DRONE WORKS #7
CDR 2005

20 very odd minutes recorded from inside the 'Rumble Tum'.
Part of the excellent series of 'Drone Works' released by Twenty Hertz.

Relevant links
Dyspepsia

REVIEWS
Vital Weekly
Unfortunally [sic] the name Andrew Liles is not very well-known, despite his albums for Nextera and Infraction. Maybe things will change with this release on the Twenty Hertz series, home of many nice names and certainly something to collect. The twenty some minute piece by Liles is among the most minimal work I have encountered from him in quite some time. Two or three gliding tones, maybe synths but it might also be feedback gently collide on each other throughout this piece, although half way through some nastier sounds bump in (making me think this is a live recording of sorts). One of Liles' trademarks, the extensive use of reverb, only appears at the end, with some highly reverbed cymbals kicking in. It's good to see that kept to a minimum. The last four minutes of this release have more musical action that the previous eighteen, but it's a suitable ending. Liles comes close to Eliane Radigue here and is a major step forward. (FdW)

CHAINDLK
Artist: ANDREW LILES
Title: Drone works # 7
Format: CD EP
Label: Twenty Hertz
Rated: ****
Within the recent, and much deserved, flow of releases by UK experimental soundmaker Andrew Liles, one shouldn't miss this single-track cdr, which proves how Twenty Hertz is currently one of the best drone-related labels around. The untitled piece begins with a paranoia-inducing atmosphere made of static, sombre sine waves slowly uncoiling. Total black hole-style ambient whose nearest relation could be Nurse With Wound's "Soliloquy for Lilith", or Colin Potter's works on Twenty Hertz itself. Then, about halfway, Liles imperceptibly starts changing the mood, transforming anxiety in an ecstatic stupor, until, in the last few minutes, more recognizable sounds (cymbals, half-whispered voices, water) gently wake you - or just lull you to a different kind of dreaming.
Eugenio Maggi

TOUCHING EXTREMES
Twenty Hertz's "Drone works" series is augmented by this impressive CD EP of Andrew Liles, whose oneiric soundscapes are silently wrapping and deceptively complex. Liles works at the margins of unfamiliar worlds; using electronics, percussion and found sounds he spirals around our ears, immobilizing our sense of alertness, putting everything in the middle of abstract savours and fuscous contemplations. Sounds get disembodied and ethereal without losing their strength during a 21-minute piece that flows much quicker in the head, the result of a mental standstill that's just apparent. Brilliantly haunting, it is without a doubt one of this collection's best.

QUIET NOISE
Das Twenty Hertz Label ist eines dieser Non-Profit-Unternehmen, das seine Nischenprodukte – hier: Abarbeitungen an der klassischen Disziplin Drones – aus reiner Liebhaberei in Kleinstauflagen vertreibt. Ich vermute, dass hier ursprünglich die Suche nach einer geeigneten Veröffentlichungsplattform Labelchef Paul Bradley auf das in solchen Bereichen keinesfalls seltene und genauso wenig abwegige Do it yourself Prinzip gebracht hat. In dem mittlerweile schon recht umfangreichen Katalog finden sich daher neben zahlreichen Alben von Bradley selbst auch so illustre Namen wie Andrew Liles, langjähriges Mitglied von Nurse With Wound und in dieser Szene seit vielen Jahren ein ganz großer Name, der mit dieser Veröffentlichungen seinen Beitrag zu einer aktuell neun Stück starken und schlicht Drone Works betitelten Serie leistet. So. Und damit könnte diese kleine Besprechung wohl schon enden. Weiß doch eh schon jeder, was jetzt wieder kommt: das übliche Geschwafel über Obertöne und sich mit schöner Regelmäßigkeit zu Schwebungen verdichtende, entrückt schimmernde Oberflächen ergänzt durch die erst in der zweiten Halbzeit substanziell in Erscheinung tretenden tiefen, sehr tiefen by the way, Frequenzbereiche; und der Leser wird sich fragen: ja, alles schön und gut – aber: ist das hier wichtig? Und ich werde antworten: Ja, lieber Leser, diese EP ist wichtig. So wichtig nämlich, wie diese wunderschön abgeklärten Spätsommertage, von denen wir in diesem Jahr noch maximal zwei Stück erleben werden, aber sie wird es nicht auf die Titelseite der Spex schaffen, das nicht. Und der Leser wird leise seufzen und weiter bohren, ob sie denn zeitgemäß sei? Und dann werde ich meinerseits seufzen und hier ein für allemal festhalten, dass ich überhaupt nicht wissen kann, was dieser eigentümliche Begriff mit Musik, die mich emotional berührt, zu tun hat. Und dass wir jetzt lieber schweigen sollten, weil grade die letzten drei Minuten des Albums anbrechen. Und dass diese drei Minuten, diese Auflösung des zuvor so homogen konstruierten Klangkörpers per Cymbals und Frauenstimmen-Samples nur im englischen adäquat beschrieben werden kann: utterly beautiful.

Tobias Bolt

ECR
Twenty-Hertz Drone Series #'s 1-10 (but not 6)

The earlier numbers in this series have been out for quite a while now but as I bought mine quite recently and as they are still available from the label (I checked) what started out as a review of #10 is now a review of, almost, the entire series. So, with a deep breath, here we go.

First up is label owner Paul Bradley's contribution which is a nice enough start to the series but feels quite tenuous and ultimately doesn't really go anywhere. Colin Potter arrives with #2, the first of his two installments. Shimmering and sparkling aren't words that you get to use often enough with drone music but both apply here. It covers a considerable distance over the course of its 23 minutes and it's all rather wonderful. Potters second appearance follows with #3's collaboration between him and Phil Mouldycliff. A wonderfully cavernous feel to the track, complete with the sounds of dripping water, serve to make this and altogether more orchestral and grandiose release than the others. Darren Tate's offering brings us back into the light with his superbly controlled mid-range drones.

Whilst Tate's contribution has the feel of 1950's sci fi movie about it, Freiband (Beequeen's Frans de Waard) offer us the sound of outer space. Piercing sine waves and deep, dark spacey drones serve to make this not only one of the more unique sounding in the series but also one of the best. For some reason #6 (Bass Communion) has been deleted so it's on to #7 which absolutely floored me. Andrew Liles is fast becoming one of the most talked about UK drone musicians and on the evidence of this it's a reputation well deserved. Crystal clear, tightly controlled and utterly sublime. Next up is Cheapmachines with an altogether more industrial sounding contribution. This is a much harsher take on the drone which is very welcome but as with #1, there's not really enough happening to fully keep my attention for the duration. If you really want to hear what this guy can do go to his website and download the stunning 'Lamina', you won't regret it. David Wells enters the fray with #9 taking everything up a notch wih his top-end digital fractures played against a constantly evolving backdrop of differing textures from organ drones to wave noise. For big chunks this is drone in name only but it is rather good.

Finally we get to #10 which I've read (in Vital I think) is to be the last of the series. If this is true then Irr. App. (Ext) provide one hell of a finale. Huge great tidal waves of sound surge from the speakers replacing the understatement of many of the others in the series with pure unashamed bombast. This is fab and it knows it but that's cool bescause this is by far the best of what is a pretty good series.