geometric arppegiations and major chord melodies which have all of the charm of an '80s John Carpenter filmscore, or for that matter a Zombi album of today (although admittedly not as well produced). This is great stuff that won't last for long. No Fun only printed up 300 of these!

ONG ONG Issue 4 magazine 6.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Issue #4 of this Seattle zine has arrived! You simply seldom see this sort of lovingly handmade, cut'n'paste publication these days! Features include stories about Grouper and Blue Cheer, animal facts, assorted other writings, comics, collage, drawings, and reviews of gigs and... beer! The 52-page zine comes in a plastic sleeve which also corrals a handful of odds'n'ends -- some screenprinted stickers and a cd-r of educational, spoken word and children's LP obscurities. Limited to 450 copies!

ONG ONG ZINE Issue #3 (Ong Ong Press) magazine 5.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Ong Ong! The third issue of this Seattle-based zine comes packaged as a goodie bag of sorts. Not only do you get the zine which has interviews with Grey Daturas and Slim Moon, but there's also a crafty chaotic mish mash of stories, stickers, comics, flyers, pictures and a compilation cd with music by The Vonneguts, Western Graves, Na, Ghost Family and Ear Venom! Limited to 250 hand-screened, hand-cut, and hand-assembled copies! We only have a handful, so snooze not!

ONIKI, YUJI Orange (Future Farmer) cd 13.98
Boasting members of Beulah and Guided By Voices (obviously not *the* members), Yuji Oniki's debut album is a... well, if you like Bread, East River Pipe and The High Llamas then this is for you.

ONNA s/t (Holy Mountain) cd 14.98
Tons of folks were sufficiently wowed by Onna's lone 1983 7", thankfully reissued from oblivion and drooled over a few lists back. There was just something about Onna, we couldn't quite put our finger on it, but that record was just so mysterious, a completely mesmerizing slice of lost history. Out of nowhere came this highly evocative work of melancholy psych rock with pulsing drum machines and floating Japanese vocals, sounding like nothing else you might hear from 1983, or 2009 for that matter. Adding to the confusion was almost zero information about Onna, leading listeners to make their conclusions free from any tangible facts. That changes with the arrival of this mindblowing 10 song retrospective, but just barely.
Included are the two tracks from the 7", with an additional song from the same sessions, some live material featuring the guitar skills of a very young Michio Kurihara (White Heaven/Ghost, frequent Boris collaborator), as well as outtakes plus one song from the album Katawa, recorded in 2007.
Though we were relying on the minimal information found on the 7" when we reviewed it, and listed the group as a duo, Onna was in fact the brainchild of Keizo Miyanishi, a noted Japanese Manga artist who also held a highly iconoclastic outlook on rock music, influenced by the usual suspects like the Velvet Underground, the Stooges, and the New York Dolls. Even then, these groups only serve as the most basic starting point for Onna's sound, and Miyanishi's detached yet somewhat nihilistic liner notes lead to more questions than answers. Said notes include awesomely vague anecdotes like "[The tour] was packed with enough incidents; nothing was easy. Enough weird shit happened to fill a book. . . I will say that around the time we returned, I received aggressively threatening telephone messages," (with none of these things actually described), and "It was around this period that I began to lose my concept of time." Hey, we'll take it, as timelessness certainly applies to Onna's musical approach.
For folks without turntables, or anyone who missed our review of the 7" or anyone who just happens to want the cd version as well as the vinyl, the two tracks from the 7" are worth the price of admission alone. The most obvious point of reference soundwise would be legendary psych/noise enigma Les Rallizes Denudes, especially in the vocal department. This is a very good thing for anyone who loves those somewhat lazy, partially detached, Japanese sung vocals of groups like LRD and LSD-March. The use of a drum machine keeps these songs pulsing like a mechanical heartbeat, which when combined with the fairly free form guitars, definitely gives this record its own vibe. The first track begins with a meditative two chord lament before noisy, white hot guitar squalls begin creeping about in the distance as simple and repetitive bass lines keep the foundation strong and focused. The second track introduces catchy psych guitar chords with a machine modified quasi girl group drumbeat, the bass again holding things down nice and steady. The heavily reverberated strummed guitars bubble about as fake cymbal explosions recede and return over and over again, until the prolonged fade to black.
"Were You To Become A Mother", the 7" outtake, flows pretty similarly to the other songs from that session. It is certainly just as awesome, with warm bass and a super bouncy drum machine which works in perfect contrast to the somewhat ominous nature of the melody. Above it all are Miyanishi's mournful vocals, which give the impression of being lost in the darkness of the song itself.
Next up are the outtakes from Katawa. Oddly enough, the liner notes are dated to 1999, ending with the seemingly definitive proclamation that "Onna lies here, dead." But as mentioned earlier, Katawa dates to 2007, and with three songs appearing from that time, you are confusingly forced to reevaluate everything you just read and wonder what the current status is on Onna. Anyway, enough rambling, you all really want to know what these songs sound like... Strangely enough, not much like the single in any way. The honest truth is that liking the 7" may not necessarily mean you will go crazy over the rest of this stuff. It is difficult listening, but in the most rewarding way. First off, there is no drum machine; there are no drums at all. In place of the scorching fuzz guitar on the single are percussively strummed acoustic guitars, sometimes kind of folky, sometimes bluesier. Miyanishi's voice is noticeably deeper, sounding weathered and more vulnerable after 24 more years of living. The unifying thread between these songs and the single is their overwhelming sadness, but in place of the drum machine's mechanical precision is Miyanishi's internalized sense of rhythm. Unlike the ever present density on the 7", these songs are able to convey a sense of loneliness and pain through all the open space on the recording. Strangest off all, however, is how hypnotic they manage to be. As crazy as it may sound, the result is similar to that of a drone record, not in your typical way with sustained electric guitars screaming through tons of amplification, but more so in its focus and repetition. It is hardly the kind of music you'll want to play at your next keg bash, but what the songs lack in accessibility and structure, they more than make up for in genuine emotion.
Like the 7", the live tracks also date to 1983, but they are also drum-free and super minimalist. There is a weird hum that may come from the recording, or possibly from the room itself. Either way, it works its way into the songs just like the instruments, adding a nice creepy atmosphere to the proceedings. Discordant slide guitars and piano are accompanied by heavily sustained fuzz guitar, as Miyanishi delivers another wrenching vocal performance. At various points, as Kurihara whips up squalls of feedback-laden psych guitar, you assume the plucked acoustic guitars will be overtaken by noise, but Miyanishi keeps his focus and never falters from the tone he sets. After the final live track, there is some sparse and uncomfortable clapping, then silence, as the audience was no doubt wondering what the hell they just witnessed. You might even react the same way.
Accompanying the album are a few photos of the androgynous looking band members and some examples of Miyanishi's astounding, grotesquely erotic art. These images seem just as integral to Onna as their music, but unless you speak Japanese, you will probably be left scratching your head. There is no doubt that Onna created some challenging music, but what you get out of this album depends on how much you are willing to put into the listening experience. There may be no easy answers, but some things are better left as is, and in the end Onna's music is powerful enough to live on, in spite of its obscurity.
MPEG Stream: "Cortigiana Dal Velo"
MPEG Stream: "Were You To Become A Mother"
MPEG Stream: "The Swan Song"
MPEG Stream: "Salamandra, Salander (The Three Sisters)"

ONNA s/t (Holy Mountain / Tlon Uqbar) 7" 6.98
Certainly one of the best things about working at a record store is coming across new bands that give you that undefinable, but very real feeling in your stomach where you can't imagine having ever gone on without THIS band. Even better is discovering something from the distant past (not too distant in this case), something whose existence could have eluded you forever had good fortune not smiled down in the form of a reissue.
Onna were the Japanese duo of Keizou Miyanishi and Mafuyu Hiroki, whose 1983 7" has thankfully been rescued from obscurity by the mighty Holy Mountain label, and has been blowing minds left and right here at aQ. One of the coolest things about this record is just how surprising and unexpected it all was, the whole "1983" part in particular. With a nod to the past but no doubt out of place in the early 80s, Onna were without question inhabiting a world of their own. The most obvious point of reference soundwise would be legendary psych/noise enigma Les Rallizes Denudes, especially in the vocal department. This is a very good thing for anyone who loves those somewhat lazy, partially detached, Japanese sung vocals of groups like LRD and LSD-March.
The use of a drum machine keeps these two songs pulsing like a mechanical heartbeat, which when combined with the fairly free form guitars, definitely gives this record its own vibe. Side 1 begins with a meditative two chord lament before noisy, white hot guitar squalls begin creeping about in the distance as simple and repetitive bass lines keep the foundation strong and focused. The second track introduces catchy psych guitar chords with a machine modified quasi-girl group drumbeat, the bass again holding things down nice and steady. The heavily reverberated strummed guitars bubble about as fake cymbal explosions recede and return over and over again, until a prolonged fadeout is replaced by a locked groove note that keeps this record spinning endlessly, just as it should.
The lack of information on Onna only adds to the mystery (and just a note, they are not affiliated with those other Japanese psych monsters Christine 23 Onna). PSF has issued an album by the group called Katawa, which we will definitely be paying close attention to after this 7". Until then, the only things we have to judge the duo by are the perplexing ugly/beautiful cover featuring an androgynous female figure lying naked on a bed (is she sick and decaying? is she just hanging out in bed? waiting for a lover?), and more importantly, their music, which we cannot recommend highly enough. Seriously, how many 7" singles would receive this much of a write up? You know this one is a winner.
PS for the non-turntable-havin' folks, apparently these tracks are also to appear on an upcoming cd collection Holy Mountain's putting out with other Onna stuff...

ONNA-KODOMO Syuuka (Charnel Music) cd 12.98
Japanese female dream-rock trio, of violin and bass and voice, as last heard on the Tokyo Flashback Vol. 4 and Land of the Rising Noise Vol. 2 compilations. Ethereal atmosphere from a group who, as Jim puts it: "drifts in and out of aural existence with a haunting array of delicate tonalities."