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previous record label: krabbesholm hojskole		there are 91 titles on kranky in stock. they are listed below.		next record label: kubitsuri tapes

$12.01

new to stock as of
november 1st, 2007

threads:
modern-psych

kranky (usa) #krank 113 cd

charalambides “likeness” compact disc

uncloudy day (11:02)
do you see? (7:21)
figs and oranges (5:51)
memory takes hold (13:24)
the good life (4:35)
saddle up the pony (7:15)
feather in the air (7:15)
walking through the graveyard (3:35)
what you do for money (8:56)

click the play button to hear an excerpt of "do you see?"

kranky press release...

artist: charalambides
title: likeness
catalog #: krank113
formats available: cd
release date: october 29, 2007

likeness is the newest release from the duo of tom and christina carter. recorded over a period of several weeks during the spring of 2006, the album is a return to the spontaneous composition of previous charalambides records such as houston and union. with the exception of "the good life", which appeared in a primitive version on the wholly other cdr home, all of the tracks on this release sprung forth after 'record' was pressed, and were fleshed out via overdubs, editing, and a malfunctioning space echo over the course of the next few months.

lyrical content largely derives from public domain american popular song from the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, edited, rearranged, and largely deconstructed by christina into abstract 'protest' songs for the century at hand. musically, the album departs from the warm psych of a vintage burden in favor of the lush and layered vocal strata of christina's later solo works, and a chillier, more abrasive guitar sound that favors the velvets over the byrds.

though containing much of the compositional concision that gave a vintage burden much of its appeal, the sound here just as frequently turns the corner into the abstract echoing spaces that characterize the more discordant sounds of charalambides at the dawn of their kranky residency.

$12.01

new to stock as of
november 1st, 2007

threads:
digital-musics
modern-psych

kranky (usa) #krank 112 cd

to kill a petty bourgeoisie “the patron” compact disc

the patron (5:48)
the man with the shovel, is the man i'm going to marry (8:00)
lovers & liars (6:10)
long arm (7:51)
dedicated secretary, liason, passionate mother (2:01)
i box twenty (4:20)
you guys talk, we'll spill our guts (7:06)
with brass songs they'll descend (3:57)
very lovely (7:38)
window shopping (3:14)

click the play button to hear an excerpt of "i box twenty"

kranky press release...

artist: to kill a petty bourgeoisie
title: the patron
catalog #: krank112
formats available: cd
release date: october 15, 2007

the patron is the debut full length release by to kill a petty bourgeoisie. the songs center around an underlying love story between two merging corporations that manage to capture the raw sentiment of isolation, profound discovery, and morbid betrayal. the patron is about the corruption of an idea that is at first welcomed and later destroyed.

the recording process typically began with a basic vocal and guitar structure which was then slowy developed by adding electronics and manipulating sounds, until the orignal outline is blurred yet still identifiable. the steady passing of sounds and samples are most important to tkapb's recording process, and they rely heavily on the loss of translation between each pass.

but the importance of the technical details of any sound recording should be considered infinitesimally small when measured against the end result. many sound artists have read both the pop and noise manifestoes and tried to join the two seemingly opposed theories into a cohesive whole, yet few have succeeded. invariably, the artist makes a conscious or subconscious decision to stand firmly in the one camp where their beliefs truly lie and to occasionally tip the cap to the other to remind both themselves and the listener of their original intent. what tkapb have produced however, is a near perfect storm of structure and chaos, melody and noise, the precise and the random, fused into their own unified musical theory of everything that at times soothes while simultaneously grabbing your throat.

$12.01

new to stock as of
november 1st, 2007

threads:
modern-psych

kranky (usa) #krank 109 cd

andrew pekler “cue” compact disc

on (6:30)
roomsound (4:08)
pensive boogie (1:57)
steady state (4:11)
rockslide (4:57)
dust mite (1:24)
vertical gardes (3:42)
dim star (3:47)
contact (4:44)
mote (1:07)
floating tone (8:16)
untitled (0:30)
untitled (3:28)

click the play button to hear an excerpt of "dim star"

kranky press release...

artist: andrew pekler
title: cue
catalog #: krank109
formats available: cd
release date: may 21, 2007

from andrew pekler:

“typically, library music albums were not available to the general public but were marketed directly to film, tv and commercial production companies. judging by the information provided on the record sleeves, these consumers of library music were assumed to have little interest in the identities of the individuals who actually wrote and played the music, the musicians' names often being relegated to the very small print. instead, it appears that the functional aspects of the product were of foremost importance; the persistently generic names of the tracks and their descriptions, durations and suggestions for their usage are the ubiquitous features of library album packaging. at the same time, the name of the production studio itself is given the kind of front cover top-billing usually reserved for a performer or composer (or to brand names on boxes of corn flakes).

a picture emerges of near-anonymous composers, musicians and arrangers going to work 9 to 5, producing music according to functional-aesthetic guidelines for a never to be seen customer, further removed than even the session players at motown or studio one ever were from the glamour of pop or the pretense of individual artistry. this sort of faceless assembly line production runs counter to the conventional (western) practice of connecting creative works with individuals deemed to be their authors.

on the other hand, this apparent anonymity and subordination to quasi-utilitarian determinants does have its own liberating potential. freed of the obligations of personal expression, one can simply work with the material at hand, concentrating on discrete aesthetic objectives without being unduly concerned for the overall "meaning" of the work. to paraphrase john cage, the artist is free to have nothing to say and to say it.”

with this in mind andrew pekler conceived and produced cue. starting from short expository phrases setting forth a track's instrumentation, mood and development (reproduced on the back cover), pekler attempted to construct pieces to fit these specific criteria. during the process of assembly a track would more often than not evolve beyond its prescribed limits (in these cases, the descriptive blurbs have been updated to reflect the changes). this "dog walking man" method turned out to be a fertile middle ground between the micro-managed jazz miniatures of nocturnes, false dawns & breakdowns (2004) and the expansive improvisations of strings + feedback (2005) and may help to explain why cue sounds very little like its predecessors.

on the whole it is a vibrant, playful album with the occasional somber passage providing some contrast to the predominantly ebullient tone. piano and analog synthesizer sounds abound while percussion (when used) is typically reduced to a minimum of tom toms, bells and unidentified noises. feedback can be heard in almost every track but taking on more subtle textural roles, guitars get the occasional spotlight and men are wearing pastels again this spring.

it should be noted that cue is not an attempt to re-create, re-imagine or re-contextualize library music of past eras. it is not a post-modern exercise in citation, juxtaposition or collage. the attempt to re-create the "style" of library music would be pointless anyway as the music found on library records does not adhere to any distinct stylistic or aesthetic formula. instead, library music can be defined by the formal constraints pertaining to its mode of production and it is the appropriation and application of these same constraints that have enabled and inspired andrew pekler to produce the music for this album.

andrew pekler has previous releases on scape and staubgold, is one third of the kosmischer pitch live band, and is part of an as yet unnamed project with jan jelenik and hanno leichtmann.

$12.01

new to stock as of
november 1st, 2007

threads:
beat-research

kranky (usa) #krank 108 cd

strategy “future rock” compact disc

can't roll back (6:20)
future rock (9:07)
running on empty (8:59)
windswept (interlude) (2:15)
stops spinning (5:34)
phantom powered (6:43)
sunfall (interlude) (2:59)
red screen (8:24)
i have to do this thing (planete sauvage mix) (7:02)

click the play button to hear an excerpt of "red screen"

kranky press release...

artist: strategy
title: future rock
catalog #: krank108
formats available: cd
release date: may 21, 2007

this is paul dickow's second full length for kranky and third as strategy. he is extremely busy running the community library label, which will be releasing a 12" version of this album's title track, while also collaborating in the trio nudge, and recording and performing solo work.

three years have passed since drumsolo's delight, and strategy finally comes forward with a new full-length. his third album to date, future rock focuses strategy's diverse interests into a single point, while still drawing directly from the dense, shimmering sonic language established on delight.

based on a refined studio process that incorporates multi-tracked live instrumentation, archaic synthesizer equipment, archived recordings of improvisations and band practices, digital sound design, and sound of non-musical origin, the album is a polyglot solution of genres. musical quotations, discrete sonic jokes, and skewed musicological impressions are blended into a dream-like, impressionistic musical composite which confounds and compounds music's past, present, and future. a gauzy, vibrating curtain of sound, much like the one that made drumsolo’s so distinctive, ties together all the songs as do the signature wurlitzer electric piano and old-school spring reverb.

incorporating compositions that have taken years to develop, a handful of close collaborators (including his cohorts from the band nudge), and using source material that dates as far back as 2000, future rock is easily strategy's most complex, narrative, ambitious and overtly "pop" record to date; as well, it's practically a thesis statement for his vision of a genre-free musical world. to date you've heard strategy dabble in everything from headphone-oriented ambient music to house and dub; this is the work that brings it all together.

$7.21

back in stock as of
november 1st, 2007

first in stock on
april 13th, 2007

threads:
modern-psych

kranky (usa) #krank 107 cd

deerhunter “fluorescent gray” compact disc single

fluorescent grey
dr. glass
like new
wash off
bonus: video for "strange lights" from cryptograms directed by james sumner

click the play button to hear an excerpt of "wash off"

april 2007 release; a post-album e.p. by this gang of chicagoland miscreants.
i’m a fan. sue me...

kranky press release...

artist: deerhunter
title: fluorescent grey
catalog #: krank107
formats available: cd ep
release date: april 16, 2007

four new songs recorded while mixing cryptograms. a snapshot of what direction the band might explore next? probably not.

this ep arrives on the heels of a well received sophomore lp, cryptograms. while exploring themes not especially dissimilar, the ep functions in many ways as an epilogue to both the lp and the accompanying well-reported anxiety surrounding it's creation. the band now has a clean slate to explore something entirely new in the future.

$14.41

new to stock as of
november 1st, 2007

threads:
modern-psych
minimalism-drones
guitar-themed

kranky (usa) #krank 106 cd

lichens “omns” digital versatile disc and compact disc set

vever of agassou (4:57)
faeries (8:19)
bune (8:46)
m st r ng w tchcr ft l v ng n sp r t (18:41)
sighns (2:27)
dvd: live at chicago's empty bottle

click the play button to hear an excerpt of "vevor of agassou"

kranky press release...

artist: lichens
title: omns
catalog #: krank106
formats available: cd+dvd
release date: may 7, 2007

the second long player from lichens, like his first, the largely improvised the psychic nature of being, is an ascent to a higher plane. rob lowe's sound recordings are of a distinctly personal nature, works turned inward as much as they are projected outward.

this new album was conceived with the idea of it being a continuation of the first, while using slightly different techniques in recording and editing; from multitracking individual passes, and pulling single tracks in and out of the mix ("vevor of agassou" "faeries"), to opening up into a completely different process by overdubbing multiple tracks ("m st r ng w tchcr ft l v ng n sp r t"). all this while remaining firmly within the realm of improvisation, augmented with the use of skeletal frameworks.

the accompanying dvd video contains a single live 28 minute performance from chicago's empty bottle that was recorded in 2006. all lichens live shows are individual events and are not mere duplications of previous performances. thus, the performance here is a unique snapshot of the lichens live experience. the film was directed and produced by mary scherer and edited by todd mattei.

$12.01

back in stock as of
november 1st, 2007

first in stock on
april 13th, 2007

threads:
modern-psych

kranky (usa) #krank 105 cd

valet “blood is clean” compact disc

april 6
blood is clean
burmajuana
tame all the lions
mystic flood
my volcano
sade 4 bri
north

click the play button to hear an excerpt of "north"

kranky’s mass-market reissue of this previously cdr-only title by jackie-o motherfucker / nudge member honey owens. the original press-blurb went something like :

"blood is clean: is her first solo full length cd. sounds like jon hassell, haitian voodoo drums and chants, sade ice cream melt, dream-time feedback loop, psychedelic paint spill, acid-fried guitar, hand drum, ambient blues raga. covers are hand silkscreened. deep psychedelic tribal blues.”

this is a good one; glad to have back in print, esp. as the original yarnlazer version sold out before anyone had to chance to check it out...

kranky press release...

artist: valet
title: blood is clean
catalog #: krank105
formats available: cd
release date: april 16, 2007

blood is clean is the debut release by honey owens under the name valet. the songs were formed out of a natural and spontaneous process as separate incidents of recording over a 5 month period from january to may of 2006. they were recorded by and large in single, live takes with minor additional tracking added here and there. the results are at once spare and expansive; exploratory, yet deceptively simple.

honey wanted to make music that was not neccessarily of her, but rather "to be a medium channeling sounds from an unknown place, opening up and spilling out onto the computer-tape." the cryptic, mesmerizing sound pallete was inspired by "lucid dreams and physical artifacts that appeared to me daily that hinted at a sound-world of haitian voodoo drumming, various shamanic dreamtime musics, the velvet underground, and the 'fourth-world' concepts of jon hassell". we will just say that these are some of the most inspiring alien-psychedelic-blues-jams that we have heard in ages. and check out the absolutely fried guitar work from the outer edge of the galaxy on the title cut.

$14.41

back in stock as of
november 1st, 2007

first in stock on
april 13th, 2007

threads:
modern-psych

kranky (usa) #krank 104 lp

deerhunter “cryptograms / fluorescent grey” double long playing record set

intro
cryptograms
white ink
lake somerset
providence
octet
red ink
spring hall convert
strange lights
hazel st.
tape hiss orchid
heatherwood
fluorescent grey
dr. glass
like new
wash off

click the play button to hear an excerpt of "spring hall convert"

april 2007 release; a double-lp containing both the “cryptograms” album and the successive “fluorescent grey” ep ...

kranky press release...

artist: deerhunter
title: cryptograms / fluorescent grey
catalog #: krank104
formats available: dlp
release date: april 16, 2007

cryptograms :

cryptograms is the second full-length offering from deerhunter, and their first for kranky. the album took almost two years to finish and was the product of emotional, physical, and financial strain on the group. the result is an album that finds the band shifting from discordant catharsis, and forming a sonic identity that completely expresses the place from which they have arrived.

the album functions in part as a study in duality and the concept of the same experiences seen from two angles, present and past. the most obvious manifestation of this is in the chronological sequencing. the first half of the album was recorded first unsuccessfully in 2005. these recordings were a blur at best, wordless and bordering on psychological atrophy. the sessions failed to provide anything tangible, and were racked with technical and personal problems, including out-of-tune pianos, panic attacks, and a tape machine that seemed to fail to capture the full spectrum of ambience the band was exploring. the band returned home, having failed, and considered giving up.

the idea arose to give it one last shot and exactly one year from the date of the recording of their first self-titled lp at a small studio in rural ga, they returned to that same studio and plugged in. the session resulted in the first half of the record which was recorded in one day and completely filled the reel of tape they brought with them.

cryptograms' first side begins with an introduction leading to the title track, and ends with the tape literally spinning off the end of the reel in the middle of a drone layered with bells and accordion ("red ink"). the second half of the record, also recorded in one day, in the november of 2005, represents the band in an entirely different state. "spring hall convert" opens with the line, "...so i woke up..." and introduces a set of focused psyche-pop songs fixating on adolescence, illness, and failing connections.

fluorescent grey :

four new songs recorded while mixing cryptograms. a snapshot of what direction the band might explore next? probably not.

this ep arrives on the heels of a well received sophomore lp, cryptograms. while exploring themes not especially dissimilar, the ep functions in many ways as an epilogue to both the lp and the accompanying well-reported anxiety surrounding it's creation. the band now has a clean slate to explore something entirely new in the future.

$12.01

back in stock as of
november 1st, 2007

first in stock on
april 13th, 2007

threads:
modern-psych

kranky (usa) #krank 104 cd

deerhunter “cryptograms” compact disc

intro (2:50)
cryptograms (4:17)
white ink (4:59)
lake somerset (3:49)
providence (4:08)
octet (7:50)
red ink (3:40)
spring hall convert (4:29)
strange lights (3:38)
hazel st. (3:48)
tape hiss orchid (1:12)
heatherwood (3:37)

click the play button to hear an excerpt of "spring hall convert"

kranky press release...

artist: deerhunter
title: cryptograms
catalog #: krank104
formats available: cd
release date: january 29, 2007

cryptograms is the second full-length offering from deerhunter, and their first for kranky. the album took almost two years to finish and was the product of emotional, physical, and financial strain on the group. the result is an album that finds the band shifting from discordant catharsis, and forming a sonic identity that completely expresses the place from which they have arrived.

the album functions in part as a study in duality and the concept of the same experiences seen from two angles, present and past. the most obvious manifestation of this is in the chronological sequencing. the first half of the album was recorded first unsuccessfully in 2005. these recordings were a blur at best, wordless and bordering on psychological atrophy. the sessions failed to provide anything tangible, and were racked with technical and personal problems, including out-of-tune pianos, panic attacks, and a tape machine that seemed to fail to capture the full spectrum of ambience the band was exploring. the band returned home, having failed, and considered giving up.

the idea arose to give it one last shot and exactly one year from the date of the recording of their first self-titled lp at a small studio in rural ga, they returned to that same studio and plugged in. the session resulted in the first half of the record which was recorded in one day and completely filled the reel of tape they brought with them.

cryptograms' first side begins with an introduction leading to the title track, and ends with the tape literally spinning off the end of the reel in the middle of a drone layered with bells and accordion ("red ink"). the second half of the record, also recorded in one day, in the november of 2005, represents the band in an entirely different state. "spring hall convert" opens with the line, "...so i woke up..." and introduces a set of focused psyche-pop songs fixating on adolescence, illness, and failing connections.

$12.01

back in stock as of
november 1st, 2007

first in stock on
april 13th, 2007

threads:
modern-psych
minimalism-drones
guitar-themed

kranky (usa) #krank 103 cd

christina carter “electrice” compact disc

second death (10:36)
moving intercepted (8:26)
yellow pine (8:47)
words are not my own (12:29)

click the play button to hear an excerpt of "second death"

kranky press release...

artist: christina carter
title: electrice
catalog #: krank103
formats available: cd
release date: september 18, 2006

christina carter approached her new solo album with the specific idea of recording all of the songs in the same key and using the same guitar tuning. while some artists would be hampered by such self-imposed constraints, christina uses it to her advantage by exploring seemingly innumerable ways to twist and turn the same basic notes into new shapes, creating just as much a mood as a song cycle.

when asked to give her thoughts regarding this new album, christina carter responded with fragments rather than linear composition:

"continuing with subterranean song writing eliminating excess elements, at the same time expansive because the 'mixing' of the record doesn't mimic the sound of a 'live' band more cinematic or sculptural, feeling of being a human body... piano-like guitar... two personal songs, two universal songs idealization and memory... songs created instantly, not knowing what i was going to sing about until i sang, but i have a few ideas that i carry around with me for extended periods until they find a place natural and artificial are two sides of the same coin... often, it is best to do the opposite of what you think you should do... inspired by 60's album art and band photos of floating heads, slight physical 'defects' and skeletal uncoordination, anachronistic futurisms, the idea of 'drone' (4 different songs from the same basic musical elements), dance choreography, and living with chronic pain..."

with electrice, christina has created the most cohesive and fully realized version of her unique musical vision to date.

electrice is the first widely available album from christina carter since the reissue of her living contact album by kranky in 2004. the album was recorded, mixed and edited entirely by her. one of the two core members of charalambides, christina carter has been making her own path in both that ensemble as well as with her solo releases for almost 15 years.

$12.01

back in stock as of
november 1st, 2007

first in stock on
april 13th, 2007

threads:
electro-acoustic-composition
minimalism-drones
lo-fi

kranky (usa) #krank 101 cd

chris herbert “mezzotint” compact disc

stab city (7:50)
elisa (6:14)
untitled #1 (1:25)
chlorophyll (6:21)
untitled #2 (1:46)
suashi (6:37)
untitled #3 (1:42)
horse latitudes (7:50)
untitled #4 (1:37)
cassino (10:05)
let's get boring! (7:58)
untitled #5 (1:55)

click the play button to hear an excerpt of "cassino"

kranky press release...

artist: chris herbert
title: mezzotint
catalog #: krank101
formats available: cd
release date: september 18, 2006

mezzotint is a collection of digital, textured pieces assembled through the extensive manipulation of found sounds and environmental sources. a dedicated non-musician, chris herbert has a long-standing interest in intuitive composition and the elastic nature of sound as a resource, influenced by the collage ethic and the instantaneous capture of performance.

working with decidedly low-tech methods (chris uses minidiscs, a battle-worn desktop pc and a badly-behaved delay pedal), many of the tracks came into being through guerrilla sessions during his day job. the pieces are essentially improvisations created by extended rehearsal and juxtaposition.

mezzotint is the consequence of a continual process of subtraction and composting, leaving just a trace of melody or the implication of rhythm. the result is a spontaneous, embracing the mystery of faraway broadcasts and the internal experience: a clouded, busy music of vertical activity and blended, indistinct color as opposed to narrative uni-direction.

chris' signature swampy, gaseous, and even dirty, crumpled sound is a welcome contrast to the clean, edgeless granular cloud aesthetic employed by an increasing number of artists.

$14.41

back in stock as of
november 1st, 2007

first in stock on
april 13th, 2007

threads:
modern-composition
minimalism-drones

kranky (usa) #krank 100 cd

stars of the lid “and their refinement of the decline” double compact disc set

dungtitled (in a major) (5:54)
articulate silences part 1 (5:24)
articulate silences part 2 (5:37)
the evil that never arrived (5:04)
apreludes (in c sharp major) (3:44)
don't bother they're here (10:10)
dopamine clouds over craven cottage (5:54)
even if you're never awake (deuxième) (9:20)
even (out) + (4:51)
a meaningful moment through a meaning(less) process (4:32)
another ballad for heavy lids (4:32)
the daughters of quiet minds (13:21)
hiberner toujours (1:49)
that finger on your temple is the barrel of my raygun (5:04)
humectez la mouture (5:31)
tippy's demise (8:18)
the mouthchew (3:40)
december hunting for vegetarian fuckface (17:45)

click the play button to hear an excerpt of "apreludes (in c sharp major)"

double-disc cd version... but seriously; if you have access to a turntable, please get the triple-vinyl version... honestly; how many triple-lps do you think are left in this world?

kranky press release...

artist: stars of the lid
title: and their refinement of the decline
catalog #: krank100
formats available: 2xcd / 3xlp
release date: april 2, 2007

the long awaited new album from stars of the lid is finally ready for your sonic immersion. painstakingly recorded, processed and assembled over the last five years, sotl once again deliver a massive work filling two compact discs and three vinyl albums, clocking in at over two hours. while most albums of this length would be considered tedious at best, sotl are arguably the only contemporary composers who can seemingly alter the time-space continuum simply through the playback of their organized sound. they take time itself and stretch, compress and turn it inside out, altering what would otherwise be an arduous test of nerves into an interlude of half awake dreams that ends too soon.

in this album, sotl picks up where the tired sounds of... left off with an emphasis on melodic development, moving their epic soundscapes beyond mere drone and subsequently frustrating all the typical ambient cliches associated with their music. perhaps the best references for this current work would be found in the score to the film le mepris by georges delerue, the orchestral works of zbigniew preisner, or the 1958 cso/ fritz reiner recording of hovhaness' mysterious mountain, specifically the third movement. but in the final analysis, such comparisons are superfluous at best, as stars of the lid have created a musical universe in which they are the sole inhabitant.

simply put, this album is a masterpiece.

$12.01

back in stock as of
november 1st, 2007

first in stock on
april 13th, 2007

threads:
folk
bedroom
modern-psych

kranky (usa) #krank 099 cd

boduf songs “lion devours the sun” compact disc

lord of the flies (5:27)
two across the mouth (4:02)
that angel was pretty lame (6:31)
great wolf of no tracks (2:45)
green lion devours the sun, blood decends to earth (6:51)
27th raven's head (darkness showing through the head of the raven) (3:43)
please ache for redemptive (5:02)
fall of cherry blossom in long shadows of twilight (3:45)
bell for harness (9:36)

click the play button to hear an excerpt of "green lion devours the sun ..."

kranky press release...

artist: boduf songs
title: lion devours the sun
catalog #: krank099
formats available: cd
release date: october 30, 2006

lion devours the sun is the first full length release from u.k. resident mathew sweet following his self-titled kranky debut ep released in the fall of 2005. it was recorded at home with a 4 track and a single microphone, using acoustic guitar and voice along with well placed touches of a cymbal-playing monkey, some bricks, an e-bowed autoharp, a homemade gramophone, and daggers.

the title derives from alchemical imagery, the sun representing consciousness and the lion symbolizing emotion. some of these songs contain actual invocations of demonic forces. not really. mathew states that "this is not folk music", and that someone told him that they think the first record "sounds humble and withdrawn and the new one sounds righteous and bitter". he agrees.

the debut boduf songs release garnered high praise from all reviewers. he has performed limited live shows in the u.k. and europe, and recently recorded a live session for the legendary vpro in amsterdam.

$12.01

back in stock as of
november 1st, 2007

first in stock on
april 13th, 2007

threads:
modern-psych

kranky (usa) #krank 098 cd

benoît pioulard “precis” compact disc

la guerre de sept ans (3:08)
together & down (3:08)
ext. leslie park (2:42)
triggering back (2:30)
moth wings (1:16)
alan & dawn (2:51)
corpus chant (1:43)
palimend (3:04)
coup de foudre (1:31)
hirondelle (2:22)
needle & thread (2:42)
r coloring (0:40)
sous la plage (2:59)
patter (2:58)
ash into the sky (3:18)

click the play button to hear an excerpt of "patter"

kranky press release...

artist: benoit pioulard
title: precis
catalog #: krank098
formats available: cd
release date: october 16, 2006

precis is the first album from thomas meluch under his musical pseudonym benoit pioulard. following a series of limited, handmade cassette and cdr releases for friends and family over the last several years, and the well-received enge ep (moodgadget 2005), precis arose as a documentation of a coming to terms with impermanence, marked by analog residue and the imperfections of human influence.

a multi-instrumentalist with an insatiable palette, pioulard bases most of his songs on treated acoustic guitars and honeyed vocals, backed by carefully layered bells, bass, dulcimer, old tape samples, field recordings and myriad other sources. these sounds, though sculpted roughly into pop songs, have their own delicate patterns of ebb and flow, distortion and disappearance.

from the sunny refrain of "triggering back" to the descent of nighttime chills on "needle & thread", precis sighs in time with the seasons. it's an album about him, her, and you; it's an exaltation of the ways these things end.

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modern-psych

kranky (usa) #krank 097 cd

jessica bailiff “feels like home” compact disc

what's inside your mind? (2:26)
we were once (4:27)
lakeside blues (2:35)
brother la (2:51)
persuasion (1:58)
cinq (2:18)
spiral dream (2:34)
evidence (2:11)
pressing (4:18)
if we could (2:45)
with you (2:48)

click the play button to hear an excerpt of "cinq"

kranky press release...

artist: jessica bailiff
title: feels like home
catalog #: krank097
formats available: cd
release date: july 10, 2006

feels like home balances the more accoustic approach to jessica's songwriting on her most recent (untitled) album with the blissed electricity found on her earlier material. gossamer vocals hover over delicate melodies, accented by tasteful bits of percussion, piano filigrees, and sundry guitar sounds. feels like home is the most refined example of jessica bailiff's musical vision to date.

it's the first full length of solo material from jessica in 4 years but she's been doing anything but taking a break. check her fruitful collaborations with dave pearce (as clear horizon), rachel goldstar (as eau claire), and jesse edwards (as northern song dynasty), as well as a featured appearance on odd nosdam's latest album where she made vocal and instrumental contributions.

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threads:
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kranky (usa) #krank 096 cd

loscil “plume” compact disc

motoc (5:38)
rorschach (7:42)
zephyr (4:20)
steam (6:29)
chinook (5:57)
bellows (5:15)
halcyon (5:48)
charlie (7:22)
mistral (4:58)

click the play button to hear an excerpt of "steam"

kranky press release...

artist: loscil
title: plume
catalog #: krank096
formats available: cd
release date: may 22, 2006

fourth full-length from vancouver-based sound artist scott morgan. he continues to refine the visual aspect of his performances and recently released a download-only drone album on net label, one.scott morgan notes: "compositionally, many tracks on plume are similar in approach to first narrows; they started with a harmonic root from which sounds were processed into a loose structure over which the live players could improvise. there was substantially less editing this time around with the live tracks. i opted to choose the better improvised passes and merely mix them in and out rather than cut them up. i think this leaves a lot more natural space and balances the heavily structured and repetitive electronic elements with more organic performed layers. jason zumpano returned from the first narrows ensemble and i also recruited long time friend steve wood and my partner krista to play some ebow guitar as well as josh lindstrom to play some xylophone and vibraphone which i believe added a nice new element into the mix.

thematically, i stuck with things that are quintessentially loscil; flow, subtle movement, gradual transition, growth. also of significance to this album is the family connection. "charlie" was composed after seeing/hearing my daughter sadie through ultrasound while she was still in the womb. the track was also partly composed as a womb-like sound experience for her to sleep to after she was born, hence the heart beats..."

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modern-psych

kranky (usa) #krank 095 cd

charalambides “a vintage burden” compact disc

there is no end (7:49)
spring (5:20)
dormant love (4:53)
black bed blues (17:37)
two birds (12:40)
hope against hope (5:13)

click the play button to hear an excerpt of "dormant love"

kranky press release...

artist: charalambides
title: a vintage burden
catalog #: krank095
formats available: cd
release date: may 22, 2006

the long awaited new album from the legendary charalambides, now pared down to the original core duo of christina carter and tom carter. after having exorcized some demons through the release of their last album joy shapes, here they have recorded a more melodic song cycle, reminiscent of their earlier albums union and market square. of particular note is the inspiring guitar work tom displays on the 18 minute instrumental black bed blues. with a vintage burden, charalambides have delivered their most cosmic and beautiful album to date.

no doubt the godparents of the whole "freak-folk", "free-folk", "new weird america", whatever scene, charalambides were wandering alone in that arid wilderness when they started recording and releasing their music via cassette in the early '90s. with enough artists now having sprouted to warrant the naming of an entire sub-genre, they are still at the head of the class. charalambides is where it all started.

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kranky (usa) #krank 094 cd

gregg kowalsky “through the cardial window” compact disc

ashes from everywhere (7:15)
that in allepo twice (7:33)
into the marshes they drove me (7:51)
coral gables (5:50)
long distance decade (8:28)
gara note (5:02)
tendrils (guitar pickup) (2:16)

click the play button to hear an excerpt of "coral gables"

kranky press release...

artist: gregg kowalsky
title: through the cardial window
catalog #: krank094
formats available: cd
release date: april 17, 2006

for through the cardial window gregg kowalsky used mic'ing and recording techniques to pull out hidden textures and frequencies from sound sources as diverse as recordings of the mills ensemble (he filtered a piece he wrote for the group through the pickup of an acoustic guitar), bowed acoustic guitar and a broken floor heater. "into the marshes they drove me" contains source material from the band isis. kowalsky made a track, using tones, harmonics and feedback loops. the music he creates is situated betwixt and between textural ambience, psychedelia and pure noise.

born in new york city and raised in south florida, gregg kowalsky has had the opportunity to perform throughout europe and the united states under the osso bucco moniker for the past several years. he participated in festivals such as wdr's soundart-köln festival, sonar, offf (online flash-film festival) and the nursery summer festival in sweden. he now resides in oakland, california where he completed a master of fine arts degree in electronic music and recording media at mills college with the guidance of fred frith.

kowalsky's compositions range from textural ambient to drone and noise pieces, which are highly influenced by the thick, humid air of south florida where gregg lived for most of his life. he is interested in filling the spaces his music occupies through dense, live, multi-channel mixes. he has composed for film, dance, acoustic ensembles and sound installations.

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threads:
modern-psych

kranky (usa) #krank 093 cd

bird show “lightning ghost” compact disc

field on water (5:16)
pilz (5:04)
seeds (3:42)
first path through (3:40)
beautiful spring (4:02)
lightning ghost (6:24)
greet the morning (4:10)
on the beach (6:32)
sleepers keep sleeping (4:11)

click the play button to hear an excerpt of "lightning ghost"

second solo album from ben vida’s bird show project... in those moments during the greater/latter half of 2005 when i wanted/needed to sit down with a cup of rooibos and just chill - more often than not i had “green inferno” on as my soundtrack - i have a feeling “lightning ghost” will serve the same service for points here and beyond ...

kranky press release...

artist: bird show
title: lightning ghost
catalog #: krank093
formats available: cd
release date: march 2006

lightning ghost is the second bird show album, following the debut release green inferno. it centers around ben vida's home-fi sound experiments. tracks are carved out of opiate'd chanting, disjunctive drum circles, synth meditation and prepared piano trance song.

vida's sonic explorations are embedded into tighter song structures, with a greater role given to vocals in the mix. the ceremonial air has been retained and expanded with a strong percussive presence and repeated, mesmerizing musical figures.

vida recorded the album at home, but much of the material resulted from the hours spent on stage this past year

$8.81

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threads:
minimalism-drones
concert-recordings
software-systems
analogue-synth
digital-musics
guitar-themed
electro-acoustic-improvisation

kranky (usa) #krank 092 cd

keith fullerton whitman “recorded in lisbon” compact disc

recorded in lisbon (41:41)

click the play button to hear an excerpt of "recorded in lisbon"

hello everyone! here is my new e.p. it was recorded on stage at lisbon’s brilliant galeria ze dos bois in october of 2005. it’s now april of 2006, just 6 months after the concert and here’s the disc already; i love kranky.

i chose this set from lisbon as my first proper solo live release as it just works on a few different levels... what starts out as a nice & serene playthroughs-bit (which almost comes across as a solo guitar/electronic take on “in a silent way”) slowly morphs into an incredibly loud & claustrophobic blast of “rising sound” courtesy of a self-evolving serge modular/eventide clockworks harmonizer patch and some particularly gnarly rectified electric guitar (thank you truly beautiful disaster.) this gives way to a long section of musique concrète involving the moving walkways in london’s heathrow airport, metal handrails in the 8-story stairwell of a belgian hotel, and an ad-hoc performance of lamonte young’s poem for chairs, tables, benches, etc. - these sounds were fed into the aforementioned serge, their timbral and volume envelopes converted into control voltages used to “play” a different patch. slowly a wave of “frozen” guitar chords creeps in, which is followed by a massive swell of squared-off playthroughs guitar, which was then bounced around the zdb space, recaptured in the system, then rebroadcast again in something of a feedback loop owing much to alvin lucier’s classic “i am sitting in a room. the piece slowly fades out after this abruptly cuts to a frail band-pass-filtered version of the same...

more than anything else i’ve done, you really need to be listening to this one through good speakers at at a fairly decent clip (i.e. “play it loud.”) computer speakers and/or headphones just won’t do it (unless you’ve got a pair of grados.) there’s much extremely low-end information that will bounce around your comfortable listening spaces quite nicely if you only give it the chance...

kranky press release...

artist: keith fullerton whitman
title: (recorded in) lisbon
catalog #: krank092
formats available: cd
release date: march 2006

a message from mr. whitman: "in october of 2005 i found myself wandering the streets of lisbon, entirely deaf in one ear, 75% the other (an artifact of witnessing first-hand the fine air-pressure regulation on four separate aer lingus flights), belly full of swordfish, just in awe of the city and its inhabitants. for the first since i could remember everything just clicked.

"those of you who have been lucky enough to get a copy of the recent 22 minutes for electric guitar tour-only mini-cd on entschuldigen may have an idea of just where my head's been at over the past year or so regarding the evolution of the "playthroughs" system of live/real-time guitar/computer synthesis; the piece i often play in concert has gradually been getting much darker, more dynamic, and in general; monolithic. i’ve started to embrace traditional "loud guitar" concepts (via a collection of bizarre, home-made/boutique guitar pedals) along with the sine-tone throb and "slow aerosol dispersion" of the classic playthroughs material. more recently, i've augmented the pure-guitar sound(s) with a collection of small, battery-powered sound-devices and several tapes of "automatic synthesizer compositions" (recorded this past summer on the same serge modular protoype and buchla music box 100 systems used on multiples) and field recordings from all over god's green earth. finally, on top of all that i've re-kindled my love of alvin lucier-lineage process music by placing microphones and small speakers / fm receivers / speakers around the space, capturing the sounds as they occur at various points in the room, feeding them back through the central artery that is the max-msp-based playthroughs patch, then out again to any number of locations...

"this recording, captured to hard disk on stage at galeria zé dos bois on october 4th 2005, is in my mind the perfect encapsulation of all of these elements into a single lilting piece of static sine-tone harmonics, squared-off electric guitar haze, clangorous room-tone eruptions, and high-end synth freakouts...

"note: in something of a sea-change to my modus over the last 10-odd years i've decided to relax, not sweat the details, let mistakes be mistakes and just let the music breathe without my normally prescribed 3-year gestation cycle of incessant editing, re-mastering, tinkering, etc... making this the shortest amount of time for any one of my musical ideas to go from conception to execution to release (all things going to plan; just five months from the concert itself to the disc on shelves...). the recordings are released in a cardboard pack adorned with high-contrast photos taken by yours truly during the lisbon trip, priced as a cd ep..."

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november 1st, 2007

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threads:
minimalism-drones
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kranky (usa) #krank 091 cd

chihei hatakeyama “minima moralia” compact disc

bonfire on the field (8:13)
swaying curtain in the window (8:25)
starlight reflecting on the surface of the river (7:00)
towards a tranquil marsh (4:46)
granular haze (7:21)
inside of the pocket (4:31)
beside a well (11:30)

click the play button to hear an excerpt of "bonfire on the field"

debut album from chihei hatakeyama, as seen previously on the excellent “small sounds” compilation on spekk... a friendly mix of acoustic and electronic sound-sources.

kranky press release...

artist: chihei hatakeyama
title: minima moralia
catalog #: krank091
formats available: cd
release date: february, 2006

chihei hatakeyama concentrated on the textures of sound in creating minima moralia, consciously avoiding the use of electronic sounds; instead using sound fragments made by guitars and vibraphone he played himself. the fragments were processed and reprocessed in live performances on laptop. the contention between the analog sound sources, digital processing and the musician's choices are what give minima moralia its positive, warm, and physical presence.

minima moralia presents the listener with tones that are familiar and tones that are foreign. specific points of sound appear and velvet clouds elevate and disperse over the course of the album. jumbles of melodies reveal and then resolve themselves. at all points hatakeyama's directing hand is at work; in the shiver of a guitar string, the bright ring of the vibraphone, and the strategic use of silence. the naturalistic song titles suggest every day moments, sensations and experiences.

personnel:
chihei hatakeyama played and processed electric guitar, acoustic guitar, vibraphone and electronics, mixed and mastered.
masahiro kobayshi played violin on tracks 4 and 6
tomoyoshi date contributed a few sound materials

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threads:
modern-psych
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kranky (usa) #krank 090 cd

windy & carl “the dream house / dedications to flea” double compact disc single

the eternal struggle (31:51)
i have been waiting to hear your voice (12:06)
ode to a dog (19:14)
sketch for flea (18:10)

click the play button to hear an excerpt of "sketch for flea"

new disc from windy & carl. includes the recent brainwashed “handmade” disc plus one other ep...

kranky press release...

artist: windy & carl
title: the dreamhouse / dedications to flea
catalog #: krank090
formats available: 2xcd ep
release date: november 7, 2005

the dream house is the first album of new material from windy & carl in five years. recorded at their home studio in dearborn, mi it consists of two tracks. the dream house is in many ways the duo's simplest and most straight-forward release, concentrated as it is on two evolving pieces. it is also windy & carl's most ambitious recording, with the duo deliberating on longer forms.

windy & carl are capable of sustaining melodic ideas and patiently apply attention to singular musical gestures. windy weber describes the album as being about "death and dreams and beliefs and leaving and moving on." the second disc, dedications to flea, are gentle tributes to a departed canine friend. the double cd ep package sells for the price of a single cd.

byron coley called windy & carl "the inventors of michigan space drone" in the wire in 2002. the two have released a number of albums and plethora of singles and compilation tracks (all compiled on their self-released introspection triple cd set). windy & carl have played across the united states and europe and are the only group invited to each of the terrascope festivals. their new release is made up of the dream house cd ep and a cd ep called dedications to flea, which was originally released on the brainwashed handmade label in an edition of 500 copies.

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november 1st, 2007

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threads:
modern-psych
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kranky (usa) #krank 089 cd

dawn smithson “safer here” compact disc

safer here
somewhere far
nowhere near
ticking away
speak through me
how thoughtless
letter to the empire
a new day
crossroads