outer space - arbor - lp – 16$
John Elliott’s Outer Space project is a laboratory for electronic investigation. Acting as a continuance of the studies of mid 20th century electronic music composers such as Nik Pascal and Laurie Spiegel, Elliott’s music is deeply indebted to the inner workings of the electric signal. Acting almost as a meditation, through the simple gesture of translation Elliott’s process begins to reveal itself as electricity is converted into acoustic pressure and potential; the melody of physics. The six recordings on the album are each a microcosmic view into Elliott’s practice; a keystone, illuminating his solo practice as well as his work as a member of Emeralds. Composed and recorded over the past three years without the use of digital synthesizers and arpeggiation; a record closely connected to a personal path, attempting to make sense, to understand one’s journey. Mastered by Keith Fullerton Whitman; pressed in an edition of 650 copies on clear vinyl with full color gloss covers and heavy stock printed euro-style inner sleeves.
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copper glove - surviving the garden of hate – arbor - 7" - 7$
Copper Glove, the new project from Baltimore’s Door (formerly Earth Crown; who shared splits with Secret Abuse and Kites on past Arbor releases), shows a further progression of his one man industrial-noise synth unit. In opposition to his former work, Copper Glove is more mindful of composition; utilizing tone generators and processed synthesis and vocals to present a dense cut up analog form of industrial concréte. Door’s nihilistic optimism carries itself with a sense of effortlessness; ideological aggression, a pure translation. With focused energy, the noise of the machine continues as man controls it. The city is destroyed but we can still live here, forever. In an edition of 300 7”s with silkscreened covers with white ink on metallic black paper and printed labels by Door.
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ryan garbes - real sugar b/w the lights – arbor - 7" - 7$
Ryan Garbes is the drummer of Iowa City bands such as Wet Hair, Dunebuggy, Trash Dog, and formerly Raccoo-oo-oon. His recordings under his own name represent a unique brand of solo multi-track recording with a seamless integrity; through a skillful use of instrumentation and recording technique, Garbes eschews notions of low fidelity for songs reminiscent of traditional American garage rock produced in the haze of an early 90’s UK aesthetic. Genuine pop songs, cloaked in a comforting wash of reverb, as if Lou Reed had done a record for Creation; more ecstatic than obstructed Garbes’ voice is a refreshing one outside the continuum of contemporary four-track bedroom pop. In an edition of 300 copies with full color sleeve and printed labels by Ryan.
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cloaked light / pale blue sky - split – arbor - lp - 12$
Working together, but differently. Clear Of, shows Cloaked Light working within a new mode; an expanded temporal sensitivity through field recording and discrete static chords. Slow movement- revealing growth and decay at the subtlest thresholds; disappearing music with a heavy presence, a shifting sense of space, not in the room, but of the room. Pale Blue Sky’s Someday, Sometime approaches a similar expansion of perception and unobscuring blur. Through tape manipulation, the inner workings of tonal relationships are placed under focus; extending time to reveal new moments; widening the view. Distorting to understand; a reorienting pause. Originally conceived to coincide with the Cloaked Light / Pale Blue Sky California tour with Pedestrian Deposit, Infinite Body, Earn, and Mirror to Mirror in January 2010; a testament to a common point and it’s different trajectories. Approaching the possibility. Mastered by Pete Swanson; cut at 45 rpm. In an edition of 400 copies with glossy jackets and inner sleeves.
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sun circle - lessness – arbor - 2xlp - 20$
Following in the tradition of minimalist composers such as La Monte Young, Yoshi Wada, and Charlemagne Palestine, Sun Circle exemplifies a contemporary focus on long form drone music. Members Greg Davis and Zach Wallace have shown their interest in the field most recently with extended works on Kranky and Root Strata respectively; together on Lessness, they show a deep-rooted interest in the power of simple forms. Building upon themes from their recent solo work (Davis’ subtly shifting tonal work with electronic oscillators and Wallace’s acoustic drone work on the glass armonica), Lessness is comprised of four side long works each exhibiting a different acoustic instrument in isolation. Exploring drums, tambouras (both rhythmic and droning), and gongs with a meditative precision, Davis and Wallace’s work seems at once both mechanic and human; the product of focus, revealing a vast beauty within the subtlety of the geometric potential of sound. In an edition of 400 copies with full color matte jackets.
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cloaked light - plain curtain – arbor - cass - 5$
These early four-track experiments from Peter Friel’s Cloaked Light project offers a look into focus. With the slowest subtlety changes grow, only perceptible through reflection. A new form of seeking to understand; a non-linear music, offering a space of contemplation to look forward and behind. On A Long Green Hall Friel shifts meaning and reorients the place of speech in a Lucierian experiment with self-help tapes. On But I’m Trying, subtle tonal expansions mirror the manipulation of speech on the previous track, though without the recognizable markers of language the result is more obscured. Each track offers insight to the others processes. Recorded in Summer 2009, these tracks are some of the earliest from the project, a precursory inquiry to the tapes on Ekhein and Monorail. Upcoming split 12” EP with Pale Blue Sky further explores the nature of tonal interactions and non-linear potentials of sound. In an edition of 125 copies with full color cardstock covers and labeled tapes.
pale blue sky - shades of grey – arbor - lp - 12$
Pale Blue Sky is the new project from Mike Pollard (formerly Treetops). Shades Of Grey is the project’s genesis; a long considered transition uniting the organic drone-work of the former project with compositional structures. The recordings embody a delicate sense of distance; staring out at the moving landscape obscured by the mediation of the window. Through blurred fidelity the origin of melody is placed under microscopic inquiry; an exploration into the moment of tonal interaction. Pale Blue Sky utilizes repetition and non-linear movements, attempting to reconcile simplicity, form, and sentiment through modes of difference. Placing focus on spatial concerns, as well as emotive potential, the five songs contained within are each different embodiments of the possibility of the transformative decay of remembrance. An ephemeral glimpse; the moment has already passed. For quiet, distanced listening. Mastered by William Hutson, cut at 45 rpm. In an edition of 400 copies with full color glossy jackets, printed inner sleeves, and printed labels.
brett naucke - southern california – arbor - cass - 6$
The debut release under his own name, Brett Naucke’s Southern California is an aptly titled seven track suite. In the nature of his other projects, Face Worker and Exercise, Naucke continues his exploration of upward advancement through a contemporary approach to ambient, classically new age music; here he wholly embraces discrete structures allowing the tracks to carry a natural progression, transparently simple though deeply considered. Recalling the work of early 80’s West Coast composers such as Ray Lynch, Naucke’s command of smooth synthesis is both meditative and active; drifting washes of light, organized tones. Translucent, linear growth; following the clouds across the sky. In an edition of 125 copies with full color cardstock covers and labeled tapes.
justin meyers - the amplitude of neighbors – arbor - cass - 6$
Minneapolis’ Justin Meyers has been producing extremely discrete musique concrete for the past few years. Through field recordings Meyers achieves a double sided voyeurism; his capturing of another’s space, and the listeners glimpse into his space. His care and precision demands attention with an unconscious magnetism; on Both Sides the recording of an outdoor summer’s evening is paired with subtle beating frequencies symbiotically shifting in and out of the other, producing a deeply compelling command over space. This same phenomena is explored on A Visitor: composed with simple sine waves, infinite variations of listening interaction are possible, imposing the piece directly within the space of the listener. In an edition of 125 copies with full color cardstock covers and labeled tapes.
gregg kowalsky - tape chants: early experiments – arbor - cass – 6$
Bay Area composer Gregg Kowalsky has spent the past few years experimenting with the cassette tape as an instrument; utilizing the placement of portable walkmen and the psychoacoustic effect of their natural interactions. This, Gregg’s first cassette release, presents experiments from his recent Kranky record, Tape Chants. On Early Experiments he uses cassettes as a way to transfer and manipulate environments. Through mechanisms of the tape player he can adjust pitch and amplitude, while through mixing he combines various sources and field recordings creating new, recontexualized moments. This simple though calculated approach harkens back to the earliest days of tape music and recorded sound; creation with what already exists, reorganizing natural occurrences. In an edition of 125 copies with cardstock covers and labeled tapes.
lazy magnet / social junk - split – arbor - cass – 6$
Jeremy Harris’ Lazy Magnet project has been active for well over a decade though the work has remained relatively shrouded in mystery. A true nomad; shifting location and inspiration, following whatever path may prevent itself. Under the Lazy Magnet guise, Harris has explored an innumerable amount of musical styles, adapting each to his uses. On “Yet From The Highest Crown No Blossom Fell” Harris (along with Sakiko Mori of Daily Life) explores the Sci-Fi textures of digital synthesizers. A drifting score from the Providence Futuristic District where man and machine meet to look inside each other. Philadelphia’s Social Junk present four tracks operating from a similarly paired Industrial Sci-Fi stance. Some of the groups strongest work, recorded in December 2008 while still living in Oakland, CA. Feedback is tamed into a smooth element, as pliable as the human voice. The union of these organic/inorganic elements create a unique sense of melody from within the warehouse; clearing away the trash, polishing the concrete. In an edition of 125 copies with full color cardstock covers and labeled tapes.
binges– return to whatever – arbor - cdr – 6$
Binges are a hometown favorite here in Chicago. Up until this point their music has existed to the public in one form: the live set. For the benefit of those outside of Chicago, the duo, comprised of drummer Chris Robert and guitar/bass/drum/mic/tape dude Anthony Decanini, recently teamed up with Midwestern Raccoo-oo-oon to cover the west coast with their syncopated improvisations. It is only fitting that their first release be made up of live material(recorded to DAT tape and mastered with the utmost care). Decanini creates a vast number of growing and receding loops from his guitar, bass, contact mic, tapes, and other sources which act as the perfect foil to Robert’s percussion(a serious thing to behold). It isn’t so much one person acting as the leader as much as the two creating an absolute sonic union of sounds blurring the line between free jazz and noise. In an edition of 200 screened CDRs in screened sleeves.
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villa valley – accused beasts – arbor - cdr – 5$
Being Michigan house party mainstays and touring/real life buddies of Haunted Castle, Villa Valley, prepare to fuzz out you frontal lobe with their magnum opus. Tracking in at just under an hour in total length, two really long tracks fill up this disc with metal scrapes, vacuous howls, and a new element, toy keyboards. These tracks are much more restrained than their previous output showing a definite direction and focus, most particularly the second track, which could arguably have a chorus and refrain. Subdued keyboards add a new layer to the murky manipulations and feedback howling for which VV is known. Make sure to catch these dudes on tour Drenches on their full US tour this June. In an edition of 80 sprayed/stamped discs with medical book collage art by the band.
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tusco terror – pyschedelic narcosis – arbor - cdr – 6$
Cleveland noiseniks, Tusco Terror, barrage the earth with their subterranean dirt worship. Having just released a split LP with Emeralds on Ecstatic Peace, this crew is ready to take their Midwestern gear slaughter beyond the realm of the breadbasket. Operating with a loose lineup usually ranging from 3-5 players all jamming in their own private zones, contributing their own part to the psychedelic nonsequitors and cosmic confusions contained within the recording. Pile upon pile of unrecognizable source contort themselves into an unrecognizable yet brutally intriguing end result. Don’t stop digging. In two editions: A( of 68 numbered copies in silkscreened, watercolored, and sewn sleeves with screened discs) and B (of 32 numbered copies in printed collage sleeves with screened discs).
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sarah's charity – code of red twin – arbor - cdr – 7$
Among the metal forests of Denmark, there is Sarah’s Charity. A maelstrom of expert tone work and free electricity; sounds so electric, yet still reminiscent of the flowing natural growth of fellow Danes Family Underground (it should be noted that Nicolas of FU helps out on track 2). This naturalism plus the actual sterility create a feeling nothing short of psychedelic. A wall of intense oscillation and soothing vacuous space ala Marcia Bassett’s various projects. Speaking of Marcia, SC is also famed for being the only non Bassett/Bower related project to be released on the esteemed Heavy Blossom label. In a numbered edition of 150 copies in absolutely beautiful mind tripping deluxe screened sleeves by Dylan Martorell, with screened discs and an insert.
tent/city – arbor - cdr - 7$
Past the desert smoke and arid dust trails of Arizona lies an Oasis of broken folk. Occupied by Tent/City, this area is like a river of creativity and blessed drones. Six artful dwellers armed with instruments ranging from pots and pans to synths and guitars, pianos and flutes, have the perfect recipe for clattery commune psych. Taken out of their natural habitat and thrown into the studio they offer these five tracks to the coyote spirit. The first three tracks act as studies focusing on different pairings of the featured instrumentation. This culminates in the fourth track, an epic 12 minute long jam full of rotted synth, flute prayers, electric guitar with hints of the raccoon’s good blessing, all over a foundation of unwavering percussion. In an edition of 90 triangle stickered cd-rs with an insert all in a hand sewn paisley pouch complete with button clasp.
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noise nomads - tone deaf – arbor - 2xcass & zine – 10$
Total Western Mass scum. Jeff Hartford (Grey Skull, Bonescraper) destroys all sonic barriers; forty minutes of harsh, sweating electronics and acoustic rampage straight from the gutter. Hartford always leaves the audience guessing, whether it is his cut up garbage sources, contact mic’d gurgles or hairwhips, the end result is guaranteed to be something physical. The truth lies somewhere within the mess of cables and the stack of amps; they must be destroyed to uncover it. In an edition of 100 double tape sets with printed labels and a zine housed in a 7” reel to reel box with full color paste on by NN.
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black monk - flowstone – nnf / arbor - lp - 12$
Flowstoned and dethroned, finally. Last year’s bored/burning summer spell of Eagle Rock entropy birthed a numb drum ‘n drones duo dubbed Black Monk. The aesthetic of inept, free-punk drumming and red-eyed, void-surfing low-end infinity found output on two micro-limited cassette releases (one on Buried Valley, one on Zac/Lambsbread’s Maim & Disfigure) and one weedian live show (in Tempe, AZ) and then the scholars split to separate coasts. Fortunately for us/you, Flowstone comes crawling outta the caverns of a babeless summer on a slab of black wax, collecting their out-of-print Murmur CS and half the V CS, plus an unreleased side-long wastoid-land of subterranean percussion and roaring magma. Just in time for 2012. Black vinyl LPs in stark pro-printed fold-over covers plus a poster of arcane team scribble by BM. Limited to 270.
sleeping babies –beneath the blood moon – arbor - cass – 6$
What is love? Love is… making eerie jams with your honey. This recently relocated BF/GF duo drop their first release on arbor. Creepy organ drones and hypo-hypnotic percussion carry your ears. Howls of a wolf in heat to the blood moon. Ritual dreams realized through vocal drones. Totally organic. Featuring members of Quilts. Limited to 50 numbered copies with art by the band and tapes salvaged from the swamp; stamped with a blood moon.
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trauma - calming effects of the ocean vol. 3 – arbor - cass – 6$
The third chapter of Trauma’s six part series (other volumes on Fag Tapes, Excite Bike, Tapeworm Tapes, Holy Cheever Church, and American Tapes) finds the Detroit duo of percussionist Ben Hall and guitarist Chris Riggs adrift in texture. Neither’s role can be distinguished; a seriously strange and pure approach. Percussive guitar and melodic drums intertwine denying all points of departure. The piece constantly advances incessantly in a blur of energy; almost non-human: like a field recording of playerless instruments outside during a rainstorm. In an edition of 100 tapes with full color cardstock covers and printed labels.
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druids of huge –ergotism/pure hype – arbor - cass – 5$
Chicago trio Druids of Huge rock, roll, and destroy the modern concept of a rock band. With a name that screams “hooded gods of shred”, the resulting sounds can be quite refreshing. Percussionary styles can change at any moment from Sword Heaven-esque pummeling and crash destruction to light jazz splash/tom simmering. The guitar feeds back from a massive Sunn amp and rips its way through the basement, fists pumping and beers spilling. Suitcase electronics provide a warm and massive tonal base, erupting with its own existence. Rip it real good, bro. In a numbered edition of 50 sprayed/stamped tapes in cassingle style sleeves.
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p.r.o.b.l.e.m.s.- narc grind / i came here to die – arbor - cass – 5$
recently formed la skate punk crew, p.r.o.b.l.e.m.s. consisting of britt from robedoor/not not fun and 2/3rd’s of black black bring two quick tracks utilizing socal sunshine vibes, skateboards, and a “fuck authority” attitude. dr. pepper and scab fueled thrash: grind the pigs; skate or die. jam this tape on repeat at yr favorite skate spot; positive negativity. in an edition of 75 tapes in cassingle style o card sleeves with black and white art/tape labels by the band.
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